Game Plan & Prep

[Lore]

Hey folks,

I've been wondering for a while...what do you guys do as your first steps for game planning and preparation? I have my own methods, such as developing a rough outline of how I want the story to go, planning parts of the database and working out main characters and such, but I'm interested to hear what planning and preparation you guys do.

 

[Xavier101]

Not sure if it makes much sense, but I always end up focusing on the world. As I build the lands and terrains, I end up working out the history of how certain landmarks came to be. Slowly creating a backstory for the main story to have when I switch over to it. Helps me out since I've always been a fan of new worlds and what potentials they can hold.

 

[mobiusclimber]

Because I'm more of a writer than a game designer, I usually start with an inspiration, work out the plot from there, then think about the characters and their personalities, and then start building the world around them. I usually don't have everything plotted out, which means that later on I'll have to redo stuff from the beginning. I also try to talk to as many people as I can and tell them my idea so I can get some feedback. I usually end up hearing things that I wouldn't have thought of myself, and it helps reshape the story into something a lot better. I always have a tone that I aim for, which is dependent on the storyline, and work towards always balancing that tone.I also try to add as much thinly-disguised allegory and social/political commentary as I can get away with without bogging down the storyline or tipping my hat too far. I feel like a lot of game developers/writers don't bother asking the question of why their work exists, and it makes for a shallow experience. A game designer is like the hand of God in old Twilight Zone episodes. If you can, say, take a racist and make him live through the experience of being a prisoner in a Nazi concentration camp, why would you instead choose to make another "go save the princess and the kingdom because you're the chosen one"?