01 Concept
An exploration of core systems of an isometric RPG game inspired by the likes of Disco Elysium as part of an introduction to project management. I designed and built the system from the ground up, including a stat system that affects success chances in dialogue, a fully fledged inventory system and dialogue with multiple choices.
02 Features
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Inventory System - The player has a large inventory with which they can store key items that effect how effective each skill check will be
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Stat System - With skill checks during gameplay, based on each stat level similar to that of DND or Disco Elysium
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Dialogue System - With multiple different paths and options
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Dice based skill checks
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Narrative Framework
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VFX System
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UI System with menu's
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Basic Quest System
03 Project Focus and Outcomes
I was inspired by Disco Elysium, and having recently played Baldur's Gate 3 at the time, I believed it would be a worthwhile direction to develop my skills further into some of the core systems of traditional RPGs, like inventory management, dialogue choices and a working stat system that affects how the story is experienced. It also allowed me to explore possible narrative avenues that my course otherwise didn't afford.
The focus of the project from a course perspective was to develop key project management strategies, and build core production skills.
The outcome of the project was a short 5 minute artefact, which effectively showed off the implemented features, with a contained story with the capability to expand further.
By the end of the project I managed to produce a project that I am proud of to this day, which serves as a foundational piece in my technical designer journey due to its role in refining my systems Knowledge.
04 Planning
Planning was a large part of the process of this project as we simulated how our projects progress from pitches to the fully fledged artefacts. This taught me key time management techniques such as Gantt charts in order to structure development.
It also saw me exploring the complexity of planning narrative pathways and how quickly the plans can become monstrous in scale.
05 Challenges
This project challenged me in a variety of ways as it was my first time having complete creative control of the project. There was no brief to follow and I had to be fully in control at each step of the way. Thankfully however the ideas came to me quickly and so I could get to work early.
This project also challenged my technical skills as I had to get to grips with how to properly use interfaces and components to build my inventory system. This took some getting used to in these early days, but laid the foundation for the designer I am now.
The Final major issue is in relation to the dialogue system specifically, due to the need to factor in every player choice the blueprint swelled to a very large size, so that it became hard to understand. To tackle this I needed to employ a strict organisational structure to prevent any confusion.
06 Moving forward
This Project was a flagstone in my journey to becoming a technical designer and a project close to my heart. It built me up and established skills I now use in every project.
Moving on from this project, I have a keen sense that I wish to once again venture into the world of RPG game development and see how far my skills have truly come.
I am no longer the designer who created Cursed Arcana but the lessons it taught me remain relevant and important.