Post by HMdesigner on Mar 5, 2017 10:31:56 GMT -8
Hi.
In this thread I want to discuss ONLY Source Material Attributes.
What I want to achieve is a system of Source Material Attributes that TELL THE STORY without needing a storyline written in words.
Here are the attributes of the current version of the game.
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Title
Original Author
Genre
Sub-Genre
Era (Present Day, Past, Future, etc).
What's At Stake (Life or Death, True Love)
Story Scope
Intelligence
Plot Twists
Dialogue
Story Pace
Genre Elements
Foul Language
Violence
Love Scenes
There's also these three. Do we need these anymore? These describe the location where the story is told. It should either be done BETTER, more in-depth, or deleted altogether. What do you think?
- Location
- Development
- Terrain
OPTIONAL: You can select a Primary and Secondary setting. Do you think this is necessary? Does it add to your understanding of the story's plot? Should there be MORE of these so you can really set the story? If we expand this HOW do I quantifiy the setting locations? Or do I not need to quantify them, are they just used to help explain the story?
OPTIONAL: An additional Villain. Do you use this? Should this be more prominent? Is this a major story attribute in your opinion? Should it be expanded?
Primary Audience
Secondary Audience
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1. The last two, Primary Audience and Secondary Audience are used in conjunction with Genre to help later in the Marketing Department. Do you want to expand this in any way? Can you think of something that would help make this easier to quantify for the Marketing Department?
2. I want to expand Foul Language to various types of Foul Language. Crude, Mild, etc. Any suggestions? You will be able to have all the different types available in every story.
3. I want to expand Violence to various types. Cartoon, Mild, Graphic, etc. Any suggestions? You will be able to have all the different types available in every story.
4. I want to expand Love Scenes to various types. Mild, Graphic, etc. Any suggestions? You will be able to have all the different types available in every story.
5. I want to add Genre Family (Action, Comedy, Drama, Horror) above the Genre type. All genres will be part of one of those Genre Families. This is so that if you decide to add your own genres to the game, I can group them in some way.
6. I want to break down the Genre Elements better. So that writers can be hired based on their strengths. Gag Writers, joke writers, drama writers, etc. How deep does it need to go?
Okay ... so my thinking is that I will expand the Source Material Attributes to include as many things as we think are necessary to EXPLAIN the story without requiring a storyline. What do you think about that?
Should there be categories of Attributes so that Comic Books can be randomized in the same global routine as Children's Books ... with certain categories ignored?
So think about what you have always thought was missing from being able to know at glance what the story is about just from looking at the attributes.
And while you are thinking about this, remember that eventually there will be Television ... network and cable stations ... all those programs to create. We have to get rid of storylines so that the "story" can be evaulated simply by its attributes, because with Televison Shows and Books there are going to be TEN THOUSAND (or more) records randomized at the start of each new game. There will be Authors out there who've written 70 books. There will be comic book series's with dozens and dozens of issues.
So the Source Material should have an existing audience already. And we should know the demographic of that audience. We should know it's popularity when we buy it. Including hidden gems the public may not have discovered yet. But our talent scouts have!
All these attributes should be present in EVERY type of source material, including the source material types YOU will add to your game ten years from now.
The idea is that all the studios will have film vaults with hundreds of movies they've already made. The talent will all have work histories when you buy your studio (or get hired to run an existing studio).
We're going to tackle Role Requirements in a separate thread ... but ... do you think some of the story attributes cross-over in any way? Do any of the story attributes determine Role Requirements? And SHOULD the story attributes determine the role requirements?
And there's going to be a Theme Park division of your corporate umbrella. What attributes can easily be pulled over to RIDES so that at a glance we get the concept? How can novelizations of Original Screenplays be created from story attributes?
Do I need to know exactly who and what is required for sequels?
Think big. What attributes do you need to tell your stories?
Thanks,
HMSdesigner
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EDITS - BASED ON REPLIES
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- An "Anticipated Movie Rating" (G, PG-13, R) that changes as Violence, Language, Nudity, Genre Elements, and Thematic Elements attribute values are changed.
- Primary Audience and Secondary Audience broken down by a wider demographic, including ethnicity groups.
- Add many (or most) of the Wikipedia entries for Thematic Elements as individual attributes. Maybe use Thematic Elements as the way to get the story "at a glance."
- The ability to add as many locations as you want, with some type of sub-location(s) info that helps to describe it.