Weekly Update – A New Vision

Hi everyone!

If you read the post that Locke thankfully wrote for me, you know that I′ve had a few bad days and struggled a bit with motivation. One issue that also lead to this, aside from the feedback issue, is that I was missing a real vision for the game since the release of Chapter 2. However, I now think I have a much better idea for the next phases of XXXivilization and want to use this post to tell you all about it.

The best way I can think to communicate this is via the graph above. As you know, there are a lot of different games out there. Some of them have a really good story that keeps you playing the RPG for hours on end as you go down an ultimately linear path. This method of game design and storytelling gets really difficult when you try to tell an interesting story and try to give the player as much freedom of choice as possible at the same time. Often when games try to do that, you only really end up with minor choices that don’t really feel very impactful. On the other end of the spectrum, you have games like Civilization, where you have no real story in the game, instead opting to make your own – you set your own goals and decide which way you want to achieve them. Lately, a lot of games have become somewhere in-between the two. For example, games like Witcher 3 have an amazing main story that’s always going on in the background at the very least while still giving you a lot of freedom.

So, what does all of this have to do with XXXivilization? Well, with Chapter 2 I have extended the storyline part of the game quite heavily. With further planned extensions to the demon storyline and new maps, this will grow even more. However, I still want to give players choices that allow them to significantly impact their kingdom, their followers and the overall game as a whole. After all it′s especially important to me that you really feel that this is your kingdom. That your kingdom can be a different one every playthrough. And that you never get bored because you have nothing to do for some time besides farming up.

Ultimately, my vision is this: That XXXivilization slowly but steadily grows on both axes. That you get more maps, more content and can bring the fight to the Demons themselves in your own way. I fully understand it’s a very ambitious goal to shoot for, but it’s one I confidently feel can be achieved over time.  

I want to thank everyone that left an uplifting message for me. I read each and every one of them, and they all mean a lot to me. My motivation is back stronger than ever and I′m already heavily working on the next update. I′ll let you know more about its contents later next week.

Thanks for everything,

hw21