Branching Dialogue: Border Patrol Report
(The Daemos Chronicles: Graduation Day)
- Genre: Fantasy ARPG
- Type: Side Quest Branching Dialogue
- Engine: RPG Maker MV
- Tools: Excel
- Duration 13 Weeks
- Roles:
- Quest branching dialogue writing, design and implementation
- Voice over script creation and casting specs
- Character design
- Location and building design
- World building (+ cartography)
Goal
- Build a narrative-focused project starting from research and finishing with documentation tailored for team collaboration,
- Create branching and linear dialogue that will be congruent with the characters and seamlessly lead to the desired gameplay,
- Design various characters, including bios, barks and visual research,
- Work in a studio-like environment, practice soft skills, get better understanding of collaborative processes between teams.
Overview
1. Created game world’s foundations including lore, geography, locations, and cartography design.
2. Designed a prototype of the branching dialogue using Twine.
3. Designed branching dialogues that are integrated into the game flow
4. Designed playable and non-playable characters based off the world’s baseline context.
5. Created an opening sequence script that leads directly into the gameplay
Quest Example Location
World and Location Maps
Concept art of World Map, areas, and buildings created in collaboration with game designer. Further research conducted on landscape and location design. Maps illustrated to denote the location of the quest.
(1) World Map, (2) Village, (3) Village Temple
Linear and Branching Dialogue: Creation Process
Branching Dialogue Tree
Designed branching dialogue tree to optimize for
- Connected dialogue thread
- Variable checks that lead to the dialogue or other parts of the quest
- Included following HUBS for branching dialogue design considerations
- Choice HUB – Prepare for War or Do Not Prepare for War
- Quest Success Check HUB – Quest Reminder or Quest Completion
- Gameplay Hub – Build an Armory
Branching Dialogue Narrative System
Designed branching dialogue that’s optimized for character and quest uniqueness, responding to player actions and interactions in real-time
- Created a prototype using Twine, and collaborated with game designers to ensure the storyline and dialogue connected directly to the gameplay
- The player reports sightings of the enemy to the King
- Made sure the Dialogue choices
- are clear to the design team and the player
- have opposite actions and outcomes respective of each choice
- lead to gameplay
- Simple polar opposite choices to cater to the various player types
- Worked with level and encounter designers, and voice actors to implement the branching dialogue into the game
Linear Dialogue Narrative System
Designed linear dialogue for a straightforward quest.
- The initial quest was designed to be straightforward based on the established narrative.
- Following a change by the game designer, the quest needed to be adjusted to offer two different choices, and the following branching dialogue below was crafted.
- A mockup of this dialogue in action can be found in the video above.
Designed Respective Quest Characters
Character Designs
Crafted four compelling characters with unique backstories, motivations, and character arc that promoted growth and resonates with the player across various gameplay quests and locations.
- The characters include the player character, two ally NPCS the player will interact with, and the main antagonist NPC
- Researched, designed, and fleshed out all characters
- Worked with the art designers and implemented their feedback to adjust character designs and backstories
- Finalized character designs, personalities, bios, and barks based on finalized character designs
Character Movesets
Move sets for each character were designed based on their bio and weapons equipped, if any. Worked with the narrative designer and animation team to build a sheet of cells for each character that included:
- Various forms of movement
- Basic and special attacks
- Guard
- Damage
- Winning and lose poses
Character Creator
In Act 2 of the game, Vivek organizes a team of new recruits to join him on an excursion out into the world. When forming this team, the player is able to design the three student characters Vivek chooses. This gives players:
- More freedom to test out other character class move sets
- The choice to personalize their team members
- A deeper connection with characters in the game
Above is the original character creator used before the choice to make Vivek the main NPC was discussed during game testing. Worked with the level designers and Narrative Designer to write these characters into the game with dialogue and choices when forming a team.
Player Character Bio and Barks
Crafted Player Character and NPCs with unique backstories and motivations to suit various player styles. Each character has their own voice and combat techniques to ensure lively and credible gaming experience and enable optional replayability.
The design steps were as follows:
- Researched and visualised the characters, including their background, appearances, weapons and attacks,
- Worked with the curator to integrate the characters into world lore and refine their personalities,
- Finalized bios and barks based on the finished designs.
