[IGC2018] 11bit Przemyslaw Solski - 간결함이 아름답다 프로스트 펑크 시나리오 창작 과정

1. When less is more.
The creative process of Frostpunk scenarios
Przemysław Solski
Senior Game Designer

2. AGENDA
1/ Frostpunk
2/ Frostpunk scenarios
3/ The Arks – creative process
4/ The Fall of Winterhome – creative process
5/ The role of narrative

3. Frostpunk
Survival - city builder about what society
is capable of when pushed to the limits

4. Frostpunk scenarios
NEW HOME
THE ARKS
REFUGESS
THE FALL OF WINTERHOME

5. New Home
A story about survivors from London
who have to endure the frozen world
Main moral issue:
How society must change
to survive

6. The Arks
Group of engineers guard
the last seedling on Earth
Main moral issue:
What is more important,
mission or human life?

7. Refugees
Story about conflict between
two diffrent group of refugees.
Main moral issue:
Do you risk your people's lives and
help strangers who will die without
your help?

8. The Fall of Winterhome
Story about the city that has to fall
Main moral issue:
How people behave in the face
of imminent catastrophe

9. Scenarios - main goals
New gameplay
experience
Difficult
moral choices
Post-playthrough
reflection

10. Scenarios - limitations
The construction
of the game
imposes limits
New mechanics
limits

11. How to create a scenario maintaining the goals with
given limitations?

12. HIGH LEVEL
IDEA
HIGH LEVEL
DOCUMENT
PROTOTYPE PRODUCTION FINAL PRODUCT
ALPHA BETA
CREATIVE PROCESS

13. THE ARKS

14. STARTING POINT
LIMITED NUMBER
OF PEOPLE
(ONLY ENGINEERS
AND AUTOMATONS)
NO POSSIBILITY
OF OBTAINING
NEW PEOPLE
IN THE CITY

15. POSITIVE RESULTS
DIFFICULT
BUT
SATISFYING
BEGINNING
THE LACK OF
PEOPLE CAUSED
BUILDING
AUTOMATONS
THE CITY LOOKED
DIFFERENT
DEATH
OF EVERY PERSON
IS MORE
MEANINGFUL
THE BEGINNING
WAS DIFFRENT DUE
TO LIMITED NUMBER
OF PEOPLE

16. NEGATIVE RESULTS
AFTER REACHING
THE RIGHT NUMBER
OF AUTOMATONS
NO CHALLENGES
NO ENDING
SMALL GROUP
OF PEOPLE
CAUSE NOT ENOUGH
PROBLEMS TO SOLVE
MANY LAWS FROM
BOOK OF LAW DIDN’T
MAKE SENSE
NO MORAL CHOICES

17. FEW PROTOTYPES LATER…..

18. ADDITIONS
MAIN GOAL OF SCENARIO:
PREPARE FOR THE STORM
PLAYER HAS TO COLLECT
ENOUGH AMOUNT OF
RESOURCES

19. ADDITIONS
OTHER CITY
NEW MANCHESTER
WITH
A LOT OF SICKS,HUNGRY
POOR TECHNOLOGY
PLAYER COULDN’T ACQUIRE
ANY NEW PEOPLE FROM
THERE

20. POSITIVE OUTCOME
GATHERING
RESOURCES TO
FACE THE STORM
GIVES THE PLAYER
A GOAL
ADDING NEW
MANCHESTER
CREATED A
MORAL CHOICE
PLAYER HAS
A LOT OF WORK
TO DO
3 ENDING:
SAVING HIMSELF
SAVING BOTH CITIES
SACRIFICE FOR
NEW MANCHESTER

21. NEGATIVE OUTCOME
IMPACT OF THE MORAL
CHOICE COULD BE BIGGER
NOT ENOUGH
BACKGROUND STORY
WHY ONLY ENGINEERS?

22. `
ADDITIONS
THE ARKS
NEW BUILDINGS WHICH
CONTAIN LAST SEEDLINGS
ON THE EARTH
KEEP THEM AT THE RIGHT
TEMPERATURE

23. FINAL
THE GUARDIANS
OF HOPE,
CHOSEN TO
REBUILD THE FLORA
SAVING HUMANITY
IN THE FUTURE OR
HUMAN LIFE HERE
AND NOW
THE ARKS
INCREASED
THE UNIQUE LOOK
OF THE CITY
DEEPER MORAL
CHOICE

24. WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED?
CREATING NEW GAMEPLAY
EXPERIENCE IS NOT ONLY
POSSIBLE BY ADDING
NEW CONTENT
BUT ALSO BY LIMITING
WHAT WE ALREADY HAVE
THE ENDING OF THE
SCENARIO SHOULD BE
SPECIFIED AS SOON AS
POSSIBLE...
IF NOT YOU WILL HAVE TO
CHANGE A LOT....

25. FALL OF WINTERHOME

26. How to create a scenario where player
has to lose, but feel as a winner?

27. STARTING POINT
THE BIG CITY ON THE BEGINNING
TOOK OVER FROM
THE PREVIOUS CAPTAIN
SOME RIGHTS ARE ALREADY SIGNED
PLAYER HAS TO
REBUILD THE CITY

28. STARTING POINT
CITY HAS FALLEN DUE TO
GENERATOR MALFUNCTIONS
LETTING PLAYER TO
EVACUATE PEOPLE

29. REBUILD THE
CITY
GENERATOR
FAILURE
EXAMINE THE
GENERATOR
FIND THE
SHELTER
EVACUATE
PEOPLE
FALL OF WINTERHOME – FLOW STRUCTURE
x x

30. POSITIVE RESULTS
THE LARGE CITY
TURNED OUT TO BE A VERY
REFRESHING OPENING
GENERATOR FAILURE
WAS A STRONG ACCENT
IN THE NARRATIVE
DECLINING CITY
POPULATION IS
A CHALLENGE
FOR THE PLAYER
EVACUATING PEOPLE
HAS GREAT POTENTIAL
WHEN IT COMES TO
MORAL CHOICES
SIGNED RIGHTS GAVE
AN OPPORTRUNITY
TO CHANGE PLAYER HABITS

32. NEGATIVE RESULTS
SUDDEN GENERATOR
FAILURE IS NOT CREDIBLE
TOO MANY STEPS
BETWEEN
FAILURE OF THE
GENERATOR
AND STARTING
EVACUATION
TOO COMPLICATED
NARRATIVE

33. ADDITIONS
REORGANIZATION OF THE NARRATIVE
INFORMATION ABOUT GENERATOR
MALFUNCTION IS GIVEN FROM THE
BEGINNING
REPAIR STATION

34. REBUILD THE CITY
EXAMINE THE
GENERATOR
EVACUATE
PEOPLE
FALL OF WINTERHOME – FLOW STRUCTURE
GENERATOR CAN
NOT BE FIXED

35. ADDITIONS
DREADNOUGHT WHICH LOCATION
IS KNOWN FROM THE BEGINNING
PLAYER DOES NOT HAVE TO LOOK FOR
PLACE OF EVACUATION ON
FROSTLAND
EVACUATION CENTER IS BUILDING
WHERE PLAYER CAN SEND PEOPLE
AND RESOURCES
NO CHANCE
OF SAVING EVERYONE

36. ADDITIONS
RUINS
RUINS ARE RESOURCE PACKS AND
THIS IS CREATIVE USE OF MECHANICS
THAT THE PLAYER ALREADY KNOWS
INTRODUCING STORY OF THE
PREVIOUS CAPTAIN'S OVERTHROW

37. FINAL
SMOOTH NARRATION
BETWEEN TREADS
DRAMATIC EVACUATION
WITH
DEEP MORAL CHOICES
REPAIR STATION AND
EVACUATION CENTER
MECHANICS SUPPORT
NARRATIVE
COMPABILITY WITH
NEW HOME SCENARIO

