Re: Zombie's Life (RPG Patreon game)
Hi Nergal!
First I will state the obvious - I wouldn't be inflicting this wall of text on you if I didn't already like the game - the theme, the premise, the overall gameplay. Just looking at what is planned for the future in terms of scenes, I can safely say I would be perfectly okay with just getting all that and nothing more. But just like everybody else, I have ideas! I listed them in order from very basic suggestions to some more elaborate ones while trying to keep things reasonable(?) and consistent with the game. I'm hoping that maybe some of them are good enough/make sense and could eventually make it into AZL - or at least serve as an inspiration. So, here goes!
- an upgrade for the workbench that allows you to get scrap metal from processing junk and electrical parts. Let's say 5 electrical parts + 5 junk= 1scrap. Not exactly super efficient so it wouldn't ruin the balance by making getting scrap metal trivial. Still, it would help with the problem of having stacks of those two resources pile up while scavenging for that single scrap metal piece you're missing.
- less xp when training with sis - i think it could be slowed to 50% or even 33% of what it currently is, to provide longer progression curve for the player's stats. I maxed out everything pretty quickly and while it feels great to whiz by zombies while carrying tons of loot, I think it should take a little bit longer to get to that point.
- cheering/clapping sound after succeeding in the shooting minigame - this is a tiny issue and I know that the minigame is going to be reworked (personally i think it's fine) so I'm not sure if it is even worth mentioning, but the cheering/clapping sound when you finish feels really cheesy and out of place. The overall atmosphere of the game is spot on, so this little detail kinda stands out. I was thinking changing it to an excited moan would make more sense, considering what the goal of the minigame is.
- "cleaning up the mess" - small suggestion for one of the scenes, but maybe there will be more stuff later in the game were this would also be applicable. After some of the night drunk visits from mom, she complains about all the "mess". Since there is already a BJ animation perhaps the ride scene could transition for a few moments to show mom actually "cleaning you up" afterwards. I actually think it would be a good idea to have a "generic" BJ scene for some (or all?) the NPCs, so very late in the game you could just approach them anytime (especially right after some nasty scenes with other ladies!
) and ask for that favor on the spot. A small roleplaying feature like that.
-small talk - adding some simple, randomized one line greetings when waking up, entering or leaving the house or any of the rooms etc. would add more, well, life into this game (pun intended). Could be used to flesh out the characters even more. The text could change into something more indecent/suggestive as you get further into the game but not necessarily.
- collectible system - with a twist! If I'm not mistaken there is a bit of talk about an adult video with your aunt already in the game. Why not extend it into a whole small gameplay system? Different XXX videos could be scattered across the map (very small random chance of scavenging them or just set in specific places). When you find them they get added to your home collection. When all the other requirements are met (solar energy to power stuff, high enough "heart" level with the NPC etc.) you get the option to invite the NPC to watch a movie with you. I'm not thinking about anything that would require additional art or even that much writing. Just a sufficiently intriguing/naughty titles for all the movies, a sentence describing what's happening on the screen as you watch it and maybe one sentence describing NPC's reactions. This by itself would not be necessarily meaningful in gameplay sense or lead to any extra scenes. I think of it as more of a roleplaying feature to get your imagination going and enrich the mood of the game ("You ask your mom to watch 'Milf Sluts III' on the couch with you. As you watch it together you can't help but notice that she is constantly licking her lips and breathing heavily"). You get the idea.
- a video camera item (that would maybe require some electronic parts and Isabelle's help to fix, and of course would use batteries to operate). Having it fixed and present in your inventory would "record" and simply add some of the scenes you take part in to the list of movies you can watch with NPCs. Again, nothing too fancy, just an additional list of XXX movie names to select for the viewing event ("You invite your aunt to watch 'Me and mom doing anal"etc. etc.). These events could use some personalized dialogue from npcs reacting to what they actually see, but again nothing major. Just a shocked/excited sentence or two.
- new use for batteries - vibrators! How original. After finding (or crafting) one you could use it as a gift, then spend excess batteries by gifting them to NPCs to let them have some fun at night, while you're busy scavenging. The question is how it would be represented in the game. My basic idea is it would just lock the door for that particular npc that night and you could hear some excited moans echoing through the house. Or it could be something else.
- ladies night - an extension of the above idea. What if you could provide all the ladies with vibrators then get them into a single room, add some booze and play them one of your videos? It could work as another resource sink - for batteries and alcohol
. This one however could definitely use some awesome art to show off the scene which I guess would be problematic, depending on which of the NPCs you have rescued at any given time. Perhaps the scene could only be available with "full house".
-sewers - simply an area in the game that's always dark and always full of zombies, but with slightly higher chances of finding resources. A high risk/high reward zone. I'm fine with the locations on the surface staying cleared (I actually prefer it that way) but for those who want a higher difficulty or want to push their luck to get more resources faster, this could be the place to go. Also a good place to burn through the batteries as it would alway be dark.
-mood/morale system - now this is the biggest suggestion that I think would be the hardest to implement, but it would go well with some of the above ideas, give them more gameplay purpose and tie everything together. Basically a global meter that would determine the overall morale of everybody in the house. Nothing too complex, just a 'negative/neutral/positive/super horny' meter that would slowly, gradually drop as the days go by. Some events like the planned zombie house invasion could drain it. Doing stuff like watching movies together, giving gifts, house maintenance/upgrades, "the ladies night", getting rid of the zombies nearby or any other 'social' event you could come up with would temporarily add some points and fill up the meter. Perhaps the highest level could be initially locked and become accessible only after installing some key house upgrades to make everybody feel better/safer. While all the basic scenes would be available even with low morale, the highest level cg scenes could require you to ocassionaly do some "prep-work" events to help get the residents in the mood for doing naughty stuff. Also I just think in a post-apocalyptic, survival scenario like in AZL, a system where you manage and take care of people's morale just makes perfect sense.
That's it! Overall I must say I'm very intrigued and excited for the future of AZL. I prefer open ended-design with tons of replayability and repeatable scenes and in that regard this game definitely has awesome potential. Keep up the good work!
