This is going to be a lengthy post elaborating on C&C design and the nature of Walkerman's mechanics, followed by a spoiler-heavy detailing of the Act 1 C&C's in verbose.
This entire post should be considered spoiler territory, but I will be blacking out certain sections anyway. I will later be re-posting this on our website's devblog
here.
What is Choice and Consequence Design?
When a player comes across the merchant Canthar in Piranha Byte's cult classic
Gothic 2, and decides to either accept his entry pass for a later favor or deny him, this is an early example of C&C. This decision has far-reaching effects on the player character, not just limited to their method of entering the game's main city. Many popular titles such as
The Witcher series,
Alpha Protocol, and
The Age of Decadence incorporate this mechanic: players come across choices whose consequences have an explicit effect on the game beyond some scoring system. Often this comes in the form of killing or saving important NPCs, joining one side of a rivalry, or selecting a love interest. C&C is a design mechanic already well-suited to the Visual Novel genre, and forms the basis for Walkerman's gameplay design.
The Walkerman Mechanics: an Elaboration
Walkerman takes the concept of C&C, formats it around a single system, and then presents this in a Visual Novel. Players investigate a monster in each act, and are faced with choices that translate into knowledge and items, which they then utilize during the actual confrontation. These items can also be useful in later investigations, adding another layer of complexity.
While there's always going to be some amount of luck at play, owing to the sheer number of variables involved, the goal of Walkerman is to avoid 'trial-and-error' gameplay. Players should never be faced with, for example: two opaque options such as 'run left' and 'run right.' Whenever a player is faced with a decision, it should always give them the ability to make, at the very least, an educated guess as to what each decision entails. This is demonstrated in Walkerman early on, when the player is given the decision to either
plan on ambushing the monster by learning its route through paint, or luring it with jewelry. The jewelry option will clearly lead to a new item, whereas the paint option favors new knowledge. This distinction was made clearer in 1.25, now that the paint option no longer gives the player a free item as well. Another later decision
between investigating either the sailor's clothes or Asmund's death presents a less obvious choice, but still gives clues as to what the player will find:
an explicit reason for Asmund's death, or the 'mystery box' of following a less clear lead. And all of these choices have explicit consequences during the combat section.
Often times, the player will not be given perfect information, and must deduce for themselves why certain effects occur. In Act 1, this is most clearly demonstrated by the use of
mementos, especially before being spoonfed that this property is what moves the catch-mes around. The player is not given an explicit note telling them which of the ribbon's/bones' properties is manipulating the briers (and as of 1.25 they might not even know about this effect at all, and instead be reliant on coins, wounds, or the snake tail). However, the bones only have so many properties: burnt, bones, memento, and unknown source. If the player uses all of their bones and needs a stand-in, only the memento property has sister items in Act 1.
(Arguably, the ribbon might be a false-positive as it is both a memento and comes from an unknown source if the player never talks to the sailors).
The end result is that players enter a combat segment with only a partial knowledge of their target's rules, and with an incomplete inventory. They are looking to score 'wounds' (represented by red arrows above the textbox) which make the combat get progressively easier. However, attempting to score wounds also puts the player at risk of death (the player doesn't get hit points; one mistake can lead to death). In addition, the player has the meta-knowledge that they are missing some items and knowledge, which should make them suspicious of seemingly easy wound attempts. The actual twists, turns, and surprises of combat are unique to each act, but mostly revolve around consulting notes and making use of limited items.
Act 1 in Review
Having covered the basics, let's now look at how this all plays out in Act 1.
Please don't read the following unless you've already completed Act 1. This is a detailing of all the C&C in Act 1's investigation and combat segments. I will be blacking them out, just in case you've absent-mindedly scrolled down here without reading earlier warnings.
Decision Points in the Investigation
Act 1 has five decision points that affect its combat section...
1: The player learns the monster's route by spilling paint, or decides to use jewelry as a lure. The effects of this decision don't really come into play by themselves, but instead interact with later choices.
2: The player investigates Asmund's death, or decides to check out another, less clear death: the missing sailor. This is a decision between a clear lead and a 'mystery box' option. Asmund's story alerts Jorgen to the weaponry rule, but the missing sailor can net him an important item (in this act as well as later on).
3: During the next night, Sif interrupts the investigation after three choices. So, if the player decides to check out the sailor's clothes, then they will gain the ribbon item but miss one of the three default ones: weaponry, burnt bones, and coins. Choosing the Asmund option earlier treats the player to all three default items, but no ribbon.
4: The player can gain one of three items from Kepko: scented candles, a snake's tail, or a broken mirror. The scented candles are completely useless, and there's no reason why the player should pick them (they can be lit, but never are in Act 1, so no shared properties with the bones). The snake's tail is the most obvious choice, if the player was paying attention to Sif the previous night. The broken mirror is the less obvious choice, and only becomes apparent if the player realizes that they share a property with the burnt bones: being strongly tied to a person's memory. The snake's tail is useful in the bramble scene, but the mirror can stand-in for any situation that requires the burnt bones (outside of the first wound attempt).
5: The last choice is between either taking the crossbow, or talking to the sailors. The crossbow is the only way the player can score three wounds for the 'best' combat result. The sailors can clue the player into there being another, unknown trigger at play. They can also reveal the ribbon's properties and begin a lengthy item trading quest-line. Going to the sailors is a bit nonsensical if the player didn't investigate anything related to them previously, but the option is left in to allow for mistakes.
