Wall of Concepts and Ideas (share your visions!)

[Alilatias]

I'm not sure this is really the appropriate section to be making this thread, but I figure it'd fit here better than anywhere else.

I have zero experience coding fangames period, but I've kicked around a bunch of concepts in my head for years. I decided I wanted to share one in particular in case it inspires other ideas in the developers here. I'm sure many of you have ideas of your own but also lack coding experience as well, that also want to share your ideas.

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My own idea, tentatively titled the Autumn Shore, is actually quite ambitious. (But oh lord, I lost all my notes on this, I forgot to transfer the notes to my new computer months ago, so I have to retype everything from scratch, ha.)

Story background:

 

Today, the Pokemon world has achieved a lasting peace. Sure, there are groups of trainers that band together, dreaming of world domination and committing crimes springing up in regions around the world, but their influence is isolated at best, and quickly squashed by new and upcoming trainers who either had a sense of justice, the strength to eventually become Champions themselves, or were just in the right place at the right time. Most alive today don't remember the massive war that engulfed the world. For most people, the war is nothing more than a distant memory with forgotten answers to vital questions. What was each side fighting for? How did it even begin? And to many professors, the most important of all: What became lost to the world as a result, potentially forgotten forever? For while the world was peaceful, it was also one in which new discoveries (and in some cases, re-discovery) were becoming increasingly few and far between. New and upcoming Pokemon professors were finding it harder to distinguish themselves from the great researchers, like the fabled Professor Oak, inventor of the Pokedex and much more.

 

That's why when a mysterious island suddenly appeared right in the middle of an active shipping lane between many of the world's ports, it set off a storm of curiosity from around the world. Pokemon Champions, the wealthy elite, upcoming Trainers with adoring fans, and academic Professors along with their interns... All began financing and organizing expeditions to discover what was on the island, hoping to find something that would allow them to make their mark in the history books.

 

It has been six months since the island, or whatever it truly is, appeared. People who just sailed through the area before and didn't really give a damn only had a new headache to contend with, and brief scuffles between them and the sea of explorers had broken out, but discoveries are hardly ever halted at the convenience of others. They would yield and find other routes to bypass the debacle. That is perhaps wise, because as it turns out, even after six months of research, nobody really knows what the island is besides, as one failed expedition put it in simple terms, "This place is just ****ing weird, it can't be explained."

 

Indeed, each returning expedition would return with increasingly outlandish stories, of which subsequent groups would express their doubt until their own expedition encountered something just as incomprehensible. And many accounts conflicted with each other. One group arrived to find that the island was a vast inexplicable desert. Another had to weather a storm, and upon the storm passing, they found the island floating above their heads in the clouds. The last group to return described the island being nothing more than a frozen realm, but swore they saw dancing lights behind the impassible labyrinth of cracks in the clear ice.

 

Strangely enough, no returning group has ever found any Pokemon within the island (aside the possible sightings from the previous returning group), which is equally puzzling. After all, the only thing that could account for such vast differences between each visit is the presence of powerful Pokemon. But a real breakthrough is only inevitable...

Characters:

 

There are actually two main characters that the player will take control of, a brother and a sister, both interns under the tutelage of a new and unproven Professor Rosemary. The two are obviously college-age, their actual ages unspoken and left up to each player. Their personality however is largely fixed - the brother is rash and a risk-taker, while the sister is more logical. The player gets to name both interns, and even the name of the expedition itself!

 

Professor Rosemary:

- Age: 32

- Home Region: Hoenn

A rather vain Professor that dreams of discovery, she had studied hard to be considered a 'graduate' in Pokemon studies. Despite that, many of her peers scoff at her, claiming that her only real claim to fame in the academic world is her beauty, which is little more than an insult to her. She is also better at battling than most of her peers as well, having a powerful Medicham and Roserade duo to back her up, though her peers find her barbaric for it. She had actually led a previous expedition to the island alongside a certain Professor Thyme, but his team had vanished with Rosemary returning without any answers, which resulted in her critics turning from mocking into hushed conspiracy. She of course never took well to this, and hastily threw together another team with the purpose of finding Thyme - a team that includes the two interns.

