What if Marloth featured a static map with some random variables each playthrough, and multiple paths to take, and the player can’t explore all of them in a single playthrough?

Gracefully degrading adventure game

Similar to the the first Marloth book and MyHouse.WAD, I’m wondering if I can make a game that works on an easy, obvious layer and has many more advanced layers beneath it.

This approach may solve some common problems games face, where games often either:

1. Have a steep learning curve or are hard to get into
2. Are simply obtuse no matter how much time is invested in them
3. Are dumbed down and and never get more complex than the obvious
4. Contain heavy hand holding

Arbitrary

I think I’ve run into this issue before, but any time I sit down to start fleshing out this kind of user story, I struggle with what to do next.

And I just now realized why—the order is arbitrary. I’m trying to find some structural logic and there is none.

I never realized how that is yet another problem with classic adventure game structure—the puzzle order really is arbitrary. Some adventure games try to overlay the puzzles with an over-arching plan, but I can’t think of a case where it ever felt inherent to the puzzles.

That is fine if the game is a linear ride, but causes problems when the game involves a sequence of steps the player is supposed to figure out.

That is one of my biggest frustrations with adventure games. They will make it clear I need to solve one puzzle, but it is unclear how many other puzzles I need to solve before I solve it, and often the only methodical means of learning is near endless trial-and-error.

While a few people have argued that the trial-and-error can be scientifically systematized, those are weak arguments. That method is brawn-over-brain, and the most strenuous scientific experimentation requires and rewards far more mental discipline than arbitrary adventure puzzles provide.

<aside> 💡

That is the issue I’m facing with the first Gabriel Knight game. I’m having a hard time getting into it because every step of the way it is unclear what I am supposed to be doing, yet the game makes it clear that I am supposed to be doing something. I hate that.

</aside>

Procedurally generated branching

Occasionally I’ve considered the possibility of a creating a system that comprehensively considers all of the factors and choices of the player and dynamically creates a graph, similar to generating a maze.