P2: Tiny Playable Prototype (Emma Wong)

I did my first, very rough playtest with Judy (thank you)!

OBSERVATIONS/FEEDBACK: 

• During playthrough:
  • I didn’t explain too much about cards when first presenting them, forcing players to choose options based only on image and/or word written on the front. The player flips over card to read effect of choice. 
  • Very short playthrough because branches not that fleshed out… 
  • The player learned that bats help pollinate!
• After playthrough: 
  • Because we live in human-centric world (where we have more control than bats), when you flip this so that humans → bat-sized in a bat world, it should feel like human is powerless (Judy)
  • Possibly not as relatable backstory for the human if trying to base on Bruce Wayne’s backstory (i.e., living alone in a manor, comic book-related, cave under manor with bats)
    • NOTE: Backstory inspiration was sort of imagining how a not-super hero Bruce Wayne would deal with his fear of bats, and realize that bats are actually the superheroes
  • I also clarified that I wanted the player to learn some facts about bats, as a way of creating empathy or connection to them
• Question: Should I keep the beginning set of options, where the player starts off by choosing to be either a bat or a human? I really like the idea of the bat as an aspiring superhero with superpowers, but I also feel like the bat-fearful human undergoes the most character development through the story.
  • Player: Why don’t you combine both? Start off as a human who doesn’t shrink into a bat, but gets transformed into a bat
• Question: Should I start off with the whole shrink-ray gun sequence? OR start off with the player waking up as a bat?
  • Player: Waking up as a bat. Maybe not that much difference, although ray gun part felt a little out of the blue
• Question: How could I improve creating an emotional connection for the player to bats?
  • Player: Maybe have the bat be included as part of a community, so we can also feel an emotional bond.
    • Me: Maybe human’s backstory is that they’re lonely?
  • Player: A turning point could be the other bats find out the human is not actually a bat! Human can choose to confess, and depending on the player’s choice, bats can decide how to treat him or even help him return to being a human (if he reveals the truth)
    • Me: Maybe player has to use the bat superpowers that he’s learned about to return to human body
• Question: Do you feel like you learned anything about bats?
  • Player: Didn’t know they pollinated! Type of flower?

CHANGES:

• Avatar is the HUMAN (“Bryce Wyne”), not an option between bat or human
• BACKSTORY remains mostly same (e.g., comic book writer afraid of bats, who appear as villains in his comics), but ACTUAL FEAR (the motivation behind his goal of getting rid of bats in the cave under his mansion):
  • Bats not only creep him out, but they make him realize how alone he is with no one to turn to while living by himself
    • How should the game reveal that the human is a comic book writer and he portrays bats as villains? (As he learns about different bat superpowers?)
    • How should the game show/reveal the human is lonely? (Through interactions with other bats, and watching them be a community/colony in the roost?)
• PREMISE is that the human wakes up as his worst fear – a bat!
• He has to learn to be a BAT and disguise himself amidst colony
• As he learns, he realizes superstitions about bats were INCORRECT and that they actually have incredible superpowers!
• TURNING POINT/CLIMAX is when other bats confront him about possibly being a human. Should he CONFESS or HIDE the truth?
  • Same result/ending? Bats help him become HUMAN AGAIN, possibly by calling upon all their bat superpowers

IMAGES OF TINY PLAYABLE PROTOTYPE: