So, I'm making a game.

[Kopikatsu]

I already have a few characters made, and I've really grown attached to the main character. And so I want to kill her. Painfully.

Alright, some clarification. I hate heroes. A lot. Especially the naive goody-two shoes ones. Which she, Mira, is (Although she does have a pretty wicked scar, which has some nice backstory surrounding it). Anyway, I like watching heroes lose. Or at the very least, I like watching them suffer whether through drawbacks or death of an ally or whatever else.

I recently wrote a short story involving a new recruit in a military outfit. The members of his squad were slowly picked off one by one until it was down to just him and one of the squad's female members. He gets badly injured, and so she takes him on her shoulder and carries him along. Shortly afterward, there's a gunshot, the main character has an enlightened moment/flashback that he's confused about...and then drops dead because he's been shot, leaving the female character alone. She ends up finishing the mission, but one of the squad members shows up again. She's relieved, but the survivor ends up shooting her in the head because the survivor has been working for a third party the entire time (The one who was assumed KIA is the traitor, not the one who the main character was with).

Anyway, I bring it up because I want to do something like that. How would you react if the main character suddenly dies 40-70% of the way through the game, and the focus then shifts to an ally or someone else entirely? If it's someone else entirely, then it's likely that most of the original party will have died in this event (But one of them will have become a traitor to save themselves and show up as an antagonist later).

Edit: Now I'm thinking about it, make it seem like a short-mid length game with incredibly cliched characters...then end it with the main character being slain and the rest of the party lined up for a public execution. 'END OF PROLOGUE'. To set the mood for the rest of the game.

Update: Here's a synposis of the state of the world, to give you a better idea of what I'm going for thematically.

Spoiler

Mostly just bringing realism into it. For example...there's been a war with the Northern countries that lasted hundreds of years, and Mira wants to put a stop to it after personally losing family and friends to it, as well as meeting others who have suffered the same. But prior to the war, the main causes of death in the world were starvation and disease. But once the war started, the Kingdom involved started making alliances with it's neighbors to strengthen itself. This started a circulation of money, resources, and renewed trade...which cut the morality rate significantly once the wealth between the countries started to become equalized, in addition to causalities from the war reducing the spread of disease and lowering the strain on food supplies.

The countries in the alliance are funding the army to enforce the border they've created against the Northern countries, and so it helps keep money in circulation. However, where they're located is basically frozen tundra. They can't grow crops or really hunt. So Central sells them supplies with the money that they're loaning to the army, thus keeping the economy in a good state and raising the standard of living for everyone. In addition, birth rate is very high during this time- imagine if the WW2-era levels of production in the US never ended, and just kept building and building to unsustainable levels, up until where the war was absolutely necessary for the country to remain intact.

But if the war were to end, hundreds of thousands of people would be displaced. If they remained in the North, they would perish. If they returned to Central...they have no skills or abilities except fighting. They would place an unsustainable demand on the nation's infrastructure and the economy, food industry, and housing would all collapse. Millions would die, and the land that was abandoned by their army would be taken up by the North countries, who are used to living in such conditions. In addition, there is an army of monsters positioned nearby. Without the war as a showing of arms, the monsters have a high chance of moving on either the Northern or Central countries, which would prove disastrous for either.

Most of the high ranking government officials in Central understand this, and that's why they continue with the war despite seemingly having no motive initially. Northern works differently. They pretty much just like to fight. They select their leader through a trial of arms- it doesn't matter if you're the lowliest peasant or nobility. If someone bests you in one on one combat, they take your place. So the King of the Northern Tribes is a seriously badass ************ while the King of Central is pretty useless.

Anyway, I don't know if I want this explicitly stated in the game, and simply hint it with things like...talking to some people in the Merchant's Guild will reveal Central's economic situation, talking to someone in the borderlands may offhandedly comment that they rely on the supply caravans to survive, etc. And just leave it up to the player to figure out. But if I do that, I'm afraid people might not understand it. Not because logistics is a difficult concept, but people just aren't in that mindset when they think of 'MAGIC AND DRAGONS, HIYOOOOO'.

 

[Glasgow]

It could work for a video-game if you get some more significance to the moment when the main character dies, or perhaps you don't even get a main character and have your view jump to all four from mission to mission.

 

[Full]

Weeellll... there's a certain popular JRPG from the 90's that did that almost same thing, and it is often regarded as one of the most surprising plot twists that people experience in gaming.

