No, no, we’re not working on world building. Whoops! My bad.
So, what we ended up putting together this week is the final version of the game mechanics that we’re going to try for at the outset (like, the first complete draft of the central game concept,) a process model for how we’re going to build assets and character models (a central repository for resources we can use to build discrete units of Stuff, like, feathers for the crow’s wings, paws for the rats, etc., etc.) and a list of maps we’re going to start rough-drafting. We also spent a lot of time working on the meta-progression– basically, each match you win, you get a better power-up to take into the next match. Lots of ink was spilled on how to build that out using our concept, and I think we have a really solid notion of what we want the meta progression to be.
This was one of our first design disagreements, too– I really want a lobby in which the character avatars have to experiment with the power-ups and decide which they want to carry forwards, Blake wants a less chaotic set-up in which the players vote. I’ll admit, the potential for hijinks in my pitch is astoundingly high. Though, I don’t know if that’s a bad thing! Trolling is, though, and we all agreed that limiting negative behavior would be best. We settled on a compromise between the two wherein players vote between rounds for the next power-up, while the main lobby of the game features a room dedicated to experimentation. Maybe the antechamber for the championship round? Remains to be seen, and we’ll probably adjust the concept when we get closer to it being relevant.
The other thing we did today was make lists.
You guys, I love lists.
One of the things I’m learning is that getting down what you’ve decided about a certain part of the game is an essential step in conceptualization. Whether or not you end up going with that as a final part of the design isn’t the goal at this stage– rather, it lets you zoom out and see the whole thing at once, without having to juggle different parts in your mind. Refining the concept–reviewing each piece, adjusting, giving a thumbs-up or thumbs-down–is a living process, and lists are how I tend to start getting an idea of what needs to be done, and what needs to be expanded, addressed, adjusted, or fixed. So, right now we’re rolling on lists of assets we need to make and maps we need to design, as well as potential power-ups, what they are, and what they might do.
Next week, we’ll have a good starting place to get some prototyping going! I’m excited!
Oh, also! We have a name for our project, tentatively! SCAVENGERS. I like it.
IT'S THE INSTITUTE! 