help brainstorming a game story

[bonkanailios]

I am sorry I dont know how to attach txt. files on posts, so as soon as sombody who does reads this, tell me and I will edit this post to just be the attachment:

There are two ideas I am fleshing out at the moment, but seeing that I only have a little time before I fall asleep on my own keyboard I will just give you the first one.


Flint:I have been through alot, nothing out of the ordinary. But the point is that I havent lived the most padded life.
my childhood: (quick cut to a child getting kicked in the stomach)
my relationships: (woman throwing flowers at him and slamming a door)
and my career (Different Bosses:"fired, fired fired fired" Woman screaming and running away from a grocery store"FIRE" "fired" boss)

have all been rather... unsuccessful. To say that I was cursed, would be a bit overdramatic. But to say that I was a little different than most, would be accurite. Today was inteded to be the first day that I found out the extent of my eccentrisity.

(flint sleeping)
(alarm clock, slow motion KAKLACK! 6am. news turns on)

Weather man: ts gonna be a beautiful-

(flint hits snooze)
opening credits start
**accompanied by sort of unassuming music**

(credits close)

//I am unsure about weather or not to do this following part, because I think it might be a bit typical, but you guys tell me, also I would have to replace the thing about his failed relationships...maybe//

(Flint wakes up, there is a crease in his bed where sombody else was, flint reaches over with his eyes still shut, and pats around trying to find somthing that isnt there.)
Flint:Mary?
(he shakes his head a little bit and gets out of bed, player takes control of him)

If he decides to go to his bathroom he will find his girlfriend has hung herself. and a cutscene will start:
(its storming really hard outside, and his girlfriend is sitting awake in the bed, looking at flint. she smiles and whispers something in his ear.)

(cut to the clock in slow motion again, //one of those old flippy clocks... with the paper numbers that actually make a tiny clack noise whenever the minute changes//
the clock turns to two aclock, with a really dramatic low pitched drawn out BRRRRUUUMMM! noise)

(cut back to a medium shot of the girl, she starts crying, thunder claps outside, she gets up holding her face in her hands she walks towards the bathroom, she looks back at flint and then gently closes the door.
camera goes to flint, jumpcut to flint in the bathroom , looking at what happend in absolute horror.)
flint: F***

If he goes outside he will find that it is an amazing day and everyone around him is smiling and SUPER happy about everything.

as he walks around outside the player will hear that the weather calls for rain later on that night.

[bonkanailios]

I am fairly reluctant to post these ideas in such an early stage, but I know that with a few minds, I will be wasting alot less time puttering around, not knowing exactly which direction to take the game in.

the Idea behind game A(the one I just introduced) is sort of a survival horror where everyone goes crazy whenever the weather is bad... well basically the people act differently depending on different weather.
so rain=sad
snow=sad...also
wind=angry
dark multiplies these feelings
light lessens them.
whats neat about this is that, the scenes being set for a certain mood, by the weather is actually explained.
the player will have to survive as his town goes insane almost on a nightly basis.
turning into twisted versions of themselves, and...usually hunting him (or eachother) down. All of this while he finds out why this is all happening.

which I think would be a blast to play, for reasons I either dont have to, or shouldent explain.

[bonkanailios]

what I am looking for is any ideas that might spring to mind, the only things that are solid, are the main charachters name and the weather controling people.

so please, if you have the time give it a shot even if you are a little uncomformitable with the idea, tell it to me, im sure I wont make fun of you.

[JWood]

How about giving the player some reason to play the game, some reason to be involved in the story. You go to a movie, or buy a book, but if it doesn't interest you, you walk out or throw it away, right? I suggest this is also true for video games. The most successful ones are the ones that engage the player in the story. Remember the security guard in Half Life? Felt pretty crappy when he got killed, made me want to fight harder.

And one reason why horror is so awful, so engaging is not just because of the blood and gore, but because you hope this mutilation won't happen to you or worse, to someone you care about.

With those things in mind, here's where I'd consider going...

I like how you started.

Flint "I never really believed that weather affected people's moods, but recently I've noticed that on the sunny days, everyone's nice and friendly," - Sunny day, Doorman opens door for Flint "Goodmorning, sir" - "But when it pisses rain, seems I'm in the golden shower." - Flint hails a cab, somebody shouts and pushes him out of the way and gets in before Flint can.

Perhaps Flint's "curse" is that his mood can affect the weather and the weather affects the people in this city. Happy mood, good weather. If Flint gets upset or angry, the weather goes bad and the citizens go evil.

Some dark moods might give him strength, but would also mean the citizens would be more in his way. Also, the more killing he'd do, the more worn down he'd get, and thus bad weather, trouble with the public. Tense situations make Flint's pulse increase, he goes faster, but so do his enemies. But his lighter moods, perhaps he can do everything a little easier, he's faster, more stealthy, has more energy, finds just what he needs (guns, amo, health). Heck, maybe his health increases faster.

Ah, and now the horror/why am I playing this game part of the reply.

