Hello from the fourth issue of GameDev’s Journey! Thank you for those who subscribed the newsletter since the last issue. Please do let me know if you have any thoughts, suggestions, objections, etc. In today’s issue:
Gothic 1 was released 22 years ago, and it manages to immerse players even today. How so?
There are no right or wrong choices in Pentiment. There are only impacts of those choices.
LET’S GO.
Game Analysis
Gothic 1
I don’t care who you are, we have bigger problems right now. - Diego
I love playing older games, but I never thought I'd find myself completely immersed in Gothic 1 - even if it took me 15 minutes to pick up a single item from the ground at the beginning. Despite the game's weird controls, janky combat, and lackluster dialogue, it somehow manages to be more immersive than most recent titles out there. So, what makes Gothic 1 so special even after 22 years? Let’s see…
Need a map? Then pay for it!
Gothic 1 doesn't just hand you a map of the game world at the start. Instead, you need to seek out an NPC who can draw maps and then purchase it from them. The map itself isn't even great - it's actually pretty terrible, with no names on it and missing locations that would be too dangerous for the NPC to visit. Even something as basic as getting a map requires some effort on the player's part, and that really adds to the game's immersion.
Minimum UI
As a player, all you see is your health bar (and, if you have a magic item equipped, a mana bar). The game has almost no loading screen, and we don’t see damage numbers popping up when we hit monsters.
Small map, big world
Despite the game's relatively small map, it doesn't feel limiting. You don't realize the scale of the world at the start, since you don't have a map, and getting from point A to point B is often fraught with danger. There's no fast travel option, so you have to really explore and navigate your way around. Plus, every corner of the game is filled with something to do.
You are nothing
You start out as a nobody. You don't have any special abilities or powers that set you apart from others. NPCs will demand money from you, and they'll beat you up if you refuse. They'll even lie to you to lead you into traps. The game is unforgiving and tough, but that just makes it all the more satisfying when you do finally level up and get stronger.
When you progress through the game and finally get strong enough to fight back, it creates a sense of earned power. A satisfying feeling you get after you kill a monster, which killed you instantly at the beginning of the game.
Progress
There’s no skill tree in which you unlock skill as you level up. You want to learn a skill? You are going to need to find an NPC who teaches that skill.
I was pleasantly surprised by Gothic 1 and can’t wait to play Gothic 2, which everyone says is even better.
Game Design
Pentiment - Less Is More
It’s about choices mattering, not about them being everywhere. - Alec Frey, Senior Producer
Pentiment is a narrative adventure game where you witness (and shape) the history of town of Tassing as Andreas Maler, a young artist. It was my personal GoTY of 2022, and I was sad it didn’t get the attention it deserved. It made me happy to came across this article that talks about what makes it great.
The game has three arcs, and it puts you in a difficult position at the end of each one. You have to make a choice. A choice that will forever change the history of Tassing. In the article, Giovanni Colantonio interviews with Senior producer Alec Frey and discusses what makes these choices different and better than other games.
TL;DR: It’s about the impact of the choice. The number of choices is few, but the impacts are huge. Before making a big choice, the game prepares you with small choices and dialogues. Only when the moment of big choice comes, you realize the value of those little moments.
And the game doesn't tell you whether you made the right or wrong choice, it just shows the impacts of that choice.
It’s not about being right or wrong; it’s about what impact you have on the world. - Alec Frey, Senior Producer
So, many subtle choices that lead to few impactful ones is the secret behind Pentiment’s decision-making system.
Tutorials
Here is a complete course on making multiplayer games in Unity by Code Monkey.
Inspiration
Every game Daniel Mullins develops is another inspiration. His latest game, Inscryption, combines deckbuilding roguelike, escape-room style puzzles, and psychological horror.
Other
I found this website called Iamag Inspiration. Great source for digital arts and inspiration.
Me
My game: I’m working on a small, minimalist role-playing game. I'm very early in development and haven't prepared a prototype yet. We'll see where it goes.
Reading: This Is Marketing: You Can't Be Seen Until You Learn to See by Seth Godin. It has many inspiring stories about marketing and insights that might be useful for game dev. I will talk about it in the future in detail.
Watching: Still Aggretsuko!
Playing: Inscryption and Sekiro.
Listening: Men At Work - Down Under
And that’s it from today’s issue of GameDev’s Journey. I hope you enjoyed it and find it useful. If you did, please like and leave a comment. Let me know your thoughts, suggestions, objections, etc.
But regardless, thank you so much for reading, and have a great game dev journey!