Dark Scavenger (PC)

Dark Scavenger is a turn-based, point and click adventure game that I developed with my independent game studio Psydra Games.

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUzfYcfY35Q

Steam: http://store.steampowered.com/app/293880/Dark_Scavenger/

Writing

I did all of the writing for the game. The final product contains over 100,000 words.

The game itself is segmented into a series of rooms and each room contains a number of events. Events occur under the following conditions:

- Player enters a new room.

- Player examines an object in a room.

Each event consists of a series of text strings and choices.

- Choices lead to different branching paths and potential conclusions to each event.

- The outcome of certain events can influence later events.

I developed a few writing rules for to ensure each event was concise and maintained the player’s interest.

- All text strings needed to be roughly Twitter Length. No more than 140 character per text string.

- No more than three text strings between choices.

- No more than three choices can be presented to the player at any given time.

Through this approach, we ensured that the writing was like eating potato chips – players would practically read the text strings by accident and there would never be too much time between meaningful player interactions.

Replayability

Events are generally their own standalone-stories. Though each event contributes towards building the lore of the world, narratively isolating them enabled us to introduce greater non-linearity into them, due to the lessened overall ripple effect on the game’s story. As a result, when the player is replaying the title, each individual event can present the player with something they didn’t see before.

Many events are also hidden and/or off the beaten path.

- Players who rush through the game will only uncover the basic plot, while players who explore will walk away with an in-depth understanding of the story.

- The non-linear nature of events creates community-talking points. Each player walks away with their own pieces of the puzzle. The player community fills in the story gaps for each other.

Event Counters

We added an innovative system to our dialogue trees that we called Event Counters.

- If the player chooses certain options during an event, we increase or decrease the number value of a hidden counter.

- When the player reaches a certain point in the event, the next portion of the event changes depending on the current status of this counter.

An example of this system in action:

Scenario Example: A bandit leader is holding two of his subordinate’s heads underwater when the player approaches him.

- The player can taunt him or ask him flattering questions about himself.

- Each time the player asks him a flattering question, the event counter for this event goes up by 1.

Eventually, the bandit leader will pull the bandit’s heads out of the water to attack you.

- If Counter is less than 3: When he pulls the bandits’ heads out of the water, they will attack you.

- If Counter is Greater than or equal to 3: When he pulls the bandits’ heads out of the water, because you stalled for time, they will be dead.

Using Budgetary Limitations to Create Unique Systems

Dark Scavenger was made on a shoe-string budget. As a result, the most affordable art direction for our enemies were static 2D sprites. However, we used these constraints to create a wholly unique twist on our battle system.

- Battles in the game are turn-based JRPG encounters.

- Players can attack enemies with a wide range of different weapons and tools.

- Weapons can do conditional damage to enemies.

We added a unique spin on this system by allowing weapons to do damage to enemies based on what their 2D sprites look like. For example:

- Dentist Drill: Does more damage to enemies based on if they have their mouth open or not.

- Trip Whip: Does more damage to enemies based on if they have one foot on the ground or not.

- Medusa’s Gaze: Stuns enemies who are looking in your direction.

If our game had fully animated characters, we would not have been able to get away with this gameplay direction. Additionally, using simple sprites allowed us to populate the world with a greater variety of events, since the art was cheaper to produce.

Critical Reception

Dark Scavenger was a cult hit and received praise from both players and critics alike.

Some quotes from critics:

“...I’m convinced that it deserves cult classic status...” - Adam Smith, Rock Paper Shotgun

“The writing is brilliant.” - Tech Raptor

“Dark Scavenger is one of the most genuinely funny, well-written games I’ve ever played and stands side-by-side with titles like Grim Fandango and Monkey Island. It is THAT good.” – IndieStatik

Some quotes from players:

“Story and writing are the main selling points of Dark Scavenger. I won’t spoil it by going into detail. Enjoy the humour, quirkiness and silliness of this inventive and imaginative journey that you won’t want to end. I wish more games were like this.” - InsomniacFluton (Steam User Review)

"It's hard to explain this game. Honestly, this game was more fun than most I have played lately. So quirky, hilarious, and just downright strange! I ended up playing through the whole game the first day I owned it. There is NOTHING about this game I didn't like. I can't wait to start another playthough to try different paths/items. Highly recommend it!" - Quinn (Steam User Review)

"It gave me the option to "Flip the Bird" at a guy. Then told me to pick a bird ally to attack him. 5 Stars." - Deer Jesus! (Steam User Review)

Awards and Other Mentions

- Honorable Mention at the 2012 Independent Propeller Awards – Indiepub

- One of the 10 Best Indie Games at the Rezzed PC and Indie Games show – independent.co.uk

- One of the Best Indie Games of 2012 – Chip Online (Turkish)

- One of the Best Games in July – games.mail.ru

- Showcase Finalist at the Boston Festival of Indie Games – Boston FIG