Oh Look Another One

Intro

This post is going to be quite a bit longer and will include a link to the Game Design Document (Eventually). Right now I'm just trying to find a home for it that isn't just Google Sheets, and get it polished enough to start getting the word out making sure I've got the vision down.

I was just paying around in GameMaker and I realized that I also need a list of tasks that can be updated and added to as I realize what I need. So step zero is finding a home for that as well as the GDD. Project Management is fun kids!

The Game

Alright, I'm sure that a lot of you want more than just the elevator pitch from the last post and I hear you. Coming right up!

This game, at it's core is a Stardew-like, but with a focus on story and personal agency. I wanted to take aspects from games that I love and mash them into something I really think people will enjoy.

To give a little preview, I've got a few questions.

Q1. What's the part of Stardew I most want to change?

A. The emotional depth and impact your existence has on the characters and world.

For ShopKeep I want to build a dynamic relationship system that will change based on your choices. To do this I'm going to build a system that has NPC's get married and move around based on your choices and involvement in the world

Possible Challenge: How do you make it clear to the player that they have or might miss out on something (I don't like it when games make it feel like I had to be at the right place, at the right time)

Q2. What's the thing about Harvest Moon that I wish I could change?

A. That time moves no matter what you do.

I understand the intention to tell a story, but I don't want the "game" to be locked behind 7 years of stress and missed chances. So I'm going to build two time systems that flow independently of each other, fist will be the "Years" of gameplay (Think Stardew) an unlimited amount of time where you can, do all the things, and make all the friends without the pressure of consequences. This timescale will include things like upgrading your shop, and building relationships, along with the core gameplay loop [TBD](But not really).

The second time system will involve "Town Size" and can be unlocked when certain requirements have ben met. You'll receive a warning that you won't be able to go back after upgrading the Town Size, and that many things will change. The goal is that players will experiment with their favourite Town Size, or simply play through the Player Characters life, and then do it all again to see the different choices and possibilities.

Possible Challenge: if you're looking at what I have so far and going...um I'm sorry, the amount of work here is HUGE...me too. It's a very big undertaking, and I haven't even told you how many romancable NPC's I want there to be. Managing my time effectively and taking small bites will be the only way I'll ever get this done.

Bye For Now

Okay, well my back hurts and I'm tired of typing so I'm going to go root around the internet for homes for my docs. Can't wait to chat next week!

-River