I think my memory is dodgy on this, so take this with a grain of salt.

Spoiler

The reason why that worked, was because it was well, kind of unheard of, but why I think it worked was because it was in the middle of a battle that was super hyped up. The battle wasn't hard, but it had a final stage feeling and it was incredibly drawn out. You felt tired comparing stats and watching animations play out. You were lining up stats, timing attacks, all the usual, when out of nowhere your party get's there ass kicked and the main character just kind of offs themselves to save their party, and because of how drawn out the battle felt, the main character just went ahead and said fuck it.

I'm definitely remembering that wrong, though, but that's how I think it might work. Make the player feel as worn out as the main character, have them feel connected at that last moment, even if the player didn't like them. I would for sure get the feels.

But anyway yeah, I'd totally play that. I wouldn't pre-order it though, I'm sorry.

 

[Kopikatsu]

Weeellll... there's a certain popular JRPG from the 90's that did that almost same thing, and it is often regarded as one of the most surprising plot twists that people experience in gaming.

I think my memory is dodgy on this, so take this with a grain of salt.

Spoiler

The reason why that worked, was because it was well, kind of unheard of, but why I think it worked was because it was in the middle of a battle that was super hyped up. The battle wasn't hard, but it had a final stage feeling and it was incredibly drawn out. You felt tired comparing stats and watching animations play out. You were lining up stats, timing attacks, all the usual, when out of nowhere your party get's there ass kicked and the main character just kind of offs themselves to save their party, and because of how drawn out the battle felt, the main character just went ahead and said fuck it.

I'm definitely remembering that wrong, though, but that's how I think it might work. Make the player feel as worn out as the main character, have them feel connected at that last moment, even if the player didn't like them. I would for sure get the feels.

But anyway yeah, I'd totally play that. I wouldn't pre-order it though, I'm sorry.

Do you know the name of the game? It sounds like something I should know, but don't. Or maybe I do know and just can't remember. Something.

Eh, preorders. If I do charge for it, it'll probably be $0.99 or something. But I may not. Depends on how long it takes to make, I guess. It's not like I'm hurting for money or anything.

 

[Full]

snip

Spoiler

Chrono Trigger

Again, don't remember the scene too well, but I remember that happened in that game.

 

[Kopikatsu]

You mean every single Call Of Duty game past Modern Warfare?

You'd have to expound on that a bit better. The only CoD that I've played is Black Ops 2, and the protagonist never died in that. Either of them. Well, not in my game (I saved Alex)

snip

Spoiler

Chrono Trigger

Again, don't remember the scene too well, but I remember that happened in that game.

Oh. I always meant to play that game, but I never got around to it. Then I finally played Chrono Cross and thought that was it, only to be told that no, Cross and Trigger are different. Which made me rage.

 

[WoW Killer]

snip

Spoiler

Chrono Trigger

Again, don't remember the scene too well, but I remember that happened in that game.

Yeah but he comes back again. That's actually a standard JRPG trope; you often lose the main character for a certain point. Same thing happens in FF6, FF7, Xenogears, many more.

There's also that thing in FF5 where

Spoiler

beardy guy

gets killed but you get an identical character to finish the game with.

 

[TheRaider]

Nothing wrong with playing multiple characters in a game so long as the player doesn't feel he has lost what they worked for.

Games where you play multiple characters I often find more entertaining.

 

[SweetShark]

That remind me some kind of manga I read just for curiosity:

Always in this kind of manga, all the main characters die in a very, very gruesome ways to the point od sickness.....

This kind of game you want to create? Gruesome and sadistic?

 

[Kopikatsu]

That remind me some kind of manga I read just for curiosity:

Always in this kind of manga, all the main characters die in a very, very gruesome ways to the point od sickness.....

This kind of game you want to create? Gruesome and sadistic?

Was the manga Akame ga Kiru? [http://www.mangahere.com/manga/akame_ga_kiru/] Because if so, yes. If not, then probably not.

Edit: To clarify...not gruesome and sadistic in itself. More of a...realistic take on high fantasy. If you read the manga I linked, you'll understand.

 

[Kopikatsu]

I always thought videogames lacked tragedy. And I always thought that was sad.

But why kill off a main character? You'd have to realize the main character is what people have invested time, stats and interest in. There's a lot more ways to hurt a character than outright killing them.

Nevertheless it would be an interesting idea if that's what motivates his companions to continue the fight.

