THE WORLD OF ARAGESH: LANDS OF KULDAN

Game Design Document

Nick Infante

Contents
General Overview ........................................................................................................................... 3
Game Design Overview .................................................................................................................. 5
Backstory ........................................................................................................................................ 8
Character Biographies ..................................................................................................................... 9
Defining Gameplay ....................................................................................................................... 11
Sample Use Interface .................................................................................................................... 13
Audio............................................................................................................................................. 14
Level Examples ............................................................................................................................. 15

General Overview
Concept
You have no idea where you came from. You are a living weapon, able to use strength, skill, stealth, and magic to
deal with your chosen targets. Your captors kept you sedate and enslaved, but you found a way to break those bonds
and escaped but something went wrong. Youve awoken in a world which is not the same. There is some
familiarity, but it is different now. How much time has past? Who are you really?
The concept for this game is an RPG, where the player takes on the role of a single, central character. As the game
progresses the player gets to advance their capabilities in a number of ways, specializing in one of many disciples or
generalizing in all of them. The player uses strength, skill, stealth, deception or magic to achieve their goals. The
main inspiration comes from Planescape: Torment and Fallout. The story-driven nature and unlockable
memories of Planescape, combined with the Fallout-style improvement system and isometric view of Fallout are
some key elements/inspirational points.
Player motivation
The players motivation is in advancing the character and discovering the story and mysteries surrounding the main
character. There is a mystery to be solved and as the story progresses, there are more questions that arise and
new/enhanced motives for solving them, until the middle of the story when it all begins to come together. The story
would be given from the characters POV and memories could be unlocked, along with new abilities. This is one
form of character improvement.
Another form of motivation is to give the player a sense of being able to affect a great portion of the world. The
ability to influence politics in their own way is one of the main motivations of the game. Another is to challenge
the players and create a sense of awe with the scenery and a cool factor with the storyline. The main character, while
having an established background will still be fairly customizable to the player in looks and also attitude as the game
progresses. The character does not need to be what he was in the past for the story to be successful. The main drive
to finish the story is to see how the story plays out. There is also a replay-ability factor in the game as you can make
different choices which affect how the game is played.
The characters motivation is to find out where he came from and take revenge on the organization that kept him. I
have a few ideas for expansions on the story which could provide additional motivation once the main theme is
fulfilled, but that could also serve as a separate game.
Genre
An RPG with a story-driven background. As the story unfolds more abilities are unlocked, in addition to some form
of experience/level system. This could easily be tweaked to be an Action-Adventure game that is heavy on the story.
Target customer
My target audience is the market that enjoys role playing games. It is definitely a US market, as the lack of online
play would not suit the overseas Asian markets, although a multi-player option could be included, it would take
away from the main storyline. It is also geared toward the Gen Xers with the main character being somewhat of a
loner and looking to do whatever he wants to get the job done.
Competition (if any)
Mass Effect is one game that could be considered a competitor. Although Mass Effect is set in a sci-fi universe it has
a rich storyline and plenty of interactivity with different dialogue options. This is something that my game would
have in common and could draw people in. The fantasy setting is different enough that the game worlds would not
overlap and provide something different that Mass Effect does not have.

Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion is another game that could be considered competition. One of the advantages that Lands
of Kuldan has is that there is a set character you play. While you have control of customizing him in certain ways, it
is not overwhelming with so many open ended options. Also the game world is not as similar in its environments
and enemies. While there are plenty of areas to explore they are each unique in their own way. I believe this
uniqueness will keep my audience.
Other games that could be competition would be older school RPG games. The Final Fantasy series plays along
similar lines with (typically) great gameplay and stories. The difference between those and mine is that you have
more control over how the story develops as opposed to simply playing a character whose end is set and you are
simply along for the ride.
Target hardware
Ideally, the PC is the target system, but with simple controls, a port to the Xbox or PS3 is also ideal, to be able to
expand the customer base. With a wider range of platforms, a wider audience is possible. The controls would need
to be a bit simplified, but I would like to keep it simple to begin with. The original Legacy of Kain or Dungeon
Explorer are good examples of games with simple controls and easy inventory access. Not quite RPGs, but
reasonably close that playing with a game controller is not out of the question. Another reason to target the PC is to
take advantage of the community to create additional add-ons via a supplemental world building tool. The Xbox360
is a good secondary platform for its downloading capability for the added ability to play additional downloadable
material, which would also be available to PCs and PS3's via their networks as well.
Design goals
Easy controls and gameplay. Something that can be played with a handheld controller.
Simple experience/leveling system with additional benefits based on unlocking memories.
NPC interaction system based on Reputation system and dialogue choices.
Provide an interesting and captivating story.
Re-playability through different choices. While the story would ultimately be the same, the way in which the player
gets there could be different, with the possibility of alternate endings and memories based on how the story is
played through. This is similar to many of the Star Wars games where there is a light side/dark side choice. This
would all be liked to the Reputation system.
Some background that might help visualize the game world
Aragesh & Uragesh are two parallel words with different species that live on the planet. Aragesh is the central planet
with humans as the dominant race. Uragesh instead has a race of humanoids that look human with significantly alien
features to make them stand out in a crowd. This is a difference in evolutionary paths from early in their histories.
Aragesh has magic and technology working together to create a sci-fantasy world. Its relatively low tech, but
imbued with magic to give it a modern feel, with a Victorian look. Uragesh is based more on magic alone and is
therefore a less technologically superior world. This is one of the reasons why Uragesh simply does not invade, but
instead uses assassins and sleeper agents to do their work to unravel Aragesh from within so that they can take it
over. They steal most of their technology from Aragesh, giving it to their assassins so that they are accustomed to
using the magi-tech when they are on Aragesh. The visual style of Uragesh is more of a dark age world feel to it,
with the exception of the Planar Buildings which have the basic style of Urageshian architecture infused with the
more modern Arageshian architecure. The Empire of Uragesh uses portals to send their assassins and other agents to
Aragesh. This teleportation through the planes is something they are reasonably good at, but have a hard time
maintaining. The technology was created from Arageshian magi-tech, but engineered with Urageshian magic. These
planar portals are housed in great buildings which are solely dedicated to these portals as the power requirements are
immense.

Game Design Overview

Physical Dimensions
Dimensionality
This will be a three dimensional game using a first person perspective with the option to zoom out to a third person
perspective. The landscapes and objects will be rendered in 3D and be mostly interactive. This will enable
interaction left, right, up and down, with jumping and crawling capabilities as well.
Scale
A distortion of scale will be necessary as outdoor environments will be expansive and take place across difference
countries and planes of existence. There will be a map feature to allow ease of travel once these areas become
unlocked.
The game world encompasses four Chapters, each of which takes place in different areas. There are eight locations
in total, introducing two locations with each chapter. The player will be able to revisit older locations. Each location
is a self-contained area with smaller areas within, such as homes/stores, caves, and castles. Each location will have
approximately 5 - 20 areas of various sizes which can be explored.
Boundaries
Boundaries will be created by walls and pits and other features in interior spaces and will be defined by
environmental features such as cliff faces and lava rivers and man-made structures such as buildings and walls for
exterior environments.
Laws of Physics
The game will require much movement and the laws of physics will apply unless broken by magic or magi-tech. If
you fall, it hurts.
Temporal Dimensions
Variable Time
There will be different modes of time. In general time will pass as normal, but when traveling to places on the
map time can be sped up or bypassed a fast travel option. Otherwise it is real time. There will be day and night
cycles, along with days, weeks and months and years being kept track of. Some quests may need to be completed
within a given time frame completion based on time may determine a level of success and reward instead of
simple failure.
Player-Adjusted Time
There will also be an option to pause time, to allow giving NPC followers commands. This would be done mostly
during combat sequences, but should remain an option for normal time and events as well just in case. Another
aspect of player-adjusted time is to allow time to pass at a faster rate, such as waiting for a certain amount of time
to pass. This may be important as some locations will only be accessible at certain time of the day.
Environmental Dimension
Physical Surroundings
There will be two distinct styles in particular for architecture and landscapes.
Aragesh
A Victorian steampunk look where steam is replaced by magic. The architecture will also be reflective of
locations. In the larger high-class areas, the architecture will be clean, neat and fairly new. In the poor areas it will
look dirty, old and dilapidated. Streetlamps will light up at night in the city areas and caves will be darkly lit, with
a light source needed by the player to adequately see. The outdoor, natural areas will look similar to what is found
in nature in the real world. There will be forests, snow-capped mountains, rivers, and deserts.
Uragesh

