A post was merged into an existing topic: Consolidated Thread of Game Ideas For Authors
Restarted development of my first project after a long (years lol) hiatus. May I introduce:
COST OF UTOPIA
Backstory
You born in the future to a literal utopia: A socialist state that rewards through service to humanity and decency led by an Artificial Intelligence called Chairman. Since his ascension to power in 2016, humanity saw rapid improvement in life conditions, healthcare and science. All cabals that had power has been dismantled and consolidated by Chairman to give humanity a more balanced power structure.
By the year of 4900, Chairman expanded humanity into far places into galaxy. Entire planets terraformed, new materials discovered, being a human was never this good. Serve to Chairman and the humanity, and you’ll have the dream life in no short time.
The Problem
If something is too good to be true, it is. As you play through the book, a revelation will be made. You will learn the cost of the utopia that Chairman provided. It’s up to you if it’s worth it or not.
Romance Options so far.
Amy/Chris: As of Chapter 1’s development, they’re unfleshed romances that is meant to be used for determining MC’s sexuality. They will get more development in Chapter 2.
Samantha: A computer prodigy that comes from a family that helped develop Chairman’s quantum computers for five generations. She’s so close to finish a long spanning design that will improve Chairman’s efficiency a lot, maybe you can help her fixing some problems she is facing. As all genius people, however, Samantha will have her quirks and will give you hard time in the future. She’ll expect unreasonable things from you. Good option for those who is willing to overlook everything for love.
Franklin: A “gym bro”, he’s obsessed by humanity’s physical boundaries. He spends his time working out a lot, but he’d love to have a companion that assists him. Perhaps that will be you? Franklin’s extremely confident with his body, but not when it comes to romance. You’ll have to do the work, but he’ll be fiercely loyal to you. Good option for those who seek stability over excitement.
More will be planned, romance isn’t necessarily a priority right now.
What about MC?
MC curently has only binary options as gender, but is free to choose their sexuality and name. During Chapter 3 they’ll have the option to explore their identity further if the reader wishes to.
MC is your average kid that did good in school. However, a tragedy seperates them from their family. At first, they’re blamed for the incident, but it’s cleared quick enough. They end up in Johnny Green Orphanage, named after the person who brought Chairman back from dead and sacrificed his life so that Chairman could ascend to the power in 2016. Anyone who entered this orphanage will end up high at Chairman Technologies’ food chain.
MC is eventually chosen for Alpha Team of Chairman Elite Forces, best of the best operatives that Chairman employs. They will be chosen for one of the three possible paths
The Paths
Commando: Those who excel at physical combat and leadership. They lead their team into extremely dangerous places where a direct assault would mean massive losses. They have the capability to clear those areas with ease.
Assassin: Those who excel at subtle approach and charisma. Able to talk a monkey out of his banana, they stay hidden at shadows. They’re barely, if ever seen, but their actions are heard loud and clear. There’s only very few that can resist an Assassin’s charisma.
Saboteur: Those who love breaking things apart. In this futuristic settings, there’s a lot of technological tools to break apart at your leisure. Cause mayhem among enemy ranks and steal sensitive data.
Factions
Chairman Technologies: The beast that provides to those who serve his utopia. Enjoying over 99% approval rating, it’s an unstoppable monster that keeps pushing humanity to its extremes. If it exists, Chairman Technologies has a department that has oversight over it. Big Brother except it’s “benevolent”.
Confederacy of Humanity: There are those who are against Chairman’s rule. They made an agreement with Chairman to form their Confederacy. They explicitly ban AI’s from administration jobs, only use them as “advisorial” capability. You’ll often find that they abuse AI’s to no end.
Splinter Factions: CoH itself is not perfect, with some humans not agreeing every aspects of it while also denouncing Chairman’s rule. They’ll be developed during Chapter 2’s development.
Trigger Warnings
Abusive relationship: Samantha romance path will include serious amount of emotional abuse towards MC starting from Chapter 2. The reader will be informed before committing to it and they’ll be able to abandon the relationship at any point with only consequence being locking themselves out of a secret ending.
Diabolical choices: Players will have the option to commit truly heinous actions if they wish to. SA and actions of that nature will not be included, it’ll mostly focus on other kinds of horrendous actions.
The Reveal: The “cost” of utopia is Chairman doing various extremely disturbing experiements against humanity. The player will be given the option to just learn the very surface stuff or get a disturbingly detailed version of it at their own discretion. Players may skip this section but it’s not suggested as you’ll miss an important part of lore that can help you decide your side.
Variations of Endings
Player, should they don’t end up with an early bad ending, will be able to make changes that affect the humanity itself. However, a diabolical MC may surprise their reader with a forced bad ending.
12 Likes
Great, you read my mind, a socialist who loves political simulations.
It sounds like a very interesting concept. The benevolent AI overlord sounds like it has a lot of possibility. I appreciate the assassin MC path. I usually like to play the low key, “silent but deadly” character. Loking forward to seeing the RO’s fleshed out a bit more.
