[Pyke]

http://www.stasisgame.com/join-the-g...arch-division/



HELP ME!
Have you ever played an adventure game, and wondered just what they were thinking with certain puzzles? Ever known that you could definately do better? I think that all adventure gamers have a few incredible ideas for puzzles up their sleeves, and are just hoping that a developer would impliment something similar. Well here is your chance! As a lone developer of an adventure game, coming up with awesome puzzle ideas is quite a daunting task-so Im am turning to the gaming public for help! Yes-Im asking you if you have any really cool ideas for AG puzzles to pass them onto me for implementation into STASIS. I really want this to be the best possible adventure game-and really need your help to make it happen!
Now I know that it is really difficult to come up with puzzles without knowing the story-but rest assured, if you have an awesome idea, I will find a way to place it in context. Your puzzle could be anything, from rewiring a robot, to getting past a security panel. Within The Groomlake, there really is nothing to stop the imagination from running wild. Everything from human cloning experiments, to genetic alteration of plants goes on here. Puzzles could include making certain types of acids from chemicals to injecting a nano virus into yourself to get it through pathogen detectors.
The Groomlake is also a deadly place-so think about the dangers involved when designing your puzzles. If doing something will result in death-make it an grueling death! Does not getting the correct formula turn you inside out? Liquefy your bones? Make your spine instantly fuse, paralyzing you in place until you starve to death?
Puzzles can be anything from inventory puzzles, combining items, finding them, replacing them etc, to the ‘Myst’ style puzzles, needing you to rewire panels, turn dials, or just break things!
Submitting your puzzles can include anything, from drawings, images found on the net, to just a description.
BUT WHATS IN IT FOR ME?
Money! Fame! Woman! Unfortunately I cant offer any of this, but what I can give you is my eternal gratitude, and a place in the credits of a really cool game. All used puzzles WILL recieve credit on this website, as well as in the credits section of the final product. I will also keep you personally informed about the progress of your specific puzzle , and email you with exclusive ’Work In Progress’ shots of the puzzle as I implement it.
………….
Ideas, comments, or even just general rants about how Im just trying to steal ideas can be emailed to”
[email protected] with the subject heading ‘STASIS PUZZLE DESIGN’
Please also remember to give your puzzle a cool descriptive name-so I know what to credit it as, and how to refer to it in the future.
……………….
Thanks for anyone that contributes! I know that STASIS will be a work of art with your help!

[Pyke]

I got a little bored with just doing backend stuff, so I moved onto another area of the game. I suppose thats the advantage of being a one-man-army...when something gets boring, there are 400 other things to switch to!

Rapid Transport System.

The Groomlakes RTS is a series of trams that link areas of the half-kilometer long space ship together.
Throughout the chapters, Maracheck will be able to explore the ship in any way he wants, using the RTS. Certain areas pieces of the track will not be available immediately, either requiring security clearance, or some other way of bypassing it.

This is a Work In Progress shot of a standard boarding platform. The map on the right will show all the terminals that this specific tram can travel to. A 'YOU ARE HERE' board.

[mrLOL]

Dude IMO you are way off-base about asking people for puzzle-ideas,
I once read a interview with a screenwriter (forgot who) and he said the difference between a horrible action-movie and a suprisingly good one is that the bad ones consider the action-part as a separete entity where the action is nothing more than "a action sequence",
whereas in a good action-movie the action is not there as just a way to squeeze action into the movie but it's an actual extension of the story-telling, in a good action-movie every part of the action further defines the character, every fighting sequence in Rush Hour 1 is actually about further defining the differences of jackie and tuckers characters.

What's my point? I don't believe you should think of the puzzles as a separate entity where you can simply "insert good puzzle", as there is no such thing as a good puzzle in and by itself, even if someone did have a really good puzzel to share I don't think you should include it as it would feel like you're just throwing obsticles at the player, only you know the story and characters that you are trying to tell good enough to craft puzzles that truely matters to the story rather than just to prolong game-time.

