[Episode 1.16] Resolving the cliffhanger

Hey guys! This week I started building the new episode in the game engine. It’s really exciting to see it starting to come to life!

The opening scene resolves the cliffhanger ending from the last episode, and is an important plot development.

I find this kind of scene challenging to write, because it’s all about emotion and dialogue (and, as everybody knows, I’m more comfortable writing about food and transport).

That said, I’m excited about how it’s going and I'm excited about the rest of this episode. It feels hot and fresh and interesting.

Storyboard feedback from team and the community members has been positive, and they suggested some really excellent improvements already.  I think 1.16 is going to be a good one.

This week elmagio slid into my DMs and asked:

I remember that back in the day, the plan was that once the Agent got to Bangkok, the game would open up and become almost an open world sandbox with a variety of locations and events/activities to partake in at those locations as the player sees fit. I'm curious to know if that's still the plan?

The issue is that this will get horribly complex if there isn’t a stable “base state” for the heroine to return to after each mini-quest. 

It’s kind of like Mass Effect: Shepard gets access to the galaxy map once s/he’s a Spectre with a mission and command of the SSV Normandy. The player can hit the galaxy missions in any order; they’re returned to this base state (Spectre, mission, Normandy) after each one.

In Female Agent, the base state will be achieved when the heroine is working as a bargirl. Then we’ll be able to add a variety of sex, spy and NPC quests.

Like Mass Effect, these will be a mix of quickie side quests, and big set-piece missions that advance the story. Some of the quests I’ve got outlines for include:

• Club quests: hired for sex by various club patrons; entertaining groups in the VIP; doing solo or girl/girl stage shows; general dramas and emergencies at work
• Kriangsak quests: working for Kriangsak’s escort agency; dates with Kriangsak and his contacts
• Gang quests: investigating the organised crime gang that’s enmeshed with the club
• Mission quests: carrying out spy taskings for the Joint Task Force
• Location quests: training at a muay thai fight camp; visiting beaches & islands; getting involved in the illegal street racing scene; various cool places with quest chains like a charter airport and a gambling barge ; exploring the city and the country
• NPC quests: spending time with friends, foes and frenemies

Some people have raised concerns that there’s nothing interesting left to do once the heroine starts working undercover as a hooker. I totally disagree, I can’t wait to get to that point, there's so much we can do with it.

But first, we need to get the heroine there. I’m going to get back to work on the present episode, and I’ll report on progress next week.  Have an awesome weekend, guys, I love you all! 🥰