Video game

Marble Breaker: Ascension

Ernest Lowe

Manchester, CT

Advisor: Zhenzhen Qi

Artist Bio

Ernest Lowe is a Digital Media and Design student at the University of Connecticut, pursuing a B.F.A. with a concentration in Game Design. Ernest’s practices in the digital media field focus on his passion for music and the various media he consumed as an adolescent, as well as his knack for creative writing and vast imagination. Throughout his schooling at the University of Connecticut, he has learned how to use the Adobe Creative Suite and developed a passion for making graphics, creating logos, and editing videos. Originally from Manchester, Connecticut, Ernest has worked on projects outside of school, personal and work-related, that has honed his skills in these areas as well. In the near future, Ernest Lowe aspires to work at a renowned game development or digital media company where his passions, knowledge, skills, abilities, and insights can be brought to life. He also has personal goals that consist of content creation, running various online businesses, and investing. Through hard work and dedication to his craft, he hopes to have a fulfilling and successful career in the digital media industry.

Artist Statement

Even with more freedom as I have gotten older, I still find myself reminiscing about when I was a child and had all the time in the world with no responsibilities. As an adolescent, life was a little easier than it is now. My uncle introduced me to video games and anime, which greatly shaped the direction of my childhood. I always enjoyed fighting, sports, and racing games, and puzzle games never really appealed to me — but there was one game that I could never stop playing: Marble Blast Ultra. My uncle had the demo version of the game on his Xbox 360, and my cousins and I would always play the free levels, wondering how difficult the restricted levels were. Every time I think about the game, I get a feeling of nostalgia as I remember the sound the marble would make as it was rolling, along with the game music.

Marble Breaker: Ascension is both a reflection and extension of my childhood, even though its main theme may seem like an outlier among my personal interests. Now that I am older, I do not have as much time to play video games, but I thought it was crucial to bring an important part of my adolescence to life. When most people get older, they tend to sacrifice their happiness to maintain other parts of their life. This game is a reminder to never forget what makes you truly happy.