 

Professor Thyme:

- Age: 33
- Home Region: Unova

Another new Professor that had actually studied under Coloress, up until that whole incident with Team Plasma. Rosemary and Thyme insist their relationship is purely professional, though the fact that the two are so close draws the ire of other young female professors vying for Thyme's attention. Thyme is usually out exploring instead of being holed up in a lab, and his Swanna and Sawsbuck help with that tremendously. He hasn't been seen since his failed joint expedition with Rosemary.

 

Gadget:

A robot from Kalos, formerly created as an academic instructional unit, now re-purposed to do much more. That 'much more' is only really defined as handling what most see as grunt work, however, such as collecting solar energy by day to recharge batteries at night, and assisting in the setup of expedition camps. However, ever since the robot returned alongside the first failed expedition, it has begun trying to re-purpose junk into tools all on its own. Not a single mechanic or programmer has ever been able to find out why, for the mechanics would rather not question its newfound useful talents, and the programmers are afraid of losing this behavior if they attempt to tinker with the code. Attempts to recreate the behavior in other robots has failed, and Rosemary has now become so protective of Gadget that she had actually filed legal paperwork to prevent other researchers from using the robot for their own expeditions. Gadget has even managed to form a relationship with one of the researchers' Pokemon, an odd Ditto that has taken to following the robot everywhere.

 

Brave:

- Age: 40

- Home Region: Kanto

A former intern of the Pokemaniac Bill, he quit after Bill switched his attention from inventing the PC network to his more ridiculous experiments involving Pokemon. Since then, he's been floating between different causes without any particular goal in mind, but he's seen so much that he's actually treated as a mentor figure by younger researchers. As a trainer, he's best known for traveling with an army of Joltik that love to hide in his pockets, springing out to startle the odd trainer or actual threat. With the assistance of Gadget, Brave has actually fashioned micro cameras to his Joltik, which helps tremendously with surveillance. In this expedition, he's responsible for keeping records on the expedition's findings, along with assisting Rosemary on planning the expedition's next moves.

 

Chef Lyon:
- Age: 25
- Home Region: Alola
A talented chef and one of Rosemary's closest friends. Much like the field of research, the culinary arts also has its share of competitiveness. Lyon has made his name by creating strictly vegetarian dishes, which has allowed him to escape scrutiny from other chefs. He also ends up receiving tons of praise from a movement calling for the end of human consumption of Pokemon, with extremist methods of going about that. That turns out to be a movement he so dearly wants to escape from, which is his motivation for joining the expedition, in the hopes that it discovers something that allows his work to garner attention from people that aren't extremists. He has two signature Pokemon, a Comfey that favors gathering fragrant plants that also doubles as culinary herbs, and a Breloom that packs a mean punch that is reserved for whoever thinks threatening the chef is anything resembling a good idea.

Gameplay:

 

Story/Overworld:
Have you ever played Dragon Quest 7? The story resembles something like that. Actually I'd describe the story to be a mix of the traditional main series Pokemon game, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, and Dragon Quest 7. The island was once much larger, with a wide variety of climates. But for some reason or other, something happened during the war that resulted in the island being shattered into pieces, hurled uncontrollably through space and time from an outsider's perspective. But this expedition is lucky enough to arrive at the precise time to make a difference. With the help of Celebi, you reassemble an artifact and stabilize the entire island's place in this dimension.

 

- Regions generally have their own story, but all contribute to the overarching plot.

- Pokemon in this game have the ability to talk, like in Mystery Dungeon. Actually, the Pokemon of the island have a culture of their own, and the researchers are outsiders. Does this factor into what happened to the island during the war?
- The player can work on progress in multiple regions at once, though some areas that can be explored starting in the early game would not be possible to completely clear until late game (generally due to requiring the presence of plot characters). Clearing is defined as preventing the one event that causes the region to be split away from the main island (thus causing the region to be rejoined in the present time), and present day exploration of the area is unlocked.
- There is a time travel mechanic, between the 'unstable' version of each region, and the present day 'rejoined' version.