So if you're having trouble coming up with puzzles here are a few pointers:
Who is you character and what characteristic is it you want to define really strongly?
If he's remarkibly clever like Sherlock Holmes then the puzzles need to be a certain way, even the epic Full Throttle puzzel (the one about getting into the car-garbage-area) would not fit if the protaganist was Sherlock Holmes,
Is your character the Prison Break micheal scofield type? then every puzzel should be about defining him further so the player keeps telling himself "damn that scofield is clever"

[Pyke]

Hey MrLOL,

I know exactly what you mean, and I just want to let you know that Im really not fishing for ideas from people, and definately will not be 'shoe horning' random puzzles into the game.
As I've mentioned before, the game has already been fully designed. All of the puzzles have already been thought out, and placed in the context of the environment.

The idea to ask for some community interaction in the puzzle aspect came from a post I wrote here about the multiple puzzle solutions. The users of this forum are a wellspring of knowledge and experience, and I was trying to figure out a way to best tap into that. As I've mentioned before, there is only one developer on STASIS-and because I am trying to keep the story under wraps its quite difficult for me to bounce ideas around.

The 'call for help' really wasnt out of desparation for ideas, as it may seem. It really was a call to people who have awesome ideas, but arent certain how to execute them. I get inspiration for puzzles, stories, graphic elements from literally everything. A photo, tin can, movie, piece of music. Getting them directly from the people who will (I hope!) one day enjoy STASIS didnt seem like the worst idea.

[Pyke]

Rapid Transport System…
Powered by ARROW.

The RTS is a tram system which allows easy access to different parts of the Groomlake.
The transport system is designed so that the player can have ‘freeform’ access to many different areas of the ship right from the start of the game. Now while the entire ship wont be accessable at the begining of the game you will have access to ‘mid deck’, which consistis of:
.
VIP Arrivals (the areas completed so far).
.
Mid Deck Infirmary (which will be decked out with all sorts of ‘lower use’ medical equipment. Mainly a small hospital for non serious injuries that civilians or other visitors may have when visiting The Groomlake)
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Mid Deck Mess Hall (consisting of kitchens, prep areas, food, and possibly some forms of entertainment).
.
Mid Deck Information Centre (a museum of sorts where dignitaries can learn about The Groomlake).
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And PLAZA A, PLAZA B, and PLAZA C-which have elevators and security checks to proceed to different areas of the ship.
.
Its important to note that the areas listed are just stations…so each station will have branches off to quite a few rooms, and may have other transport options available once in those areas. The RTS is sort of the major hub that connects things, with many minor options available to the player to get around. The tansport system platforms are essentially gateways to different pieces of the ship.

Access to the multiple areas of the ship really opens up the puzzle design. Items in the infirmary can be used to solve puzzles in the mess hall. There is a main single objective for the ‘mid level’, in this case, getting SECURITY LEVEL FOUR access to get to the control deck-but this isnt a ‘find the yellow key card’ type of game! All areas will have puzzles to solve, and areas to explore, that will not only open up the story, but also provide some awesome gamaplay opportunities.
When designing the map system, I took inspiration from subway maps of the major undergound subway ststems in the world. The system needs to look realistic. Like a subway system that could actually work.





GENERAL PROGRESS.

I have fully completed all the puzzle and game integration that leads us from the INNER AIRLOCK to the RTS PLATFORM. However, on a playthrough I’ve realised that the critical path is a little to direct. There arent enough obstacles in the captains way, so Im having a relook at a few elements in the levels. One additional area I am adding in between the Arrivals Hall and the Decon/Security Room is a ‘last stand.’ An area where a few crew members tried to make a final stand against…something. Welded doors, stacked boxes, mobile sentry guns…very ALIENS. Im taking a good look at properly integrating this into the current game, as its important that this doesnt feel ‘tacked on’. Im hoping this can be done with just some dialog links in the previous scenes, but may have to add some objects here and there, to really sell the idea.

On a side note, I really want to thank you guys for checking up on this project! It really is a labor of love on my part, and knowing that there are people out there following the progress really helps me push forward!

[ZeframCochrane]

It's always nice to see new screenshots!

I like the modifications you made from the last screenshot of the train station.

First off, I like the neat aversion of No OSHA Compliance... it wouldn't have made much sense to let passengers simply wander on the rails...

Also, I was about to point out that a service ladder leading right in front of the board would've been pretty uncomfortable for those using it, but it wouldn't have been necessary because you noticed it yourself.

Speaking of the board, would you consider highlighting the station the player is in, to complement the YOU ARE HERE map in the top right corner?

[Pyke]

Originally Posted by ZeframCochrane

It's always nice to see new screenshots!

I like the modifications you made from the last screenshot of the train station.

First off, I like the neat aversion of No OSHA Compliance... it wouldn't have made much sense to let passengers simply wander on the rails...

Also, I was about to point out that a service ladder leading right in front of the board would've been pretty uncomfortable for those using it, but it wouldn't have been necessary because you noticed it yourself.

Speaking of the board, would you consider highlighting the station the player is in, to complement the YOU ARE HERE map in the top right corner?

Thanks man. Yeah-the previous shot was a little to.. utilitarian. There is a practical reason for the change tho. With the new version, the only part that needs to be animated is the little square that you can see the train arriving through. With the previous version, the entire top half of the screen needed to be animated. The train station was something like 20 megs big. New one is 2.

The board is going under a few revisions. I cant believe I forgot to add on the 'you are here' icon tho. That will definitely get added!

[zenger]

WOW, It looks as amazing as always Pyke

I understand it's a lot of work and It must be real hard sometimes but never doubt that You have fans out there that are really looking forward to playing this . It looks fantastic... but, no pressure ... We gamers are very used to wait long periods of time for a game so.. no problem...

[Pyke]

Thanks Zenger! Im plodding along at a nice and steady pace.

[miyagiCE]

I'm curious, do you model each object in the game by hand, or do you have a number of presets that you can use/modify?

Great job on the game, can't wait to see it in action.

[Pyke]

miyagiCE, some of the elements are custom modeled for the scene. For example, the train, track, ladders, etc. But what Ill do is save those separate elements out for later use, so if I need a train model, or ladders, I have them in a library.

Things like the computer screens and chairs were previous modeled for another scene, added to the library, and dropped into here.

All in all, it really depends on the scene tho. If I use to many library items, I know that the scenes will all start to look alike-which is something I definitely want to avoid!

[Pyke]

I did a writeup on how I construct the scenes in a few articles on the website:

http://www.stasisgame.com/constructing-a-scene-part-1/
http://www.stasisgame.com/constructing-a-scene-part-2/
http://www.stasisgame.com/constructing-a-scene-part-3/

[miyagiCE]

Oh wow, very interesting! I figured you'd be able to reuse your models, but I thought the program(s) you use would have a stock library as well. Now that I think about it, you mentioned you're a professional, so you probably have a rather large library from previous projects already.

[Pyke]

Im using MAX for all the modeling, animation, and rendering. There are quite a few free libraries out there, and some really nice professional ones.

I have used a few models from a previous animation I did called 'Ghost Ship', which was really the first germ of the idea for STASIS. Hell, its actually where I got the name from.

Here you can see part of the original video:
http://vimeo.com/4353585
The idea was really just to show some cool environments of an abandoned space ship. Its something I still want to revisit at some point in the future-but for now Im gonna focus on the game dev!

Many of the libraries are quite general, and there aren't a ton of 'sci fi' objects around that would fit in with the game-and many of the ones that are available are pretty crap. But I quite enjoy modeling the custom stuff. Im doing a scene involving a last stand....bent floor panels where 'something' came from under the floor, dents in thick doors, broken up chairs and smashed computers. FUN.

