Female Agent character discussion

That has always been my least favorite type of Heroine. I've always found that particular combination of character traits immensely unattractive. Out of all the character types people have described here, that is the only one that has made me think "even if that was included in the game, I would never play that archetype."

deamonmaster

haha, knallhart durch google translate gewurstelt? nice

ammut

i've always had a fondness for a strong sarcastic smartass female. throw in a little bit of a foul mouth and take no crap attitude and i'm sold. always. never fails.

Scott Stone

Thank you so much, everybody, for so many high quality insights and ideas. We'll do our best to do all of this justice.

Crushstation

"made me want a way to play through as a dumb bimbo who relies almost solely on how incredibly hot she is" Why does someone need to be dumb to take advantage of their looks though?

bos

Basically, yes, you decide where the character goes. Crush also wanted to know how we see our character, so that he can write dialogues for these characters. In key scenes, we'll probably get some options that involve more than just two ways (see Dubei side mission or not). So, when many people create a smart and dutiful agent, there will be more "yes sir, no problem, but ..." answers. In a rather innocent naive, these answers will probably lead to yes, but with more restraint and by more persuasion of others. And in the end, depending on how you acted in between, it will then be "yes, yes, yes, yes, I want more!" or "Again, you've gotten over the night, you're home, and once you disappear in the shower, where you're squirming and crying, your tears will be washed away by the shower water and disappear into nowhere - just like your innocence" Which way our agent then goes, then yes, s.den answers that give the player our agent ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Grundsätzlich gilt ja, man selbst entscheidet, wohin der Charakter geht. Crush wollte von uns ja auch wissen, wie wir unseren Charakter sehen, damit er für diese Charaktere entsprechende Dialoge schreiben kann. In Schlüsselszenen werden wir dann wohl ein paar Optionen bekommen, die mehr als nur zwei Wege beinhalten (siehe Dubei Nebenmission machen oder nicht machen). Wenn nun viele Leute eine intelligente und pflichtbewusste Agentin erschaffen, wird es dementsprechen auch mehr "Ja Sir, kein Problem, aber ..." Antworten geben. Bei einer eher unschuldig naiven, werden diese Antworten wohl auch zu ja führen, jedoch mit mehr Zurückhaltung und durch mehr Überredungskunst der anderen. Und am Ende, je nachdem wie man dazwischen agiert hat, wird es dann heißen "ja, jaa, jaaaa. Ich will mehr!" oder eben "Wieder hast du die Nacht überstanden. Du bist zu Hause und verschwindest erst einmal unter der Dusche, wo du dich zusammenkauerst und anfängst zu weinen. Deine Tränen werden vom Wasser der Dusche weggespült und verschwinden im Nirgendwo - so wie deine Unschuld" Welchen Weg unsere Agentin dann geht, liegt dann ja an den Antworten, die der Spieler unsere Agentin geben lässt.

Falloutbabe

I'd like to make her an arrogant bitch but that should be something that is chosen through dialog. I like your ideas on how she would get to finding depravity an everyday thing or how she'd have her mind dulled by the addictions and situation. Starting as a bimbo isn't so fun. I previously said I thought she should over-estimate her intellect, but I like your idea too. I said elsewhere that maybe she's a diversion, but maybe the situation could be that there's another agency (KGB for instance) after something as well.

bsnick

Your comment made me think about the hypnotism. It's supposed to be optional now, but what if a player wants their player to be reluctant sexually throughout the entire thing? The hypnotism could be nice if it makes her more of an exhibitionist, or like it rough or whatnot, but it'd be nice to be able to toggle the 'promiscuous' option (or any other option) via some game configuration that is presented at the time of the hypnotism. Granted, players could then just toggle off all the ones they don't want so they are left with just the one choice that they do want, but that's not such a bad thing either.

bsnick

I'd find that funny, especially if she was playing a really cheap whore servicing the kinds of people she'd normally have serving her tea.

bsnick

Given the wide selection of looks and names and countries it seems like the game encourages diversity, so why not encourage some diversity in story. At least on the surface it sounds good, but I suppose the developers will then have a head-ache of trying to make content that can be adapted to various choices (by changing certain words/sentences according to certain variables, I suppose), or making alternative scenes and even entire scenarios based on certain personality choices. Maybe they should ask for user-contributions for story to help them out if it goes that way.