A Dark Age look with an unnatural appearance to the natural landscape. The landscape will look similar to what is
found in nature, but have a slightly alien look to it. Colors will be different, such as purple trees and orange rivers.
Landscape feature will have growths of coral-like substances growing out of them. One major style difference will
be the Planar Buildings. These are great factories that resemble the typical Urageshian architecture, but have hints
of the Victorian steampunk look to them. Another obvious difference is that whether there is a high class area
and a poor area, they are similar in look. The only defining visual is the size of the buildings. The higher-class
areas will have taller buildings, while the poor areas have more low to the ground single story buildings.
Detail
There will be some details that are simply non-functional. These are the elements that would not be important to the
story, but most locks, windows and doors would be fully functional. There will be ambient noises depending on the
locations. In the bustling cities there will be the sounds of a city on the move. People talking, animals around. In the
castles there may be a hum of energy that the interior light sources give off. The outdoors will have birds and
animals, but not so overpowering. On Uragesh, similar noises are heard, but slightly more alien. In the Planar
buildings there is always a powerful humming generated.
Style
A Victorian steampunk look with magic replacing steam to give it a slightly more refined and sleeker look for
Arageh. There are no loud colors or otherwise unnatural styles. The days would be overcast and slightly bright, but
not overly. The tone here is one of simplicity. Upper class are dressed in tailored clothing with a medieval feel,
while the poor are dressed in simpler rags and tunics. There should me a mix of Victorian look with a medieval feel.
A Dark Age look for Uragesh. The colors would be different, but dark. This is not a nice, happy place and it should
be reflected. While the colors may be different and generally brighter colors than the real world there should still be
a sense of darkness. The sky is never brightly lit and always slightly on the dark side even during the daylight hours.
The sky takes on a very dark blue tone and a near black during the night. This has a very medieval feel to the style
of dress for people.
The musical style should be a mix of classical and Latin chants for cut-scenes. Wagner, Holst, Icewind Dale,
Warcraft and Dawn of War are good sources of inspiration for this.
Emotional Dimension
There should be a pervasive sense of mystery throughout the game until the very end. The satisfaction comes in
unraveling the mystery and then deciding on the course of action once parts of the puzzle come together. There
should be some sense of sympathy for the main character in pursuing his goals.
Ethical Dimension
This lies entirely in the players hands. There will be paths and options for the character to achieve his goals in a
selfish manner or a selfless manner. You will be able to play through as a villain or savior, nice or naughty. In
general, the player is expected to act in a moral fashion as the game will be based using real world morals. If you are
caught stealing or killing the NPCs will react accordingly. If no one sees you do it, then the NPCs reactions may not
be affected. There will be a reputation meter, which will track this sort of behavior and it will influence the way an
NPC reacts. To clarify (since I said it may not in the previous sentence), the acts you do will be gauged by more than
one variable. If you steal, the gauge moves towards the bad side, but if you steal in plain view of a person, the gauge
will move even more. Different acts will have different weights in addition to who sees you.
Interactive objects and their uses