- Pokemon in the party can interact with the past overworld to affect the present-day overworld. The earliest example is having a Pokemon with either Leech Seed, Bullet Seed, Worry Seed, or Seed Bomb in the party. That Pokemon can be commanded to use the attack at the base of a cliff in the past. In the present day, the seeds would have formed vines that allow the player to scale the cliff.

- Pokeballs are in short supply. They are ONLY used to store Pokemon. The expedition was instructed to bring as few Pokemon as possible, to minimize the risk of disrupting any local ecosystem. Capturing native Pokemon is strictly forbidden, but there is no restriction on befriending them to join you. (This is why there's a plot-mandated restriction on the amount of party members the interns can have at once.)

 

Team building:

- Since there are two playable characters, players will actually juggle two teams of up to 5 Pokemon at once. Exactly how many Pokemon both characters can have at once depends on progression in the story. You start with 2 (four total), and end up with 5 (ten total) by mid/late-game. (I didn't go with 6/12 because that would probably be too much, but 4/8 would be too little for solo player sections as well).

- There is no 'catching' of Pokemon in this game. You either convince Pokemon to join your team through events (100%), and defeated Pokemon may respect you enough to join afterwards (RNG).

- There are ways to influence the RNG in your favor (and disadvantage!). For example, a Nidoran (F) is more likely to join if you have a Nidoran (M) in the party. A Spoink has a 100% chance to join if you have a Pearl in your inventory. Conversely, a Zangoose will not join period if you have a Seviper in the party.

- You can switch between recruited Pokemon at certain locations (generally in the main expedition camp and - in past areas - near the time portal and other locations).

- There is one major restriction regarding the use of Pokemon in your party. If they were recruited in a region that has yet to be stabilized, they cannot be brought to the present timeline and thus cannot assist the party in another region. So you can recruit, say, a Bagon early on. That Bagon can't be brought to any other region until its native region has been restored, which may not even be until late-game. (Such Pokemon will wait at each time portal upon departing.)

- As you can probably guess, swapping between different Pokemon for different regions is highly encouraged. The concept of having a 'finalized team' likely won't exist until endgame, when most of the island is reassembled.

- As the game has a greater focus on plot and overworld design more than anything else, all Pokemon would essentially be automatically programmed with a neutral nature, maxed EVs, and maxed IVs. Gender and abilities however aren't fixed. Abilities can be later changed at will, and you can recruit two of the same Pokemon with different genders.

 

Combat:

- Combat almost entirely consists of double or horde battles, with 2 VS 1 fights (or the other way around!) reserved for major boss battles. Because of the game's setting, actual trainer battles are almost nonexistent.

- Since teams are split into two, certain moves will only affect Pokemon of one party as well. For example, let's say the female intern has a Pokemon with Baton pass. She'll only be able to Baton Pass to another one of her Pokemon, not to a Pokemon that's currently in the male intern's team. Also, let's say the male intern has a Pokemon with Healing Wish. That move will only fully heal a Pokemon in his party. This is a restriction to make up for the fact that you can carry a maximum of 4 more Pokemon compared to conventional Pokemon games.

- There are some exceptions to the above rule, such as Light Screen, Reflect and Aromatherapy affecting both parties.
- Most encounters can be seen roaming the overworld before combat. There are scripted ambushes in certain areas though.

- Because IVs are maxed, Hidden Power type can be controlled. It can be learned/changed at will later on.

- Field Effects would be present in this game as well, but the overall complexity of them wouldn't be as thorough as they are in Reborn/Rejuvenation/Desolation. They are generally restricted to 1.2x/0.8x boosts and penalties along with additional effects on abilities/HP recovery.

- Party members will regain HP while traveling on the overworld (unless poisoned). While this may appear to be a questionable choice, this is a decision that can allow each encounter to be tuned for higher difficulty in general. Expect heavier use of status effects and stat reducers.

 

Items:

- There is no currency in this game. Human-made items are in short supply. Generally, you have the familiar berries, revives, and evolution stones along with entirely new items. With the help of your fellow expedition members, you can combine materials to create new tools to assist in further exploration and combat.

- TMs obviously don't exist. There are many move tutors throughout the game that will offer their services, but this usually involves doing a task for them or defeating them in combat first. After completing their task, they'll join the expedition too, meaning you can access their tutoring services at any camp.

