Hello, Survivors!
In last week's Dev Note, we introduced the new "Free Movement" system. The response was more enthusiastic than we anticipated, which both excites us and fuels our desire to share more about our dev journey. We've been looking forward to sharing more this week.
To summarize, the "Free Movement" system we introduced last week is a solution to the "long and tedious" experience of farming maps. By connecting several "small maps," we aim to reduce the fatigue from frequent map transitions and alleviate the boredom that can come from prolonged combat.
Today, we'll be discussing the concept of the "continuous experience"—specifically, how the placement of multiple small maps can lead to a more enjoyable experience.
Before the introduction of Free Movement, the existing stage system required players to return to a shelter after clearing each map, regardless of the map's play density, narrative significance, or playtime.
According to internal feedback, this experience felt excessively "repetitive." We concluded that this repetitive experience was due to the disconnection between the gameplay experiences of each map, caused by the return to the shelter. This disconnection prevented Remore from feeling like "one cohesive world."
Due to this "disconnected structure," each map felt like it provided a "functional experience" rather than an experience of exploring the world of Remore. In other words, story maps seemed to only deliver narrative-focused experiences, while farming maps felt like they merely offered combat between story maps, failing to create a unified experience.
To address this and provide a "connected experience" where Remore feels cohesive, we have made it so that farming maps now serve as "paths" between story maps.
In the map example above, the red circles represent “Story Maps,” which serve as "objectives" that players must accomplish through the narrative. Along the way, the “Farming Maps,” represented by the green circles, are designed to create an experience where players "pave a path to their goal by overcoming various threats."
We aimed to ensure that “Farming Maps” do not feel like disconnected "filler content" separate from the Story Maps. Furthermore, our development goal was to foster emergent gameplay, where "players can have different experiences depending on the paths they choose."
Direction: Strengthening Through Spatial Narrative
For Farming Maps to fulfill their role as "paths," all maps, including Story Maps, must be "gameplay-connected." This means that moving between maps in the current free movement state should feel natural in terms of gameplay. To achieve this, we created a kind of spatial narrative "gradation," allowing for a seamless narrative flow between spaces.
If the maps have significantly different spatial compositions as players move between them, it would result in the same disconnected feeling as before, rather than providing the natural spatial transition that Free Movement is supposed to offer. Therefore, adjacent maps must also have aesthetic connections, so that moving between them gives players the sense that they are exploring "one vast space."
By connecting the spatial narrative in this way, we were also able to make the placement of enemy units feel more natural. For example, in the outskirts where the infestation hasn't spread, more human-type units are placed, while closer to the infestation, more monster-type units appear. This approach helps convey the sense that players are "moving closer to the infestation."
Additionally, to further bridge the gap between Story Maps and Farming Maps, we devised a new type of map called "Event maps." Since Story Maps are designed to deliver a narrative more firmly, they are aesthetically and gameplay-wise very distinct. Even if Farming Maps are designed to resemble Story Maps, there will inevitably be differences between them. Therefore, we introduced Event Maps, which sit somewhere in between Story Maps and Farming Maps.
(Above example is a test Event)
Result: Forming the Concept of the “City” and Connecting the Experience!
The concept of the unified city in the game became more solidified. In Early Access, the game's main setting was in a forested area outside of the city. This was a choice made to give each stage a naturally different themed space within a segmented system, but now that we're able to connect the spaces more naturally and form a larger “worldview,” we're able to set up Remore's stages as interconnected, “City-like” areas.
As a result, we’re able to offer more maps and a wider variety of experiences. Previously, a single stage was composed of about 4 Story Maps and around 12 large Farming Maps. By breaking these down into smaller maps and connecting them experientially, we were able to create a minimum of 40 interconnected maps.
As mentioned earlier, we set the "experience" as the unit of each map, and with the increase in the number of maps, the diversity of gameplay experiences we can offer has dramatically expanded.
Furthermore, the roles of "Story Maps" as gameplay milestones and the "Farming Maps" as the paths leading toward these goals have become clearer. This has introduced a more varied narrative experience. As the experience of navigating between maps has become less linear, the possibility for players to have different experiences depending on their chosen paths has been greatly increased. This allows us to provide an experience almost like an "Open World."
Internal feedback has been positive. Team members reported that in the current development version, where connections between spaces are made aesthetically and in terms of gameplay, they could feel a more vivid sense of Remore's world. Breaking down the map units and the addition of free movement, along with the connected spaces, has significantly helped Remore in providing a cohesive single "City" space.
We hope you dig the “City” space concept introduced today, and next week, we will introduce the combat experiences within it!
As always, thank you Survivors!
REMORE