38. WHAT WE HAVE LEARNED?
CREATING MORE PRECISE
OBJECTIVES IN HIGH LEVEL
IDEA LED TO MUCH MORE
EFFICIENT CREATIVE PROCESS
CREATING ENDING
SATISFYING BOTH FOR
ADVANCED AND CASUAL
PLAYERS
IMPROVING
THE COMBINATION
OF NARRATIVE AND
GAMEPLAY MECHANICS

39. THE ROLE OF NARRATIVE

40. Our main purpose:
Difficult moral choices
and post-playthrough reflections

41. To achieve this we had come up with new way to
transfer narrative to city builder

42. And we realised we need to implement movie narrative

44. IMPLEMENTING CLASSIC STORY ARC
REQUIRES INTRODUCING TO GAMEPLAY
GRADUALLY
DEVELOPED
TENSION AND
INTRODUCED PLOT
TWISTS
THREE PHASES
BEGINNING,
AMPLIFICATION
ENDING

46. EVEN WITHOUT MAIN NARRATIVE THE PLAYER HAS TO TAKE
CARE OF A LOT OF PROBLEMS MAINLY CONNECTED
TO CITY BUILDING ASPECT OF THE GAME

47. ADJUSTING NARRATIVE TO CITYBUILDER’S REQUIREMENTS

48. BEEING ABLE
SUMMARIZE
MAIN PLOT
IN ONE OR TWO
SENTENCES
SIMPLIFYING
NARRATIVE
ASSOCIATION
NARRATIVE
WITH GAMEPLAY
MECHANICS

49. IF INTRODUCING NARRATIVE IN CITY BUILDER
IS HARD, IMPLEMENTING PLOT TWIST IS
MUCH HARDER...

50. TWIST PLOT REQIUIRES INTRODUCTION

51. Refugees emotional timeline
Intro
Lords are coming
Hungry
Lords group
Sick Lords
group
Lord Craven
group
The End
SAVE OUR PEOPLE FACE THE LORDS RESOLVE THE CLASS CONFLICT
MAIN
PLOT TWIST
We suggest what
happenes

52. Fall of Winterhome emotional timeline
Intro
REBUILD THE CITY EXAMINE THE
GENERATOR
EVACUATION
The End
Generator
cannot be
repair
1st
malfunction
2nd
malfunction
3st
malfunction
4st
malfunction
Last
malfunction
MAIN
PLOT TWIST
We suggest what
happenes

53. NARRATIVE AND GAMEPLAY MECHANICS
HAVE TO BE
TWO SIDES OF THE SAME COIN

55. EXPERIENCE IS NOT THE SAME FOR EVERY
PLAYER

56. HOW CAN WE LEAD NARRATION AND
GAMEPLAY TO SATISFY BOTH EXPERIENCED
AND CASUAL PLAYERS…

57. SOLUTION – TWO OBJECTIVES
MAIN OBJECTIVE
NECESSERY TO
COMPLETE
SCENARIO
FOR CASUAL
PLAYER
ADDITIONAL
OPTIONAL
OBJECTIVES
FOR EXPERIENCED
PLAYER

58. EXAMPLE – THE ARKS
MAIN OBJECTIVE
PREPARE FOR THE
STORM
ONE ARK HAVE TO
SURVIVE
OPTIONAL OBJECTIVES
RELIEF EXPEDITIONS
TO NEW MANCHESTER
SAVE ALL ARKS

59. EXAMPLE – FALL OF WINTERHOME
MAIN OBJECTIVE
SEND TO
DREADNOUGHT
A MINIMUM CREW
AND RESOURCES
OPTIONAL OBJECTIVES
BUILD ADDITIONAL DECKS
SEND MORE PEOPLE
SEND MORE FOOD

60. CONCLUSIONS

61. THINK ABOUT MAIN GOALS,
AND NOT TO LOSE THEM IN ENTIRE
PROCESS

62. USE LIMITS AS AN OPPORTUNITY

63. EVEN COLD NUMBERS CAN BE TURNED
INTO FEELING AND EMOTIONS

64. LESS MEANS MORE

65. Thank you!
przemyslaw.solski@11bitstudios.com