EPI #2: Setting

This post is probably going to disappoint you Shakespeare nerds out there.  I apologize for that.  EPI is not going to be a video game adaptation of The Tempest.  Shakespeare already did an excellent job of telling that story, and there's no reason for me violate it by translating it into a medium that, quite honestly, it's poorly suited to.  Instead, I plan on using The Tempest as a setting.

What do I mean by this?  This means that I'm much more interesting in individual characters, locations, and themes than plot details.  For example, I care a lot more that Prospero is a masterminding wizard than that he's the rightful duke of Milan who shipwrecked his scheming brother on his island.  Similarly, I find the fact that Prospero repeatedly dispatches Ariel to implement his plans more interesting than any of the details in those plans.

That said, I read The Tempest this morning to familiarize myself with the subject matter.  Here's what I wrote down while I was reading:

• 1.1 - inciting incident: shipwreck; Antonio, Gonzalo, Alonso, and Sebastian irritate the crew.
• 1.2 - Prospero caused the storm.  He has a "magic garment".
• 1.2 - Prospero tells Miranda his story.
• 1.2 - "Sometime I'd divide..." - Ariel
• 1.2 - Members of the ship are all scattered about the island.
• 1.2 - Caliban's mother, Sycorax (who is dead), worshipped Setebos.
• 1.2 - Ferdinand and Miranda fall in love.
• 2.1 - Characterization of Antonio, Sebastian, Gonzolo, and Adrian.
• 2.1 - A plot is hatched against Gonzolo.
• 2.2 - Trinculo and Stephano get Caliban drunk.
• 3.1 - Ferdinand and Miranda are in love.
• 3.2 - Stephano, Trinculo, and Caliban drink.  Ariel messes with 'em.
• 3.3 - A banquet served by fairies. Ariel scares Alonso, Sebastian, et al.
• 4.1 - Prospero gives Miranda to Ferdinand.
• 5.1 - "Mine would, sir, were I human." - Ariel
• 5.1 -  "Whether this be or not be" - those who were shipwrecked seem to be unsure what/if anything is really happening.

These notes help me do two things.  First, they help me internalize my source material in an abstract and intuitive way.  Second, they help me identify details about The Tempest I (might) want to work into the game.  Several examples:

• I could use a shipwreck as an introduction and inciting incident.
• There could be some (powerful) items with Prospero's name attached to them.  Players might have to complete out-of-the-way challenges to earn these.
• Ariel's comment about dividing might make for an interesting encounter at some point in the game.
• The fact that familiar faces are scattered around the island may provide a mechanism for pacing the game.  As players explore the island, they might periodically encounter groups of characters they'd been separated from by the storm.
• Caliban, Sycorax, and Setebos may also make for interesting encounters. (Actually, I already have plans for MegaCaliban to make an appearance at some point.)
• The love story of Ferdinand and Miranda provides many possibilities.  It could be a complicated sub-plot that the player participates in, or it could be a pair of NPCs named Ferdinand and Miranda who whisper sweet nothings to each other.
• The fairies and reapers offer material for a bestiary.
• Iris, Ceres, and Juno offer ideas for encounters.
• Ariel's not human.  She could be a really cool robot.  (Yes, I know that Ariel is male, and that Prospero addresses him as a creature "which art but air" in the next line.)
• The writing might play with themes of illusion and uncertain reality.

The general idea about working with the The Tempest as setting is to make the game experience accessible to people who aren't familiar with Shakespeare's play, and extra fun (via allusions) to everyone who is.

One final word about setting:  EPI will also carry a distinctly futuristic cyberpunk flavor.  There is no adequate explanation for this, and it may be a recurring joke that the characters themselves express confusion about all the advanced technology around them.