Question on story/plot

[Alex C.]

Hi, first time posting here, but I've been playing AGS games for years. Now that I finally have some spare time I decided to make my first short game.

It's still in the early stages of development, I'm writing the story and puzzles, deciding about the art style and doing some concepts of the main character. The character is a cat, and the game consists in doing "cat things": stealing food from the dinner table, getting the door open to go outside, etc. The game is going to be fun, cartoony and whimsical. Here's a couple of concepts:




Feel free to comment about the images, but the bit I really need some help with is the story: The idea is to portrait a typical cat's day. It's not going to have a bigger "objective" like defeating a mad scientists, rescuing your girlfriend, finding a treasure, etc, it's basically going to be a series of typical daily cat's business.

So, my question is: do you think that the lack of a plot/goal could cause the player to lose motivation after a while? I'm going to include a lot of funny animations after each event to help keep interest and motivation, so I'm hoping the "what-is-he-going-to-do-next?" factor will be enough to keep the player hooked.

Any thoughts? Should I squeeze in some sort of plot to make things more interesting?


Thanks,
Alex

[Atelier]

Those graphics are awesome.

Might want to look at Simon's Cat for ideas on cat things.

[Mouth for war]

HAHA love that idea and the graphics looks very very nice How about adding something very simple....catch the mouse that stole your....*insert anything here* maybe something like the gobliins series (If you played them) you could have the player solving some puzzles on every screen to eventually have that little mouse cornered...just a little idea that popped up in my tired old brain...(I'm very tired because I couldn't sleep very good last night hehe) If you think my idea sucks ass I understand

[Technocrat]

The way cats being home dead animals all the time, it could be along the lines of "provide for that family of people you live with who are obviously completely incapable of hunting".

[ddq]

My cat brought in two baby birds last night, one still breathing. So uh, don't put that in the game, please? If you have enough little stuff to do, it can make up for lack of a bigger story.

[Mouth for war]

About you're cat bringing home those birds...no fun sight at all I was hoping that maybe he could make something cartoony out of that idea...it doesn't have to include the cat killing anything

[Anian]

I was hoping that maybe he could make something cartoony out of that idea...it doesn't have to include the cat killing anything

Not unless you want to make a Fritz the cat game.

onT: I think the importance of overall plot should depend on the game length, but I still think some kind of overall goal should be existant, even if it's one sentence. And watch the Simon's cat videos, that Atelier posted a link to, very good animation and infiinity of cat cuteness.

I really like both versions of the cat and the background.

[Mouth for war]

HAHA true true...weird movie that is but I really like it

[Alex C.]

Thank's for the comments guys, Simon's Cat animations are awesome, they gave me some good ideas, along with my two cats who provide a daily assortment of "inspiration"...

I want to include a "catch the mouse" puzzle, I just have to figure a way to make it look fun and cartoony, like Tom&Jerry or something. Maybe having him chasing a fly instead of a mouse like in that Simon's Cat animation.

The game is going to be short, so maybe I can get away with not having an overall plot.

[Ilyich]

I'd say some sort of global goal is always a plus, not only because it gives the palyer some sort of motivation, but also because it helps to understand roughly where you are in the game and provides the sense of closure in the end. This goal doesn't have to be really big or important - getting something or leaving the room is usually good enough.

That said, I think it's possible to make a good game without it, it's just a bit harder. You still have to make the player understand what he needs to do at any given moment, and create some sort of general arc - story-wise or conceptually, just so that the game has some sort of tangible ending.

Apart from the aforementioned Simon's Cat, I would also like to suggest looking at a manga called "Chii's Sweet Home" (wouldn't recommend the anime version, because it's way to saccharine). It's basically about a cat doing "cat things", so it should provide some useful ideas.

Oh, and those concepts are absolutely splendid! Good luck!