Cubey Or Not Cubey
(Concept)
What Is It?
Cubey Or Not Cubey is an RPG game that takes place on a high school stage, play your part as a knight who must save a princess to save a collapsing kingdom! Use cardboard weapons, ride wooden horses and don't forget your lines in this unique 3D adventure-exploration game.
What's In It?
What I have on this page is just a concept, demonstrating how moving, interactions and battles would play out, to help the viewer imagine what the game could look like as a finished product.
Why Do This?
I've had the idea of a game that is limited to a theatre stage, and who's story is that of a laughable high school production, however I just hadn't thought to pen down my thoughts until I couldn't stop generating so many ideas that I had to bring it to light. Even if it is just barely.
The title being a riff on Shakespeare's "To be or not to be."
What Do I see?
Paper Mario Inspired?
When I think of how this game plays, I instantly turn to both Paper Mario and Paper Mario inspired games like Bugfables and The Outbound Ghost. Their way of storytelling and level progression really sound like what I wanna go for with this game, so now I just gotta translate that kind of gameplay to a stage!
If you've ever played or heard of Paper Mario: The Thousand Year Door, it's battle sequences place the character on a stage, as if the battle is some kind of performance. From here the player is at times able to interact with the audience, mess around with the background and props, like it were a real production. That is how I want my game to feel, all the time.
Can A Stage Really Be That Fun?
Now one of the first problems that come to my mind, is how can I make having your movement restricted to a stage, and effects/design seem realistic for a highscool production (therefore somewhat low quality) consistently enjoyable?
That's a question I'm yet to answer! But I do believe with a healthy mix of making the game seem like both a crappy high school production, and by bringing the world the people are acting out to life, I can make an enjoyable RPG.
What A Battle From "Paper Mario: Thousand Year Door" Looks Like
How Does It Play?
Creating the illusion of movement, the player can move freely across the stage as the world seemingly moves around them. This is paired with paintings of environments being scrolled in the opposite direction the player is moving.
When the player is in the right spot, the curtain is lowered, and a new area is loaded, contextually the lowering of the curtain would give the theatre crew time to replace backgrounds and props.
Battle System
Upon entering battle, the player is faced with a combination of meta and non-diegetic UI to help guide them to attacking their enemies.
A major exception to having it look like a school production is made here, as attempting to keep it as such would not only be difficult to make look right, it just overall inconveniences the player.
