Concept Notes : Dungeon Puzzles
10-26-2011, 11:00 PM
About : Concept Notes
Initially, concept notes were just self written notes on what I could include in my project, an idea pool of sorts I could dig through when I don't know what to do. I figured, since alot of them aren't project specific, just general ideas, perhaps it would be beneficial to post them here. In this issue, I will discuss dungeon puzzles. There will be future issues on certain other topics, so check back in the tutorials section for more later on.
Dungeon Puzzles
Within these concept notes, we will discuss puzzles and activities that can be implemented in dungeons. Some of these are obvious as they are staples to many games, but as time goes on I plan on revisiting this document to add more.
Push Obstacles
Sometimes you have junk in your way that must be moved. Push Obstacles requires you to clear the way to get to the next room. It is important that the push objects aren't manipulatable in a way where the player never again be able to progress, so they should reset when the player leaves the room or hits a switch. If the player has solved a push object puzzle, the pieces should remain in their "solved" position.
Push Obstacles + A Switch
Sometimes, not only are there obstacles in your path, but one requires you to push something on top of a switch. Most often than not, the switch always needs some kind of weight on it, and you simply cannot stand there all day because you got to push through.
Security Doors
Alot of dungeons are designed to keep folks out, so security doors are naturally an element you can't get away from. Sometimes, by "security," it means two doors that can only be opened one at a time, the other one stays shut. Other times, you have to use a key card or input a password to get through. In a government facility, it might require you to kill the guard and use his handprint!
Traps & Hazards
When not worrying about opening security doors, you still always have traps and hazards to worry about in a dungeon. Such traps could include spiked floors or mounted guns that fire if a switch is stepped on, or walls that move inward to squish the player. Hazards could be general things, not necessarily planted to kill you but are natural to the environment. Envioronmental hazards could be hot steam from a pipe, lava flowing through a mountain, an unsafe floor with cracks and holes or an area infested with nasty creatures.
Look Out Below!
This is basically a game of falling through a hole or jumping in a pit, but instead of trying to kill yourself the objective is landing somewhere on the floor below. It is not always obvious where you should fall through, so sometimes its either trial and error or going from floor A to floor B to judge for the right spot. Falling through multiple floors or to certain death is optional and entirely up to you ;D
Environmental Changes
Whether or not the disaster is in your hands, lets face it, the environment is a bitch! If an earthquake strikes while you're in a temple, the ground could split in the main hall and many connecting corridors could be caved in. Rolling a giant bolder into a stream could stop, delay or divert the flow of water, possibly drying up whatever it feeds to. When power shuts off in an area, you have to get out your lantern or flashlight, and different kinds of creeps will come at you. Heavy rains could turn a dried up trench into a river with an undeniable current that can sweep you away.
Hidden Treasure & Passages
Not all things are obvious and right in plain site, sometimes you've got to look for them. For instance, a cracked wall could lead to a room full of treasure, or a chest could be tucked behind a bush. Sometimes its not so much that the passage or treasure is hidden, but the switch to get to it is hiding in plain site.
Occupied Ambush
An occupied ambush is typically stepping into a room where all the doors lock, and you're surrounded by enemies. Often times, it is required that you kill all the enemies and the doors unlock. Sometimes, it doesn't matter if you kill all the enemies, so long as you kill the enemy with the key.
Caution: Slippery Floor
While the floor in your kitchen is probably slippery after you walk on it, this is predominately used in locations that are frozen over in ice. The catch is that the floor you're walking on, you're going to slide across it, either just a couple steps ahead of where you were wanting to go, or all the way until you smack into something. This is often paired with Traps & Hazards or the Push Obstacles [+ A Switch] concepts.
Seek & Destroy
In other words, sometimes the only way to progress through an area is to destroy an obstacle. For instance, lets say a room is filled in with dirt, perhaps you can destroy a cracked wall to circumnavigate around it. In an ice temple, the walls and floor are likely thin frozen layers of ice, you could probably burn through it.
Collection is the Key to Progression
In the simplest forms, this means finding a single key to go through one of many doors. In a more complex form, it would mean finding a number of special items that are all needed to unlock a certain door. Sometimes the "Key Items" need to be found, sometimes requiring you to overcome a puzzle.
Separation is the Key to Progression
If there is more than 1 protagonist in the player's control, this is a concept where one of them will split from the main party to do a certain sometimes dangerous but otherwise boring task. For instance, the friend who leaves the party may just be there to hold a switch down so the rest can progress, other times only 1 person can fit into a corridor and somebody has to volunteer to be that 1 person. Most sacrificial of all would be the one guy who decides to run out and distract the enemy, or the one guy who has to run to the goal while others provide a cover assault. It doesn't always have to be all-for-one and one-for-all, sometimes it can be two-for-two, etc, but you get the point.
Initially, concept notes were just self written notes on what I could include in my project, an idea pool of sorts I could dig through when I don't know what to do. I figured, since alot of them aren't project specific, just general ideas, perhaps it would be beneficial to post them here. In this issue, I will discuss dungeon puzzles. There will be future issues on certain other topics, so check back in the tutorials section for more later on.
Dungeon Puzzles
Within these concept notes, we will discuss puzzles and activities that can be implemented in dungeons. Some of these are obvious as they are staples to many games, but as time goes on I plan on revisiting this document to add more.
Push Obstacles
Sometimes you have junk in your way that must be moved. Push Obstacles requires you to clear the way to get to the next room. It is important that the push objects aren't manipulatable in a way where the player never again be able to progress, so they should reset when the player leaves the room or hits a switch. If the player has solved a push object puzzle, the pieces should remain in their "solved" position.
Push Obstacles + A Switch
Sometimes, not only are there obstacles in your path, but one requires you to push something on top of a switch. Most often than not, the switch always needs some kind of weight on it, and you simply cannot stand there all day because you got to push through.
Security Doors
Alot of dungeons are designed to keep folks out, so security doors are naturally an element you can't get away from. Sometimes, by "security," it means two doors that can only be opened one at a time, the other one stays shut. Other times, you have to use a key card or input a password to get through. In a government facility, it might require you to kill the guard and use his handprint!
Traps & Hazards
When not worrying about opening security doors, you still always have traps and hazards to worry about in a dungeon. Such traps could include spiked floors or mounted guns that fire if a switch is stepped on, or walls that move inward to squish the player. Hazards could be general things, not necessarily planted to kill you but are natural to the environment. Envioronmental hazards could be hot steam from a pipe, lava flowing through a mountain, an unsafe floor with cracks and holes or an area infested with nasty creatures.
Look Out Below!
This is basically a game of falling through a hole or jumping in a pit, but instead of trying to kill yourself the objective is landing somewhere on the floor below. It is not always obvious where you should fall through, so sometimes its either trial and error or going from floor A to floor B to judge for the right spot. Falling through multiple floors or to certain death is optional and entirely up to you ;D
Environmental Changes
Whether or not the disaster is in your hands, lets face it, the environment is a bitch! If an earthquake strikes while you're in a temple, the ground could split in the main hall and many connecting corridors could be caved in. Rolling a giant bolder into a stream could stop, delay or divert the flow of water, possibly drying up whatever it feeds to. When power shuts off in an area, you have to get out your lantern or flashlight, and different kinds of creeps will come at you. Heavy rains could turn a dried up trench into a river with an undeniable current that can sweep you away.
Hidden Treasure & Passages
Not all things are obvious and right in plain site, sometimes you've got to look for them. For instance, a cracked wall could lead to a room full of treasure, or a chest could be tucked behind a bush. Sometimes its not so much that the passage or treasure is hidden, but the switch to get to it is hiding in plain site.
Occupied Ambush
An occupied ambush is typically stepping into a room where all the doors lock, and you're surrounded by enemies. Often times, it is required that you kill all the enemies and the doors unlock. Sometimes, it doesn't matter if you kill all the enemies, so long as you kill the enemy with the key.
Caution: Slippery Floor
While the floor in your kitchen is probably slippery after you walk on it, this is predominately used in locations that are frozen over in ice. The catch is that the floor you're walking on, you're going to slide across it, either just a couple steps ahead of where you were wanting to go, or all the way until you smack into something. This is often paired with Traps & Hazards or the Push Obstacles [+ A Switch] concepts.
Seek & Destroy
In other words, sometimes the only way to progress through an area is to destroy an obstacle. For instance, lets say a room is filled in with dirt, perhaps you can destroy a cracked wall to circumnavigate around it. In an ice temple, the walls and floor are likely thin frozen layers of ice, you could probably burn through it.
Collection is the Key to Progression
In the simplest forms, this means finding a single key to go through one of many doors. In a more complex form, it would mean finding a number of special items that are all needed to unlock a certain door. Sometimes the "Key Items" need to be found, sometimes requiring you to overcome a puzzle.
Separation is the Key to Progression
If there is more than 1 protagonist in the player's control, this is a concept where one of them will split from the main party to do a certain sometimes dangerous but otherwise boring task. For instance, the friend who leaves the party may just be there to hold a switch down so the rest can progress, other times only 1 person can fit into a corridor and somebody has to volunteer to be that 1 person. Most sacrificial of all would be the one guy who decides to run out and distract the enemy, or the one guy who has to run to the goal while others provide a cover assault. It doesn't always have to be all-for-one and one-for-all, sometimes it can be two-for-two, etc, but you get the point.
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