Game Director from Hell

Chapter 90: Remembering (1)

The scenario writing for the prologue part is complete.

I immersed myself in thoughts while looking at the filled manuscript.

‘I feel embarrassed.’

Looking again, it’s quite an embarrassing scenario.

It’s almost like revisiting my middle school diary.

Identity is a work that has left deep meaning for me in many ways, but, to put it differently, it’s a work that carries the meaning of past mistakes.

In reality, I made mistakes as a director while creating this game.

“A game should not be tainted with personal beliefs.”

The fundamental proposition of commercial media should be cantered around ‘fun.’

However, Identity couldn’t achieve that. At that time, I was captivated by the thought of needing to prove myself and, without reservation, poured my subjectivity into the game.

It was more of a result expressed unconsciously rather than my intentional intent.

In a broader sense, even the character of the protagonist, E-40, was like that.

E-40 does not compromise. He is a character who fights against the whole world for the beliefs he holds and trusts.

‘The constant shouting that “It’s not me, it’s you who is wrong.”‘

It was a form that hostilely processed all the words I really didn’t want to hear.

Looking back, some of them were adversaries created by my awkwardness.

Nevertheless, the reason the game succeeded was different.

The overall flow of the game, the theme that permeates the narrative, was a topic that could be empathized with in ‘universal emotions.’

“Find the true me and go the path I believe in.”

Isn’t that a good thing to hear?

With such beliefs, it could only look good on the surface.

It was more of a coincidence, or I should say, my cowardice.

I planted many lies in the game to convince myself.

Anyway, the remnants of the past that I faced again now only stirred up embarrassment within me.

‘…I need to fix this.’

It was possible because it was an indie attempt.

Also, the personality called ‘I’ now knew that such arrogance was awkwardness.

There was no intention to retaliate.

If I could move forward in a better direction, no matter how difficult it was, I had to move forward.

That’s why I’m remaking this game.

‘First…’

I need to think about how to turn this game from what I knew into a AAA-grade.

I reflected on the past.

Initially, when conceptualizing Identity, I was alone.

I used a budget of around 600 million won, and as such, I needed to efficiently allocate limited development resources.

So, I chose the game perspective as a side view and the graphics as pixel art.

It was a form represented in Maple Saga, which Jo Ayoon liked.

I created it with a playtime volume of 8-12 hours in mind, and the in-game story was represented only by implementing scripts and some motions.

Things needed to change.

‘If it’s AAA-grade specifications, shoulder view is the most suitable. It’s the perspective optimized for console pads.’

As numerous AAA-grade games were released, and references for development accumulated, AAA-grade games tended to converge into the shoulder-view format.

It was because that was the most universal perspective that could represent a broad worldview.

Even if it wasn’t for that reason, the shoulder view was the most suitable perspective for Studio Rewind to express itself well.

Well, I have a lot of internal data and references obtained while creating Hellic 2 and 3. The actual cartoon rendering also fits slightly better with the shoulder view than the side view.

The consideration of the perspective wasn’t deep.

The more significant consideration was about something else.

‘Next is the volume of the game.’

It should be expanded, indeed.

More precisely, we should aim for the insertion of cinematic elements, diversification of motion, and the deepening of direction and combat aspects.

It was possible to explore diversity by adopting systems abandoned during the indie stage due to resource constraints.

And one more thing.

“Above all, we should aim for a slightly more mainstream sensibility.”

The identity is fundamentally indie.

Therefore, the game was created with a sentiment close to indie, and at that time, it was not a choice but a necessary area for me.

Now there is no need to worry about resources.

As much as refining the identity into AAA, it would be good to go beyond the indie sentiment in narrative devices.

“So, to summarize.”

Those three major elements are what should be touched upon.

So, what should be left untouched?

That was quite clear.

“Collection of faces and expansion of abilities through it.”

Although you could say it’s a variation of the system presented in the Hellic series so far, in reality, the relationship is the other way around.

It’s because the system of Hellic is actually derived from Identity in my timeline.

The system where the growth of the playable character depends on items was the initial idea that came up when contemplating the essence of the game called Identity.

The motive was the transformation video I saw when creating Identity, where the performer changes masks in an instant. It was a performance technique.

From that, various results came out, attempting to express emotions through the changing face or input for expressing various worldviews through emotions.

Isn’t it true that in the world of Identity, the face the character has is directly connected to their identity?

So, the changes in identity due to the replacement of that face had to be vividly expressed in the game in a gameplay sense.

The main narrative is about the protagonist E-40 leaving to find ‘what he will become on his own,’ a journey of self-discovery.

In a world where detachable faces exist, it was quite suitable for expressing such a theme.

“We need to deepen the functional aspects of the face. We can add more functions to the production face that we couldn’t do before.”

I continued typing, organizing thoughts into words.

It was a document focused on the overview rather than detailed matters.

Summarizing in one word for the proposal.