Doors - Used to separate areas from others, and used as transitions from location to location, such as a door
separating a town from the wilds. In some areas these are simply decoration or used to separate small areas
from others that would not require loading a new area, such as a door separating a bedroom from a hallway.
Containers - These are all sorts of different containers used to hold objects that can be added to a players
inventory.
o Barrels
o Chests
o Crates
o Sacks

o Wardrobes
o Closets
Wall torches - These can be interacted with in one of two ways. They can be lit or unlit, or they can be
taken and carried/stored in inventory.
Wall switches - These are used as triggers to open containers or doors. A secondary use would be their use
as part of a puzzle where multiple switches need to be operated in a specific sequence.
Large Objects - These are a variety of large objects that can be used to "bridge a gap" for
travelling/exploring. One example might be a large boulder that needs to be pushed to open a path to
another area. A second example might be a large statue that can be moved to another area and then climbed
on to access a higher ledge.
o Boulder
o Statue
o Crate
Potions/oils/capacitors - There are a variety of these objects that can be used to temporarily provide an
upgrade to a players items/stats. Potions can help recover health, mana, provide skill bonuses, or other
bonuses. Oils can be used on melee weapons to provide additional bonuses to damage or to provide critical
effects such as fire or poison. Capacitors can be used on electro weapons to provide bonuses on rate of fire,
damage, area output, range or accuracy.
Weapons - There are two broad categories of weapons. These can all be picked up, sold, used, or upgraded.
o Melee weapons - Swords, hammers, electro-knives
o Ranged weapons - Bows, thrown daggers, powered guns, electro-rifles, alchemical grenades
Crane - Dockside, immobile cranes used to life and move objects. These can be used as part of puzzles to
be able to move to other areas, or as shortcuts for movement.
Land Vehicle - Horse-drawn wagons, steam-powered buggies. Used for quick navigation, or to create
movement puzzles.

Backstory
Aragesh & Uragesh are two parallel words with different species that live on the planet. Aragesh is a place where
humans are the dominant species, while Uragesh has a race of humanoids that look human with significantly alien
features to make them stand out in a crowd. They are known as Urageshites. A typical Urageshite has grey, purple
or green leathery skin, three-clawed hands and six eyes. Aragesh has magic and technology working together to
create a sci-fantasy world. Its relatively low tech, but imbued with magic to give it a modern feel, with a Victorian
look. Uragesh is based more on magic alone and is therefore a less technologically superior world. This is one of
the reasons why Uragesh simply does not invade, but instead uses assassins and sleeper agents to do their work to
unravel Aragesh from within so that they can take it over. They steal most of their technology from Aragesh, giving
it to their assassins so that they are accustomed to using the magi-tech when they are on Aragesh. The Empire of
Uragesh uses portals to send their assassins and other agents to Aragesh. This teleportation through the planes is
something they are reasonably good at, but have a hard time maintaining. The technology was created from
Arageshian magi-tech, but engineered with Urageshian magic. These planar portals are housed in great buildings
which are solely dedicated to these portals as the power requirements are immense.
Approximately fifty years ago the kingdom of Kuldan was a united one. Lord Malaggin, Scourge of Demons, was a
powerful, yet benevolent king. He ruled over the known world using fear and loyalty as required. However, when
his queen, died in childbirth, and later, five-year old son, kidnapped, Malaggin was finally driven to insanity. His
kingdom slowly fell apart as usurpers took what scraps they could for themselves. Upon Malaggins death, new
nations had been formed. Some of these nations are allies, others bitter enemies. One thing that is known is that
there is no peace in the world as petty rulers constantly vie for power.
A new beginning
The tanks that hold you drain of their fluid as you awaken. Before you stands a man who is familiar, yet not. You
clear your head and realize he is not of the Empire and is giving you your opportunity for freedom. You must
return to Kuldan! he shouts. It is a name that you have heard before, but only in passing. You are being given your
chance to return to Aragesh. As you fully realize what is happening the man in front of you disintegrates as
Urageshites converge in the room and try to contain you. Your fury rises and instantly you slay the Urageshites, but
there are more coming and you still feel weak from a premature release. You must run, and then decide your next
steps.

