Man, my posts keep getting less timelier and timelier. Hmm, to be honest, I really wanted to have a strong grasp on the major plot points of the narrative by last Sunday, but I was still struggling to have a firm grasp on my premise and my protagonist's personality. I guess it's good I mostly focused on the actual game mechanics instead, because, well, to be honest a structured plot is not an integral part of any game. I mean, I believe that story, even in minimalist games like Tetris, will always be present (I'm not going to delve into that), but it is in my opinion subservient to the rules that make up the game. Anyways, what I am trying to say is that although I wasn't able to come up with a set plot by now, I feel like I was able to be fairly productive. I kind of found it impossible to think about the plot without thinking about how it could be told.
I really should have thought of this earlier, but 'Game Design' should have been the first thing on my list of 'blocks.' Then following that there could be Coding or Writing. Game design really does require a lot of thought, and I always took it for granted until I started tackling design problems at lab and at work.
Well, as of now the premise is as follows:
You are an undecided undergrad student just beginning summer classes following your first year. Thanks to your nonchalant attitude you're in danger of getting booted out due to your atrocious grades, which has netted you an appointment with your adviser this morning. Much to your bewilderment (and relief) the whole campus is suddenly battered with snow and ice, effectively closing it down. Before you can kick back and relax, however, a strange child-like thing approaches you for help. And against your better judgment you find yourself compelled to help this strange child-thing get back home, launching you into a journey that will test your will and wit.
I'll probably just stick with this premise for now. I mean, Super Mario Galaxy had a ridiculous premise, and it ended up being insane-awesome. What I really wish I could do, however, is craft a story that naturally arises from the conflicting interests of the story's characters. I mean, right now I pretty much just have a plot device/ magical person fall from the sky and 'spur the heroine into action.' Which is painfully overdone. When the story is the product of a rich world with rich, multifaceted characters, then even the simplest story from that world can feel extraordinarily immersive and compelling.
One recent game I've played that really brought this aspect to my attention was the HTML5 game 'no-one has to die.' by Stuart Madafiglio. Oh, man: it's so simple, yet the way the narrative reveals itself through the motivations of each of the characters is just thrilling. It's a game that, counter to what I said earlier, builds itself around the central narrative. The mechanics are there to dictate how the story unfolds before you: you may still have great autonomy, but the game still holds control over the story's pacing and delivery. Everything is insanely simple. But that tightly-woven narrative and its delivery just really make this something else! It doesn't take long to play, so if you haven't played it and have time to kill it's definitely something to check out. ^_^ Many of its fans seem to compare it to 999: I'll have to check that out sometime.
Hmm, anyways, my priority with this game is to first and foremost just get it done. And of the various aspects I could focus on, I would say that creating an interesting, somewhat-novel game mechanic is priority for me. Some of the most memorable games for me (Earthbound, Phoenix Wright, Gregory Weir's the Majesty of Colors) had extraordinary writing, but if I don't have working code then I can't really present a story, no matter how awesomely-well crafted I may think it is. Right now I am working on drawing up a very lengthy list of all the features I'd love to include in a shiny, idealized, unrealistic super-version. After that, I plan on stripping that list down to its absolute bare minimum. I'll then break that minimum down into milestones, and try making just a bunch of little prototypes.
One of the things I've (very quickly!) learned at work is that you should code as stupidly simply as you can. Because you can always just go back and clean up/append to it later. If you try to architect out some perfect framework from the get-go, it can bite you hard later on, because the code has already lost some flexibility. So unlike my first attempt, where I tried to start backwards and make myself an editor, I'll be doing quick and dirty prototypes. My hope is to have at least one working and playable by the end of this week. Oh, also, lab has basically ended for me today, so I'll have more time to spend on prototyping as well.
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