Raziel: Glitch’s Apartment

Posted on November 24th, 2014

I think I’ve finally settled into my new day job, more or less. Enough so that I’ve been making steady progress on Raziel, even if I haven’t posted it here as often as I probably should.

I’ve basically finished designing the Real World. It’s suitable for wandering around in, though I still need to finish the interior of Raziel’s Tower. But the one thing I’ve spent the most time poking at (and probably will keep poking at until the game is near-finished) is Glitch’s apartment. Not just because it’s where the game starts, but because I want it to reveal certain things about Glitch’s character.

For comparison, here’s the current version Glitch’s apartment next to Jenny’s room from She Who Fights Monsters:

Glitch lives in a one-room apartment. So, basically, her (or his if you play as the male version) room or “space” is everywhere. Little Jenny’s room has all sorts of personal touches — flowers, a rug and general pretty things — that give it life and color. In contrast, Glitch’s place is pretty Spartan and looks a bit empty. The only rug is a bath mat and there’s not so much as a picture on the wall. Then, there are clues in the furniture: a single twin-size bed; a kitchen table with one chair. From the looks of things, she lives alone and probably doesn’t have guests.

There’s also a custom computer console that probably cost more than everything in her home put together, plus the nice laptop she keeps near her bed. Which probably says something about where she really “lives.” (There’s actually more to it than that, but I have to leave some stuff for players to sort out on their own.)

I want to have those kinds of things woven throughout game. Small details that, if you’re looking for them, can tell you a lot about the game’s world and/or the people in it.

Next step: designing Otherworld.