Reconstruction and Aberration: When thought is carved into stone and flesh

[p]Hello everyone, I'm the producer of Annulus.[/p][p][/p][p]We've previously discussed why this game is called 'Annulus'—a worldview centred on rings, layers, and cycles.[/p][p][/p][p]This time, I'd like to introduce you to a more 'bizarre' aspect of our lore:[/p][p][/p][p]Reconstruction and Aberration, the Soul Cavities, and those 'hands' reaching into other planes.[/p][p][/p][h3]1. Soul Cavities: Where Negative Thoughts Accumulate and Take Shape[/h3][p][/p][p][/p][p]Within the world of Annulus exists a peculiar space: the Soul Cavity.[/p][p][/p][p]One might envision it as—[/p][p]A void in the world's psychological fabric, where all undigested emotions, negative thoughts, regrets, and fears flow.[/p][p][/p][p]Here, it is not merely emotions that gather, but also various 'Minis creatures' drawn to and bred by this negativity.[/p][p][/p][p]They resemble:[/p]

• [p]Fragments of dreams, incomplete in form[/p]
• [p]Lives gnawed away by emotion.[/p]
• [p]Or simply 'things' piled up from sheer obsession[/p][p][/p]

[p]The Soul Cavity is not a normal ecosystem,[/p][p]but rather the world's spiritual junkyard + testing ground.[/p][p][/p][p]For us, this zone holds two core significances:[/p]

• [p]Narratively, it serves as one source of negative emotions and alienation.[/p]
• [p]Design-wise, it grants us a space unconstrained by ''normal physical laws.''[/p][p][/p]

[p]Many outlandish object combinations, terrain structures, and even enemy forms can be plausibly justified by declaring: this place is inherently abnormal.[/p][p][/p][h3]2. Ring Array: Environment and Life Drawn into a Shared ''Pathological Cycle''[/h3][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]In the depths of the soul's cavities, a structure emerges: the “Ring Array”.[/p][p][/p][p]When the Ring Array activates or persists over time—[/p][p]Everything around it is drawn into a process of “Reconstruction and Aberration”:[/p]

• [p]Trees develop skeletal patterns, with vein-like and rib-like textures entwining their bark[/p]
• [p]Stone surfaces acquire skin-like textures, pores, and even ‘wounds’[/p]
• [p]Once-independent creatures become fused to the ground or walls, as if ‘welded’ into reality like corrupted files[/p][p][/p]

[p]We wish players to grasp instantly:[/p][p]Here, ‘environment’ and ‘creature’ are no longer distinct entities.[/p][p]They have been forcibly bundled into a loop by a force beyond comprehension.[/p][p][/p][p]Conceptually, this carries two layers of meaning:[/p]

• [p]A power transcending human understanding:[/p]

[p]It directly rewrites creatures' genetics and mechanisms, inducing an 'overbinding' to their environment,[/p][p]ultimately transforming them into 'environment-creature hybrids'.[/p]

• [p]A re-examination of ‘nature’:[/p]

[p]Nature has never been mere backdrop;[/p][p]Organisms and environment have always formed a cyclical whole, mutually influencing and consuming each other—[/p][p]Only we seldom witness such a starkly ‘naked’ version.[/p][p][/p][p]Within the confines of the ring array,[/p][p]Boundaries continually blur:[/p][p]Where ends terrain? Where begins life? Where lies the curse?[/p][p][/p][h3]3. Thought Solidification: When ideas cease to flow and become ''objects''[/h3][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]The soul cavity does not merely reshape the physical form;[/p][p]it also intervenes with thought itself.[/p][p][/p][p]We often discuss an internal question:[/p][p]When thoughts fuse with solid matter,[/p][p]might a wholly new mode of cognition emerge—[/p][p]a “fixed plane of thought”?[/p][p][/p][p]Under normal circumstances, thought flows freely;[/p][p]within the Soul Cavity, however, certain ‘ideas’ become frozen, fixed, crystallised—[/p][p][/p][p]visually, you might perceive something akin to this (target direction):[/p]

• [p]‘Fragments of thought’ suspended in the air like crystals, within which symbols and text slowly rotate.[/p]
• [p]Words that were once incantations, prayers, or curses, materialised into twisted, three-dimensional scripts, embedded like stones in the ground or walls.[/p]
• [p]An action (a sword swing, a kneeling gesture, a prayer) frozen in mid-air, becoming part of the terrain.[/p][p][/p]

[p]Here, the 'thought' loses its dynamic capacity, yet gains a different kind of 'presence'.[/p][p]It is no longer a mental construct, but rather an “obstacle” you can see, walk around, or even trip over.[/p][p][/p][h3]4. The Hand: From Instrument of Creation to Transdimensional Tentacle[/h3][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]When we speak of 'dynamic capability', the hand naturally springs to mind.[/p][p][/p][p]In both reality and religious symbolism,[/p][p]the hand embodies the power to create, execute, and shape the world.[/p]

• [p]Humans use hands to build, destroy, write, and heal[/p]
• [p]In religious imagery, the divine hand often signifies 'descent, intervention, creation'[/p][p][/p]

[p]Yet we must ask:[/p][p]When detached from the source of thought, can the hand still be considered an instrument of creation?[/p][p]Or does it become something else entirely?[/p][p][/p][p]Within the cavities of the soul, these reconfigured, alienated 'hands' have undergone several transformations (conceptually):[/p]

• [p]They no longer grow from bodies, but instead:[/p]
  • [p]Are nailed to stone walls or pillars, like peculiar interfaces[/p]
  • [p]They extend from fissures, black holes, and spatial rifts, as if emerging from another layer of reality[/p]
• [p]They no longer seem to 'obey a specific brain',[/p]

[p]but are instead 'borrowed' by some higher-order will[/p]

• [p]For players, these hands are likely:[/p]
  • [p]Trigger points for certain mechanisms[/p]
  • [p]'Boundary lines' for specific domains[/p]
  • [p]Evidence that certain entities are attempting to reach into our world[/p]

[p]Here, the ''hand'' ceases to be merely a human tool, becoming instead a tentacle of unknown will reaching into reality.[/p][p][/p][p]This is a point we wish to emphasise visually and in design:[/p][p]Where players encounter numerous ''hands'',[/p][p]they will instinctively realise—[/p][p]This is not merely a terrain hazard,[/p][p]but ''something else'' attempting to touch the plane you inhabit.[/p][p][/p][h3]5. We'd also love to hear your thoughts[/h3][p]Finally, we'd like to pose an open-ended question to those who've read this far:[/p][p][/p][p]If 'thoughts could solidify into physical form',[/p][p]would you consider that a greater freedom, or a more terrifying prospect?[/p][p][/p][p]If within the game you could interact with/shatter/harness these 'solidified thoughts',[/p][p]what kind of gameplay effects would you hope to see?[/p][p][/p][p]Feel free to share wild ideas, brainstorm, or even vent in the comments:[/p][p]'This is utterly bizarre—I just want to get on with the fighting.'[/p][p]We'll refine the world of Annulus while reviewing your feedback.[/p][p][/p][p]Thank you for taking the time to read this design note.[/p][p]Next time, we'll discuss other 'rings' and the characters trapped within them.[/p][p][/p][p]With best regards,[/p][p]The Annulus Development Team. [/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p][p][/p]