/Please do not reply to this post, kindly reply to the OP/
Hello everyone, quick update on what I'm working on (and hope to finish) this month, plus some things I'd like your help with.
.topia
You play as a newly joined cop in a regional bureau of the Ministry of Public Security (in China), who joins around the year 2017. The Chinese are working on a Social Credit system in real life, which is the setting and key topic of this work, how it affects social and political developments in the nation. There are multiple endings based on your choices + random circumstances.
The genre is broadly modern adventure, with a tiny bit of hard science fiction about the near future.
The game is a mix of systems and story, with each building off the other, similar to 80 Days. I do not have a target wordcount in mind, but I could see this easily crossing 25K, and likely beyond 50K as well due to the scope of events. There will be 'regular' activities alongwith separate investigation plot lines and interlinked stories that unfold across the years, all shaping the final world the player will end in.
There will not be a morality meter, but your actions will determine which choices you can make, their chances of success or failure, and their consequences.
I'm trying to make all the characters dynamic (the roles are fixed - you'll have a buddy, a boss, a rival and the like, but who they are, what they think, and how they interact will change from playthrough to playthrough). This will be on the lines of the Shadow of Mordor nemeses system, but with personalities and behavioural styles instead of combat attributes. In case this becomes too cumbersome, will have to relook this, but keeping it on the table for now.
Combat is not a focus of the game, though high athletics will help in certain events.
I will be avoiding items outside of a journal/codex and logbook.
The ending could either be a 'technological utopia,' a very real dystopia (hence the indeterminate name), or something gray in between. The epilogues will take the time span covered up to around 2050, most of the game proper will be between 2017 - 2030 as I see it right now.
This story is what I was working on as a linear story for the duel with Ebon, now shaping up in this form.
I would like to hear your take on this premise, any thoughts that cross your mind on what you'd like to see, and what you think would be interesting events a (growing) police officer would face. I'll be happy to note ideas not already on my list.
If you're living in China / have lived in China, I'd like to chat with you to confirm a few things
Progress status:
Research on China & the future of policing complete. Final count: 300+ articles, 3 TV Series, 1 Movie, 2 Interviews
Working with a coding team from May 1
Setting finalized as two cities (starter + main), and you do not play a detective
Being a mercenary wandering between Scrivener, Excel, Xmind, and a whiteboard to get it all going
Last updated: 24th April
Thank you for your feedback in advance.