[2short]

Pyke, I tried sending you a PM, but alas, I could not do it since I just registered.
Your games looks like an awesome project, I'd love to work on some music for it!

Here's a link to some music I worked on for another game:
http://www.myspace.com/lundagersound

Hope to hear from you :-)

Jesper

[Pyke]

Hey 2short,

You can pop me an email at chrisbischoff(at)gmail.com

With regards to the music of the game, I've given quite a bit of thought to how it would work. Essentially the majority of the game would be made up of just ambient sounds. I think that having music on constantly almost diminishes the music itself. If you keep the music to certain triggered events, suddenly it really adds to the tension!

I read a really interesting article on the music of DeadSpace. They used something called a 'fear emitter', which were certain spheres of influence that changed the music according to your distance to the fear emitter, with the music getting more tense as you got closer to it. I would really look at something a LOT simpler than that, but its a nice idea to control the music.

[Pyke]

A quick question for you guys:
With regards to dialog, are subtitles important, or would you be willing to JUST have voice overs?

I ask, because subtitles really are a throwback to the days of 8 bit sound, and...well....no sound. I know they are a staple of adventure gaming, but are they perhaps there just because its what we expect?

In STASIS you have the option to turn them off, and I find when I play, and when others play, that the subtitles almost kill the mood. The game as a ton of 'incidental' dialog...comments from the captain when he does anything from touch a wall, to change from walking on a carpet to a grating. Ive found that having it just be voice really pulls you deeper into the experience.

[orient]

Originally Posted by Pyke

A quick question for you guys:
With regards to dialog, are subtitles important, or would you be willing to JUST have voice overs?

Always have the option for subtitles, even if they're off by default.

I've seen a few comments from gamers that aren't native English speakers, that get frustrated because they can't always keep up with the dialogue if it isn't supplemented with subtitles. Subtitles are a big help if you want to localise your game without re-recording the voice work in 5 different languages.

Also, in some cases dialogue can be masked by environmental sounds and music, or just come off as being too quiet for some people. Others just like reading along and it doesn't bring them out of the experience at all.

Lastly, the politically correct reason: deaf people like to play games, too

[miyagiCE]

I completely agree. Even though I have no difficulty understanding 99% of all voicework, visual cues instead of killing the mood tremendously heighten my personal experience with adventure games. I always make sure to turn on the subtitles in the options before I start a game.

[Pyke]

Thanks for the responses guys. All excellent points! Ill definitely add in the subtitles as default, with the option to turn them off.

UPDATES!

A few people have asked me if there will be deaths in STASIS. The answer is a very definiate yes!
LUCASARTS games avoideded death in their games, as they felt that it hindered the gamer from exploring the world. Sierra had a different approach….death was fun! I fondly remember saving before certain deaths just so that I could watch them again. Seeing Roger Wilco’s head explode, or face melt off in acid…why, thats just awesome!

DEATH BY…..

In a game like STASIS, where danger lurks at every corner, I think that to not have deaths in the game would be a mistake. And when you have deaths, they should be spectacular! They should be fun, gory, and make you want to re-watch them a few times.
I have a long list of ways to die in the game-a list that includes being ripped apart by active sentry guns, getting freeze dried in liquid nitrogen, melted by heated metal plates, surgical dismemberment, getting crushed by faulty doors, and one of my favorites, having your spine fused together and starving to death because of a faulty injection.

APPROACHING DEATH

Now with deaths in adventure games, I think that they should be avoidable. I don’t believe in the ‘open the door into a pit of spikes’ approach to death. Just like in reality, if you are aware of your environment you should be able to avoid death. If you cant play through a game without dying, I feel that there is a problem with the design.
But with deaths like this, how can you resist walking infront of that gun…you know…just to see what happens?









YOUTUBE LINK 1 SHOWING THE DEATH IN GAME

YOUTUBE LINK 2 SHOWING THE DEATH ANIM ON ITS OWN