Making Relationships System Into Puzzles That Advance the Game

[CallMeKerrigan]

What do you think of something that would be similar to Stardew Valley where all of the characters have their own schedule in the city-but instead of a farming simulator where you farm- the game is linear and the relationship system is actually part of a puzzle. This is something I've been working on for a while, and I've had to rework it quite a few times because it hasn't worked with other types of mechanics but after messing around with Stardew Valley I'm really liking the idea of a relationship system and building up friendships with the other NPC's via trial and error. Like giving gifts, answering questions via branching dialogue, and exploring the environment for clues to the past.

The point of this game I've currently been working on is for the player to receive 10 hearts by making up for the wrong she's done with other players. This is something I had wanted to do before I had known Stardew Valley had existed, and I didn't know how I wanted to do it, after playing Stardew Valley it definitely inspired me and led me in the right direction. I'll probably call it something else besides 'hearts' now, though. Maybe it will be something that the character really loves? Like cupcakes?

Some things will be minor and count for less, and other things will be large and count for larger things. I was thinking that the more the player got to know some NPC's, it would unlock other areas of the game which could give access to a couple other areas of the map or other NPC's, as well as useful information that would further advance the game. I really feel like I want the game to be linear, I can't really see any other ending than the one I have in mind for the game, but with the type of mechanics that I want, it feels weird that there would only be one type of ending because it seems like a role play game.

I typed out some questions to myself that will probably help add to the discussion here.
-At which times of the day would they have different dialogue?
-At what points in the game would the dialogue change?
-What would trigger it?
-Will the dialogue have choices or branches that can affect the relationship?
-What would the dialogue reveal?
-What would be the importance of the reveal to the player?
-How would it advance the game?
-What types of scandals are the characters involved in?

 

[gstv87]

ok, let's cut it down, said the butcher....

At which times of the day would they have different dialogue?

the most logic answer would be "day and night", because during day they'd be working, and during night they'd be off, so they wouldn't want to discuss work.
but that can change depending on the complexity of your NPC system: do they move around? do they take part in a larger plot?
if they're involved in global changes, then the day/night check would have to be tied to the larger routine, because there would be day/night under condition 1, and day/night under condition 2, which might override it completely.

At what points in the game would the dialogue change?

also tied to the larger scheme of things: a major action by the player could have several NPCs tied to it, and cause them to outright not speak to the character, which would turn the ON-OFF, into (ON-OFF)-(OFF, period)

What would trigger it?

the dialogue? player action, or proximity.
there has to be interaction between the player and the NPC, which you can bring on screen with a cutscene, but it's always better to have the player go find the NPC and not the other way around (because it involves more complex writing)
the change itself? deep down, it would always have to be player action.
I mean, it wouldn't do to have it be automated.
the game would be straightly linear, although the complex conditions required to advance it would make it appear otherwise.

Will the dialogue have choices or branches that can affect the relationship?

that's a gameplay feature.
if the engine can handle it, and IF having it would serve a purpose, adding it could help somehow.... if not, then it shouldn't be there.
if the engine can't handle it, it'd depend on what it would take to make it happen.... if it's too difficult to implement, better not have it.

What would the dialogue reveal?

What would be the importance of the reveal to the player?

What types of scandals are the characters involved in?

depends on the writing.
essentially that's a straight print of text from a database.... more or less significant, it's of no consequence to the programming, only the plot.
the one thing I can think of that would tie this to the engine, is probably assigning a value to the line itself, that would modify a value somewhere up the chain.
the line itself would be the end of the structure, and arriving at it would set the path for the player to follow, without possibility of coming back (comparable to a class progression system: what do you choose, wizard or warrior? once chosen, you can't go back, but you can still play and your experience would be conditioned to that choice.)

How would it advance the game?

highly depends on both the writing and the implementation, because one conditions the other.
I would probably establish the writing first, with all it's potential branches and variations, and then worry about the implementation, just to be sure.

 

[CallMeKerrigan]

I wasn't expecting answers to the questions, they're there just to help mold the idea and keep me on the right path.

I think what concerns me the most is writing because I have an abstract idea of what I want, and I think a puzzle like this will help the player reveal the main character's past and it would be a good way to tie in her redemption arc and the importance of it and overcoming it and choosing what to sacrifice to move forward in the story. I think what I'm having the hardest time with is figuring out what things the character has done to other people that could has been hurtful but can also be redeemable, it's a really hard balance to find.

On top of that I also for some reason have a really hard time populating my town in anything I write. I don't know why. So writing dialogue for an entire town freaks me out.

 

[gstv87]

a puzzle like this will help the player reveal the main character's past

which means, the character's past has to be written down.
and by writing I mean the kind you'd probably want a writing board for, to cross paths and narratives.

figuring out what things the character has done to other people that could has been hurtful but can also be redeemable

and for that, I believe it never hurts to base yourself on an actual person.
once you have that, then you can present that character to your world, and have your characters react to that in a different way than the actual people that person did those things to.
I mean, each individual action by that person would be nothing new in the ensemble of actions available: betrayal is not new, forgiveness is not new.... they're part of the Human Starter Pack™

"any similarities with actual events or personalities is purely coincidental" wouldn't be a problem if only a tiny fraction of the narrative just "happens" to be similar to a person that mostly none of the rest of the world knows about.

 

[Kes]

@CallMeKerrigan Please remember that Game Mechanics Design is not for feedback on an individual, specific project, but is meant to be a discussion with a broader applicability than that. Therefore, replies may be on-topic, but irrelevant to your requirments, and that's okay.

Because this section is for mechanics discussing details of plot and writing skills is not what this should be about.

 

[CallMeKerrigan]

Sorry, that's why I had the questions. But I shouldn't have been so specific.