Conviction Chronicles blog post #40 - More Motives implemented

 These mostly are motives that are tied to having the assistant talk to the player the day afterwards.

Wakeup events

This will be heavily expanded upon in the future, but this is the start of a framework for certain characters to go into your room at the start of the day to say something to the player. Right now it only works for the assistant with dealing with motives if the player has gotten a motive bonus for certain motives. In the future I plan to have it work for everybody and to react to certain events. I have to brainstorm it a lot more so it flows the best and feels the most dynamic.

-- Motives tied to this -- 

The Recovered Fragment

Allows the killer to regain certain memories. Since there are spoilers here, I will say that most memories from this are not part of the flashbacks and some of them are tied together in a sense but on different perspectives of events for "how and why?". 

When writing the ideas for each character overall for their backstories, I went to make a small twist for each one with some being bigger than others and some being more subtle. Mostly to always have something for everyone to prevent any of the cast from being 1 dimensional. Some memories do impact gameplay. This isn't a spoiler to say this, but Nova loses her ability to reduce her susceptibility and becomes more emotional once viewing her locked away memory for example. 

There are a couple of exclusive tracks here but the main one for these scenes I think ended up being the best of the bunch. Mainly since I was experimenting with certain strings and bells for a unique sound that fits great.

The Hidden Ledger

Allows the killer to select someone and view a secret about them. It's mostly more surface level than the Recovered Fragment as the Recovered Fragment can be extremely in depth about certain moments while the Hidden Ledger is more trying to be manipulative of the truth to make things more "juicy" story wise for the game's audience. 

The Outside Line

This allows the player to contact someone random from outside the game story wise where it gives some story details. I decided to go more for a spooky/horror angle with these with the music and how it's presented to keep the outside world mysterious and unknown.

The Unmasking

This reveals who the mole is to the killer, even if they are the mole. A motive like this needed to exist with how much the gameplay revolves around who the mole is, adds extreme tension to the mole and everyone else.

The Ascendant’s Gift

The framework to start this is here, but once I get to making the trials, then the bonuses in them the killer gains will be implemented. This mainly gives the killer an advantage in the trial depending on what trial type it is.

The Relic Cache

This motive gives a selection of special items that is separate from the main inventory to use. Originally I thought of having the motive select which item it would be at the start, but I think it's more fun if there is choice involved.

1. Bomb

At the start of the day it can be planted and after 3 actions it goes off. It cannot be planted in anybody's room of the Cafe since they would break multiple layers of code for the game. Once a bomb goes off, it kills whoever is inside, and forever makes that room inaccessible. It allows for direct character control for disabling certain areas of the game and there is no way to reverse it and thus makes it more dynamic. I might add the Cafe back as an option but I just know unless the people inside the cafe have the chance to run away, it would lead to most people being killed in an instant.

Gameplay wise, targeting the hospital/shop/crafting room/furnace would add the most variance to how the game is played.

2. Talisman

At the start of the trial, the holder can make themselves or anybody else immune from votes.

3. Mole checker.

During a trial, the holder can use this to see if someone else is a mole with the info being public.

4. Floor disabler.

Sort of like other motives that disable the functions of certain floors, this will do it for multiple days no matter what motive. Same effects as bomb where areas are disabled, but wider and doesn't last as long.

5. Past viewer

During a trial, will allow someone to see a character's past actions and current evidence. Once the system for recording player and character actions is introduced for the ending layouts and more, this will take seconds to implement as a separate thing calling it.

6. Revival necklace.

Will undo the next time the holder dies, including if they are selected to die in an execution. 

The idea was to make it varied enough so nobody knows what item was chosen until it's activated.

The Protector’s Pledge

The killer will be able to select anybody that isn't them and they will become immune in the next trial. Allows for a more dynamic trial.

The Last Testament

Mostly a story/lore thing based on who died in the first trial. 

The Returned Echo

Certain scenes haven't been added for this, and the cafe events will have a bunch for this once I get there. The idea is the killer can revive anybody they wish outside who they killed IF they survive the next trial. If it was instant then it wouldn't work, and if there was no catch to it there wouldn't be a drawback to get the killer.

Obviously Shanks by default will always want to revive Bianca if she is dead. There are two spoiler options for certain characters that will lead to special scenes. I have to implement them shortly, but I wanted to release this blog post sooner than later.

Anything else?

The next blogpost will mostly focus on one motive which is tied to the Assistant asking something from the killer and that's the The Lawbreaker’s Edict. The main reason this motive is going to take some time to do well is because the idea around it is the killer is able to rewrite or add a rule to the game itself and I want to add a good chunk of options. I do have to make at least one of the scenes for the Returned Echo, and the other secret scene will be tied to the Cafe. I also have to make sure the code for the Returned Echo works without any errors since I haven't tested it yet. I think I implemented 20 motives by this point and I still have a bunch to go, and I might want to add more in the future.

At this point I believe I'll open the demo up more once the new cafe events are implemented. It's going to be a while though.

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