Nobody expects the main character to die, because they never do. And I hate that. They will always succeed, no matter what. Whatever odds are stacked against them, they will overcome it. It doesn't matter if it takes five continues, twenty continues, or whatever else.

The fact that people put so much time, interest, and effort into the main character is exactly why they must die. To show the player that truly, nothing is sacred and anything goes.

Edit: Call it the Game of Thrones approach.

 

[SweetShark]

I always thought videogames lacked tragedy. And I always thought that was sad.

But why kill off a main character? You'd have to realize the main character is what people have invested time, stats and interest in. There's a lot more ways to hurt a character than outright killing them.

Nevertheless it would be an interesting idea if that's what motivates his companions to continue the fight.

I suggest you to play Saya no Uta.
Maybe it isn't a videogame in reality, but it have the element you are looking for.

 

[Kopikatsu]

Alright. As I'm still new to this and scripting is proving to be the bane of my existence, I have a new idea.

I'm going to make a 'test' game in order to figure out how shit works. It'll be short, maybe an hour or two long. Maybe less, maybe more. Now, I could take the idea I mentioned above and turn the 'supremely cliche group goes and gets fucked' thing into the test game to use as the prologue.

Or, I could make a game where it starts cliche and the protagonist is given power, and then asked to save the world...at which point they stab the quest giver in the stomach and go on a journey to enslave the world and use that as the test game. I might make a new thread if I can't work a poll option into this one.

Edit: Either way, I'm probably going to end up calling the game 'The Final Hours'.

 

[SweetShark]

That remind me some kind of manga I read just for curiosity:

Always in this kind of manga, all the main characters die in a very, very gruesome ways to the point od sickness.....

This kind of game you want to create? Gruesome and sadistic?

Was the manga Akame ga Kiru? [http://www.mangahere.com/manga/akame_ga_kiru/] Because if so, yes. If not, then probably not.

Edit: To clarify...not gruesome and sadistic in itself. More of a...realistic take on high fantasy. If you read the manga I linked, you'll understand.

I will check the manga when I leave my workplace.
However I see now what do you mean. I played a similar game like this, but by saying the name of the game, it is spoiling the plot twist of the game......
I only can say, it is not always the thing as you see with your own eyes.......

 

[SweetShark]

I suggest you to play Saya no Uta.
Maybe it isn't a videogame in reality, but it have the element you are looking for.

What a coincidence, that's my favourite visual novel.

This statement made me really happy.
Do you can suggest me something similar to play like Saya no Uta?

 

[Vhite]

Spoiler: snip

I already have a few characters made, and I've really grown attached to the main character. And so I want to kill her. Painfully.

Alright, some clarification. I hate heroes. A lot. Especially the naive goody-two shoes ones. Which she, Mira, is (Although she does have a pretty wicked scar, which has some nice backstory surrounding it). Anyway, I like watching heroes lose. Or at the very least, I like watching them suffer whether through drawbacks or death of an ally or whatever else.

I recently wrote a short story involving a new recruit in a military outfit. The members of his squad were slowly picked off one by one until it was down to just him and one of the squad's female members. He gets badly injured, and so she takes him on her shoulder and carries him along. Shortly afterward, there's a gunshot, the main character has an enlightened moment/flashback that he's confused about...and then drops dead because he's been shot, leaving the female character alone. She ends up finishing the mission, but one of the squad members shows up again. She's relieved, but the survivor ends up shooting her in the head because the survivor has been working for a third party the entire time (The one who was assumed KIA is the traitor, not the one who the main character was with).

Anyway, I bring it up because I want to do something like that. How would you react if the main character suddenly dies 40-70% of the way through the game, and the focus then shifts to an ally or someone else entirely? If it's someone else entirely, then it's likely that most of the original party will have died in this event (But one of them will have become a traitor to save themselves and show up as an antagonist later).

Edit: Now I'm thinking about it, make it seem like a short-mid length game with incredibly cliched characters...then end it with the main character being slain and the rest of the party lined up for a public execution. 'END OF PROLOGUE'. To set the mood for the rest of the game.

I like the way you think. While I like goody heroes, having them die with tears in their eyes kinda appeals on some sadistic part inside me. I'm not a movie expert but I heard that killing off and then switching the main character has been done in movie Psycho. However you really need to do it well, difference is between amazingly shocking reaction and "fuck it I quit" reaction. Other than that I can't give you any useful suggestion but I wish you good luck because it really does sound good.