Agenda

Ghost of Yotei wants players to wander, with a huge world of parallel choices, hidden corners, and non-linear narrative. But it also wants to be approachable, with an emotional story at its center. Player freedom risks both: players could become lost, overwhelmed, or disconnected from the story. Worse, wander the wrong way and they could miss something critical to enjoying the game (such as new weapons or health-increasing hot springs).

To resolve these competing goals, a hidden system called the Event Deck brings narrative moments and guiding nudges to the player wherever they are, however they play. Like a good Dungeon Master, it adapts a linear plan to each player's non-linear journey, to ensure they have a good time.

This talk will explain how the Event Deck works, and its benefits -- empowering player choice while making the world feel alive and connected, blurring the lines between story and side content.

Takeaway

Attendees will take away a technical and design framework for the Event Deck, and strategies for delivering an authored experience without sacrificing player freedom.

Intended Audience

This talk is for systems designers, gameplay programmers, or anyone interested in the tensions between player freedom, story, and progression in non-linear games.