- Note that tutoring opportunities won't be available until the region the tutoring Pokemon is from is restored. Recruited Pokemon from regions not yet restored can be tutored with moves from Pokemon from other regions, however.
- Pickup ability would have a different function in this game: Pokemon with the ability can be given a different held item mid-battle, without using a turn.

The beginning...

 

The expedition arrives to find that the island consists of a sandy beach leading into a temperate forest, surrounding a tall peak that appears to be inexplicably split in half down the center. Rosemary notes that the island actually looks similar to what she saw during her last visit. Brave deems sailing to the split half to investigate more closely to be too dangerous, so the expedition lands on the beach and sets up camp there. As the camp is established, Professor Rosemary realizes that the interns for some reason haven't brought any Pokemon of their own. Though while the international Pokemon committee has strictly forbidden the catching of any Pokemon found on the island, Rosemary says to hell with that and hands the interns two Pokeballs each, and instructs them to only use the Pokeballs in self defense just in case. As night falls, the expedition decides the order in which members will act as lookouts overnight (along with the Joltik assisting all around the camp), and rests.

 

During Rosemary's shift, she and the Joltik spot a glowing light in the forest. Rosemary decides to follow without waking up the others, which alarm the Joltik enough to head into each tent and jolt everyone else awake. All wake up just in time to see Rosemary breaking into a full sprint towards the light, and everyone else chases after her. The expedition eventually reaches the base of the split mountain, where a cave is present. They make it far into the cave when the mysterious light fades, leaving the expedition in total darkness. The Joltik use flash to illuminate their surroundings, and the expedition members berate Rosemary for her rash decision. She hoped she would find Thyme, but further argument is interrupted when the interns point out that the cave appears to be an ancient ruin in reality. Drawings on the wall and the construction of intricate pillars indicate the presence of some sort of civilization. And suddenly, another light. A mysterious orb atop a pedestal illuminates the cave, revealing just how vast the ruins are, and panic breaks out as the orb sends out a wave of energy that causes the expedition members to disappear, one by one.

 

The two interns and Rosemary wake up on the sandy beach once more, but with no sign of the camp or other expedition members in sight. However, one of Brave's Joltik is with them as well, and it panics at the absence of its comrades. Rosemary sends out her Roserade and Medicham, and the Joltik decides to take refuge on Roserade's head. Rosemary is distraught over having made a discovery but with nothing to show for it, along with losing most of the expedition. She decides she's not going to wait, and heads into the forest once more. The interns try to follow, but she instructs them to stay behind in case the other expedition members eventually show up and in case something happens to her.

 

Time passes, and a shrill scream is heard along with the sounds of fighting. The two interns head into the forest to investigate, with a sinking feeling as the sounds vanish. Soon, they find the Joltik bolting towards them, climbing up and resting on the male intern's head. They upload the footage from the Joltik's camera into their PokeNav, and are shocked to find that Rosemary had been ambushed by a huge group of Pokemon that appear to be led by a Shiftry - and the Pokemon speak. The Shiftry declares that that 'the sanctuary has been breached', and a fight breaks out. Joltik escapes in the chaos, and the camera reveals that Medicham and Roserade bravely defend against the onslaught, but both are defeated with Rosemary suffering an uncertain fate.

 

The Joltik didn't escape entirely unnoticed, however. The interns are found by a curious Chatot, who tells them that it's not safe to linger out in the open and to follow her. The interns decide they don't have anything to lose, and follow the Chatot to a cove along the beach, where the Chatot is joined by a group of five other Pokemon (a Riolu, Zorua, Smoochum, Chatot, Klefki, and Corsola). The interns ask how the Pokemon have the ability to talk, in which they simply say that they had always known how to do so. The Klefki is more curious about how it has taken this long for humans to attempt exploring the island, in which the interns are understandably confused (and point out the obvious in that if they've never seen a human before, how do they even know that they're human?). The interns explain that the island has recently been discovered by humans in general, and the Pokemon in turn explain that as they grew up, they were taught to distrust humans due to some mysterious disaster in the past. Either way, they come to the conclusion that hostilities between the humans and the native Pokemon are likely to be a very bad idea, and the Pokemon decide to assist the interns in rescuing Rosemary from the hostile Pokemon tribe.

