I was really drawn to the idea of telling a story set against an environmental catastrophe, specifically a hurricane since I grew up in the Carolinas where they are fairly common. At first, my game followed a college student returning home after a hurricane to find their home destroyed and their parents missing. Things got darker when the protagonist found out their parents were actually oil tycoons, directly tied to the environmental damage. This twist added a new layer: nature itself was fighting back against those responsible.
As cool as this idea was, I quickly realized it was way too big to handle within the project’s timeline—especially since I got sick. So, I had to pivot. That’s how The Broadcast was born. It still hit on themes of environmental and personal responsibility but shifted to a more community-driven story. Now, instead of a personal journey, players became a college student hosting a late-night radio show in a hurricane-ravaged town, uncovering hidden truths through the stories of others.
This new direction meant rethinking how the game worked. I added interactive elements like real-time decisions and tracking systems for public trust and threat. Players’ choices on-air impacted how the town saw them and how much trust the corporation had. It made the story feel alive and dynamic, even though figuring it all out was a bit tricky.
Keeping everything within scope was still a challenge. The original ambitious plan had to be scaled back, especially with me getting sick, which cut down on the time I had for playtesting. But I made the most of the feedback I got and kept pushing forward.
Seeing people play the game was super rewarding. Watching them engage with the story and feel the weight of their choices showed me that the pivot to a community-focused narrative was the right call. I learned a lot about flexibility in storytelling and balancing big ideas with practical design.
In the end, creating The Broadcast was all about adapting and growing. I kept the core themes intact while making the game more interactive and manageable. Despite the hurdles, it reaffirmed my love for storytelling and the unique power of IF to explore deep themes in an engaging way.
