Project Plot – Play a Story Network (2025-2027)

“Project Plot – Play a Story Network” is an interactive Unity 3D educational software prototype and analytical tool that transforms complex storyworlds into navigable semantic networks.

Developed as the practical component of Pedro Mota’s practice-based theoretical PhD research entitled “RHIZOLUDENS SEMIOPHAGIAS: Semiotic Borders of Narrative Ecosystems in Collaborative Rhizomes”—originally initiated at the University of São Paulo (USP) in partnership with Cologne Game Lab (CGL)/TH Köln and supported by CAPES and DAAD scholarships—the project explores how intricate narratives, particularly transmedia narratives, challenge cognitive understanding. Crucial to Pedro Mota’s research, the application is intended to evolve into a multi-user online platform that connects fandom communities and other online users, enabling them to collaboratively map and dissect complex narratives within a shared gamified environment.

In a future alpha version, online users will be able to act as “media archaeologists” within a 3D narrative canvas, visualizing overarching storyworlds as Galaxies, Solar Systems, and Planets, while character arcs appear as Star Constellations in a Sky Map. This environment enables users to systematically map character arcs as sequences of connected narrative events and compare story structures across different media formats using tags, filters, and media fragments, ultimately reconstructing story plots by navigating a story network through play.

Left: Star Constellation View: systematization of several character arcs on a narrative tension vs. time graph within a given Narrative Work. | Right: Cosmic View: Different galaxies representing different Narrative Storyworlds

Under the supervision of Prof. Dr. Gundolf S. Freyermuth, this initial interdisciplinary prototype was developed entirely online at the Research Department of CGL during the Winter Semester 2025/26. The initial prototype phase of this project was made possible through online collaboration with an exceptionally talented team of alumni, bachelor’s and master’s students, as one of the projects developed at the Research Department of CGL. (full credits are listed in the illustration) The initial prototype had its first public presentation at the Cologne Game Lab’s Open Lab on February 4, 2026. The project is currently in development and is intended for future public release.

Left: Students playtest the prototype during the Open Lab event at the Cologne Game Lab | Right: Credits: CGL Prototype from Winter Semester 2025-26

More information: here.

Team – Cologne Game Lab:

LEADERSHIP & PRODUCTION
Pedro Mota | Research Lead
Thorsten Felden | Project Manager

DESIGN
Thorsten Felden & Pedro Mota | Design Co-Leads

ART
Sophia Fesel | Art Lead
Filipp Aronovitš & Aysu Ismail | Artist

PROGRAMMING
Julian Reiter | Programming Lead
Kinshuk Katahra & Maria Smirnova | Programmers

NARRATIVE DESIGN
Alexander Oemus & Pedro Mota | Narrative Design Co-Leads
Olivia Butzer, Run Zan, Elizaveta Nechunaeva (Lisa) & Kateryna Ilchenko (Rin) | Narrative Designers

AUDIO
Sarah Kempken | Sound Lead