Voice Over Scripts and Actor Casting Document
Voice Over Character Descriptions and Scripts
Created four Voice Over Documents for three of the four characters (Vivek, Tula, and Lobo) and one additional character from the branching dialogue (King; not shown). These documents provided detailed information to support the actors and result in faster and better voice recording sessions.
Each document included:
- Character Design images, character bios, motivations and voice directions
- All lines of dialogue for this this character along with scene details and quest summaries
Voice Over Actor Casting Document
Compiled a voice over actor casting document to help our team cast appropriate actors based on cultural backgrounds, ages, and genders.
Worldbuilding
Game World Map
Genre and Content Research
Compilation of similar content in different mediums to inspire the team and offer a sense of familiarity with the world lore and narrative components.
World Lore
Vivek lives in a world shared by mankind and shapeshifting humanoids. Humans are the minority of this world. They only know of two existing villages of man that exist, limited to the knowledge of their continent. All of the other villages are inhabited by clans of humanoids that can shapeshift into legendary beasts like Dragons and Werewolves.
They mostly live in peace, but when a human hunter is wounded and contracts a virus, the world becomes a strange and foreign place. Deadly to humans, the virus turns the blood of its host toxic. The humans organize excursions to venture out through the lands to find new, exotic plants and herbs that could be the key to creating a cure.
Vivek arranges groups up of monks, warriors, and herbalists to explore their continent in search of new resources. They try to forge alliances with other clans, but the wolf clan proves to be problematic. They become violent and attack a group of humans. To survive and put an end to the threat of the wolf clan, the humans go to war.
During an excursion into caves within the mountains, the humans find crystals and gems with mysterious properties. They are able to invoke a gem’s power and use it to perform supernatural feats. This form of magic gives humans the upper hand and helps them turn the tides and win the war.
World Lore Document
Wrote the world lore to establish the overall narrative and story arc of the game world. Worked with game and narrative designer to craft an engaging story that would resonate with the players and motivate them to explore the world and interact with it in various ways, including:
- Farming and Crafting
- Market Trade
- NPC Dialogue and Relationships
- Quests
- Combat
- Character Classes and Skill Trees
- Game and Story Progression
Location and Building Design
Level Design Documents
Using concept art and illustrations, levels for the starting village and all respective locations were designed.
Each document included:
- Concept art for each level
- Visual description for the art and level design team
- Gameplay usage and concepts
- NPCs and missions available
The Lower Level of the village, consisting of the homes and farmland.
The marketplace, consiting of a butcher stall, a produce stall, an Herbalist shop, a healing hut, and the Blacksmith shop.
Marketplace Document
Denotes the function of each major marker in the west wing of the market.
Blacksmith Document
Denotes the purpose of the Blacksmith and interior elements.
Healing Hut Document
Denotes the purpose of the healing hut and interior elements.
The Upper Level of the village, consisting of the Village Academy, Temple, and Army Base.
Village Academy Document
Denotes the purpose of the academy and exterior elements, including an NPC the player can interact with to learn a new skill.
Village Academy Interior Document
Denotes the purpose of the academy and interior elements, including a garden, classrooms, and two-floor botany lab.
Army Base Document
Denotes the purpose of the Army Base and exterior elements, including access to the training field.
Army Base Interior Document
Denotes the purpose of the Army Base and interior elements, including an NPC the player can interact with to learn the battle system, an armory, and an enemy NPC.
Village Temple Document
Denotes the purpose of the Village Temple and exterior elements.
Village Temple Interior Document
Denotes the purpose of the academy and interior elements, including the throne room, monk dormitories, and NPCs the player can interact with to progress the main storyline.
Storyboarding
Storyboard Document
Designed and outlined the layout for a storyboard to advertise the game. Worked with the art designers to compile a clear 30-40 second animated trailer. Collaborated with the marketing department to clarify coverage and broadcasting, adjusting the storyboard as needed for various media platforms.
The document included:
Frames for each scene
Duration estimate for each scene
Directions for the camera view, location, and actions taking place in each frame
