Modesty Studios

Another novel series I've begun developing based on some artwork I've been doing recently and the story I tried to co-author with my sister. I've divided it up into Four Books so far. Over the course of a few years I've been developing the world and culture of the planet...which needs a name still. The countries have names, but not the world. I've got a good handle on the various cultures and creatures in the world including their government type, who their leaders are, the primary religion, the sort of religion that is, distinctive features, and various alliances. This called for a huge long list of characters. Which I've got all in a document. Some are more developed than others since they were a part of the "original" tale. Book 1 I intend to be the story that my sister and I never finished. That's where it starts. It gives a narrow view of the world and situation from the eyes of a child. Book 2 is set elsewhere and takes a more macro-view of t...

Last night I spent more time brainstorming on my "Egg World" story and have sketched out three basic "Acts" or chapters to draw. Act 1: is the Creation story and events leading up to the "hatching". The 7 Eldest divide into factions over the sayings of the youngest who is a prophet. Act 2: is the beginning of civilization that happens immediately after the hatching. The faction still exists so there is the first war. Act 3: is the beginning of domestic trouble. There are no more factions but their is one Eldest who feels left out of the group. We have our first affair! :D So far I've only conceptualized the 7 eldest characters. (They're not even developed yet.) I still need to flesh out a few new characters to add. And I need a new title. Eggworld is stupid. That's just a working title. Let's brainstorm some new titles based on themes in the story so far. Themes: Birth, Origins, Eldest, Wonder, Hatching Title Ideas: Seven (it was the name...

I'm not sure what I will do with this idea. It may become a game or it may become a comic or novel. Probably a comic. It'll be fun. A world growing inside an egg that is almost ready to hatch. Such a process that will change the structure and peoples dwelling/growing on it. Terra-Angels are human like beings with feathered wings. Within the embryo world of the egg, Terra-Angels can fly regardless of their wing-span. The size of wings denotes the greatness of heart which can grow or shrink throughout the course of life. Terra-Angels may look masculine or feminine, but they have no sex and can not reproduce. The egg world has merely been producing them. However, it has been a long time since the birth of a Terra-Angel...which means the world is about ready to hatch...which will change the appearance and everything they know to be true. There are 7 eldest Terra-Angels. They were the first 7 to be born and as such were given authority. Their role is shepherd-like since the world is...

In RPGs (and other genres too) there are two types of heroes: the silent type and Story Type. Mind you these are only MY terms that I will use throughout this article. Silence is Golden The silent hero seems to always silently concede to whatever the story says or supposedly respond to any question addressed to him/her. Link and Mario are some of the more obvious silent heroes. Although Mario and Link make "noises", they do not respond verbally to any dialog aimed at them. (In recent 3D games they have started gesturing). Dialog with NPCs and cutscenes always feel one-sided. Some of the benefits of using the Silent Hero is that you never put words into the players mouth. This is to say that the player IS the hero. The silent hero does not have a bold personality per se, because that portion is suppose to be filled in by the player. In a yes or no situation, it IS the player saying yes or no. In a way, a silent hero is easier to relate to because his dialog is not showing off ...

Player centric design for games means keeping your audience in mind and designing for them. While making a hobby game, it is perfectly acceptable to make a game that interests YOU. This method is designer-centric. You make a game you like and hope others will like it. MOTIVATION Different player types are usually driven by what motivates them to play or continue playing. Motives can be things like high score, beating level 1, playing the story, exploring the world, playing with friends, competition, stress relief, or combating boredom. These motivations in turn affect what sort of games the player likes to play. A player motivated by story and exploring a world would probably enjoy an adventure game. Likewise, a player interested in stress relief or relieving boredom or trying to relax may want to play a puzzle game or arcade game. Something that does not require too much focus or hard concentration. Here are some more samples of Motivation for playing a game: Entertainment (relieving ...

Researching For a Game Most of the research done before making a game is thinking about other games you have played before. This is the easiest and most basic form of research...it's called experience. (:D) This is actually very important in my experience trying to make a game or plan a game with a non-gamer. (Let me tell you, it was very frustrating. Mostly there was a language barrier.) System Research Diversity is important. Being familiar with many different types of game mechanics will help you in the creation of your own game. I'm not just talking about digital games, I do also mean card games, board games and social games. Think about the rules of some board games. Think about the rules of those games when they were translated to a computer game. Consider playing Monopoly with the physical board against a friend versus playing it on the computer against AI. What this should do is make you think about aspects of the game you are making. When making an RPG, think of table ...

A short dialog on balancing storytelling with gameplay. Thoughts on Interactivity, Stories and Games Often I find while playing a game, I am interested in learning what story it has to tell. I have narrative motives to my game play. But games are not really a story TELLING device, but a story PLAYING device. What I mean is that games are interactive. It should respond to player input, unlike a movie where no matter what you do the story will not change. In the Game Design Review blog , it had a section that struck me as gold ! It was comparing a remake of a game with the original. The original version of the game, you arrived with your female companion at a regular looking castle only to have your companion kidnapped during the night. It came as a surprise to a player that their companion was gone and provided motivation or guilt. In the remake, the inn was surrounded by an ominous gate and even had an NPC mention that sometimes guests go missing. The remake used a film technique of se...