bsnick

I was reading through other peoples responses, and several people said how they wanted her to not be a dumb bimbo, a perfectly reasonable request that I agree with. Mostly. But the fact that people said they DIDN'T want to do it made me want a way to play through as a dumb bimbo who relies almost solely on how incredibly hot she is. Doing this would probably require the plot to develop in a rather different way, but it is something I now REALLY REALLY want.

deamonmaster

In my eyes, agent Knight is a highly intelligent, smart, competent and good looking woman. She knows her worth but doesn't consider herself superior to her peers. She's neither arrogant nor bitchy but also doesn't have some sort of self-sacrifice complex. Therefore she understands that the mission is important and that someone has to take the dive, and she's as good as anyone. Maybe she's comfortable with her sexuality, maybe she isn't. She probably isn't too keen on taking the job, but she's definitely NOT a cock-hungry bimbo that would get all giddy just from the thought of her duties in Bankok. She's tough, but unfortunately not tough enough. Who would be, really, in a situation that feels like having the whole wold against you. When she starts slipping into depravity and depression and starts neglecting her duties, when her highly sharp mind finally starts dulling, it will have been for good reason: 1) Immense psychological stress from doing sex work. 2) Abusing Alcohol and Drugs to try and help cope with the sress 3) Working in a brothel and suffering from substance abuse is heavy as is, but on top of it all she's there as an undercover spy! 4) All this would be enough to break most people, but she's been manipulated by the person she should have been able to trust the most in all of this; hypnotized to embrace her fall. I somewhere read that she might be a diversion. idk about that, but having to infiltrate your own HQ at the end in order to expose on of your superiors as a double agent would be really fun. After all this though, I hope there is a way to have a happy ending. As an aside: Big props on how you handle Mind Control. This is the first game in which the mind control really klicked with me and it's all thanks to the implementation; the first time I tried not to wear a skirt to the base, I seriously thought I must have misclicked. Had a great deal of fun figuring that one out. tl;dr: - keep the mind control - let me play her as smart, tough, competent and neither arrogant bitch nor dumb bimbo.

ammut

sbb0

Why just one combination? I'd like to see it evolve over the course of the adventure - starting inexperienced and out of her depth in any case, with Bangkok either progressing through trials toward Ripley-the-survivor and possibly beyond to Romanoff, or a slightly naive "exotic and exciting adventure" before it goes to hell and she descends into ruin depending on play choices.

Serge VanDeKamp

For myself, it's very important that the character is not stupid. I'm sooooooo tired of female characters in these kinds of games only ever finding themselves in lewd situations because they are dumb dumb dumb. Characters that are too foolish and weak to have any sort of control over their situation and exist only at the whim of others have been done to deaaaaaath. I think it would also be particularly out of place in this game where the character is supposed to be a very competent spy. Thankfully, i doubt Female Agent was ever going to railroad you into that sort of story, especially given things like the option to avoid the hypnosis were added, and i hope that never changes. What i would really like to see is a character who is generally a decent and smart person, but one who knows what she really likes, which just happens to include being a very naughty girl and a bit of a megaslut for work. And she might be just a teeny tiny bit weak to indulging in these temptations that are in contrast to her otherwise good girl nature.

bos

Pretty much everything I want has been mentioned already, but I will say I don't really have an 'ideal' Kate, I'd love to play the game over and over with whatever versions I can: plucky but untested rookie, haughty bitch put in her place, The Full Romanoff™, the addiction-prone pile of daddy issues, they all have exciting possibilities.

Antilles

You know, I think it would be pretty fun to play the agent as a complete bitch. Bonus points if she comes from money too.

Breadloaf

I've been picturing a early career Peggy Carter type. She's intelligent, confident, charming, ambitious, and believes in the agency she works for despite the fact her co-workers would probably rather fuck her than work with her. In any other situation Kate would have been a wonderful tradtional success. A big part of her personality is a willingness to self sacrifice to help others. So when a particularly nasty group comes in or there's a live sex show the other girls don't want to do, Kate will take it on because she wants to help them and she's confident that she can handle it emotionally, mentally, and physically. Kate has an attitude of if I don't do it they'll just make one of the other girls do it, and she figures she can handle anything. But that leads to night's she can't believe she took part in and they eventually take their toll. It's a lot. And as time goes on and the endless parade of cock continues the drinks she has after work become stiffer and more numerous. All of her hard work and success just to end up here? The thought eats at her as the months go by. And it's not that she's used to being treated like a whore but things that would have infuriated her in the past just don't anymore. Sometimes just rolling her eyes and sucking a cock or bending over is easier than the alternatives. I'm hoping there will be a potential character arc that let's her sink low but by the end still have a lot of those core attributes plus a willingness to now use her body and sexuality to achieve her goals. I like the idea that this mission tried to break her, but instead forges her into a more dangerous agent who only trusts and relies on herself and talents she possess.

