RMVXA Other Earths

[573Games]

Other Earths
​

Hey guys. For my second game, I wanted to make something really unique, even though I still have a lot to learn about RPG Maker, scripts, etc. So I'm using my real life experience as a foreign language teacher to make a game where you travel to another Earth that doesn't speak any English (or any other language spoken on this Earth).

Music

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One of the things I'm most excited for is the sound track. I've spent as much time finding the perfect songs as I have developing the game! Since this is a game primarily about learning a fictional language, it doesn't make sense to have songs that are in English (or French, etc.). So I found several instrumental bands, DJs, and solo artists who have kindly agreed to let me use their music, as long as I credit them. Here's who I have so far:

• Daemon Hatfield--a great DJ who is also the host of IGN's GameScoop podcast

• H.T.W.--a postrock group from Springfield, MO

• Ashes and Iron--a postrock group from St. Louis, MO

• Seven Nines and Tens.--a postrock group from Vancouver, B.C. (Canada)

• Chris Zabriskie--a pianist from Florida

• my wife--a budding DJ/electronic artist

• myself--"I play guitar, and sometimes I play the fool."--John Lennon

Length

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This depends largely on how fast YOU (the player) learn the language, but there are less than 50 new words. I believe this will take 30-60 minutes. I love short games and want that to be my specialty.

Synopsis

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Lu travels to an alternate version of Earth, where they speak another language. She explores until YOU (the player) learn enough of this new language to ask for help to traveling back home to Lu's version of Earth.

There is no combat in this game--no enemy encounters or battles of any kind.

Screenshots and Game Trailer

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Below is the lab, from the intro scene:

Below, Lu travels through The In-Between, en route to the other Earth:

Below, Lu is asked to speak the new language for the first time:

Here's a game announcement trailer I made before I changed the name of the game. It is called Other Earths, not other worlds:

Characters

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• Lu--A level 10 researcher. She is the playable character. She has a Ph.D. in philosophy and physics.

• 15 NPCs--They all speak the other language. You need to speak to them and try to pick up as much of their language as possible!

Plot

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Lu and her colleague have been working for 14 years to find a way to travel to other Earths. They aren't even positive these other Earths exist, but they subscribe to the multiverse theory--that there are many versions of our universe (and planet). Some of these other Earths diverged from our Earth 20 years ago, while some may have split paths 20,000 years ago. The other Earth Lu visits split from her Earth so long ago that they don't speak any language found on her Earth.

Lu travels around this other Earth and slowly YOU (the player) learn the new language. It will be much easier if you take notes. I am a foreign language teacher "in real life," which helped me design the game to be challenging but not impossible. I slowly introduce new words and phrases, and don't let the player move on until they prove they have mastered those concepts. If anyone gets stuck, there are some treasure chests that use images to help explain the words.

Setting

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You start in your lab, then travel through The In-Between, and arrive on the Other Earth.
There, you begin on a beach and quickly arrive in a small city. There are many people to meet and buildings to explore (once you can convince the gatekeepers of each building you know enough of their language to be worthy of entering).

Current Progress

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I have finished the first draft of the game and will spend some time editing, play-testing, and polishing. I aim for a 2018 release.

Thanks for reading about Other Earths. I would love any feedback you all have. I'd also like to gauge interest via the poll. Thanks!

 

[573Games]

Hey guys.
Work continues on Other Earths! Today I wrote and recorded an original song that you will hear at the end as the credits play . . . in the game's fictional language! It was a blast and I may have blown my amp, but that's okay. C'est la vie, or so I hear.

I am also updating almost all of my maps to look more original. I got the amaing Futuristic/Sci-fi pack, so I'm updating our Earth with a clean, tech-heavy flair.

Feel free to send me any feedback or questions!

 

[573Games]

Hi everybody! Still grinding away.

The game has technically been done since January, but it was ugly. I'm spending a lot of time re-doing all the maps with non-standard tilemaps. I also added some optional collectibles. One more thing I did to spice it up is making EVERY in-game object interactable (walking in front of anything and pressing ENTER will pull up, at the very least, one extra line of dialogue). I hope these improvements will make the game more flexible--those who want to rush through it can, and those who want to spend some time in-world can.