“The development period won’t be long. The framework is already complete, and the planning is validated.”

On a quiet day in January, as if opening a time capsule, I began to implement the memories of past times one by one into this timeline.

***

February has begun.

The members of Development Team 1, who had been taking turns for vacations, all returned to their positions, and the first meeting of 2015 was held.

The realization that everyone was back was marked by the lively chatter of the duo known for their banter.

“Long time no see, everyone!”

“Hello, frostily!”

“Yeah, hi.”

“What did you do during the vacation? Did you go on a trip?”

“Well, I took a little break and then came to work.”

“Why not go abroad! Japan was really fun this time! Right, Myungkyu-oppa?”

“Yeah…”

Myungkyu hyung laughed softly.

He seemed to have been to Japan with those two people, who hadn’t been seen for a while.

“You went all the way to Japan? Ah, so envious…”

Yang Gilsang looked at Myungkyu hyung as if expressing his envy.

Strictly speaking, that person was not part of Development Team 1, so he didn’t take a vacation this time. We should make plans separately next time.

“Enough of the small talk, let’s now present the project.”

The atmosphere shifted.

And snap! The beam projector was handed over.

On the screen appeared a gripping and unfamiliar name.

[Identity]

“We’re going to make a game from now on.”

“Huh? Not Hellic?”

“Yeah, we need to create a new IP.”

Except for Han Seorim, it was unfamiliar to everyone.

It seemed a bit tense, which was good. It’s necessary to have such tension to approach it with certainty.

“The genre is action-adventure, and this time we’ll focus more on adventure. The presentation will be done in cartoon rendering.”

He recited the details one by one.

As we started talking about the project, everyone took it seriously, and it was reassuring.

After discussing for a while,

“It’s not Hellic. There’s no guarantee that we’ll bring the fans of the previous work along. In fact, it’s better to think of it as building the foundation again.”

So, attention to detail is required.

It has to be thorough and, more importantly, exceptional.

“Let’s work hard. I’m counting on you this time as well.”

That’s how the first meeting concluded.

***Development, as always, began with implementing the project proposal. Apart from the artistic and sound aspects, it involved checking the core structure of the game in the form of a bar-shaped humanoid.

The essence of the combat system was the “transformative.” Like changing a mask, it involved altering faces to manifest corresponding abilities in the character. The first and central effect obtained, and the core of the game, was the power of a “smile.”

“Change, and rise.”

A smile could be anything and could make anything. In other words, it was the reason the protagonist was special in the in-game world.

There wasn’t much to demonstrate in terms of combat. It simply required attributing qualities to each face and testing the combinations.

In fact, there was something more critical than combat in recreating the Identity.

“Please conduct thorough testing on the crafting system.”

Crafting system.

It was what couldn’t be implemented in the past due to resource constraints. In this game, the protagonist had to craft weapons and potions because he was a criminal possessing a “smile” categorized as a “highest-grade crime.”

In the past, it was challenging to express such elements, so a store was implemented as a game mechanic. But now, wasn’t it unnecessary?

Implementing a system where players could directly craft potions, weapons, Armor, and gather materials would add an ‘adventurous’ element beyond combat.

I assigned this task to my expanded team of six in the planning department.

“Jiseok, please create variations for gathering materials. Hosu, focus on level design, Yeonghyun, you…”

Gathering and crafting required intricate settings. Reflecting on past experiences of creating online games, even a 1% difference in drop rates could lead to in-game inflation. There was no room for mistakes.

“Cross-validation will continue until the game is released. Also, keep revising the list of items and quantities needed for crafting.”

Hosu’s role in level design, determining the placement of high-grade crafting materials in the map, was crucial. I would oversee the overall coordination, but there was a need to elevate the capabilities of each member of the planning team.

“Next…”

After giving instructions, I returned to my tasks.

This involved dividing the death of Miso, which would be part of the tutorial section. I had to adapt the scenario into a game context.

“I need to aim for around a 10-minute duration to explain the game’s systems.”

Through activities like gathering, cooking, and hunting while interacting with Miso, I could explain all the basic systems. The key was to do it without making it boring.

The answer was clear: “Character appeal.”

In other words, quickly showcase the charm of the character. It wasn’t just about providing a reason for repetitive tasks like errands. It was about optimizing the process for players to empathize with the protagonist’s journey of getting close to, falling for, and grieving over the death of the character.

I paused for a moment, thinking.

It was about the various considerations I had when conceptualizing the initial smile.

How to create a lively and charming character? How to make a character fitting for the identity of Miso?

There was a decision I made after several considerations.

“In the past…”

My hand hesitated for a moment.

After some reflection, I remembered whom I had used as a inspiration.

“Boss! I’m here!”

Suddenly, Jo Ayoon’s voice echoed as she arrived after finishing her class.

It was quite a surprising coincidence.

Right, that’s it.

—Strong and powerful—

The inspiration for Miso’s identity was Jo Ayoon from the previous life.