Hello!
My name is Flavio Creasso and I’m an indie dev from Brazil.
Now I’m porting my UDK prototype:
To an U4 (with some luck) Game.
BIG UPDATE 2015: What’s VIDA about?
Well, a lot of time on this, a long path specially by being on this alone, but looks like I’m getting in some way closer to my intent thanks to Unreal easy prototyping features. Most of the game concepts were build uppon a “gamer” point of view, not from a “game designer”, if this will be a bless or a curse just the time and the audience should tell. 
To begin, the game is built uppon an own new and fresh IP and Universe I would like to say that I got a bit tired from elves and dwarves everywhere, but I must confess that was more because I got afraid of being sued at some point by following some “influences” and get a try on make a tribute misunderstood as copyright infringement. Who knows? LOL
I’m an “experienced” hackslash player and “I am” a bit tired from time sink drop mechanics… I thought about get a movie story as CONAN The Barbarian and turn that scene where Conan finds the Atlantean Sword on a game level and to proceed on the character’s arc Conan should kill skeletons until “drop” the Atlantean to kill the wolves outside the crypt… Wacky huh? Nonsense. On the other hand, on the “real world” anyone can craft a sword if try and get the right tools and materials. So, on VIDA I decided to** untie** the character evolution and fine tunning from simple luck. Every single item can be crafted on the game through a minigame, this way changing pure luck by pure skill.
One thing that amazed me on digital and tabletop RPGs were the mathematic systems behind them, one point here, one point there and through some thinking and manipulation I could deal better with random chances (again changing pure luck by pure skill) so, under the hood VIDA has a complete system to allow the player to control his chances on the game.
While showing the game on a conference I got a lot of feedback about how some players would like to interact with NPCs on deeper ways, the importance of dialogue, and such things. There are lot of ways to show dialogue on games, but one thing I would like to try is turn the game dialogue into something the player would link with an H.Q. and not as a movie. Lots of theory/experimentalism/guessing on this, but I think movie like dialogues are more “flow like”, meaning that a pause to pick the next option on the screen (you need to read, think about reactions, choose) completelly breaks the entire cinematic dialogue intentions. On the other hand, on HQs language your mindset is “pre-prepared” to read, and the choice on proceed to the next frame is yours “turn like”. This system also allow me to use different shapes and colors to both text and balloons (Sandman HQs like) what also helps to express emotions, some character’s personalities within a more or less “already known” iconography.
My last efforts are on bring a new way to combat on these games (heavy influenced by hours and hours on Dark Souls LOL), I can’t completelly to describe the click duel system now, but let’s just say that will go a bit beyound simple clicking the target and waiting to see what your character will do.
There are more things I would like to show, but I think a gameplay video will be a lot better than just screens and words… I’m working on this now.
Thank you by the visit.