The Act 1 Combat Segment in Verbose
1: The first split occurs right at the start, with Jorgen taking up a position on either corner of the alleyway, depending on whether the player took paint or jewelry for their first investigative decision. The positioning itself is mostly cosmetic; the major difference is that the player who discovered the ambush point won't need to use a lure. The lure doesn't have to be the necklace, either (it snaps, and this will become important early in Act 2). Any weapon or even the coins are usable here. If the player uses the necklace or coins as a lure, they can also be left behind (a bit nonsensical at the time, but possibly useful later).
2: The second split occurs when the player employs the smoke grenade. Failing to remember the proper sequence (even so, the sequence can actually be performed out of order and still work) will fail to color the monster, and presents a major shift in the segment's tone and difficulty. If the monster is invisible, it is impossible to land the three hits required for the 'good' early ending, and some later mistakes will become deadly. Shaking the device actually loosens the internal safety mechanism, and performs the same function as sliding the lever. This is included just as internal game logic for how the device actually functions.
3: New in 1.25, the player may now use either the coins, burnt bones, or both to trap the monster for their initial wound attempt. Players that went after the ribbon during the investigation might not know about one of these choices, locking them out of the best option: using both. Trapping the monster with the bones and coins allows the player to score a wound early on, and without losing their sword. The crossbow also allows players to score a wound, but only if it's painted. The least risky option, drawing the sword from afar, never gets the player killed but also cannot score a wound. Drawing up-close can get the player killed if the thing isn't painted or well-trapped, and also might lose the sword, but can still score a wound.
4: On the road, the player MUST eventually use coins, as it's plot-necessary. This is a leftover from prior to 1.25, where coins were always used in the first wound attempt. The player can make several different attempts to try other options, which can either get them killed (especially if they threw more than one handful of coins) or lose Sif's snake stick item. If the player is not aware of the coin rule, then they must throw the snake stick (locking them out if its use later), which prompts Sif to spoonfeed them the aforementioned coin rule.
5: During the chat with Sif, if the player doesn't already know about the weapon rule, then Jorgen puts 2 and 2 together here. The player is also given a passing hint that the monster cannot face wheels, which is crucial later (but only if they don't achieve 3 wounds). It is also here that Sif reveals the missing trigger: having less than nine coins. If the player only threw one handful of coins, then Jorgen actually DOES have nine coins here (the platinum one counts) and only triggers the monster because he accidentally drops one. Regardless, the player proceeds to the bramble scene, but can score another wound here if the monster is painted and Jorgen has the crossbow.
6: The bramble scene is the most complex of Act 1's combat segment. The player must get Jorgen through the catch-mes, either by moving the catch-mes with items, or distracting the monster long enough to move them manually. The monster can be distracted either by coins or successful application of the snake tail (understanding that it must be wound around something, not thrown). If the monster has two wounds by the second bramble, then Jorgen can manually move the catch-mes without distracting it first.
Since Jorgen always knows about at least one memento: either the bones or ribbon, almost all the items in his inventory are available as panic/desperation options (he isn't aware of the actual memento property, though the player might be). If the player used two of the four bones earlier and cannot distract the monster, then they must come up with a third memento (last ditch option being the arming sword). If the player manages to score three wounds by the end of this scene, then they get an early exit from the combat segment and the 'good' ending (he still takes a hit to the face for plot reasons).
7: Once Jorgen is out of the brambles, Sif spoonfeeds him one last rule: the mementos. Jorgen then must ditch his inventory (except the coins and crossbow) and the player must decide whether the sword counts as a memento or not (it does). The player must also select a memento from their pile of ditched items (it's actually possible, though rare, to not have any at this point) for use in the next batch of brambles.
8: The final batch of brambles checks if the player ditched their sword (or lost it earlier) and whether they actually took a memento with them. Actually, during the review for this post I just realized the player was supposed to be able to use coins here as well; I might add them in a hotfix soon. If the player didn't screw either of these options up, then they enter into the Waldo scene.
9: The Waldo scene has the player pick up the wagon wheel. Any other items left around are also set up as false flag options, and all result in death. The point of the scene is to see if the player remembered Sif's warning about wheels, and puts 2 and 2 together when they see the wagon wheel.
10: The next scene has Sif assist Jorgen with his own inventory, and the player is given their second-to-last chance to trap the monster. The player can select any of the following options: coins, mementos, wheels, or the snake stick, and then are given a single test to intelligently employ the item. If the player makes a nonsensical decision (EX: throwing the coins into the alleyway, or putting the memento inside the catch-mes where they do nothing) then they enter their very last chance: which may be a Dead Man Walking scenario if the player lost their sword, didn't leave anything on the road, and has no coins. Otherwise, the monster is trapped and the player can kill it either with the arming sword or the necklace (if left on the road). If the player doesn't have the necklace or sword available, they need to go back into the alleyway and find their sword, which offers one last option for death (a very stupid death) if they lost it in the first batch of catch-mes.
i may have missed some aspects of the fight, owing to the sheer number of variables involved, but the message should be clear: hopefully this clears up any feelings of "My choices don't actually matter in this game" and the like. As your inventory grows and contracts become more involved, we will be looking at some lengthy and complicated gameplay segments. Your choices will also matter outside of the walking trade as well, although this may not be apparent in Act 1 as we haven't really entered the romance stuff yet.
Thank you,
John Conway