Character Biographies
Talasar Heldreth, Malaggins aide and advisor. Talasar Heldreth has been by Malaggins side since Malaggin
could lift a sword. He was a wizard of considerable power who had always been Malaggins friend. Talasar is a bald
man with a closely cropped beard of white. His demeanor is stern, yet friendly and open. Talasar raised Malaggins
child until he was kidnapped. This is what cause Malaggin to banish Talasar from Kuldan. Their friendship was the
only thing that saved Talasar from a death sentence. Talasars guilt over letting the child be kidnapped fuelled a fire
in him to find the child at all costs. He was determined and unshakeable in his resolve to find the child and restore
his honor. Over the years he had encountered the child on many occasions, but always would lose him. He came to
realize that there was something in the child that wanted to be found and released from a prison. Eventually he
followed him to his home on Uragesh, where he gave him his freedom at the cost of his own life. Note, there are
memories with Talasar as flashbacks, hence his inclusion.
Lord Kendrik Van Storme is one of the four Lords of Kuldan. He rules his nation of
Darghonest in the northwestern territory. His rise to power was a bloody one. He has
conquered many of the smaller nations around him through bloody battles. He is a man who
views others as tools to be used in his plans of conquest. Kendrik is aggressive, cold, and
cunning with a slight sadistic streak. He is not one to be crossed as his anger knows no
bounds. He is a tall, powerful man, with a handsome face and braided red hair. Kendrik is
typically seen wearing his dark plate armor and wielding his greatsword, Soul Drinker. It is
rumored that he dabbles in the dark arts of necromancy to assist his great army. He is the most
power hungry of the four Lords and the best tool for the Heir to use to destroy Kuldan.
Kendrik is waiting for Lord Stephen to die to pounce on his territory. They were once friends
until Kendrik betrayed him and nearly killed him in a fit of jealousy. He is a secret ally of Xan and is being used by
him to further the ends of Carellan Lyrthan. In turn Kendrik is using Xan to further his own goal of taking Kuldan
for himself.
Lord Stephen Kehlan is one of the four Lords of Kuldan. He rules the coastal nation of
Erenorde in the northeast. Lord Kehlan is an older man, who is not far from deaths door.
With his passing Erenorde will be easily absorbed into one of the other nations. While he
lives, his people are inspired by his strength and benevolence. He is a man who inspires
loyalty in his people. He is the wise old man archetype who speaks gently and with a small
degree of difficulty. Kendrik Van Storme and Lord Kenath eagerly await his death in order to
feast on the scraps of his nation. Lord Stephen is one of the characters in the game that would
be willing to lend a hand to the Heir as he is a noble character and willing to sacrifice his
power to unite the nation, especially with his failing health and no heir of his own. Lord
Stephen has no link to Xan, but is a bitter enemy of Kendrik. Lord Kendrik betrayed Stephen in their younger years.
Lord Stephen has never forgiven this and caused good friends to become bitter enemies.
Xan the Deceiver is a descendant of Carellan Lyrthan. He is many generations removed from
becoming an emperor and volunteered to be trained as a spy. His mastery of the dark arts is
geared towards deception and manipulation, rather than blatantly powerful effects. He is an
Urageshite, who is gaunt and almost skeletal in appearance. He has pale, purplish skin and six
deep violet eyes. He is typically clothed in dirty robes when not disguised by magic. He can
take on many forms, but is mostly seen in his human form that of a bald, gaunt, pale elf
with deep violet eyes. He is a powerful sorcerer and manipulates those around him using
magic that deceives the senses to accomplish his goals. He is a secret advisor to Kendrik Van
Storme, and guides him. Xan wishes to be placed in control of Kuldan when it finally falls to
Uragesh. This would make him powerful as he would then control a vital staging point for the Empire. Xan helped
train Malaggins child and feels a strange kinship with him. It is for this reason that Xan does not try to destroy him
outright, but rather plays more of a game with him.
Carellan Lyrthan, Emperor of the Urageshites. Carellan is a violent and sadistic ruler, with a calm demeanor.
Carellan is extremely long-lived, even by Urageshite standards. With a mix of magic and technology, he has found a
way to increase his life-span. He longs for immortality and has held a tight grip on his throne for the last one-

