Story-boarding

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Story-boarding

Postby karrek » Tue, 13Dec31 18:45

I'm kicking around the idea of writing my own AIF (don't get excited, probably nothing will ever come of it). In the past when I've started I always peter out quickly, and I think a major problem is I don't have a really clear overview of the plot of the game worked out ahead of time, so I get bogged down in the details of each scene without really knowing where I'm going with it. Obviously story-boarding out the game ahead of time would be the way to combat that. So what tools or programs are good for plotting out scenes, and how they'll flow from one to the other? What do other people use?
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Re: Story-boarding

Postby fleet » Tue, 13Dec31 19:05

I write dialog using stage directions. See example

Text slide: That night

Scene: Brandon sitting on the bed in his hotel room.

Brandon (thinking): Vera has a headache. I guess the high temperatures and humidity are causing it. I wonder if there's anything good on television.

Sound" Phone rings.

Brandon (thinking): That's probably Vera.

Brandon: Hello.

Ms. Stone (on phone): Hello, this is Amanda Stone. Have I reached Brandon Mackey?
Check out my latest adult visual novel "After She Left"
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Re: Story-boarding

Postby Super » Tue, 13Dec31 19:11

karrek wrote:I'm kicking around the idea of writing my own AIF (don't get excited, probably nothing will ever come of it). In the past when I've started I always peter out quickly, and I think a major problem is I don't have a really clear overview of the plot of the game worked out ahead of time, so I get bogged down in the details of each scene without really knowing where I'm going with it. Obviously story-boarding out the game ahead of time would be the way to combat that. So what tools or programs are good for plotting out scenes, and how they'll flow from one to the other? What do other people use?


Well, I'm currently writing a Dating Sim using tlaero's Adventure engine. At first, I made a google document about the general flow of the game, but I ended up ignoring it and just writing whatever I wanted to happen next. So probably not the best advice for you.

Basically, I'd suggest starting out with a general focus first off. What is the final goal of the game, even if it's as simple as getting a particular girl in bed? Then, pick out a personality for said girl. Basically, you'd be writing a story, so all of the basic tenants of story writing would be important.

As for actual storyboarding, my suggestion would be to make a flow chart. Have each major event be described rather simply, and try to branch it out that way. Simpler is better, in this case, so wherever you make a flowchart, be it on paper of Word or whatever, is good.You could even do it in list form, as this example is:

Code: Select all
1. Meet Sarah at park
Option A: She likes you- Go to 2
Option B: She doesn't like you- Go to 3

2. Go on another date with Sarah
Option A: She likes you enough to have sex. Game over
Option B: She doesn't like you and dumps you. Game over

3. Go to bar and meet Jess
Option A: Two of you get really drunk and have drunken sex. Game Over
Option B: You leave the bar before you can get drunk enough to have sex with her. Game over.
Option C: Piss off another guy at the bar enough to have him knock you out. Game Over


Something like that would be a good start, I think. Obviously, you'd flesh it out a bit more yourself- for instance, when you're actually writing it, Your conversation with Sarah at 1. would feature a lot of compliments and conversation trees or whatever, but this would give you a good view on what to do in general. Of course, you can do an actual flow chart if you want, what ever is easiest for you.

Hopes you understand that and it helps somewhat.
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Re: Story-boarding

Postby Wolfschadowe » Tue, 13Dec31 20:30

I'm with superawesomemans on this one.

For BEW I use Visio for my storyboarding, although any flowchart program would work.

I've uploaded a sample storyboard that should be pretty self explanatory here: http://www.mediafire.com/download/ukrqz9mzs0z7mgm/Sample+Storyboard+using+AC+Example.vsdx
The file is in Visio format and most flowchart programs should be able to read it. There is also a free viewer available here: http://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=35811

Essentially I make a box that I imagine as the main webpage and brief text outlining what I want the characters to say, and maybe a reminder about the scene in perenthesis, along with the page number. Player responses go off in arrows to the next boxes that are web pages. I use that to render the images, and once I've rendered each image for the web page, I change the shape of that box so I know what's done, and what remains.

Now that I have a picture to work from, I can go in a create the web page and use the picture and shorthand outline text for inspiration for the actual story. Once the page is created, I change the shape of the box again. (The visio document has a legend that explains better.)