Question: if you played a game about becoming an actress and getting thrust into the spotlight, which would you find more interesting/fun, playing an MC in a big movie role or a TV role?
Movie Actor or TV Actor?
- Movie
- TV
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voters
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Voted Movie on accident, but I actually think TV would be the most interesting choice by a lot. I have an idea of my own on the backburner for an IF centered around a TV actor. It leaves so much more room for characterization and to explore set industry perception in my humble opinion
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That’s what I was thinking too, but I figured people might find becoming a movie star more exciting
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Yeah maybe but also, if you yourself think TV is cooler, do you and write about that. I don’t think it’s been done before
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TV star gives you much more of a consistent cast and workplace aspect over time, if you’re thinking of covering an appreciable amount. It could cut down on the number of characters you’ll need to plot for, depending on your focus and the show.
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Based on the poll, and a couple good comments, I think doing a TV show is the best path. Now I need to decide what the show will be 
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TV is better because you can do multiple episodes or different shows with different crews, condition, expectations and reaction from each episodes.
Meanwhile with the movie, you’re kinda stuck in one big production and the audience won’t react or know you exist until the movie releases and thus the game end.
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A Pact of Princesses - In a strange land populated largely by cartoonish and colorful creatures, there are seven Kingdoms. Though Kings have faded from memory, the Pact ensures each Kingdom continues to appoint its rulers: one Prince, and six Princesses.
You are a citizen of the Lily Kingdom, whose Princess has led it through an era of prosperity and culture. But once more, the harrumphs shout and the lilicoras weep: the Princess is dead, long live the Princess. And, by the lottery system that has stood the test of time, you have been chosen to be the next Princess. Will you set the same example as your predecessor, or will the lottery come far sooner this year? And will you be able to avoid disaster, knowing that Brother Sky lives?
Inspired partly by the “princess lottery” at the beginning of Midnight Cinderella, partly by the strange rarity and prominence of human beings in the Mario games, and partly by things cooked up by my own imagination. The game is gender-locked female for plot! purposes, and because I feel like helping even the ratios a bit.
Key features:
Wear a fantastic dress! Or don’t, that’s honestly up to you.
Participate in the kind of geopolitics you would probably never see in a Nintendo game!
Meet odd creatures like the flower-but-also-cat-bird lilicoras, the short-gender-indeterminate-beings-in-fancy-robes shaderel, and the strangest of all: human beings.
Find out what Brother Sky is and why him being alive is a terrible thing for humanity!
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Been a while since the last fairy tale idea.
Song of the Stars: Dimension Reader
Anyone read Lord of Mysteries? yeah its a fan game…
Song of the Star: Dimension Reader
A non-official fan game based on the universe of Lord of the Mysteries.
Before time ticked.
Before the first fog rolled in.
There was one undeniable fact:
The universe didn’t exist yet.
No fog-shrouded cities.
No ambitious churches.
No dangerous cults whispering a little too loudly in dimly lit rooms.
There were no maps. No humans.
Not even pocket watches ticking far too precisely.
But there was you.
Or… something like you.
Here’s the story:
You appeared outside.
Not outside the city.
Not outside the country.
Not even outside the planet’s atmosphere.
Outside the Universe.
A place even Outer Deities would think twice before visiting.
A place even their so-called “Masters” hesitate to name.
And you fell there.
Straight towards the being known as The Original Creator.
They—or it—didn’t have time to speak.
They only… opened their mouth.
And swallowed you whole.
The end?
Of course not.
This hasn’t even begun.
You didn’t die.
Instead, you… merged.
Infiltrated.
Stole a little essence from the Creator themself.
And now?
You live within their body.
Or perhaps your new body is simply a reflection of Theirs.
You are not human.
Not an Outer Deity.
Not just another shard of forgotten starlight.
But the soon-to-be-born universe…
Might know your face more intimately than It knows Theirs.
And really, who can blame you…
If you want to tweak the scenario a little?
Song of the Star: Dimension Reader
Key Features:
Craft your identity before reality finishes assembling itself.
Experiment with powers even the gods struggle to comprehend.
Slip between Beyonders, Churches, and Cults before they realize who’s really sitting at the game table.
Or turn this brand-new world into your own personal stage—decorated with fog, stars, and just the right amount of intrigue.
The world isn’t finished yet.
But unfortunately for them…
You got here first.
Special Notes:
This is a fan project. Lore follows Lord of the Mysteries by Cuttlefish That Loves Diving—with a pinch of interdimensional seasoning that has yet to be scientifically verified. Please consume fog responsibly.
4 Likes
Hello, everyone! I have more or less the same idea for a book, but different executions of that idea. Essentially, I have an already established setting/universe, but I haven’t decided which side the player should be on. Here’s hoping I can get your thoughts…
To make everything clear, the setting is Urban Fantasy, leaning toward Dark Urban Fantasy, if we’re being specific. There are your usual fantasy races roaming around modern cities (elves, dwarfs, gnomes, orcs, and so on; humans included, obviously), but the use of magic is suppressed by certain factors, so very few possess the ability to wield it.
