Ravine Initial GDD

Written By Evan Halevi

Genre: Strategy Role Playing Game

Game Elements:

Grid-based turn-based combat punctuated by interactive story segments.

Player:

1 Player

TECHNICAL SPECS

Technical Form:

2.5D Isometric Spritework (3D Graphic Stills) and 3D graphics and in-engine animation during combat segments.

View:

Isometric view

Platform:

Windows (Linux hopefully, whatever unity allows)

Language:

C#

English

Device:

PC

GAMEPLAY

In Codename: Ravine, the player will control a small ragtag band of drifters who get caught up in a larger war set in an Early-Modern adjacent period, moving their troops around the battlefield to turn the tide of the war. Each unit has similar depth to a traditional JRPG or ARPG party member but with the combat and strategy controls of an SRPG. Movement, positioning, and careful planning is required to win on harder difficulties, but easier ones can be played more traditionally to a normal RPG. Each mission requires a somewhat unique objective to be completed to be won (eliminating all enemies, defeating a specific enemy, collecting an item, rescuing an individual, etc.). Out of combat, the player talks with and grows alongside their party, which reacts dynamically to the events of the game through a morale system, which also impacts their combat performance. 

Gameplay Outline

• Opening the game application: Available through steam, Has the following options:

  • Embark: Begins Gameplay (New Game or Continue)

  • Settings: Allows the player to adjust game settings

  • Credits: Shows all of us who worked on the game

• Game options:

  • Difficulty Options:

    • Difficulty: Changes how hard the game’s content is to complete, and how complex each mission is.

    • Forgiveness: Gives the player more lee-way to lose units during missions (or less). 

  • Settings:

    • Text Speed: Slow / Medium / Fast

    • Text Auto: Automatically advance text

    • Volume Control:

      • Music Control

      • SFX Control

    • Keybinds

    • Mouse Sensitivity

    • Fullscreen / Borderless

    • Aspect Ratio

    • Gamma

• Story synopsis: You are a normal individual who works for a mercenary company in an era resembling the Early-Modern period, where guns are just making their way onto the battlefield but haven't yet taken over. Three factions are vying to claim what could be the motherlode somewhere in the north of the continent, and their fighting spills over to your location. Out of employment and in need of a job, you join a faction to claim this treasure

• Modes: Campaign

• Game elements

  • Mission Segments: The player and their party must move through the battlefield, defeating enemies and completing additional objectives as they go.

  • Overworld Segments: The player explores the area, talking to their allies, shopping to power up their party, and learning more about the world and the people near them. 

• Player’s controls

  • Mouse: Mouse controls have the player clicking on on-screen prompts to direct their characters and their actions

  • Keyboard: Keyboard controls have the player clicking WASD (or whatever is keybinded) along with arrows to move characters and choose their actions. 

• Winning

  • Each mission's primary goals are completed and the player completes all of them

• Losing

  • The player character or the route leader dies in a mission.

  • Mission objective failed

  • Upon failure, restart the mission or exit to the main menu. Progress is saved

• End

  • Claim the treasure

• Why is all this fun?

  • In-depth combat, compelling story

Key Features

  • Fire Emblem-esque combat paired with a deep story. Lacks the more uncomfortable aspects of the Fire Emblem series

  • Skill Tree

  • Branching Character Development that links to gameplay

  • Morale System

  • Interesting, non-stock characters

DESIGN DOCUMENT

Design Guidelines / Restrictions

  • No multiplayer until after the game is released

  • Three interwoven campaigns is the goal, but for development purposes, one will be created first before the others in a "walk before you run" strategy

  • Limit the creation of new assets that cannot be at least partially repurposed

  • Limit scope creep by creating systems and adding components of those systems, rather than designing around new components.

  • Assets should be low-poly, low resolution in order to save on artist labor and processing weight.

  • Subtlety when possible

  • Everything is designed from a player centered perspective.

Player Definition

Stats: These increase on levelling up. 

  • Health Points (HP): How much damage a unit can take before dying (leaving the battlefield).

  • Strength / Sorcery (STR / SOR): A value added to a unit’s attack / spell casts, which increases that action’s damage or healing. 

  • Armor / Protection (AMR / PRO): Reduces how much damage a unit takes from an attack or spell (respectively).

  • Finesse (FIN): A value added to a unit’s chance to hit, increasing their accuracy. Also increases the trigger rate of chance-based skills (PROC skills).

  • Agility (AGI): A value added to a unit’s chance to dodge, decreasing their chance to be hit. Also allows units with AGI advantages over their opponents to perform extra attacks for bonus damage. 

  • Charm (CHA): Charm grants bonus critical strike chance and skill activation chance. Additionally, charm increases the rate of regeneration for mana and tension. 

  • Speed (MOV): How many spaces a unit can move each turn (in combat). 

  • Morale: How a character is feeling. Is impacted from all gameplay (not just combat) and impacts various combat stats. 

Items:

  • Weapons: Increase a unit’s damage dealt and grant bonus effects.

  • Armor: Protect a unit from harm.

  • Accessories: Grant a unit additional small bonuses.

  • Consumables: Grant a unit a boost at the cost of the item. 

  • Miscellaneous: Other items that can be traded. 

Skills: Special bonuses that are contained within a skill tree. Skill points can be earned by levelling up, which are spent to further increase a character’s power. Enemies can also have skills.

Actions: 

  • Attack: Attack the target.

  • Technique: Perform an empowered attack or special skill at the cost of tension / mana. 

  • Spell: Cast a spell at the cost of health / mana  / tension. 

  • Wait: End that unit’s turn.

  • Item: Use an item or change item equipment.

  • Trade: Trade a held item with an ally.
    Talk: Talk to a nearby unit.  

Player Properties

  • Pop ups when getting things yipee

User Interface (UI) - Get from programmers.

Evan Halevi