 

The six Pokemon lead the interns to the outskirts of a village, though they remain at a distance. Riolu, Zorua, and Smoochum head in to investigate what became of Rosemary, along with Joltik sneaking about on the village walls to record footage. They soon return with ill tidings. Joltik's footage reveals that Rosemary and her Pokemon are tied to an unlit pyre, with the Shiftry making a speech about how humans are at fault for the island's loss of prosperity. The Shiftry even points to Rosemary's Pokemon, claiming that they are slaves and have lost the ability to speak for themselves. As the footage ends, the Shiftry says that humans are a blight upon the world, and announces that Rosemary and her Pokemon are set to be executed at midnight.

 

The group considers this hardly fair. Riolu, Zorua, and Smoochum have ideas on how to rescue Rosemary, and while they can execute all three plans at once, the interns should only focus on one themselves. Either barge through the front gates and challenge the Shiftry and his followers directly (two battles before fighting Shiftry, but guaranteed chance of recruiting an additional party member beforehand), have Zorua disguise the interns as Pokemon and then ambush Shiftry (can yield items and information on how Shiftry fights, one battle before fighting Shiftry), and attempt to negotiate with the Pokemon (skips directly to fighting Shiftry only).

 

This is where the interns have to make a choice to not only determine how to save the professor themselves, but pick the two beginning starters as well. One starter is locked behind the method the interns choose, while the other starter can be freely picked.

 

- 'Brute Force' choice: Riolu (Vacuum Wave, Ice Punch, Counter and Endure)
- 'Stealth' choice: Zorua (Snarl, Extrasensory, Leer and Taunt)

- 'Negotiation' choice: Smoochum (Icy Wind, Water Pulse, Light Screen and Lick)

 

Freely picked starters:
- Chatot (Chatter, Growl, Tailwind and Swift)

- Klefki (Fairy Wind, Covet, Magic Coat and Flash Cannon)

- Corsola (Harden, Icicle Spear, Camouflage and Water Pulse)

 

Joltik also joins the team as a third party member (Struggle Bug, Thunder Wave, Charge Beam and Bounce), though this is generally a measure to make the upcoming boss fight VS the Shiftry not impossible for players that decide on choosing the Zorua/Corsola pair of starters. All other starters can join the expedition later on through events later in the game.

Edited December 16, 2016 by Alilatias

[Phi-Bi]

Hey, this is an awesome idea you have. I could be wrong about this, but it seems that this game will be more about exploration. I think your concept would be suited for a procedurally generated games (well, making good procedurally generated plot is hard as far as I know. It'd be the hardest obstacle). Now if you really want to develop the game, or want to see your idea being realized you could give feedback to this guy:

http://www.pokemonreborn.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=21803

Now I'm really sorry if I'm being rude here but really this idea is fascinating and I'd like to see it. I also has some ideas as well but I haven't translated it to understandable English so perhaps that can wait for another day~

[Alistair]

Hey Alilatias, these are some great concepts!

The gameplay part that involves convincing Pokémon to join through events reminds me of a thought I had long ago of a "prehistoric" Pokémon game, where Balls would not exist yet and you'd have to prove yourself to wild mons with questlines of sorts, in order for them to follow you around.

Anyway, I'd be interested in playing such a game as Autumn Shore if it ever comes to life. Keep creating!

[Alilatias]

Hey, this is an awesome idea you have. I could be wrong about this, but it seems that this game will be more about exploration. I think your concept would be suited for a procedurally generated games (well, making good procedurally generated plot is hard as far as I know. It'd be the hardest obstacle). Now if you really want to develop the game, or want to see your idea being realized you could give feedback to this guy:

http://www.pokemonreborn.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=21803

Now I'm really sorry if I'm being rude here but really this idea is fascinating and I'd like to see it. I also has some ideas as well but I haven't translated it to understandable English so perhaps that can wait for another day~

Ha. Well, now that I think about it, the introduction to the story DID sound like my idea was involving something procedurally generated at first, but it's not meant to be like that at all.

I've since finished up the draft, and I'm pretty happy with it. I think some ideas here are bound to inspire people.