Don’t save the World: An RPG

[MrTerrorist]

Sakura River Interactive, the creators of the visual novels Infinite Game Works and Fading Hearts, are in the works creating a RPG called Don’t save the World: An RPG.

According to the creators, the game will be non-linear and every choice you make has an effect in the story. Your character, for example, can choose to accept becoming the Hero as offered by the King or refuse it and become a shop keeper.

[Chaos2Frozen]

Originally Posted by MrTerrorist

According to the creators, the game will be non-linear and every choice you make has an effect in the story. Your character, for example, can choose to accept becoming the Hero as offered by the King or refuse it and become a shop keeper.

...Those are my only options in life? Hero or Zero ?

[MrTerrorist]

Originally Posted by Chaos2Frozen

...Those are my only options in life? Hero or Zero ?

Yup. After that it's up to you to decide what to do next. After you become the Hero, will you stay true to being a good guy or become the King's Enforcer? If you become a shop keeper will help the other girl who became the new Hero or just cheat her?

[VDZ]

Ugh, Sakura River. Their first game, Fading Hearts Parallel (which they 'removed temporarily' to improve after really bad reception), has the honor of being the only game I've ever rated 1/10 on VNDB. It was truly so bad it was hilarious.







Fading Hearts improved on the horrid, horrid writing from Fading Hearts Parallel but as a result it just became bad without the hilarity factor, with a plot that was utterly ridiculous (I'm a Y2K bug survivor!!), character interaction that felt very forced, and choices being forced in at every possible point (rather than waiting for reasonable branching points).

Even the overly positive OELVN voters on VNDB (who don't seem to just use 7.0 as average, but as apparent bottom line for many) panned the three games:

Fading Hearts Parallel


Fading Hearts


Infinite Game Works


Their entire existence is a testament to the fact that commercial success is separate from product quality; just have nice graphics (they hire someone externally for that) and market it well, and people will buy it.

I wouldn't play this game even if I were paid for it, let alone pay for its production.

[kenobihiro]

Wow, VDZ, your examples are so hilarious i loled a lot.

I haven't played any of their games yet but get quite an impression with their art quality.

Come on, the next product will always be better, right?

[Kyero Fox]

I'll get it if its really good.

[FlareKnight]

Certainly a fun concept if it works. Like the idea of the game completely changing depending on the choices made.

[VDZ]

Originally Posted by FlareKnight

Certainly a fun concept if it works. Like the idea of the game completely changing depending on the choices made.

It's an idea that's been hyped up for as long as I can remember, and it never works out, for a very simple reason. Every additional playable part has to be made. The more choice you offer, the more production time (and in the case of a commercial title, resources) you need to make it. Since games aren't the kind of stuff people work on for decades, this means you either need to limit the amount of possible choices or half-ass the outcome of the choices (or a combination thereof, which seems to have been very popular among Western developers in the past decade). Either way will not live up to the expectations created by the false promise of a 'game that completely changes depending on your choices/actions'.

[kenobihiro]

Originally Posted by VDZ

It's an idea that's been hyped up for as long as I can remember, and it never works out, for a very simple reason. Every additional playable part has to be made. The more choice you offer, the more production time (and in the case of a commercial title, resources) you need to make it. Since games aren't the kind of stuff people work on for decades, this means you either need to limit the amount of possible choices or half-ass the outcome of the choices (or a combination thereof, which seems to have been very popular among Western developers in the past decade). Either way will not live up to the expectations created by the false promise of a 'game that completely changes depending on your choices/actions'.

For as far as it sounds now, this game will separate itself into multiple routes with completely different feeling on each (Hero and shop keeper). It reminds me of Recettear: An Item Shop's Tale really but in that game you do both =D.

Well, as long as developers try new things into their game, I hope the best will come for them. And it's a good time as there are quite a few English Visual Novel out there being made.

Avan Story from a very new group is also interesting to some extends.

[Seitsuki]

Originally Posted by MrTerrorist

If you become a shop keeper will help the other girl who became the new Hero or just cheat her?

Considering this is a eroge VN, I just know what I'm going to be doing with the other girl nudge nudge wink wink