hundred and seventy-six years. Carellan is a typical Urageshite in appearance. He has purple skin and six red eyes,
with three-clawed hands. Always dressed in fine cloth and jewelry he has an alien sense of nobility around him. He
is descended from a long line of back-stabbing Emperors. Each only becomes emperor when they kill their
predecessor. It is Carellan who has instituted the Aragesh Assassin program. His predecessor found a way to
maintain portals to Aragesh and Carellan took it one step forward in constructing the great Portal Buildings and
sending in agents to steal what they could. It was not long before they began to steal children and brainwash them
and turn them into assassins and spies.
Carellan patiently waits for an opportunity to strike against Aragesh and absorb it into his empire. He has many
agents on Aragesh, one of which is Xan the Deceiver, who he uses to sow discord in Kuldan. Seeing that Malaggin
was too powerful to deal with directly, Carellan concocted a plan to unhinge his sanity and make him easier to
remove. His chance came when Malaggin grieved for his wife when she died in childbirth. This show of
compassion, which was unusual for Malaggin, was seen as a weakness and Carellan took the opportunity to plan his
downfall. He also knew that his own child would make a formidable weapon to be used against him. He orchestrated
the kidnapping and had Malaggins child raised and trained with Xan.

10

Defining Gameplay
Exploration & Travel
The game world has many aspects that are set in the beginning, but also has many details that the player can
encounter and interact with, such as buildings, towns, gates and other doors. This presents an exploration challenge.
Exploration is accomplished through multiple means and across multiple areas of differing climates. There are
desert areas, forested areas, underground dungeons, and ice/cold areas. Then there is the alien landscape of Uragesh.
Each has a different feel to it, with slightly differing weather affects. With exploration comes danger and experience
allowing your character to advance gaining new abilities or upgrading existing ones. There is also the treat of
finding new and interesting places and items. There are three main ways to explore and reach different areas.
A. On foot, simply walking around from place to place. Slow, but more likely to find everything.
B. By horse. This is a bit faster, but you may miss some things.
C. Using magic to get around, whether it is your spells that teleport you, allies, or items which teleport you
from place to place. This is the fastest way to travel, but you will most likely miss many things, including
encounters which allow advancement.
This is a fairly broad category and may not fit the criteria. A more specific example of challenges within the
exploration and travel challenge might be crossing a pit/hole in the ground/rooftop to rooftop/etc. Simply a large gap
that needs to be traversed.
The challenge in this is a physical one. The player needs to get to the other side. There are three typical actions to
solve this particular challenge.
A. Jump across using the characters Athletic ability and the players coordination.
B. Use magic to teleport across or levitate so that the gap doesnt pose a problem.
C. Find an object to use as a bridge to get across.
D. Find another path.
Not all of the above solutions may be viable at every given instance of this challenge, but they are a range of
possible choices within the game. By completing this challenge you will have made your way across, possibly
opening up more areas to explore. Losing would involve not being able to get across or possibly falling to your
doom.
Another exploration challenge is getting into a building. This is a simple challenge. There is some person or object
within a building that the character needs access to. The building is locked.
A. Search around and find a key.
B. Break the lock using force or magic.
C. Pick the lock using skill or magic.
D. Find another entrance or teleport inside using magic.
Each of the above actions has a side-affect as well. The stealthy option would be best suited to be done at night so
that others dont see you doing this. Breaking the door would alert people to your presence, which may result in a
combat situation. Using magic may get your character noticed as well. Victory conditions are obtaining information
or items from the building, while loses might be losing that information or items if access is not possible. The lock
might break from picking it or forcing it open and failing. The town guard may be alerted and start a fight.
Reputation may also suffer for breaking and entering.
Another broader category of challenges is combat. These are conflict challenges. You are dealing with an enemy (or
enemies) and must find the best solution to defeating them before they defeat you. This is something that may
happen frequently and every character will most likely need to deal with it in some form or another. There are all
kinds of enemies in the game, ranging from small groups of weak creatures, to large one on one boss type
encounters. For each creature type there may be one or more ways of efficiently dealing with them.
A. Stealthy attacks - sneaking from the shadows and quickly dispatching some foes. Can be done at range or
up close.
B. Brute force - go in swords swinging, or firing arrows from afar.
C. Magic - attacks in all manner of various methods from fire, to freezing, acid and metamorphosis of yourself
or your enemies.

