Let's Clear Some Debts: Chapters and Jobs Deep Dive
[p]Each day, Samson wakes up and has to split his focus between narrative Chapters, cash-yielding Jobs, and open world story content. In this dev diary, we detail how these Mission types complement and contrast each other.
[/p][p]SAMSON takes place in South End, the roughest district of the fictional city of Tyndalston. Often a harsh and unfair place, this is also where Samson grew up, and where he again lives and works as an Enforcer for the Cobb Street gang. Samson also came up in the Cobb Street gang, a smaller and older outfit in South End, led by Samson’s boss and mentor, Carter. Carter will provide Jobs and guidance for Samson throughout the game.
[/p][p]At the start of our story, Samson returns to Tyndalston after getting into trouble with a mainland gang in St. Louis. In crippling debt and forced to return to a city that’s only gotten worse since his departure, it’s against this backdrop that Samson’s adventure begins.
[/p][p]You can read more about the city of Tyndalston in our previous blog post.
Interested in SAMSON and its development? Wishlist the game on Steam, and join our Discord to get first-hand updates and be part of the community: [/p][p]https://discord.gg/xPHpQgKUwG[/p][p]
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[/p][p]What types of Missions can I play in SAMSON, and how do they differ?[/p][p]There are three main modes of play in the game: Chapters, Jobs, and open exploration. While exploring South End, Samson will encounter small story events that showcase the different societal problems the citizens of South End are struggling with, such as the new White Whisper drug epidemic. Chapters are a series of linked narrative Missions where Samson must find out the truth about recent events that are threatening your gang’s very existence. Chapters focus on high action and taking Samson to unique locations in South End. Jobs, on the other hand, are more pragmatically focused around earning the cash that Samson needs to repay his personal debt to an ominous mainland gang.
[/p][p]Jobs come in many shapes and forms. A Job could be driving criminals from the scene of a crime, losing the cops, and dropping your passengers off at a safe house. Or maybe a rival gang needs to have their convoy of vans taken out to disrupt their business. Or some young wannabes think they can start a gang of their own in South End without your say-so and need a stern talking to. There are a large number of Jobs available, and some of them are repeatable, while others are more unique one-offs. For example, you can repeatedly get asked to deliver shady cargo across South End, while performing a contract hit on a named target will only happen once, for obvious reasons.
[/p][p]Each in-game day, you can freely mix and match between attempting any of the available Jobs as well as the next available narrative Chapter.
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[/p][p]Can I play Chapters and Jobs in any order?[/p][p]Between Chapters and Jobs, one is not more important than the other. There is a lot of choice here in the meta gameplay for you as a player, such as what to do when and in what order. These choices allow you to forge your own path through each individual day, and also the overarching goals of completing the story campaign and becoming debt free.
[/p][p]One of the design goals for the game was to create this interesting push and pull effect between Chapters, Jobs, and everything else you could pursue at any given time. So for example, the last Chapter might have ended on a cliffhanger that has you eager to follow up on what happens next, while at the same time you should really get some cash to repair your ride, since there is a big Street Trial available today that you want to take part in.
[/p][p]As the player, you choose how to spend each day in the game, but even Samson cannot do everything in one day. There is a finite resource that allows you to only engage in a handful of Missions per day – You have to be smart and seize opportunities as you see them. Maybe today you have a Perk that yields higher rewards in certain Mission types, or your character build leans more towards certain Jobs, or you see some Jobs today that are unusually lucrative but of a type that you are less proficient in. Those are all aspects to take into consideration as you plan your day and decide what to tackle next.
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[/p][p]What are the stakes for Samson and players as they choose to tackle each day in the city of Tyndalston?[/p][p]While we don’t want to be too punishing when players have a bad day, we see the game as a violent lesson in risk management. We ask you to pull in as much cash as possible each day, but walking around with cash in your pockets in South End can often end in disaster. Take a wrong turn on the way home at night and you are likely to get ambushed in an alley, potentially losing your day’s progress. Or maybe you’re the one doing the ambushing, attacking and taking the cash from rival gangs.
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[/p][p][/p][p]It’s all about taking calculated risks, balancing Samson’s responsibilities as an Enforcer to Carter with his payments to St. Louis, and facing the consequences for getting behind on payments. The further behind you get the harsher the consequences. Maybe the St. Louis crew are growing tired of your relaxed attitude towards debt payment. In which case, expect a “friendly visit” from their hired goons trying to beat some sense of urgency into your thick skull.[/p][p] [/p][p]Interested in SAMSON and its development? Wishlist the game on Steam, and join our Discord to get first-hand updates and be part of the community: [/p][p]https://discord.gg/xPHpQgKUwG[/p][p][/p]
[/p][p]SAMSON takes place in South End, the roughest district of the fictional city of Tyndalston. Often a harsh and unfair place, this is also where Samson grew up, and where he again lives and works as an Enforcer for the Cobb Street gang. Samson also came up in the Cobb Street gang, a smaller and older outfit in South End, led by Samson’s boss and mentor, Carter. Carter will provide Jobs and guidance for Samson throughout the game.
[/p][p]At the start of our story, Samson returns to Tyndalston after getting into trouble with a mainland gang in St. Louis. In crippling debt and forced to return to a city that’s only gotten worse since his departure, it’s against this backdrop that Samson’s adventure begins.
[/p][p]You can read more about the city of Tyndalston in our previous blog post.
Interested in SAMSON and its development? Wishlist the game on Steam, and join our Discord to get first-hand updates and be part of the community: [/p][p]https://discord.gg/xPHpQgKUwG[/p][p]
[/p][p]Jobs come in many shapes and forms. A Job could be driving criminals from the scene of a crime, losing the cops, and dropping your passengers off at a safe house. Or maybe a rival gang needs to have their convoy of vans taken out to disrupt their business. Or some young wannabes think they can start a gang of their own in South End without your say-so and need a stern talking to. There are a large number of Jobs available, and some of them are repeatable, while others are more unique one-offs. For example, you can repeatedly get asked to deliver shady cargo across South End, while performing a contract hit on a named target will only happen once, for obvious reasons.
[/p][p]Each in-game day, you can freely mix and match between attempting any of the available Jobs as well as the next available narrative Chapter.
[/p][p]One of the design goals for the game was to create this interesting push and pull effect between Chapters, Jobs, and everything else you could pursue at any given time. So for example, the last Chapter might have ended on a cliffhanger that has you eager to follow up on what happens next, while at the same time you should really get some cash to repair your ride, since there is a big Street Trial available today that you want to take part in.
[/p][p]As the player, you choose how to spend each day in the game, but even Samson cannot do everything in one day. There is a finite resource that allows you to only engage in a handful of Missions per day – You have to be smart and seize opportunities as you see them. Maybe today you have a Perk that yields higher rewards in certain Mission types, or your character build leans more towards certain Jobs, or you see some Jobs today that are unusually lucrative but of a type that you are less proficient in. Those are all aspects to take into consideration as you plan your day and decide what to tackle next.
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