My, how the turn tables… I started my journey in game development using Ren’Py, but drifted away from it when I began working on other projects with different tools. Well, I got tired of the issues I was experiencing with dialog placements and images. I decided to start a new project, and it’s all in Ren ‘Py! It is currently codenamed “Threshold” and will combine several different concepts within a superhero/supervillain world.
The Inspiration
Who doesn’t want to be a superhero (or supervillain)? We watch tons of movies from the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), and we play video games where we save the world (or destroy it). One of my favorite cult classics is the Kick Ass movies which feature realistic superheroes and supervillains with real problems. I am even helping a friend of mine work on a digital card system for his hero-based TableTop RPG. You could say it’s on my mind a lot.
To make matters worse, I am currently reading “The Perfect Run” by Maxime Durand, which employs an interesting blend of dystopia, post-apocalypse, and other common themes, pitting superheroes and supervillains against each other. I have also been a huge fan of Larry Correia‘s work in the Grimnoir Chronicles, which features a rich world where people possess different powers based on the kind of powers that seek them out. All of this has inspired me to try my hand at the genre with my own style. I did attempt to reach out to Larry himself, but Maxime is a bit more difficult to contact.
Lastly, my philosophy in designing games is focused on a key item: every choice matters. I have played countless games that claim that your choices make a difference, but rarely does this play out in the grand scheme. A notable example is Star Wars: The Old Republic (SWTOR), which features a “dark side/light side” dialogue system. The more your character leans one way or the other, the more success they will have with certain groups and the less with others. Of the games I have played, this one has the most effective system, allowing you to turn some characters good or evil, and so on. However, once you get past a certain point, the choices matter less and less. I thought that Hogwarts Legacy would offer this, but the game does not take into account whether you choose to be good or bad, other than slightly changing the way someone speaks to you. I wanted a game that makes memorable and meaningful choices over time.
The Premise
Life on Earth in the modern era is progressing much as it has always done. However, a previously unknown person named Adam had a dream in which he claimed an entity stated that Earth would soon become the battleground for a war between two alternate realities. This entity claimed that the average person in the world is not currently at an evolutionary stage that would enable them to survive once the war starts in full force, which it feels is unfair. It has offered to explore Adam’s nature and unlock connections to powers that align with his heart and mind. He accepts and is subsequently given the ability to manipulate matter into forms that benefit him at the time. From there, a few others have similar encounters and unlock different skills, and the number seems to grow each day.
Seeing the potential for harm, Adam founded OSIRIS, an organization dedicated to maintaining peace and order between those with power and those without. However, not all people who are given powers agree with OSIRIS’s lofty goals. Amara, an awakened human, felt that OSIRIS wanted to use their powers to put an iron grip around the freedom of those with powers and limit their ability to operate, so she created CHAOS to allow awakened humans to live their lives in whatever way they desired without having to comply with some ideology. But even still, some humans don’t wish to follow any group and take matters into their own hands as either vigilantes or shadow operatives. Now, the various groups and the awakened humans are thrust into an interreality war as opposing forces, with some not even aware of the battlefield.
Stay tuned for more great information about this game!