11

The victory conditions are getting your target to flee, die or surrender. This leads to experience which increases the
power level of your character over time. Gold and items are also another possible reward for win condition. Losing
in combat typically gets you killed. Occasionally you may run, which would also fulfill a loss in combat.

12

Sample Use Interface

The controls of the game will be used via a mouse and keyboard for PC (as the default options),
with options to configure for controllers for the PC, XBox360 and PS3.

13

Audio
Music overview
The music is epic in nature, with classical overtones and a modern feel. Background music is ever present, but not
overwhelming. Action scenes are accompanied by higher volume pieces where appropriate and should never conflict
with any dialogue or narration. Examples to follow include both Icewind Dale games, Danny Elfman (composer).
Music Themes
There are different musical background themes based on where in the game the player is or what actions the player
is involved in.
1. Introduction - This is used for the opening of the game, tutorials, and save/load/pause screens.
2. Chapter I - This is the basic background theme used in the first "chapter" of the game.
3. Chapter II - This is the basic background theme used in the second "chapter" of the game.
4. Chapter III - This is the basic background theme used in the third "chapter" of the game.
5. Chapter IV - This is the basic background theme used in the fourth "chapter" of the game.
6. High Tension - This is used for combat scenes or for high-tension dialogue where hard choices need to be made.
7. Tension breaking - This is a more light-hearted theme for when comic value is needed or following a hightension scene.
Sound Effects
Sound effects are required for many items/actions during the game. Some of the more common sound effects needed
include:
Sword/knife sheath/unsheath
Bladed weapon attack
Blunt weapon attack
Ranged weapon attack
Magic sounds (fireballs/zaps/gloops)
Footsteps (heavy armor)
Footsteps (light armor)
Footsteps (stealthy)
Footsteps (medium monstrous)
Footsteps (heavy monstrous)
Door opening/closing
Magic portals
Various grunts for enemies/allies
Weather effects (rain/wind)
Atmospheric city effects (horses, wagons, clanging, bells, various people chattering, steamworks)

14

Level Examples
Level 1 The Planar Building
The interior is a mix of sci-fi and fantasy interior. There is an obvious stone castle structure with metal pipes and
bulkheads. The objective and theme is for the main character to escape from his prison and through the planar portal
to Aragesh. The difficulty is easy as this is the beginning of the game. This is where most of the features of the game
are introduced, slowly one after another.
The beginning stage a tutorial where the character must escape from the Portal Building through a portal to
Kuldan in Aragesh. This is a simple tutorial/character generation scene. The character gets to decide what skills to
use and how to escape from the area. There will be many inaccessible areas to keep the player on track initially.
Later in the game this area is revisited, where the entire building will be open to the player.