Ali

especially when she isn't sober!

Antilles

So many people chiming in ^^ Incredible. I guess I'd prefer her to be intelligent, loyal to a fault and good at working as a field agent, as well as being agile and an excellent marksman, but not a femme fatale. She'd be professional and never arrogant. She'd never take the lead where leadership of any sort would be warranted. She'll do whatever it takes to get the job done, albeit reluctantly when it's something she's not comfortable with. Attempting seduction would be a last resort, as would anything sexual and so would have to be forced into a lot of the sexual situations the story offers. She'd have submissive and exhibitionist traits, although she'd hate to admit it as it goes against her core beliefs. They're both great turn-ons. Anything sexual she does that she's been coaxed into- or forced to do will always be embarrassing, as will any submissive or exhibitionist actions, but she's strangely inclined to accept suggestions and orders from men against her better judgement.

Outdx

IMO she needs to be confident in her sexuality, confident in her abilities as a spy, but realize rather quickly that there's a huge difference between being somewhat promiscuous and literally being someone's whore. She'd be fully comfortable with the one night stands and similar stuff (even when she's not really attracted to the guy), but she'd instantly be thrown out of her comfort zone in Bangkok or with the backroom shoot if she took part in it. As a spy she'd be skilled, but there should be times when she can be compromised by the players' choices, so that there'd be a challenge. As an aside, any ETA on the release with updated art? No pressure, just wondering since I was planning on playing through LIONNESS again and figured I'd wait until the next release to do so.

elmagio

In my mind she doesn't need to be a superspy. Maybe she isn't the first choice for the mission. There are other more experienced and confident agents, who would be better suited for the task. But because of that experience they declined or they are to usefull to risk them in this way. So it comes down to her.

Regolov

Regarding her effectiveness as a spy, she's had training but no experience, so she's not going to be a super-spy. She'll be OK if she doesn't take too many risks. And if she talks too much then she will probably let slip something that could give her away.

ultimate_elephant

Demure and dutiful for me. I always imagine this game playing out the same way: she's a nice, normal girl who is doing this horrible job because it could save hundreds of innocent lives. She tells herself she'll lie back and think of England. Then the spiral of corruption and degradation begins!

ultimate_elephant

A confident rookie that has scored very well in all of her classes and testing, but is clearly in over her head. She's determined to get the job done both for justice and for her dreams of furthering her career and climbing to the very top of her agency, and is quite reluctant to do this job because despite the benefits of getting DEVILFISH, it could be a disaster for her career, besides the normal grossness of being a prostitute of course.

JohnnyFive

I like the idea that's she's this drop-dead woman who's cocky, arrogant, full of herself, a cocktease, and overestimates herself. She's egocentric and so not a great team-player, seeing herself as the star of the show, which annoys people. She's quite good at some of the physical stuff, but not as good at the non-physical. All her abilities are from training, little from actual experience. She sees that as unfair without realizing that real spies are plain looking, not bond level, meaning her great looks invalidate her from most missions. She's desperate to prove herself. What she doesn't realize is that she's the distraction. The enemy suspects her agency will be sending someone & she perfectly suits the villains tastes in looks. She's made to believe she's the real agent while there's actually a 2nd agent, one who may have to expose our agent to keep her own cover intact. Our agent dislikes the real one, looking down on her as a cheap whore. The real agent may set up our agent for humiliations to distract people (with a tiny bit of spite) or scenarios that are actually for our own good, which keep our cover intact just a bit longer (ie, make her seem too stupid to really be an agent in order to keep her from being immediately busted). Ending 1: our agent miraculously manages to achieve the mission. Ending 2:we're caught, in trouble, and it gives the real agent the chance to get what she needs, call in a strike team to save us, and get themselves away.

bsnick

i really like the 'in over her head/out of her element' kind of character too, but i would also throw in the 'oblivious to or vastly underestimating the huge danger she is in until it is too late, and she is forced to deal with the consequences of her rash/headstrong actions while she struggles to grasp the gravity/reality of her situation'. not in an evil or horrific way, but in a way that demonstrates how utterly powerless she, and yet she somehow maintains an unyielding optimism that there is hope for her.

nick

giving the character a player chosen flaw/weakness near the start is a great way to add customisation for later exploitation. imagine if she had abandonment issues, and would go far beyond what she is normally willing to do in order to preserve her relationships. that would be a cool concept.

nick

I am more partial to complex, tragic characters who have a strength all their own and while not necessarily the best people, they still imminently relateable. Something where the agent is reluctant participant that eventually becomes what she was out to destroy would be really fun.

