Dev Log #1

Hello! We're a small team of college seniors working on a new game project - Heroes Don't Have Horns. 

This project was inspried by the idea of creating a game where "bugs" are used as mechanics - clipping, inventory duplication, no fall damage, etc. As the project lead, I believe that whatever way you enjoy playing a game is a great way to play a game - and as an aspiring narrative designer, that's why the story is in the choice and consequence style. 

While doing our initial research paper on the game, I took inspiration from Takk and the Power Juju. While there are certainly problematic aspects in the way the "tribal" culture is presented in the game, I always enjoyed the set up of the "Hero's Journey Deferred" - where you're not playing as the archetypical hero, and how that changes your journey. Since this is a game which, in one frame of mind, uses "cheats" as mechanics, I decided on a story that is, at its heart, another Hero's Journey Deferred that plays with the idea of what "cheating" is in a broader context. 

Our hero is an elf that happens to have horns - which are seen as a sign of corruption. Because of this, she's denied the title of hero - which means she's trapped in the elven village she grew up in... unless she finds another way to start her journey. 

With Takk being a narrative inspiration, and having a fondness for other 3D platformers of the same era (Jak and Dexter, Racket and Clank) we decided to make this game a 3D platformer as well - with the same campy and fun vibe as those titles. But with a story about "cheating", I thought it made the most sense to leave a number of choices in the player's hands - as it's not just that you cheated that matters, but why and how. You get to decide who the heroine is, and what her goals are. 

We've only just gotten started on developing the game, and for our college project, our focus will be on creating the tutorial part of the game - consisting of three small levels, with two being 3D platform levels and one being the Elven Village. I'm looking forward to seeing how our game and story grow!