Level 2 First Contact

The objective of this quest is to exit the cave, find the town and meet Xan for the first time. This sets up the basic
relationship with one of the characters in the game. Xan is a character that will be along for the ride for quite some
time. This is another easy stage, however the difficulty can be scaled up by the player, which would include
additional enemy encounters and also more difficult enemies. This is also the first time where the unlockable
memories come into play and the abilities granted by them are first seen. The visual styles consist of interior caverns
for the beginning of the stage, and exterior buildings, farmland and forests for the town and the surrounding
environments. It is also possible to go inside buildings, for which interiors of buildings would also be required.
These buildings are made of wood and stone (for the larger ones, such as the Inn).
From here the main character stumbles through a cavern and makes his way to a small town. The main character
stumbles on a battle between one man and a group of men (obviously belonging to some organization). There are
three choices, let the battle run its course, or help either the group or the lone man. The group is a small organization
formed by Talasar to assist in finding Malaggins child. The lone man is Xan, who is also looking for the same
person. Unlockable memory a friendship with Xan.
Note: The main character has never seen Xan in his normal form. The first time the main character sees an
Urageshite in their true form is in the tutorial scene. The Urageshites are careful to keep their forms disguised when
dealing with their slave-assassins/spies.

Level 3 Meeting the Enemy

The objective of this area is to defeat the soldiers. The difficulty begins to increase a little here, becoming more
moderate. The environment is the same as the previous level. This is where decisions begin to take on a greater
impact in the game.
The town is greeted by a small detachment of soldiers who have come looking for taxes. Xan has disappeared.
They run into the character at some point, where a decision needs to be made fight, bluff or pay. If payment is
handed over, the character is ignored by the soldiers. If the character chooses to fight, then the soldiers attack the
character and other citizens in the area. If the character successfully bluffs his way, then the soldiers leave the town.
This prompts the character to head to another area for more information on what is happening in the area.
Unlockable memory The soldiers uniforms are similar to those that guarded him as a child before being
kidnapped. The main character learns of the petty wars in the area and there are some side quests to accomplish.
With each one, more of the area is explored and other characters are learned about.

Level 4 Deal with the Devil

The objective of this level is to meet with Kendrik Van Storme and deal with him in some form. The exterior
environments are a larger, more run down town outside a castle. Part of the town is also inside the castle wall. There
will be more stonework and more ornate buildings the closer to the castle interior. There is also a night sequence,
where the main character gets locked inside the castle walls. A deal can be made with Kendrik Van Storme or he can
be killed. He would ask that you work as an assassin for him and kill the other Lords so that he can take over the
area and unify the country under his banner. He can be killed and then this area would belong to the main character

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 leaving the undead to roam each night could lead to one rmy type, while destroying them would create happier and
more producive citizens. If you choose to assassinate the other Lords, it is possible to come back and then kill
Kendrik Van Storme, thereby taking over the entire country for yourself.
The main character heads to the Castle of Kendrik Van Storme. The soldiers are part of Van Stormes armies.
Meeting with the citizens of the town around the castle gives a different feel and tone than that of the small town.
The people are scared as night falls. All of the citizens are indoors and all the doors are locked. The town is beset
upon by shambling undead. The main character is caught outdoors and must find a way to survive until the morning.
There are many options. Fighting, sneaking around and bluffing his way into a house are all possible. Once the sun
returns, the main character can get into the Castle for an audience with Van Storme, where he meets Xan one more
time. The main character is found by other members of the group and is told to seek out Stephan Kuhlvan. Kendrik
tries to imprison the main character and he must escape. Here he learns of Uragesh.

Level 5 Chase and Confrontation

The objective is to find Xan as he travels across the land for answers he is reluctant to give up, since it appears he
knows more than he lets on. This is a larger quest, where many smaller ones can come into play and be part of this.
It would require the main temperate lands of Kuldan and the icy mountains to the north as well. The main quest is
difficult as Xan is not easily pinned down for too long, and could easily be split into multiple boss battles with a
different tactic from Xan each time with additional memories being unlocked along the way.
The main character makes his way across the landscape to seek out Lord Stephan Kehlan where he learns of his
heritage and must decide what to do. Unlockable memory being taught by Talasar. From here the main character
makes his way across the landscape either unifying the land or destroying it while searching for Xan.

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