Game Pitch Competition - Round 7: "Pitch Black" (RESULTS)

[TheFrighter]

I was sure that Haunted by the occult is Blondbraid's!
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[Stupot]

I was sure that Haunted by the occult is Blondbraid's!
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Me too. Blondbraid is our resident European history expert.

Well done Snarky and Durinde. An emphatic draw, if you can have such a thing. I voted for Snarky's. This is such a cool idea for a game.

[TheFrighter]

I voted for Jahnocli's Parlour Game. I'm not sure what is aiming for, but that is the kind of game that make me curious in how it ends!

Sigh, none voted for me!

I'd like to ask to  Mandle: your Bad Soil is inspired by Tecmo Deception saga?

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[jahnocli]

I voted for Jahnocli's Parlour Game. I'm not sure what is aiming for, but that is the kind of game that make me curious in how it ends!

That was the idea! Thanks for the vote. I had an idea for last month's MAGS based on the "Incredible Shrinking Man" but it mushroomed into something a bit too complex for this poor noob...

[dactylopus]

Congrats to thewinners, both very good pitches.  And thanks to everyone for participating.  It was a lot of fun to read all of them, they are all so different.

Whoever voted for my game, I appreciate it!

I voted for The Riverman.  It seemed like a darker and more mysterious story.  Who, or what, is the Riverman?  Good job Bulbapuck!

[cat]

Right, now that voting is over, quick reviews:

jahnocli â€" Parlour Game
Reminds me of the movie "The Game", but I don't know how the game or gameplay would be like.

TheFrighter â€" Tic, Tac & Toe versus Halloween
This could be a nice casual browser game, but not an adventure.

Mandle â€" Bad Soil
I like the idea, but unless this comes with a set of pre-made scenarios, you have to rely on a large community of players.

Snarky â€" The Aparture
My favourite. I like Rear Window and the setting allows for creative puzzles (make the fridge order milk so that the delivery guy arrives at the right time etc.)

Durinde â€" Theta
Reminds me a bit of "The Cell". I can imagine some really surreal puzzles in this game.

Bulbapuck â€" The Riverman.
I get a strong Ben Jordan vibe from this. My runner up when voting.

tzachs â€" This Is Sick
The setting is too contrived for my taste and I don't see what game play would be like.

Blondbraid â€" Haunted by the occult
The first part of the setting sounds fun (a group having to puzzle their way out of a maze). But I don't like the idea of a "super slow moving golem" and I don't like timed puzzles.

dactylopus â€" Digital Zombies
Reminds me a bit of Among Thorns (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/site/games/game/2011/ - play it if you haven't!)

[Snarky]

Thanks for your comments, cat. Pushed me to also give mine:

Parlour Game
Even more than The Game, this reminded me of the recent comedy Game Night (my Mittens in-flight movie!), where a murder mystery game gets interrupted by real kidnappers. Same as cat, I like the premise just fine but want to hear what the game is like.

Tic, Tac & Toe versus Halloween
There's something wonderfully weird about this gratuitously sadistic concept that I like. I remember seeing a (Kickstarter?) trailer for some indie-game where you play as a serial killer slaughtering a bunch of teens invading your cabin in the woods or whatever, all in a sort of Minecraft-y style, and this reminded me a lot of that. But yeah, not an adventure.

Bad Soil
I question some of the mechanics in this also-not-an-adventure game (wouldn't it take ages to wait for the other player to build a level?), but if you decouple the parts a bit (maybe do a thing where you have to survive other horror houses in order to unlock/earn stuff to put in your own) I can see this working well, assuming it's picked up by a community.

The Aparture
This is the first round where I came up with my entry specifically for the contest, rather than pulled an idea I had already. So there isn't really much more to it than what's in the entry (in fact, my first draft of the pitch was way short: under 70 words). I have no idea what the spooky stuff would actually be, or really how the game would play â€" I kept trying to come up with ideas for what to do with a Roomba. I like cat's puzzle idea, though!

Theta
Delving into repressed memories feels like great material both for storytelling and gameplay, so this entry had my vote. Is The Cell worth a watch, BTW? I really like Tarsem's The Fall.

The Riverman
Somehow the names of the Chugash forest and "The Riverman" really appeal to me, and I think Alaska is a great setting for an atmospheric thriller. The bit about the watch put me off slightly; it feels a bit cheap to me, and reminded me Christopher Nolan's inferior, Alaska-set Insomnia remake.

This Is Sick
It's just a bit... much, you know? If a monster has killed off everyone in the whole world except those sheltering in hospitals, maybe it's time to call it a day and just give up. At least there should be plenty of suicide options conveniently at hand.

Haunted by the occult
Love the setup, but rather than timed puzzles (which I don't really care for) I would be interested if it were in the style of a dilemma-based survival drama, like The Walking Dead.

Digital Zombies
The premise doesn't grab me all that much personally, but I suppose it depends on where you go with it. I tend to judge high-concept sci-fi like this on how creatively it extrapolates from the basic idea. Digital zombies, sure... But then you put a twist on it, right?

[Durinde]

Interesting round with some great ideas!

Once again here is my (subjective) hot take on the entries:

Parlour Game:

Kidnapping from a "harmless" game is a great setup for an adventure and has tremendous potential, but I wanted to know a little more about the gameplay.

Tic, Tac & Toe versus Halloween


I'm picturing a very Tim Burton-esque world for this one. Has some great visual potential, but as someone else mentioned, feels more like a mini-game.

Bad Soil

I'm very curious on how the mechanics of this would work. I'm guessing there would be a lot of pre-fab components and items that you could use in the level editor? It's a great concept for an engine, but it feels more like a tool than a game at this point.

The Aperture

This one got my vote. It simply was a great pitch. It wore its influences on its sleeve and gives a nice summary of both the gameplay and the story elements.

Theta

My own pitch, so I won't comment



The Riverman

A little surprised this one didn't receive more love. It was definitely my runner up. I can't think of many adventure games that take place in Alaska. Has potential for great visuals and I'm sure there is all sorts of wonderful folklore that you could pull story elements from.

This Is Sick

Reminded me a lot of "The Mist" or "Dawn of the Dead" in that there are a group of survivors that are trapped and face certain death if they go outside. Great fodder for storytelling and could be a great game.


Haunted by the occult

This one was top 3 for me. Very unique setting and I like the idea of a Golem (honestly I've been toying with different ways you could integrate a golem into an adventure game for the past couple months, I'm glad somebody else had the idea). I'm a little wary about losing characters if I screw up though... make's the concept feel more like a roguelite than an adventure game.


Digital Zombies

I'm picturing a cyberpunk-ish "Ghost in the Shell" world for this one. Great potential for visuals and you could have some unqiue tools and gadgets in the story. I think it's a good setup for an adventure. 

[Snarky]

New round here: https://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/forums/index.php?topic=56776.0