Dear Escapists,
You read that right. Welcome to our first devlog; a series where we’ll be taking a dive into some of the things we’re dreaming up for Escape Academy 2: Back 2 School. Our work-in-progress quest system is the first system (of many!) we’re excited to show you.
Why Quests?
From a top-down perspective, critical quests and escape rooms advance you through the story and important narrative events, while side quests allow for a natural way to interact with the campus environment and other students. That’s not to say side quests won’t reward you for your hard work, though!
When it comes to quests, there are two types: critical path and side quests, and it’s taken a lot of trial-and-error to reach that point.
We want the side quests to be obvious enough that you don’t miss them, secret enough that you feel rewarded when you encounter them, and clear enough that you don’t end up doing a side quest on accident when you want to progress the story. So, we’ve found ourselves tweaking things as small as wording in text, lighting, etc. to draw the player’s attention in just the right way without being too obvious or intrusive.
These are just a few of the quest-givers you’ll find throughout the Academy…🔒
Blue Icon = Critical Path | Red Icon = Extra Credit! 🔥
One of my personal favorite things about quests is that they let the entire world be littered with puzzles instead of rooms, which in my opinion gives so much more life and personality to the campus. Here are some of the questions you might have about the upcoming quests system (feel free to drop your own in the comments!):
What makes quests meaningful?
Currently, we have quests that progress the main story, and some quests that are optional. (In our demo build, you can go on a quest to bring food to the cat in your dorm, and have a furry friend that follows you around!)
Maybe having a cat isn't required, but it's definitely a gameplay-enhancer on all fronts.
Unlike Escape Academy 1, Escape Academy 2 will have a fully-fleshed out campus that you can explore to your heart’s content. One of the benefits of an open-world campus is that there’s many more opportunities for narrative.
That’s one of the biggest reasons we chose to implement this system, and we know you’ll love to explore the world at your own pace while uncovering the secrets of Escape Academy in a rewarding, fully-immersive environment. Quests help so much with this effort, because you end up with a nudge forward, without feeling like you’re solving puzzles “just because”.
For quests that don’t directly contribute to the main story, we still want quests to be rewarding and meaningful, which is why a lot of these side quests will be tied to a system called…
Escape Bucks!
Escape Bucks are a currency (don’t worry, no microtransactions here) that enables you to travel around campus in various ways. Maybe you spend 3 Escape Bucks to bribe the librarian, or drop 1 Escape Buck into the vending machine for a can of ESCAPIST’S EDGE!
From a game-design perspective, we love the Escape Bucks system, because it introduces a fictional currency that makes side quests feel more rewarding. Sometimes during the main story you’ll need to buy items (such as books or school supplies) to advance, and Escape Bucks are the perfect system for that. This also ensures side quests become a more important part of the game, because we don’t care where the money comes from but we can require that you engage with some of the optional content, which gives the player a little more agency and further immersion at the Academy.
Lastly, Escape Bucks can also be found in hidden nooks and crannies around the campus. So don’t be afraid to talk with every NPC and look underneath every stone, locker and toilet stall - just don’t go digging in other people’s pockets. That’s rude.
What were some of the challenges with implementing quests?
It’s required a different look at the game design. Escape rooms want you to solve everything very quickly, because it’s absolutely not fun to lose just because you went down a 10-minute rabbit hole exploring what would end up being a red herring.
Quests, on the other hand, will allow a bit more freedom in the experience. This freedom can be a blessing and a curse - it’s definitely easier to design an escape room with some story inbetween, but quests require you to think out of the box in a way that might otherwise be limited with a linear room, and that’s just one of the many reasons we’re excited to continue fleshing out the quests system.
What Do You Think?
We’re SUPER excited about this system because it fundamentally changes how you escape and lets the player deepen the bond they’ll feel with the Academy itself while playing.
However, we want to hear your thoughts too! When it comes to quests, what are your expectations? Is there anything more you want to know? Drop your answers below, and don’t forget to…
🔔WISHLIST ESCAPE ACADEMY 2🔔
With love,
Coin Crew Games 💛💜