Contents
Hello everyone! In this blog post we will be going over the first interaction players will have with the fisherman. Conversations with the fisherman are the biggest parts in Keeper’s Veil so getting the pacing right is crucial in achieving an effective build-up to a hard-hitting reveal and ending.
The main purpose of this first conversation is to establish the fisherman’s motivation and goal; get food for his starving family. He will come across as a devoted father and husband, desperate to provide for them during this difficult time. The fisherman will provide descriptions of his young son, his wife (hinting towards a pregnancy) and where they live; providing the player with a mental image of a quaint family in a humble cabin.
He will reveal more information about the sailing restrictions and the effects it has had on the village; explaining how since the fishermen have not been able to do their jobs and catch fish for food/trading, people are running low on resources while market prices have increased. He will talk about the worsening state of the village people’s mentalities due to the ‘recent events’ as well as theorise that even the Northern Lighthouse Board is afraid.
However, he will also, accidentally, give away the fact that he is not a ‘proper’ fisherman. This will lead him to plead with the player to assist him in his journey but insists that he will be venturing out either way; further proving his devotion to his family and cementing himself as a brave person. It would even be desirable for players to view the fisherman as himbo-esque!
Plan outline for Day 1 - Part 1, made on Figma.
It is so important that the player likes and emotionally becomes invested in the fisherman early on, if not straight away – or else the ending won’t have any punch at all. He should almost come across as the game’s hero, someone you instantly want to root for. This conversation should also slowly add worldbuilding, addressing some topics that were previously only hinted at and answering some questions that players, hopefully, had. To keep intrigue, not everything can be explained all at once, so players may question potential plot holes. But these will soon be addressed in the upcoming interactions.
As this is a more interactive section of the game, this text will be created using Twine and will be play-tested on our upcoming open day. I have also prepared a survey for players to complete after reading, as we have found that if we don't ask specific questions, people will give feedback on things we are not necessarily looking for; for example, things relating to design rather than the content itself. I created the survey using Google Forms and can be accessed here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Njqv6L3xeHBaCE4LfbQwzyKlfsiIMsm5hYXtvHqrD4E/edit
To ensure that the grammar and language of these texts are accurate, and are the makings of a good setup, we will be reaching out to English staff at our university for their educational feedback.
You can check out this Twine for yourself by visiting our Itch page: https://keepers-veil.itch.io/ Thank you!