Wenchao Lou, Memory · Home · Food (2021), 2D Mobile Game
Artist Statement
Memory · Home · Food (忆 · 家 · 食) is a 2D cooking game about traditional Chinese food culture, seasoned with memories of my family as a child. My work uses game narrative to affect the hearts of players, and introduces a new kind of cooking game that is guided by stories. This exploration into a narrative driven mini game compilation departs the traditional approach. By engaging the player narratively, I connect this dispartrate game element and provides a more cohesive experience that expresses my own story surprisingly. The game has players cook my family’s specialty dishes like my grandma’s fried eggplant box, my grandfather’s fish, my mother’s dumplings and my father’s tomato and egg noodles. With each dish the player can unlock different stories from my childhood. I hope this game can bring players into my home and share my family’s food and story. Through these stories I celebrate my culture and share traditional Chinese cooking with American audiences. Everyone’s memories of family and food are unique, and I hope that my game also lets players remember good times with their own families.
Biography
Wenchao Lou (b. 1997, China) is a game designer, visual designer and UI/UX designer. She graduated from The State University of New York at Buffalo (SUNY) with a bachelor’s degree in Media Studies and a game design certificate in 2017; during this time she discovered a love for digital media and game design involving immersive experiences, board games, electronic literature and 3D media. This passion drove Wenchao to enter the Master of Fine Arts program in Digital Media and Design from University of Connecticut to further study game design. During her program she also served as a Graduate Assistant in Greenhouse Studios, fostering meaningful work using digital tools as a medium. She is looking forward to working on game design projects.