First I will start with an example
Sorry about using this as an example but it is possibly one of the best there is.
The original two Transformers series' were set on Earth and Cybertron and was about
the Autobots trying to stop the Deceptions from absorbing all the earths "Energon"
and get back to Cybertron to rule the galaxy. A little cliche, yes? now it was pretty limited
between two worlds but in 1986 something happened which changed the whole perspective of
the series'. It made the original battle seem small and pathetic. New races were introduced,
more planets and indeed Unicron. But the thing I am focusing on is Planets.
Most RPG's are set around the hero saving his or her home planet by finding crystals or defeating
an evil menace. But what if the answer wasn't on their homeworld, what if it was on a far away planet
or a series of planets. This is often overlooked as it can be very tricky to make it less linear and
can use up lots of space.(excuse the pun)
But intro aside this article is about how to make different planets in an effective way and other
features which this can lead to.
So your hero has to find seven mystical crystals or something from seven worlds but they all seem
the same. How can you fight this?
- 1. Different styles of chipsets could be used for the different worlds for example Mac and Blue for
a happy peace filled(supposedly) planet and FF6 rips for a dark dingy planet. This works as now
you have an excuse for using completely different styles and could look convincing.
- 2. Species are unlikely to be the same on all planets. Some might be Humans but some might be Wolf
people. The best example for this is the Star Wars trilogy and it's "Expanded Universe" which is still
now creating different planets and their main species. Nal Hutta is inhabited by the Huts whilst
the forest moon of Endor has Ewoks and other foresty creatures. Also placing the species is important
as forest creatures would not usually live on an ocean world.
- 3. Language varies per planet and even country. Al Behd in FFX was a nice touch and shows that not
everyone speaks the same language. You don't even need to make one up, you can just use a foreign
language and a translator like Babelfish. The hero arrives on a new planet and everyone speaks weird
so they can't progress so what can they do? Buy or find a dictionary so that everything makes sense.
- 4. Monarchy can also vary as some planets may have kings and queens whilst others may have presidents, Prime ministers or Emperors.
- 5.Theme ties in with chipsets but deserves it's own little part as it is highly unlikely that
all planets have the same "Earthy" feel to them. Some may have been frozen or bombarded to
such an un-habitable degree. Some may have flooded. It all goes down to your imagination.
The features which I have mentioned are vast in their number and I will only touch upon
a few.
- 1. Side quests could take you to hidden worlds etc and you may have to save them from another
evil being who wants to take over their world or something. This could also lead to possibly
another secret about your baddie(if they have been about the place)
- 2. To break up the game play you could add flying mini games(like dinosaur planet and kingdom hearts)
to get between worlds and this could lead to more side quests like a flying tournament or dogfights.
- 3. Each planet could be entirely different which means that you could attempt different styles other
than your own or get other people with different styles to help you
I hope that this has been helpful to you all and good