Welcome to the EFU Dev Blog - I'm sharing updates on this project, as well as my broader journey into the misty realms of writing for games.
"I'll never be able to write my own game!"
*Discovers VN python frameworks, YouTube and Reddit tutorials*
"Oh..."
24 weeks ago, in the sunny spring of London, I was navigating the tangle of tubes and busses that would bring me to EAN/Film London's Introduction To Games: an intensive 5-day course guiding those first tentative steps into a new industry. The cohort had a spread of backgrounds: working in illustration, tech or, like me, in film.
It was clear, pursuing a career as a writer for games would need evidence of working with games narratives, as well as traditional cinematic screenplays or prose. Following that energising week of studying, making and pitching games, I needed somewhere to funnel my newfound excitement and build a portfolio while I'm at it. So, since then, I've found myself developing a (very rudimentary) fantasy RPG...
This has been an immense source of fun and fulfilment, riding the curve into basic python coding and discovering how rewarding it is once the game plays. I've picked up almost everything so far from Reddit and the documentation on the Visual Novel builder I'm using - Ren'Py. The r/RenPy solved most of those initial FAQ's and the community there often explains the 'why' from a python point of view, which is helpful! Great tutorials on YouTube too, but more on them later...
The Journey to Underrock
In this video I'm playing through the basic outline of the story paths. I want to give the player a lot of freedom in what their character does, where they go, how they get there etc. Instead of something as simple as right/wrong, pass/fail, taking a different route may reward you in different ways, and build a unique experience for the player.
The idea in the cave is, while some areas are reserved for later in the narrative, the player can recall them and return when an item or power is gained to pass it. I put the writing in red because it reminded me of Zelda on GameBoy Color... and I've realised, games like that are great examples of the mechanics required to make something 'play' rather than just progress.
Escape From Underrock started out as a text-based Interactive Fiction with a few backgrounds to set the scene, but it very quickly became an RPG version of that. I found myself researching and experimenting with ways to perform skill checks, which meant skills, which meant abilities, items, levels, inventory... The path twists ever more complex and I realised the next step was going to be a combination of all those mechanics: when sneaking and persuasion fails, and the only option remaining is to fight.
More updates on this soon!!
*AI Disclaimer:
Placeholder images in this blog and the game's sample build have been generated using AI. It is not my intention to claim ownership, profit from or license a game using AI content, these are a tool to help conceptualise the game aesthetic and the world of Underrock. Should the opportunity arise to work with an artist on this project, these images will be replaced.
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