Design Research Dissertation / DIS60304
25/9/2025 - 25/12/2025 / (Week 1 - Week 14)
An Hongzheng / 0378415
Design Research Dissertation / DIS60304
Bachelor of Design (Hons) in Creative Media
TABLE OF CONTENT
2. Task 1: Draft Dissertation
3. Task 2: Visual Design Publications
4. Task 3: Final Dissertation
5. Task 4: Journal Article
6. Feedback
7. Reflection
INSTRUCTIONS
Figure 1.1: Module Information
TASK 1 - Draft Dissertation
Figure 2.1: Task 1: Draft Dissertaton
TASK 2 - Visual Design Publication
QR for e-publication book
 |
| Figure 3.1: QR for E-publication Book |
Figure 3.2: Visual Desgin for Publication
TASK 3 - Final Dissertation
Figure 4.1: Task 3: Final Dissertation
TASK 4 - Journal Article
Figure 5.1 Journal Article
FEEDBACK
Figure 6.1: Weekly Progression and Feedback
REFLECTION
Experience:
Looking back at this semester, the journey felt like leveling up in a high-difficulty RPG—starting with low stats and high anxiety. Honestly, when I first saw the requirement for a 7000-word Dissertation (Assignment 1), I was intimidated. Academic writing has never been my strongest suit, especially managing strict APA formatting and a solid methodology. Around Weeks 4 and 5, I really struggled to expand my work to meet the word count, constantly worrying if my literature review was "critical" enough.
Assignment 2 (E-Publication) was another reality check. As a design student, I thought this part would be easy. I initially created a cinematic landscape format with a black background, but Mr. Asrizal’s feedback in Week 10 hit the nail on the head—it was "bland" and didn't follow proper publication standards. I had to scrap it and switch to an A4 Portrait format, which taught me that design isn't just about looking "cool"; readability and context are king. The final challenge was Assignment 4 (KREATE Article)—condensing months of work into a concise journal paper was mentally tougher than writing the long dissertation.
Observation:
Throughout this process, the most surprising part was collecting data for my topic, "The Role of Character Design in Shaping Narrative Immersion." Analyzing the 91 survey responses changed my perspective.
I observed that players are much more observant than I expected. They don't just look for "beautiful" characters; they look for "Functional Realism"—muddy boots, old scars, or rusted weapons (many explicitly mentioned characters like Arthur Morgan or Geralt). This made me realize a key insight: immersion is often built not on perfection, but on the "imperfections" that make a world feel lived-in.
Findings:
This semester shifted my mindset completely. Before, I viewed character design as simply "making things look good." Now, through my research findings, I see it as a "Three-Stage Psychological Process": moving from Credibility, to Empathy, and finally to Identification.
Technically, I’ve conquered my fear of academic rigor and learned to synthesize messy data into clear arguments. I am incredibly grateful to Mr. Asrizal Razali for his patience, especially for the direct feedback on my layout mistakes. This project transformed me from a designer who draws based on intuition into a researcher who uses logic and data to support every creative decision.
Experience:
Looking back at this semester, the journey felt like leveling up in a high-difficulty RPG—starting with low stats and high anxiety. Honestly, when I first saw the requirement for a 7000-word Dissertation (Assignment 1), I was intimidated. Academic writing has never been my strongest suit, especially managing strict APA formatting and a solid methodology. Around Weeks 4 and 5, I really struggled to expand my work to meet the word count, constantly worrying if my literature review was "critical" enough.
Assignment 2 (E-Publication) was another reality check. As a design student, I thought this part would be easy. I initially created a cinematic landscape format with a black background, but Mr. Asrizal’s feedback in Week 10 hit the nail on the head—it was "bland" and didn't follow proper publication standards. I had to scrap it and switch to an A4 Portrait format, which taught me that design isn't just about looking "cool"; readability and context are king. The final challenge was Assignment 4 (KREATE Article)—condensing months of work into a concise journal paper was mentally tougher than writing the long dissertation.
Observation:
Throughout this process, the most surprising part was collecting data for my topic, "The Role of Character Design in Shaping Narrative Immersion." Analyzing the 91 survey responses changed my perspective.
I observed that players are much more observant than I expected. They don't just look for "beautiful" characters; they look for "Functional Realism"—muddy boots, old scars, or rusted weapons (many explicitly mentioned characters like Arthur Morgan or Geralt). This made me realize a key insight: immersion is often built not on perfection, but on the "imperfections" that make a world feel lived-in.
Findings:
This semester shifted my mindset completely. Before, I viewed character design as simply "making things look good." Now, through my research findings, I see it as a "Three-Stage Psychological Process": moving from Credibility, to Empathy, and finally to Identification.
Technically, I’ve conquered my fear of academic rigor and learned to synthesize messy data into clear arguments. I am incredibly grateful to Mr. Asrizal Razali for his patience, especially for the direct feedback on my layout mistakes. This project transformed me from a designer who draws based on intuition into a researcher who uses logic and data to support every creative decision.
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