Overview

In my roguelite narrative game, resources and weapons are core gameplay elements that support player progression, enhance combat mechanics, and align with the game’s themes of emotional growth and overcoming grief. The design of these elements focuses on creating meaningful choices for players, reinforcing the narrative, and balancing challenge and reward.

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Design Conept: Terra Shards

Purpose:
Terra Shards serve as the game’s primary resource, representing fragments of the player’s emotional strength reclaimed from overcoming enemies. These shards are fed into the Tree of Sorrow, which acts as the upgrade system, allowing players to enhance abilities and unlock new powers.

Key Features:

• Visual Design: Terra Shards are jagged, glowing fragments with a crystal-likle appearance, emanating a soft, ethereal glow to symbolise their connection to emotional resilience.
• Acquisition: Dropped by overcoming enemies within the game’s levels.
• Usage: Players spend Terra Shards to:
  • Access player enhancements at key narrative milestones. (e.g., increased damage, faster attack speed).

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Design Concept: Terra Souls

Terra Souls are a rare and powerful resource dropped exclusively by defeating the Embodiments of the stages of grief. These resources represent the distilled essence of the defeated stage, symbolizing the player’s progress in overcoming their emotional struggle. The artistic design of Terra Souls was carefully crafted to convey their narrative importance and make them stand out as a reward for overcoming significant challenges.

Purpose:

• To visually embody the essence of each defeated stage of grief while maintaining a cohesive visual language across all Terra Souls.
• To emphasise their rarity and significance as the ultimate reward, distinct from more common resources like Terra Shards.

Core Design Elements:

1. Shape and Form:
   • Terra Souls take the form of large, asymmetrical ghostly structures, each with a central core surrounded by swirling edges.
2. Color Palette:
   • Each Terra Soul adopts a color scheme and aura tied to the stage of grief it represents:
     • Denial Soul: Pale blue with a swirling, fog-like aura to reflect elusiveness and resistance to reality.
     • Anger Soul: Deep crimson with flickering flame effects, symbolising volatility and passion.
     • Bargaining Soul: Purple with a faint shimmering effect, evoking compromise.
     • Depression Soul: Dark blue with a subdued, pulsing glow, representing introspection and sorrow.
3. Motion and Effects:
   • All Terra Souls appear to hover and rotate slowly, giving them an ethereal quality.
   • Subtle particle effects radiate outward, creating a sense of energy and life.
   • Each has a unique sound effect when collected, complementing its theme (e.g., a distant echo for Denial, a sharp crackle for Anger).

Themes and Symbolism:

• Terra Souls were inspired by the idea of emotional crystallisation, where complex emotions are condensed into something tangible and transformative.
• Visual references included cracked gemstones, fireflies, and energy cores, which convey power and beauty born from struggle.

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Weapons

Overview

Weapons in the game are not only tools for combat but also symbols of the player’s progression through grief. Each weapon type—sword, axe, and bow—features three distinct designs inspired by the stages of grief, reflecting the evolving emotional journey. These designs are currently presented as concept sketches, showcasing their thematic and artistic elements.

Weapon Designs

Overview

Weapons in the game are not only tools for combat but also symbols of the player’s progression through grief. Each weapon type—sword, axe, and bow—features three distinct designs. These designs are currently presented as concept sketches, showcasing their thematic and artistic elements.

1. Sword
   • Sword: 1 A sleek, translucent sword wrapped in vine and leaves representing humility.
   • Sword 2: A smooth, polished and grand sword, symbolising power and determination.
   • Sword 3: A jagged, sharp weapon with cracks running through its blade, representing perseverance.
2. Axe
   • Axe 1: A smaller, more traditional axe head with the protagonists crest engraved on its cheek.
   • Axe 2: A massive, brutal weapon with charred textures and intricate engravings embedded in its surface, reflecting raw, destructive power.
   • Axe 3: A double-headed axe with uneven edges, featuring a warm, glowing core to represent unity and resolution.
3. Bow
   • Bow 1: A delicate bow, wooden and hand carved limb, green gemstones at each edge and at the risers.
   • Bow 2: A graceful design with smooth curves and a quartz-like limbs wrapped in vine, an almost invisible string, emphasising fragility while exuding harmony and precision.

I wanted to incorporate the colour green the best I could to the weapons to further connect them to the weilder as well as mainting the wooden elements to them.