Synopsis:

[Protagonist name] has been raised all his life to be a Chasqui; one of the Incan empire’s messenger class, capable of travelling long distances with their seemingly superhuman stamina and agility. Despite his notable skill as a chasqui, [protagonist] has always yearned to be a warrior, and through a series of consequential events, he’s tasked with delivering important information to the battlefield. Now, equipped with a quipu and a small dagger, he must make his way to the frontlines by any means he chooses, be that by using his skills or a messenger or learning the way of the warrior.

via https://www.pinterest.com/pin/936185841264676131/ (original link deprecated)

Tone

The tone of our game is going to be fairly serious. Some of the main themes that we’d like our story to address are religion and the glorification of violence, and we’re also dealing with the very serious real-life subject matter of the Spanish conquest of the Inca empire. This is also a coming of age story, so we can find the main character making light of certain things that happen to them as a younger person would. The main emotions we wish to evoke in our players are:

Tense/Desperate

A large part of our game’s tone comes from the player character’s sense of urgency. They need to reach their destination as quickly as possible, lest some terrible fate befall their comrades and countrymen. As the war and conditions worsen, and as it becomes clear that the Inca empire is in dire straits, the player must figure out what they can do to make the best of a bad situation.

Feeling Lost, Adrift

The lost/adrift tone comes from the coming-of-age aspect of our story. Our protagonist is discovering who they are, and what their place is in society and the world. Through their interactions with friends, foes, superiors, and companions, they’ll learn more about what it means to be a chasqui, and a young person in a doomed empire.

Dissatisfied

The player character has a lot of internal conflict. On the one hand, there is the fate that’s been handed to them by their society. They’ve essentially been born and raised to be a messenger, with little combat training or knowledge of battle. Regardless, their society has glorified the warrior position to the point that anything else feels subpar.

via VCG Wilson/Corbis/Getty Images

The Setting

This game takes place during the historical period of the Inca Civil War in the north-central region, deep within the Andes mountain range.

Due to the expansive nature of this setting and the restrictions of our medium, we want to design areas in 2.5D that emphasize the verticality of traversing massive mountain ranges. We want the player to experience the path required to arrive at their destination, but we also want them to feel the wonder and beauty of living and exploring the setting by encouraging exploration through different upgrades and secrets.

We also find that a period of conflict is the perfect setting to explore themes on the glorification of violence. Periods of wartime are often followed by strong propaganda campaigns, venerating the prospect of losing one’s life for their nation or for some abstract ideal greater than themselves. We do not intend to advocate for strict pacifism over strict wanton violence – rather, through this setting, we hope to have the player explore how violent acts impact the psyche.

Gameplay

The gameplay position is going to be a 2.5D metroidvania with a high emphasis on player decisions.

The metroidvania part of the gameplay is going to be heavily inspired by games like blasphemous. The player will engage in both combat and platforming challenges, and will gradually becomes stronger over the course of the game. This strength will come both from in-game power-ups and upgrades, but also higher player mastery of the game’s mechanics and controls.

via https://store.steampowered.com/app/774361/Blasphemous/

For the narrative focus, we want the player to feel like their decisions have real impact. One way that we’ll implement this system is by having two diverging paths: one in which the player character embraces their role as a chasqui, and another in which they give their all to becoming a warrior. Interactions with both comrades and enemies will force the player to make difficult decisions and make choices on what it means to take a life. We want the player to be invested in the story, not just a passive observer, and bringing decisions into our game is one way that we hope to achieve this outcome.

via https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/how-katana-zero-brought-action-into-cutscenes

Tone References

Books

Ember Knight by Hwandaeng
Bone Talk by Candy Gourlay
The Kingdom of this World by Alejo Carpentier
Kokou no Hito by Shinichi Sakamoto
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe
The Poppy War by R. F. Kuang

Movies

Apocalypto
Come and See
Embrace of the Serpent
Grave of the Fireflies
The Last of the Mohicans

Vinland Saga
Avatar: The Last Airbender
Now and Then, Here and There
Made in Abyss

Games

Blasphemous
Ori and the Blind Forest
Broken Age
Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Sky
Undertale
Hollow Knight
The Last of Us
Shadow of the Colossus
Pathologic

Who is this For?

This game is for people interested in questioning their concepts of and relationships with violence and for those looking for a challenging yet rewarding gameplay experience.

As this game is heavy on theming and narrative, it is heavily targeted at those interested in rich narratives and exploring not only the world the game is set in but the consequences of acting in certain ways. We hope to encourage folks interested in gameplay alone to play the game by creating a meaningful and challenging gameplay loop that inevitably ropes them into thinking about the themes and the story.

Although the game will have scary elements (eldritch/body horror), we do not want this to be the focus of the game nor a reason for people to stay away from it. Although these themes are interesting and important, overreliance on these polarizing elements might turn folks away from a game with a narrative they would otherwise enjoy.