Wolverine101

I'm a fan of 'in over her head/out of her element' myself. Whether that be prudish, arrogant, or simply shy/demure. And more than a little annoyed at the assignment, she's supposed to be catching criminals, not bending over for them ;) Though I suppose I do understand the appeal of a femme fatale agent who takes to the assignment like a fish to water.

Richard Tracey

I know the others you mention, but what is "tales of America"?

legraf

Highly clever and proud, but will get quite a shock and will have to adapt to a new kind of living. At the same time, she is a bit of a slut/tease and an exhibitionist.

cr3mp13

natasha romanoff for sure

Zachary Spear

So, I'll chime in.. I envoy playing two types mainly - the badass that owns her sexuality (drunken cowboy style), and the reluctant victim that keeps descending against her will (officer chloe, tales of America). Both are fun, both pretty different.. Whatever you feel comfy writing

HypnoKitten

My agent is definitely very intelligent and sharp. She rationalizes every action she makes. She's a company woman and trusts the intelligence agency she works for to have her back. It's hard for her to reconcile when things they tell her don't make sense with her gut, but she will try to. (Hypnosis helps very much in this regard)

Taylor Hughes

Just like, at the start of the current version, we have a sexual preference picked out, we could have a potential weakness identified, something where a future wedge could go and help "crack" or break her. Possibilities: close to her family (eventually leading to kidnapping or relatives and blackmail of agent), poor upbringing (leaving her vulnerable to bribes), history of alcoholism or drug use in her family (potential genetic disposition herself), naivety about the state of the world (all agents I've played so far are young and inexperienced, after all), etc.

SuperMaxo

It feels very much in line with how I vision the agent as well. Corruption feels like a very obvious theme in the game, and for me the only way to make it seem somewhat real when the mission is to go undercover as a prostitute is to corrupt her morally. I think you make a very fine point about her superiors focusing more on her appearance than her intelligence. That opens up many possibilities for her morality to erode. Same with drugs, as you mention. Of course, it should be some player agency behind the corruption, since it should be possible for her to succeed in the mission (or not), and her morals could be either completely eroded... Or she remains strong and returns to the agency victorious. Up to the player.

Breadloaf

I have doubts any intelligence agency would hire someone without intelligence and some form of strength of character and integrity. If I have to put her core values and attributes in some form of list, it goes like this: Intelligent, but not street smarts or any experience outside her somewhat sheltered life. She is naïve and idealistic, believing the developed countries have a moral high-ground and seeing things in mostly black and white. She should join the agency hoping to help and do good deeds, instead of striving for career in the intelligence field. She is someone with a positive outlook and optimistic about the future. I would like all of those things to be challenged, eroded and demolished by her undercover time in the underbelly of a third world country. The operation is very long term and the longer she stays the more she is exposed to the lack of humanity in the sex trade. Her upbringing and even the files she has read to prepare are nothing compared to the reality of the relatively poor country. Survival is tough and without financial support from the agency (as it will be bad for her cover) she would be forced to demean herself just in order to survive and keep her cover. Side-quests could also help a lot here. For example, the CIA targets one of her wealthier regulars. He is making his money by exploiting child labor. Instead of seeing him out of business, she loses her regular and his business continues. The CIA and most such agencies often care more about the information than fixing anything. This should make my agent feel powerless and erode her self-esteem further. Exposure to drugs is a must in the game imho. Perhaps she is rebellious and her pimp decides to use drugs instead of a beating? Or she starts taking them herself to cope with her situation? If she becomes addicted would the CIA help her or use it against her? As the mission goes, she should have more and more doubts about who is really the bad guy. The further her assignment continues, the grayer the border between the enemy and the friend becomes. She is chosen for the job mostly because her appearance resembles what the target likes, not because of her intelligence and other qualities. This could be reflected by her superiors with side-quests focusing on the carnal part more than her other abilities. In the end she would be at a state where when she is told, she would drop her pants and bend over and there would be no difference if it was her pimp that said it or her superiors as she is a whore for both of them. I guess my vision is a bit darker than most, but it looks more realistic to me.

tegli4

I like this idea, but for me she wouldn't just be getting better at it, she'd be discovering that she LIKED it.

deamonmaster

I like your analysis. Especially that she's from a wealthy upbringing. That would account for her degree, regardless of if she's smart and excelled in school, or if she managed thanks to her looks.

