Greetings, adventurers! Welcome back to the second update in our On to Adventure series! Today's update is about why we're making a game in a genre which has been niche for years, how we're trying to make a classical point and click adventure a little more contemporary and last but not least incorporating ideas that are unusual in the classic adventure genre. My name is arnas, I am the director of Crowns and Pawns and I have the pleasure to be the author of this update. So, lets get it on! Remember the day when LucasArts stopped developing adventure games, broke the hearts of endless adventure lovers, and the classic point and click adventure genre felt like it was dying? Everyone got the message at the time, except the adventure genre itself. And that was really lucky, because otherwise there would not have been many great adventure games in all the years since then - and we would never have developed Crowns and Pawns. We are often asked why we make an adventure game when the genre is so small compared with others. The answer is easy: pure love.
I grew up in the golden age of adventure games playing gems like Monkey Island or Broken Sword. Adventures, however, have continued to accompany me in my life: In 2003, while still in high school, I joined a group of German fans working on an unofficial sequel called Broken Sword 2.5 and became the art director, did art management and art myself, worked with voice overs a bit, and probably more aspects of the game I can't remember anymore. And I loved it! The logical consequence: my brother and I founded our own company and when we gained some proper experience, we decided to create a new original game in the spirit of the mighty Broken Sword. That's when Crowns and Pawns was born. What is Crowns and Pawns about? You get in the shoes of Milda, learn about an ancient mystery, look for clues, meet interesting people, you may or may not find a powerful relic. Who knows? ... You will travel around real (and fantasized) locations around Europe, as well as in our home country Lithuania. We mention some medieval Lithuanias leaders and its rich history and significance to Europe. We hope to show our country in beautiful colors just the way we see it. And of course, Crowns and Pawns is a classic adventure game. You will control Milda across different locations, you will collect a whole lot of different objects in your inventory, use objects, or combine them to solve puzzles. Talking about puzzles, weve added a wide variety to the game: item, inventory, dialogue, note, timed, mini games, So far, so traditional. But as said we added some interesting and refreshing twists to the genre: you will be able to change Mildas clothing, hair, etc. You can of course do that just for fun, but we decided to make it a gameplay element as well: In some puzzles, Milda will need to look a specific way to impress someone or be allowed inside.
It is also important that the game feels alive and reacts somewhat to the player. Thats why during the introductory narrative the player will have to choose some key qualities of Mildas character (e.g., her profession), which will impact some of the puzzles and (non-linear) dialogues later in the game. We also reinforce this dynamic somewhat through the technology we use for Crowns and Pawns: we have added a 3D background effect the background moves/rotates a little bit when the character moves, as well as from the mouse movement. It is amazing how much liveliness such small movements bring to the game. And since I just talked a bit about technology, in Crowns and Pawns we use 2D hand painted backgrounds that we project on a 3D world and blend them with 3D characters. It has its challenges, but I am so proud of our whole team and how well the combination works! It gives us the opportunity to have various effects in the game: For 3D characters we use custom-written shaders with lighting calculations refined specifically to fit the painted backgrounds. For backgrounds, we have implemented custom shadows to be able to have the best possible look for the style we are aiming for.
Projecting 2D art on a 3D world allows us to apply reflections, particles, custom-built volumetric lights, and other effects like that. Many of the scenes in the game have various perspectives and camera angles (from traditional side view to top-down) and are invigorated by close-up puzzles that completely eliminate monotony from the picture. And for all those who have understood none of this: we've put a lot of effort into making Crowns and Pawns a pretty, classical adventure game with modern features. Well, that was a lot of information. But there is so much I can - and want - to tell you about Crowns and Pawns. And that's exactly why there will be two more updates before the release next Friday. So stay tuned and please wishlist our game that would help us a lot! Have an adventurous rest of the week everyone! arnas & The Tag of Joy Team https://store.steampowered.com/app/1125910/Crowns_and_Pawns_Kingdom_of_Deceit/