Trashure

Overview

Trashure is a 2D RPG built in Unity as a thesis project exploring the question: what is the correlation between human gameplay and environmental issues? Against the backdrop of a thriving gaming industry and longstanding unresolved environmental problems, the game uses interactive storytelling to prompt players to subconsciously reevaluate environmental concerns while engaging in mainstream gameplay.

The game world is constructed from field research — real urban photography is pixelated and embedded as interactive game maps, environmental sounds recorded on-site become scene-specific background audio, and waste management knowledge gathered through interviews is translated into NPC dialogues. The result is a dystopian worldview where players absorb environmental information through exploration and mission completion rather than traditional educational methods.

Design Process

The project followed a research-driven design pipeline: field research informed both the visual and narrative content, which was then systematically integrated into game systems.

Layer	Description
Field Research	On-site photography, sound recording, interviews with waste management workers
Visual Pipeline	Vertical shooting method for urban documentation, pixelation into game-ready art
Audio Pipeline	Environmental sounds recorded per location, integrated as scene-specific backgrounds
Knowledge Integration	Waste disposal routes and recycling processes converted into NPC dialogue scripts
Game Systems	Inventory, dialogue, scene transitions, NPC pathfinding, monster AI

Features

Scene Transition & Sound System

Transitioning between different scenes triggers cinematic animations, and the sound effects evolve with the change of scenes. Each gaming environment carries distinct background sounds sourced from field recordings, creating an immersive audio landscape tied to real locations.

Inventory System

Items are encoded with distinct attributes — pickability, usability, and type classification — allowing the system to recognize them when picked up or discarded. The inventory bridges gameplay mechanics with environmental knowledge: waste items carry real-world disposal information.

Dialogue System & NPC Pathfinding

Each non-playable character is assigned diverse dialogues for storytelling purposes, translating field research knowledge into in-game conversations. NPCs follow a shortest-path system that guides them to specific locations at certain times of the day, simulating realistic daily routines like garbage truck routes.

Field-Research-Based Pixel Art

Urban areas are reinterpreted through photography and embedded into the game as interactive maps. The visual representation of waste is transformed into a satirical and adorable pixel art form through pixelation techniques, making environmental imagery approachable while preserving its documentary origin.