Closed - Thanks for all your help!

[Chief Oof]

Okay, so I wasn't at all sure where to post this, so it ended up going here. This is probably going to be an obscure request, but I figured I'd take my chances with it here. If you think it should be moved to somewhere else though I'd happily do so given the request.

Now personally I'm not requesting anything written, but just a little help brainstorming. I'm designing a fake game for a project, and the theme is basically the sea. I can't for the life of me start figuring out a plot though, because I suck at plotting.

Now, I'm just hoping you creative people may have a few idea's to throw my way to jump start me off. It could be anything to do with the sea really, though I would like to focus on a ship/shipwreck in particular, and I was thinking maybe the genre horror? Anyone got any idea's? Any would be appreciated, and there is no right or wrong answer so suggest whatever you want. Thanks!

[terradi]

What purpose does the game need to serve? What is it required to do for the project? What, if anything, do you want it to do?

[Chief Oof]

terradi

What purpose does the game need to serve? What is it required to do for the project? What, if anything, do you want it to do?

Ah, to be very honest the project is basically just to create a piece of art that serves a purpose of a chosen career path. I have to create various piece's of art that built up to one final design, and the career I chose was interactive media. I wanted to draft out a ruff story sheet of a simple game, creating character design's and other such things along the way. It isn't limited by anything but the fact that it has to be based on the theme 'sea', and I have to use pictures I am being prompted to drawn along the project to create the characters.

I'm trying for a very simple plot, that features the basic story line of the protagonist facing a dilemma, confronting a mystery and solving it to finish the quest and the game. Perhaps a search for missing objects or information that hold the key to solving the problem and ending the game. A bit vague I know, but I've been given free reign with this and it's thrown me off balance a bit because I really have trouble with things like this. I would like it to involve some kind of common enemy throughout the game, and a main boss for each level stage, and items that would be gained along the way to help the progression of the game. The character would have to fight in one way or another throughout the game to proceed. I think it would be easiest if the game was based around a shipwreck, or the memories of a ship sinking, and it's inhabitants at the time. That's all I got though. It's gonna be kind of a hassle trying to fit fighting in with a freakin shipwreck because it's a bit of a random concept but oh well. sweatdrop I think perhaps it would make a bit more sense if the protagonist was some how shrunk and trapped in a bottled ship, that hold it's maker's memories in it, and when the protagonist find's out what happened they would find a way to be escape like the bottled ship's maker did eventually from the ship.

[Chief Oof]

Urgh, just noticed all the spelling/grammar mistakes in that reply. Sorry for my horrid English, dyslexia and all that. X3

[terradi]

It sounds like you have an idea for what you want to do, it's just settling further details that's an issue. One question though -- if you have a model ship rather than a real one, how are you going to work the sea into it? Or is figuring out that the sea they're exploring/adventuring on is just a memory and not the real sea going to be a discovery and plot point?

What sort of genre do you want to stick to? Puzzle game? First-person-shooter? Educational? Wiki has a list of genres here that might help -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_genres

Can you think of a game that has aspects you'd like to borrow from? Or that you'd like to emulate in style?

[Chief Oof]

terradi

It sounds like you have an idea for what you want to do, it's just settling further details that's an issue. One question though -- if you have a model ship rather than a real one, how are you going to work the sea into it? Or is figuring out that the sea they're exploring/adventuring on is just a memory and not the real sea going to be a discovery and plot point?

What sort of genre do you want to stick to? Puzzle game? First-person-shooter? Educational? Wiki has a list of genres here that might help -- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Video_game_genres

Can you think of a game that has aspects you'd like to borrow from? Or that you'd like to emulate in style?

Hah, I guess so. I didn't really realize how much I had figured out until now, thanks for that! And um, I suppose it would be a great plot twist to put in actually, and would be a good way to split the levels up. It could slowly be sinking throughout the events of the game and eventually a level near the end could actually be played underwater, then the last one when it was reverted to normal once the protagonist figures out it's just a memory and figures out the identity of the memories owner, following them to find out how they escaped before it sinks again and to stop the loop repeating all over again. I just need to more or less figure out this mysterious memory owner's back story now and work around that.
I guess it would be a Survival horror/Action-adventure I think and since I'm not a really big game fan I'd have to ask around some friends for that, but thanks all the same for the idea. It is definitely worth looking up some professional examples. whee

[Jin_of_the_thunder]

what about a group of adventurers traveling across the sea to find an ancient treasure. problem isto get the treasure they need 8 keys and each key is in the belly of a giant monsters?

[Chief Oof]

Jin_of_the_thunder

what about a group of adventurers traveling across the sea to find an ancient treasure. problem isto get the treasure they need 8 keys and each key is in the belly of a giant monsters?

This is actually a really good idea, thank you, this really helped! I think I have everything down now with all the help everyone's thrown at me, this is gonna turn out great.