Narrative Design | Devlog #6

[p]Our student project, Spire of Chaos: Arcana Unleashed, is a game rich in narrative for its length. Our game is inspired by Magical Girl anime, whose worlds are filled with compelling narrative elements. In fact, one of our main inspirations is the anime Sailor Moon, where the characters possess magical abilities linked to a greater theme (the planets). In the case of our game, the source of the characters’ powers in Spire of Chaos: Arcana Unleashed are the Tarot arcana.[/p][p]The main character, Arxis, is an incarnation of The Tower, the tarot card that represents chaos and destruction. The environment she finds herself in is a representation of her identity: a magical and chaotic spire. These elements were the foundations of the game for several weeks; the rest of the narrative was developed a bit later in the project process, once the gameplay mechanics were decided.[/p][p][/p][h3][/h3][h3]The challenges[/h3][p]Creating strong narrative elements that make players understand the full scope of the fictional universe without impacting the gameplay nor the artistic direction was a major challenge in itself. These elements were already well underway and we had to build our narration around them.[/p][p]Also, it was essential to keep in mind the available resources we had at our disposal when creating those narrative elements. Indeed, we keep the artists’ workload in mind when adding narrative elements into the environments and the cutscenes. It was therefore necessary to carefully prioritize so as not to get carried away with the creation of the universe as well as of different narrative details.[/p][p][/p][p][/p][p]Moreover, Spire of Chaos: Arcana Unleashed is first and foremost a combat game even though the game’s universe is narratively rich, so the game must focus on that combat gameplay. Indeed, we wanted to emphasize it in order to stand out as a student project. We therefore integrated the narrative in a way that combines it with learning moments.[/p][p][/p][p]Furthermore, the learning moments are quite numerous for a fairly short game, which creates a definite challenge in making everything feel natural through the dialogues. Several iterations were made in order to find the perfect balance between instructional dialogue and narrative dialogue. Moreover, a story closely linked to gameplay creates an additional complication since changes to mechanics during production force constant iterations regarding the learning dialogues. Constant communication between departments was therefore essential to ensure that the narrative and the other branches of production remained consistent in their information.[/p][h3][/h3][h3]The solutions[/h3][p]Communication remains an essential element in any good production. Staying constantly aware of changes that may modify the narrative direction directly or indirectly is essential in order to keep the focus on the essence of the project. This communication is also indispensable for staying aware of the resources available to us and for adapting to the project. Adding small environmental narrative elements can then become possible if we are aware of the available resources according to task management, allowing for better efficiency.[/p][p]Moreover, during narrative development, what helped a lot was keeping track of the iterations, whether they were good or bad. Archiving these iterations makes it possible to understand why certain dialogues were not chosen, which helps better guide the narrative direction, thus gaining productivity.O[/p][p][/p][h3][/h3][p][/p][h3]FAQ[/h3][p]If you had to choose a tarot card, which one represents you the most?[/p][p]Jonathan: The Hermit, which represents wisdom, solitude, and calm. I tend to isolate myself, but this project is teaching me to communicate with my teammates when I believe the information is important.[/p][p][/p][p]Best aspect of Spire of Chaos: Arcana Unleashed in your opinion?[/p][p]Jonathan: The options menu, because usually, in student projects, it’s one of the aspects that is done last, but in this project we iterate on it and take it into account from the beginning of the project.[/p]