I suggest Flint lives with the woman at the start of your game, and he sees her abducted. Make it violent, show that her life is threatened. In a cut scene, Flint could tear out of the appartment in pursuit. The neighbours freak out "Help her, save her!". Make the player feel that they are the ONLY one who can help her. At that moment, let the player take control of Flint.

[bonkanailios]

I suggest Flint lives with the woman at the start of your game, and he sees her abducted. Make it violent, show that her life is threatened. In a cut scene, Flint could tear out of the appartment in pursuit. The neighbours freak out "Help her, save her!". Make the player feel that they are the ONLY one who can help her. At that moment, let the player take control of Flint.

I dig this idea, but I am trying to avoid the silent hill thing as much as I can and since there are 2 games in the series with that theme I am reluctant to dive into the hostage thing.

I want the player to have the option at any time to just drive out of the town. at any time, each action the player takes will have a point value, we will tally up these points, give them a rank (like pansy or rockstar) and put the points into a pool this pool will grow every time the player plays through the game, or starts a game and leaves. The points add up and earn the player bonus items.

[bonkanailios]

How about giving the player some reason to play the game, some reason to be involved in the story. You go to a movie, or buy a book, but if it doesn't interest you, you walk out or throw it away, right? I suggest this is also true for video games. The most successful ones are the ones that engage the player in the story. Remember the security guard in Half Life? Felt pretty crappy when he got killed, made me want to fight harder.

hopefully survival will be a good incentive

Flint "I never really believed that weather affected people's moods, but recently I've noticed that on the sunny days, everyone's nice and friendly," - Sunny day, Doorman opens door for Flint "Goodmorning, sir" - "But when it pisses rain, seems I'm in the golden shower." - Flint hails a cab, somebody shouts and pushes him out of the way and gets in before Flint can.


this is going into the game, if I can help it.


Perhaps Flint's "curse" is that his mood can affect the weather and the weather affects the people in this city. Happy mood, good weather. If Flint gets upset or angry, the weather goes bad and the citizens go evil.

Some dark moods might give him strength, but would also mean the citizens would be more in his way. Also, the more killing he'd do, the more worn down he'd get, and thus bad weather, trouble with the public. Tense situations make Flint's pulse increase, he goes faster, but so do his enemies. But his lighter moods, perhaps he can do everything a little easier, he's faster, more stealthy, has more energy, finds just what he needs (guns, amo, health). Heck, maybe his health increases faster.

I like the idea that his moods effect the weather and will mull it around a bit, but I am really attached to the idea of getting weather forcasts, and prepairing for the next level that way (especially if turbulent weather is on the way) "oh god... a hurricane? I am getting the biggest gun I can and staying in the most fortified house I can find"

but changing his abilities according to the weather would be neat.

[JWood]

You said: hopefully survival will be a good incentive


In video games, why would a player care whether their in game character lives or dies when they can just goes back to the last place saved and try again. If that's not possible and they have to start ALL over again, the player gets frustrated and quits the game.

I may well be wrong, but I don't think an in-game character's survival is enough to ensure the player will be emotionally invested in the story.

[bonkanailios]

thats true. but at the same time, I am really sick of rescuing the girl. I have been doing it since mario, and I realize anything that comes up in storys with that amount of frequency must have some merit, but I would rather use another motivation.

dont take this as me shooting down your ideas, because I loved some of them. but I would really like to keep away from silent hill.


Now this hasent been mentioned yet, but the survival horror was Idea A.

Idea B. was a fun platformer. Yes, a fun platformer, with bright colors and a simple story.

in the platformer version of the game, the rescue idea seems more viable. somthing where you collect souljems dropped by the evil watermonster village people. then when the rain passes you use the souljems to make things to survive the next level. the more souljems the better your equipment.

but as a team we seem to be going into the horror direction.

[JWood]

It's cool you know what you want and don't want.

My point in bringing in the hostage idea was simply as an example of a device to give the player some modivation, some goal that they can always say to themselves "Yikes, that's freakin' scary and my thumbs are dead from mashing my controller buttons, but if I don't do _______ then ________ will happen."

The blanks can be filled in with almost any sort of answer.

"If I don't stop the Borg, then I'll be turned into an mindless automaton who's lost everything that I value (culture, my family, my home, my planet, my arms and good left eye)."

"If I don't get the Ark of the Covenent from the Nazis, then they could use it to win the war, and spread their murderous, facist, arian, put your arm in the air like you just don't care, ways."

"If I don't kill Jason or Freddy Kruger or whoever from whatever horror movie, then they'll chop me and all those lusious co-eds into hamburger. Wouldn't that be awful (not to mention a waste of a perfectly good co-ed!)"

That last one might be the most meaningful to your story because it starts to talk about what is really horrific and why. Ah, but perhaps asking such questions gets away from making a fun horror video game.

Anyway, I think I've bashed my points enough. Good luck with your project.

[bonkanailios]

I dont dissagree.

now on to the task of filling in the blanks! :)

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