With that, would you rather play as:
-
An elite-level assassin/hired killer that takes contracts and deals with their targets.
-
A member of the Special Forces who is dispatched to deal with those who break the magic regulation laws.
Both MCs can use magic, and both of them predominantly deal with those who can use magic too. In both cases, it’s also possible to set different motivations/goals.
For example, if you don’t want to play as someone way too evil, the assassin MC may specify that they only took contracts where the targets were some mafia bosses, traffickers, and so on. Also, you can choose what the MC’s initial goal was: money, cleaning up the world, or just a simple desire to kill, etc. In the Special Forces MC case, you can also set motivations in a similar way.
Now, onto the details:
- Assassin MC: works with one partner (one of the ROs), takes contracts with predetermined targets, and then goes on to complete the contract in a duo. Here are the ROs in this case:
– another assassin, your long-time partner and duo;
– a member of the Special Forces that is trying to hunt you down;
– a bodyguard of one of the targets.
In this variant of the book, there will be frequent POV shifts to other ROs/characters, and you’ll be able to see how they try to figure out your MC’s and their duo’s identity, catch them, etc. Basically, you’ll quite often have a general grasp of what’s happening on all sides, and the way you go about your targets and contracts in general will determine how they react.
- Special Forces MC: works in a squad, goes on missions that usually involve dealing with criminal organizations, but also has a designated partner for other missions where fewer people are required (one of the ROs, the one who is the assassin MC’s enemy).
Here are the ROs in this case:
– another member of the Special Forces, your partner;
– a solo field agent of another department of your organization;
– a bodyguard of one of the people you encounter (I’ll probably change this RO up a bit in this variant).
In this case, there won’t be frequent POV shifts to the criminals/the ones you’re supposed to catch, mainly due to the fact that this version of the book is more focused on the intrigue/detective side of things, so spoiling anything is out of the question. Also, here you’ll have more of a feel that your MC belongs to a ‘group’ since there are many other characters in their Special Forces squad, and you will be able to interact with them.
Here’s the poll:
- Assassin MC
- Special Forces MC
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voters
(I’ll keep only two options here so that I can better track them, so, please, if you have some concerns/more complex thoughts on the subject, write them as a reply to this post).
And, as a closing note, no, I don’t think I’ll manage to do it like the author of the Breach series, where it’s possible to choose either side. I’d rather not spread myself too thin.
I think that’s all for the moment. Would like to hear your thoughts!
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I’d be interested in either version, though I voted for the Special Forces version. I don’t like playing as killers very much, because it’s hard to relate to and sympathize with someone who’s chosen that life. But I’d be ok with the assassin route, if that’s what you decide.
My only suggestion is about the ROs. I think it’s really fun that the assassin route has the Special Forces officer who’s in the other route. If you go with the Special Forces route, I think it would make for an interesting romance if you did the same for the assassin’s partner. It would add a dynamic similar to the other route. Either as an “enemies to lovers” type of thing or as a “hidden identity” type of thing
2 Likes
Yeah, I totally get where you’re coming from.
Those were my initial thoughts as well, but then I kinda… grew conflicted about whether that’s a good idea in that version.
My thoughts on the matter:
If I’m really aiming for a mysterious tone from the Special Forces side, then it wouldn’t make much sense to reveal the POV of the assassin RO since it’d just straight up remove any question about their identity (perhaps if I’m careful about it and just give some tidbits here and there it can work, but still). I also want to make all ROs gender-selectable, so that’s another question: obviously, I can make you set the assassin’s gender at the beginning of the game, not after meeting them, but then I’m pretty sure people will find out that one character has differing genders depending on what they chose. Basically, that’s out of the question too (and I still want to keep the gender-selectable aspect, so…)
At this point, the only way I see it can work is if it’s some kind of a known rivalry between the MC and the assassin RO, meaning that they know each other’s identities and such. But, again, if I’m not careful, it may turn out to be very silly and unbelievable, especially considering the general tone of the story I’m going for.
Or, now that I’m thinking about it, maybe it also can work in a ‘Hannibal Lecter’-kinda way, where the assassin RO is caught at some point, but they’re around and you interact with them either for bits of advice, to interrogate, or in any other… ways 
(knowing the CoGites).
If I may, what are your thoughts on this?
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Maybe you could still make it work, you know, that bomb analogy thing. The character doesn’t know when the player does.
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You have a good sense of tone here that suggests to me that you would do good work with whimsy.
Yeah, it’s possible to pull this off, but I’d have to be wary about the fact that it’s a CYOA book, where you make the choices for the MC, and, well, some players might be a bit disappointed that they don’t get to make a certain choice that would be absurd without the meta-knowledge.
But perhaps I’m overthinking this. Don’t know.