How Many Hotspots?

[CaptainD]

With the games visual style I'd expect the number and style of hotspots to be modeled on Curse of Monkey Island.

In general a large number of hotspots is cool, give really short and snappy responses from the main character them rather than neverending conversations in the vein of A Vampyre Story.

Yeah - I'm thinking the extra hostpots that aren't part of the plot, unless they can have really funny descriptions attached, should be short and pithy.

I guess I'm just going to have to play CoMI again to remind myself... darn. 

[mkennedy]

For the picture at:

http://www.danielthomas.se/upload/JoI/backgrounds/01.png

You could probably get away having all the spears use the same hotspot. In Lesiure Suit Larry 5 there were responses for everything, including using every inventory object on every other inventory object as I recall. Put in as many hotspots as you want, but make sure they all say or do something. Having the character just say "I don't need it" or "It doesn't interest me" is boring. Instead you could say "I've allready got a sword, besides my skill with spears is lacking and whatisname will be mad if I swiped any of his stuff" or something witty like that.

[Matti]

Sorry if I repeat things.. couldn't be bothered to go through all the comments.

Anyway, with a background like this, I'd probably just go with the moose head, the sign (if you could write something other than him just rereading what can already be read), the portrait, possibly the helmet and the books on the background table. And that's pretty much all I would personally do.

That's the least you should do.

Mostly I would only add hotspots to the items that aren't foreground items, and mostly only to items that actually have a purpose in the game or an interesting response. Basically what everyone else has suggested.

Hotspots shouldn't be added to items that actually have a purpose but rather to items that could have a purpose. And to all things that stand out too.

I would go with something like this. I'm not sure about the chair, sword and spears, I guess I would like to have a response on these too.



Too many hotspots can be annoying, but too few hotspots too. At least everything the player immediately wants to check out should have a hotspot. And everything that could have a purpose or seems to fit to an inventory item should too.

[Eggie]

I want to examnine it aaallll. Just don't be too verbose.

[Grundislav]

I agree that more hotspots are better than too few.

Citing a specific example:


Even though the screenshot is small, you can see this room from Runaway is packed with detail.  Your game is using a very similar background style.  Now why do I bring this up?  Because this room is only accessible in a cutscene.  You walk in, the dialogue tree starts, and when it's done you exit.

You can't roam around freely and examine all the objects, and that frustrated the hell out of me when I played the game.