Themes for Games

[Peace Oblivious]

Hi everyone,

I just bought VX Ace, and have just started to make a game. I found myself with a lack of direction so I decided to plan the plot before I started to make the game. As a keen writer, I want to make a game that makes people think. Do you fellow game producers have any recommendations for themes.

Thanks,

PO

 

[kerbonklin]

Instead of recommending themes, i'll recommend you thinking advice.

First you'd want a High Concept, one or two sentences bluntly describing a possible plot. This will be your main inspiration, what you'll hang onto and will help build the rest of your project.

Next, ask questions about the High Concept. In order for it to come true, what has to happen? Why does it happen? How? For this High Concept to be true, what else has to be true? The answers you create and record will lead into developing a huge interesting world and plot.

Also for idea-getting, a good small-group brainstorming based on the High Concept can help a lot. (3~7 people at most)  Spit out ideas, delving a bit on each one before moving onto different ideas, and then in the end you, the "visionary" can accept/reject whatever ideas you want until you have a nice base or more.

Also, it's not a good thing to discuss your ideas to the public while they're still young. You don't want criticism and such affecting your ideas negatively, or changing your mind very easily.

 

[Peace Oblivious]

Instead of recommending themes, i'll recommend you thinking advice.

First you'd want a High Concept, one or two sentences bluntly describing a possible plot. This will be your main inspiration, what you'll hang onto and will help build the rest of your project.

Next, ask questions about the High Concept. In order for it to come true, what has to happen? Why does it happen? How? For this High Concept to be true, what else has to be true? The answers you create and record will lead into developing a huge interesting world and plot.

Also for idea-getting, a good small-group brainstorming based on the High Concept can help a lot. (3~7 people at most)  Spit out ideas, delving a bit on each one before moving onto different ideas, and then in the end you, the "visionary" can accept/reject whatever ideas you want until you have a nice base or more.

Also, it's not a good thing to discuss your ideas to the public while they're still young. You don't want criticism and such affecting your ideas negatively, or changing your mind very easily.

Thanks  I have taken your advice and written a High Concept and a plotline that lasts until a decent point into the game. I have a vague idea for the rest in my head.

 

[Eschaton]

Design how your game is going to be played before you write.  I cannot stress this enough.  Your game has to be fun first, before it has an engaging story.

 

[West Mains]

Design how your game is going to be played before you write.  I cannot stress this enough.  Your game has to be fun first, before it has an engaging story.

TBS RPG. 

BANG

DONE.

As for what OP was actually asking about:

Don't try to write a story around a theme. It'll just come off hackneyed. Just tell the story you wanna tell. What I often do, if it helps, is to start at the climax of the plot and work my way backwards, looking at the events and asking "well, who are these people, how did this happen, etc."

Ultimately it's not really what your plot is about, though. You could have a game's entire story be "my hero needs to buy bread." As long as the characters and their interactions are told well enough, you can make any story captivating. 

 

[Eschaton]

Don't try to write a story around a theme. It'll just come off hackneyed.

Liar.DO try to write around SEVERAL complimenting themes, but try to be subtle about it.

Themes can give a story consistency (for example, if you want to portray people as fundamentally good, don't have the hero choose to do an evil act at the end out of nowhere, blah, blah, blah.).

Here's a good rule of thumb: write ACTIONS around the theme, NOT dialogue. Unless it's the end of the story and someone has to speak on behalf of the characters actions ("He's the hero Gotham deserves. But not the one it needs right now./He was a hero. Not one we deserved, but one we needed.").

 

[Wtf1555]

Try surprise the players,and make these games fun to play is most important.