I also use colors to help me keep track of logic like responses that are good or bad, etc...

I also group web pages into sections indicated in the file by the larger containers. In MS Excel I keep track of the larger containers to help with scoring, especially where there are multiple paths. For example, in the above file, I know that anytime the player goes through the "Hall Happy" path they earn one point for Tlaero Happy. In the AC Example game, this is relatively simple and may not seem useful, but in a game like BEW, that may translate to 3 Happy points for Faith, and 2 Happy points to Emily going through one section of the bar scene.

Finally, once I have all the logic in place, and have playtested a container, I change the shape of the individual web-page documents again to indicate that those pages are "done". Once a full scene is marked as "done", I post the new build for playtesters.

That's my process, in a nutshell. I also use Excel to calculate path values using the section containers from visio, but that's another discussion. :)

Hope this helps.
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Re: Story-boarding

Postby karrek » Wed, 14Jan01 14:37

Thank you everyone, that's very helpful. :D
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Re: Story-boarding

Postby tlaero » Thu, 14Jan02 22:36

I don't actually storyboard. At that level of detail, I just write in the final tool.

For me, the most important thing to work out is "why is it hard to win?" As in, if "winning" is having sex with the main NPC, then what about the story makes that a challenge? I usually spend weeks to months working this out. Get this part right first and everything else will flow. Try and shoehorn it in later and it'll show.

Then I work out who the major characters are and why they act like they do. This is often mostly decided while doing the first part, but I usually spend some extra time here fleshing them out.

After that, I do an outline of the major scenes. I just use Word for this. This is useful for my artist, because it gives him a list of settings/backgrounds to assemble.

From there I start telling the artist, "I need these images." When I get them, I write the text that goes with them. I suppose this is the part where a storyboard tool might help. For me, though, I've invested so much in the characters and story by this point that I can hold it in my head.

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Re: Story-boarding

Postby Wolfschadowe » Mon, 14Jan06 20:33

I fully agree with Tlaero on the importance of understanding the characters, and what it takes to win the game before starting. No matter what method is used to plan out the game, this key understanding of the characters, their goals, and the player goals is integral and absolutely necessary.

It may be something as simple as answering some questions to get the girl out of her clothes and bone her, like the Meet 'n Fuck style of game where the difficulty comes from memorizing tidbits or knowing trivia.
Other times the difficulty comes from a ticking clock and is about earning money, building stats and such like some of the Lesson of Passion games.

The goal in BEW, for example, is for Brad to exit a chaotic week in a better position than when he enters. Sex in BEW is relatively easy. Hopefully it's somewhat clear in the public intro that Brad is lonely and seeking companionship, and not just sex. He's tired of being stuck in the friend box, and some of us know that we can get shoved in that box, even after sex. Of course, he's seeking sex too, he IS male, after all. :) The difficulty comes from having a lot of opportunities and challenges being thrown at him at once.

In my life, there seem to be long periods of boredom followed by bursts of pure chaos where everything seems to happen at once. The car breaks down, a family member goes to the hospital, the furnace stops working, get a promotion at work, and about a dozen other things happen, both good and bad, all within a week or two. Usually I start wishing for that boredom again.

That's essentially what happens to Brad in the game. Everything hits him at once and turns his life upside down. The difficulty of the game is navigating this and coming out the other side better than when he went in. Feast too much on the available bounty and like any greedy treasure hunter he could end up losing everything. Don't do enough, and he will end up right where he started, lonely and alone, doing the daily grind. Win, and he may have a new daily grind that is happier than his current one.

Once I understood what motivated Brad, then I added love interests. I had to figure out what motivated them. Why would Brad have a chance with them? What were they looking for and how is that compatible with the main character? Why would Brad be interested in them over the long term? Most importantly, what about them was not compatible with Brad, and would need compromise on from both sides, and is that compromise realistic? That's how the scoring evolved. When a love interest needs to make a compromise, they will need a high enough relationship with the main character to actually want to do it. Has Brad done enough, won enough "points," elicited enough interest in the girl for her to decide that whatever Brad is proposing is ok or not. For some compromises, maybe the score is too high, and the love interest likes Brad too much to do something as well.

Once I have the winning conditions, and the characterization, all the losing conditions pretty much write themselves. At that point, the game pretty much writes itself.

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