บท 25: Planning
"Boss, actually, your game is very similar to Stone Age," Olivia said softly.
The role of a game writer and event planner is essentially to assist the game designer in refining their ideas and offering suggestions for things like storylines, gameplay mechanics, and overall game flow. Additionally, they're responsible for planning in-game events after the game is released.
This is why many game development teams strive to work with well-known designers; the experience gained as an assistant is far more valuable than simple monetary compensation. A great designer and their team grow and improve together.
"Go on," John said, showing no sign of displeasure.
Olivia smiled, then projected a few images from her phone and continued, "The gameplay in Stone Age also places players in a primitive world. They start with stone tools and work towards building a better life. It's designed to be extremely detailed and precise."
She swiped her fingers across the screen, revealing gameplay elements from Stone Age.
"But because it's so detailed, Leo's design for Stone Age becomes overwhelming. Every little step requires attention to specifics—like how to craft a stone axe, the exact shape of the wood, the hardness of the stone—everything is accounted for. Players end up spending too much time on things that shouldn't be so laborious. It's a lot of effort just to get through the basics."
"Your game is different, though. Based on the information you've provided, the tool synthesis doesn't require players to know every little principle behind it. As long as they have the right materials, they can create tools with ease. This makes it much more accessible for players," Olivia explained.
"Exactly. The key point is freedom. I am the master of Minecraft," John said, his lips curling into a smile as he mentally offered a silent apology to his old friend.
Compared to the convenient, quick synthesis system in Minecraft, Stone Age focused too much on meticulous details. It was competing against itself. In a sandbox game, excessive attention to detail wasn't necessary—freedom was the real goal. What's the point of playing a sandbox game if it feels like research work?
"Boss, you're amazing. At first, I thought you were just modifying Stone Age's gameplay, but you came up with this all by yourself!" Bella said, her eyes wide with admiration.
"Alright, enough flattery," John chuckled. "Now that you've seen the materials, how long will it take you to finish the game?"
Sarah thought for a moment before replying, "Around three months."
John was taken aback. "Three months? Why so long?"
Bella rolled her eyes, smiling playfully. "Boss, do you think this is as simple as growing cabbage? You've only laid out the general gameplay and settings. We'll need time to flesh out everything."
"Shimeng and I will have to work overtime to analyze the game settings and create original artwork, and Jessica will be modeling with us to speed things up," Sarah explained.
"It's a conservative estimate to say three months. We worked on Stone Age for more than six months before we finished it."
"Wait… but isn't the original artwork pretty simple?" John asked, still confused.
"Boss, do you know how to draw?" Bella asked with an arched brow.
"Uh… no."
"Then don't say it's simple. Original artwork design is a very complicated task."
Seeing the genuine confusion on John's face, Bella sighed, clearly trying to stay patient. "Every time we determine the look of a character in the game, it's like casting an actor for a movie. It's a long, detailed process. Not to mention the color scheme for the game. We spent ages getting the tone right for Stone Age. This time, since we've done it before, we can speed things up, but three months is already a pretty short timeline."
"Uh…"
John suddenly realized he hadn't told them it was a pixel-based game. In Minecraft, only he had the vivid memories from his previous life, and the system provided only brief descriptions of the game.
"Wait a second, you're telling me you can't even design a Pokémon?" Bella teased, looking at John with mock suspicion. "No one's helping you?"
John ignored her skeptical look. He couldn't explain it properly anyway! The way he was building games was completely different from what they were used to. There was no need for detailed artwork or modeling—he already had the images in his mind. The Pokémon were directly created in the virtual world, almost like 3D character sculpting, then translated into a real-world program with the system's help.
"Ahem," John cleared his throat. "No need to worry about the original art. Just make it in pixel style."
"Pixel style?" The girls were caught off guard.
"Yeah, Minecraft will be a pixel game. The characters, the world, everything will be in cube form."
"Boss, are you serious? Pixel games are so outdated. Are you sure people will even like them?" Jessica asked, raising an eyebrow.
"No problem. Minecraft is all about gameplay. As for the visuals and color tone, we can tweak those later with game modules. Just focus on creating the pixel art."
Game modules, commonly known as "mods," were another core feature of Minecraft. They would allow players to customize and expand the game to their liking, truly making it the player's own world.
"Mods?" Sophie asked curiously. "What's that?"
"You don't know what mods are?" John asked, surprised.
The rest of the girls looked confused as well, shaking their heads.
John sighed. "A mod is a modification program that players can use to change aspects of the game. Think of it like a cheat, but official. Mods don't break the game's balance—they're meant to add more fun and customization options."
"I've said before that Minecraft has a high degree of freedom. This doesn't just apply to the gameplay but also to the game itself."
As John finished explaining, the girls seemed to have discovered a whole new world. It was the first time they had encountered something like game mods.
A/N: Same as always donate some power stones and Enjoy ✌️.
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