Mob Quest 24-hour Game Bash

Since we’ve been working on the same project for a while, we thought it would be fun and energizing to use a Saturday this month and try to make a game in a single day. We’ll be cheating somewhat though since we’ll be reusing old code & art assets. Not sure which Saturday we’ll do it (need to make sure both of us have the time free) but after we do it, we’ll upload the results for everyone to try out. Don’t get too excited – given the time constraints, I’ll be pleased if we manage to make a 5-min game. 🙂

Here’s the design premise I wrote up several months ago for the game idea we’re going to try to make. Of course, there will no doubt be changes between my old design and what we actually end up doing.

Mob Quest Design Document

Basic Premise – Desktop Dungeons + Katamari Damacy

Story Premise – The big bad guy is terrorizing the world! The only way you can defeat him is through teamwork! Use the magic mob crystal to form the ultimate mob of heroes and take down every enemy in your path!

–Basic concepts–

The game is a turn-based puzzle game divided into stages. The goal to complete each stage varies from stage to stage (could be to defeat a boss, could be to reach a certain mob size, could be to reach a certain destination, etc.)
Transferring from stage to stage could be set up on a Super Mario World style world map. Achieving optional goals in stages could unlock new paths. There could also be an overall score (combined total of individual stage scores) that unlocks various bonuses as your progress.
You control one “character” – a mob of heroes & townsfolk.
In addition to your standard RPG stats like HP, MP, Attack, and Speed, you also have a stat for your mob’s size.
You also have mob stats. These include your recruit stat (how many people can be recruited into your mob in a single move), your current LV & XP, gold total, skill points, and any abilities you’ve unlocked.
XP is gained from finding treasure, defeating enemies, increasing your mob size, and adding new classes to your mob.
Leveling up increases your recruit stat and gives you skill points which can be used to purchase new abilities and bonuses.

–Basic gameplay–

Each turn, you can move to an adjacent square. Gaining and using items and abilities do not cost a turn.
If your recruit stat is high enough, people will join your mob (increasing its size) when you walk onto their square on the map. Otherwise, you can’t enter their square.
Villagers are the most basic type of character and just increase your mob size.
In addition to villagers, there are also special class characters. If one of these joins your mob, your entire mob gains their stats and new abilities are unlocked for purchase with your skill points.
Your mob’s stats are based on the highest stat for all classes you’ve added to your mob. For example, if you had a knight and a mage, you’d have the Attack of the knight with the MP of the mage.
There is no separate battle screen. Instead, if you try to walk onto a space with a monster in it, you attack automatically and the enemy attacks back. (i.e. similar to Desktop Dungeons)
The bigger your mob, the more damage you deal. Likewise, as the enemy deals damage to you, your mob size shrinks and you become less effective.
Your damage dealt = Your Attack multiplied by your mob size.
Mob deaths = Enemy’s attack divided by your mob’s average Max HP.
If your speed is higher than the enemy’s speed, you attack first (thus taking no damage if you defeat them this round). Otherwise, attacks are simultaneous.
A mob is a fickle creature. If you travel across certain kinds of terrain, your mob size will decrease as people leave, never to return. The harsher the terrain, the faster the decrease.
Also, if you exceed the turn limit, X number of people will leave each turn. The turn limit and penalty per turn varies per stage (with some stages being very harsh).
Mob members lost in battle can be regained by healing. Mob members lost from terrain or turn limits are permanently gone.
The mob sprite would change depending on the size (have a few different versions of it and switch up or down as the size increases).

—Conclusion—
And that’s pretty much it for the basic gameplay concepts. Of course, the stage designs, special abilities, monster special abilities, etc. would give the game far more depth than the basic design suggests.