How do you develop your basic ideas?

Thanks to @MARVEL we finally got something going here ;-)


He claims that a good story needs a good basic idea. agreed!


So what are your approaches to develop a basic idea into a plot leading a player through a story?

What is the first thing you would start with?!


For my part I would start with making an outline which things I have to develop generally when I want to make an Adventure Game. That would be ...

• World(s)
  
• Characters
  
• Conflicts (Story)
  
• Puzzles
  
• Dialoges
  

I read in some other threads that some just start lining out the whole story like a perfect walkthrough for the game. I think thats basically a good Idea, but I never put this to practice. Would be great if some of you who did share their experience.

Furthermore I think it would be even better to start with writing down the story itself, cause if you start writing a perfect walkthrough you also start to think about details too much (like puzzles etc. that would distract me from focusing on the originality and twists of the story itself).

Ok, while I write this i realize how easy it happens to get from one topic to another etc. So I ll stop here and see if this gets some response and we get some great discussions going here.

So long
DAN

Well, i do stories for some time now, but I never thought about it

I always start with the bacis idea for story, something what just came to my mind.
And then i do skelet for my story, what all happens, but without detais and dialogues and then i start write the script. First i paint my character and then I'm working on it in sequence, first things first.

The game that i am currently working on, i have all animations and everything done in the first chapter and now i'm working on the script for the second chapter, actually.

But i dont know, becaouse i was never thought about it ( and my bad memory ) i guess i dont have any procedure, I'm working on it spontaneously. Mostly i do a story with my friend, and we are both saying our thoughts and it just happens.

Thanks for you answer @Ke4 !!!

If i get you right, you get very soon into the actual production process (meaning animation of characters for example). Do you do it when you finished the story script or while you are still writing it?

I personally think I couldn´t do an adventure game on my own that would satisfy me. There are too many things I am not an expert in. Well I know I don´t have to be but I would rather stop the project than do it all on my own and have a half hearted game in the end.
Man, but I do respect it when people have the drive and the talent to do such things by themselves, WOW! Would be great to see some screens of your game!?

I think that developing a storyline while you talk to your friend is really a good approach! Even better in a small group of 3 or 4. The reason for that is, that it is always great to get feedback from people who are not as involved as you are. They give yourself a fresh perspective on the story.
I think that is a great oppertunity to make a good story even greater.

It is also good to present a story to some friends or coleagues (who are not involved in the project) to figure out some things like logic problems etc.

Unfortunately, i don't have good english for all i want to say enough.
The my friend is part of the team, we are doing this game together.
Yeah i write the story and concurrently do paintings, animations, puting into visionaire, but i know the whole story, how it will ends, the number of chapters. We are doing this chapter by chapter.


What about your game, at what phase are you now?
I can send you some screen :-)

Well, it is actually a bunch of different approaches I am writing out at the moment... Just to see where the stories are going.
sure send some screens if you like! would be great!

Actually i posted some of them on the phorum, you can check it there :-)
http://www.visionaire-studio.net/forum/thread/whats-the-name...