This project focuses on the role of emotions, symbols, and repetition in what people pay attention to and remember. It began with a personal memory of the disproved idea that Stegosaurus had two brains, an idea that had remained clearer than other scientific information I had encountered at the museum. This experience led to a broader inquiry into why fictional, exaggerated, or emotionally unusual fragments are often retained in memory over time.

Drawing from memory research and speculative design, this thesis investigates how recognition and recall are shaped through repeated interaction. To explore this idea, I created an evolutionary game in which players guide a fictional creature through a series of branching symbolic choices that produce multiple transformations and outcomes. The symbolic icons change positions during repeated play, preventing players from relying on simple positional memorization and instead encouraging them to recognize and remember the symbols themselves to avoid repeated outcomes and complete the collection system.

The project explores how fictional storytelling, symbolic choices, replay, and emotionally distinct transformations can shape emotionally engaging moments through interaction and repetition. Finally, the thesis contends that emotional impact, replay, and symbolic recognition play a significant role in memory formation during interactive experiences.