Saturday, 27 October 2007

Moving towards a game idea - utilizing something that moves you - The/Another idea!

The idea stems from the cellar experiences and blends with child hunger/famine and links to the recent stories of children that have been found after being shut up in 'domestic prisons' for many years. Just a basic nub of a game idea really.

The basic idea
The game is basically an escape game. I haven't really heard of an escape game, but I'm sure there are some. I had the idea of the player as a child locked up and having to escape from the dungeon they are in, or at a later point in the game. When they do, they must try to evade their pursuers, whilst at the same time piecing together bits of information that will help them find out who they are and why they have been incarcerated. The storyline can be big (major conspiracy, kidnap, large organization/s), contemporary (paedophile ring, etc) or personal (child kidnapped as slave labour, tries to find parents, etc) within a national or international context.
The child will have to find/acquire food to sustain themselves and find ways to evade different groups whilst facing challenges that will further their knowledge if completed.

The first level
The game starts with a black screen (I always seem to want to do stuff like this). You can move around, but you bump into things. As you so, you might hear an "oww" and you might notice a red bar appear and go down imperceptibly. As you move around, you bump into more things. Slowly, over the course of maybe two minutes, your eyes adjust and you can see where you are. You see a few insects scuttling around. You are in a dungeon or cellar. Your health is quite low. You hear a noise from outside and the sound of a lock being pulled back. You hear a gruff male voice say. "Four days", then Mr Jameson comes to collect". The door opens and you are blinded by light. Another voice says "Food". The door closes and you find the tray and eat and drink the basic stew and bread and can of fizzy drink. You eyes now adjust fully, You can see the cracks in the walls, you can see the makeshift bed and toilet. There is more to the place. Futher back there is an area with junk, beams of wood and other odds and ends. You hear the door being opened again. You stumble to the shaft of searing light, and see a body framed against it. "Where's the tray?" the voice growls. As the man bends down, you try to escape.

If you do (unlikely, but a possibility). You are on to the next part of the game.

If you don't. You are slammed down to the ground, the breath knocked out of you. "No food for you tonight" you hear, as the door slams shut and the dark returns to envelop the dungeon. You don't know why you are here. You hazily recollect some notions about yourself, but you don't really remember who you are. All you know is that you are here, and it is cold, and dark.
As time goes on, you realise you are hungry, and that that knock has taken some time to recover from. You need to eat something, you are weak. If you are clever, you will hunt down the insects and spiders that inhabit the walls and crevices and use them to assuage your hunger and increase your health. Eventually the door opens again. Can you use something from the recesses of the dungeon, and do you have enough strength to fool or overpower the man at the door and escape? If not, will you have another opportunity to try again? If not, what will happen when Mr Jameson comes? Who is he and what does he want with you?

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