Breadloaf

I'd really like to see an agent who starts out shy but the more through Project LIONESS gets more and more open to do stuff, in the form of some skill tree. The more actions she performs, the better she gets at it, the the better she also performs in Bangkok.

McBeckott

What are those? I swear google can't answer me :)

Enrico

I like that, too, but this is the wrong place for it imho (one wouldn't pick a shy little angel and ask her to play the part of a slut). There's still room for moral corruption in the form of increasing pervesion or moral dilemmas when the agent refrains from acting according to her values to avoid blowing her cover...

Alex P

She's young and lacks experience as an under cover agent, yet still she accepts a very dangerous mission. For me this says that she's a bit naive, but idealistic - she wants to do good, even if she's slightly unprepared. I see her as an feminist willing to do whatever it takes to succeed, and eager to impress so she can move up further in the ranks. She's obviously not a prude (otherwise someone else would've been chosen for the mission), but she'd feel conflicted about the task at hand. Otherwise the possible corruption wouldn't be enjoyable. Some parts about her enjoyment would depend on her starting traits, but she'd still like it... Even if those feelings would lie hidden deep down inside, since a good, strong independent woman can't be a slut, can she? She'd have strong core values, but a bit impressionable considering her eagerness and inexperience which makes her eventual corruption and fall from grace possible. It's that strong moral fiber that means that she can succeed the mission, even though she'll fumble around a bit and cover up some of her mistakes with (sometimes hesitantly) the art of seduction. This is an erotic game after all, so she'll undoubtedly be forced to fuck her way out of some problems. It feels important that she'll not be stupid in any way, but that doesn't mean that she can't act like a bimbo every now and then to fool someone. I'm not sure who I'd compare her to. Maybe a character similar to Sarah Walker or Carina Miller from the TV series Chuck (if Chuck was a porno from the 70:s).

Breadloaf

So I like the idea of her being Demure and Dutiful but the hypno-therapy working too well and turning her into a Femme Fatale-type, and as time goes on her going even further.

deamonmaster

Hard to describe as I would like to have everything to have several runs with different characters to play But my main character would probably be to write down as follows. from wealthy, rich parents, therefore a high lifestyle accustomed highly intelligent with top marks in school, high school and elite university very good-looking, which is why she is often underestimated, or you do not trust her, what she can actually afford. Therefore, try to seize this opportunity, cost whatever it takes to fulfill the mission with flying colors and to accelerate their careers is very athletic, jogs and swims and does some Pilates has relatively few (real) friends, but many social media contacts loves shopping, vernissage visits, and musicals However, I would also like to play as Kelly Bundy aka Dumpfbacke (stereotypical "dumb blonde"). Someone who actually got a desk job just for his looks and also had five relationships at the same time during college. Their lack of IQ makes them therefore with their bust size and their French knowledge.

Falloutbabe

Naive, optimistic.

Terra

Personally, my ideal agent is an inexperienced goody two-shoes who gets corrupted over time. If you played Nefarius Evil Plot or Motel S by Bob Denard, you know what I mean. :)

Chris Simon

The shy type is intriguing, but what about a woman with a past (criminal, abused, addiction), something in which the stress of the operation may lead her to relapse etc

Shallan Davar

For now, we mean the player should be able to express their personality through action (i.e. dialogue and decision choices). For example, if lots of players want to play a shy agent, we should write in lots of "shy" dialogue choices so players aren't forced to play a wisecracking badass. That said, we have long-term plans for a more detailed system that this is the foundation of. :-)

Crushstation

Uhm, are you really able to add that layer? And how do you plan to let the player chose the "personality"?

Enrico

Definitely shy, reluctant and dutiful. I agree with monokuma 100%

Velin Klisurov

Demure, dutiful, shy, reserved, passive, virtuous, etc. I enjoy the process of gradual moral corruption, and its less fun if the character already start out as promiscuous or sexually confident.

R

Femme Fatale all the way!

Jimmy Tran