First we had a couple of feelers down at Tom's place.
–T. S. Eliot, The Waste Land
You can vote in the blog's sidebar for as long as the poll is open, or use the widget in this post. (People on phones may not see the sidebar.) So if you have an opinion – informed or not – go ahead and vote, already!
In the meantime, keep reading for my own comments regarding each option, after a word or two about the background for this poll :P
I was happy about the previous poll (results here), and wanted to chug out another one quickly.
What I'm really working on these days, is to add more world factions/influences, with assorted places and plots. Adding each faction is a big task. I've already put many hours into Arken Town, and it's far from finished. Influences like "religious faction", "toppled civilization" and "mafia network" will be even bigger. So it's a question of development strategy which groups to put in and in which order. Some ideas may be too similar to another be worth adding, others just similar enough to slip in with few modifications. Some will require entirely new systems to realize.
For inspiration's sake, then, I decided to ask which new gameplay features y'all would like to see in upcoming releases. I'll probably be consulting the results for the next few releases of LoSt, as always taking your advice to heart while keeping the privilege of the dictatorial vote ;) But if the crowd is shouting for animal handling and underground levels, there could be mining companies digging deep and ranches running cattle across the Land. Heck, maybe even underground cowboys herding cave beasts in that nadirian biome.
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| «Stetson!» |
Rundown of the options
The options are hopefully rather self-explanatory, but I'll jump at the opportunity to continue ranting for a bit. I think the options can be roughly divided into five parts: Time, Activities, Physics, NPCs, and Miscellaneous.☞ Passage of time
Aging: Experience as well as adverse effects of age and trauma. Start young and die old, or quit at the height of your fame, maybe to show up as an NPC in another game (see below: Retirement). Or something like that ;)
Calendar, weather and seasons: Keep track of months, with scenery/world changes for each season. Random seasons with special effects? There might be the option to stay at a location for months or years, and gameplay effects of that.
Camping, survivalism: Probably not a flat-out food clock. But maybe something like requiring to rest daily: It could spend 1♄ and carry a small chance of healing a wound. A simple resting interface might offer some welcome pacing, if done well.
Changing world, news flashes: Events that change the world state. Anything from "bandits besiege monastery" to "you contract green fever". Mainly, these events should appear on the game board, as dialogue and action.
☞ Activities
Construct or buy a house/home base: 'Nuff said.
Dice games and betting on fights: Probably betting by dropping ♄ on the table. Races and fights can be played out on the game map. A simple dice game should also be doable like that.
Disease: Probably randomized diseases. The basic formula would start at picking values for variables like effect, duration, incubation, contagiousness, and remedy.
Drinking and drugs: The motivation to use anything (including drugs) in the game, should be game related. So intoxicants need beneficial effects, as well as dangers of abuse.
Dynamite rigging, trap setting: Tactical: set up the perimeters before a fight, and lure enemies to your preset bombs and traps. Props and shticks related to TNT and trap engineering.
☞ Physics and world features
Fire and water: Wildfire, burning fuses, volatile matter, flowing water, etc. Swimming and diving probably also falls in this category.
Height maps, slopes and terraces: Maybe simplistic, with terraces as special obstacles. But an altitude system could shine if it allowed for stuff like climbing up on rooftops and speeding trains.
Light and darkness: Wouldn't have to be too deep, some touches to add tactical and aesthetic variation.
Mines, caverns, underworld: Underground levels and lore pertaining to them.
Mounts/riding, wagons, trains, boats…: Probably using a velocity/inertia system, with riding as "merging" the rider and the mount into one being temporarily. For moving platforms, brush up on Galilean relativity.
Mounts/riding, wagons, trains, boats…: Probably using a velocity/inertia system, with riding as "merging" the rider and the mount into one being temporarily. For moving platforms, brush up on Galilean relativity.
☞ NPC interactions
Non-lethal combat: When your last ♥ is greyed out, you get incapacitated but not necessarily dead. Depending on who defeated you, they may spare your life, rob you, leave you to bleed out, finish you off, etc. The player could get similar options when winning a non-lethal fight. Could also be put in as functions of the AI, making NPCs run away more often, and/or adding a gesture of surrendering (like dropping your weapon), that NPCs should also recognize if the player does it.
NPC companions: NPC means Non Player Critter (human or animal :) There could be ways to solicit help for single missions, or gain long-term allies. In some cases, enslaved or captive NPCs can be an option. And of course a possible shtick to start out with a dog or equivalent animal.
Retirement, ghosts, legacies of players past: It could be possible to retire characters, who may even show up as NPCs in later games. Actual ghosts is another option. Something like Shiren's mechanism of mailing items to your future selves could also be used.
Ropes'n'lassos: Really a utility feature, but ties in (sorry) with social interaction. From bringing hogtied criminals to the tribunal, to parking your horse, ropes can be an interface helper. Lassos would be non-lethal weapons, and rope physics could be used for tripwires, fuses, nets, etc.
Ropes'n'lassos: Really a utility feature, but ties in (sorry) with social interaction. From bringing hogtied criminals to the tribunal, to parking your horse, ropes can be an interface helper. Lassos would be non-lethal weapons, and rope physics could be used for tripwires, fuses, nets, etc.
Rumors, investigation, lore gathering: I loathe to put in dialogue trees or spamming the villagers for rumors, but may yet try my hand at this. Look for interesting ways to convey and connect in-game lore and info. From learning about the flora and fauna, to simple whodunnit puzzles.
☞ Miscellaneous
Tinkering, farming, crafting: The nature of crafting would probably lean on existing content. The game works well without, but it might be interesting to add something here.
Visions and dream quests: Thrown in for good measure.
If you read through all of that, I salute you! If you did scroll down to the bottom, I don't blame you. Now go and tick off some options here or in the sidebar! And walk in peace, and all that.
As always,
Minotauros
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