Ahoy Captains! This is the first post in a series called Feature Focus where we’ll take a feature, system, or mechanic from Sea of Rifts, pin it to our Natural Philosopher’s workbench, and see what makes it tick.
Full notes
Full Sea Of Rifts update
Read the full published notes in a cleaner layout. The original post stays linked below.
What changed
0 fixes2 additions4 changes0 removals
UI and audio
Events
Gameplay
Balance
addedToday it’s Narrative Designer Fergus here to talk about a new feature from May’s leviathan update to the demo. Among all the other exciting additions to Sea of Rifts, you might have noticed a new tab in your Journal: the Almanac.
changedI’m really happy with this feature as it helps us solve a problem we’ve had since first drafting the lore of Sea of Rifts, namely that it’s been rather tricky to convey it to the player. Given the nature of the emergent narrative sandbox we’re making, we don’t know when players are going to encounter certain events, what information they’ll have when they do, and if they’ll even remember it when they need it. As such, introducing lore in narrative events ran the risk of either being too repetitive or not making sense due to lack of context.
changedEnter the Almanac. As you sail around the Sea of Rifts and interact with world events, you’ll have the chance to unlock fragments for Almanac entries on factions, Rifts, and other core concepts. These build, piece by piece, into a readily-accessible explanation of the subject.
changedBy drip-feeding lore in this way, we can fill out parts of the world which were only gestured to previously, without overloading you with information or sacrificing the sense of exploration & discovery at the core of our design.
addedIn this way, we hope to add context and depth to existing content such as item descriptions and newspaper stories. It also gives me an opportunity to slip some jokes in, an opportunity I’ll always take!
changedAs I’m not arrogant enough to think that getting to read my lore & silly jokes is its own reward, we’ve had some fun giving the fragments mechanical applications. In situations where having knowledge on a specific subject would be helpful, you’ll see a little boost to your chances.
Sea Of Rifts changes
addedToday it’s Narrative Designer Fergus here to talk about a new feature from May’s leviathan update to the demo. Among all the other exciting additions to Sea of Rifts, you might have noticed a new tab in your Journal: the Almanac.
changedI’m really happy with this feature as it helps us solve a problem we’ve had since first drafting the lore of Sea of Rifts, namely that it’s been rather tricky to convey it to the player. Given the nature of the emergent narrative sandbox we’re making, we don’t know when players are going to encounter certain events, what information they’ll have when they do, and if they’ll even remember it when they need it. As such, introducing lore in narrative events ran the risk of either being too repetitive or not making sense due to lack of context.
changedEnter the Almanac. As you sail around the Sea of Rifts and interact with world events, you’ll have the chance to unlock fragments for Almanac entries on factions, Rifts, and other core concepts. These build, piece by piece, into a readily-accessible explanation of the subject.
changedBy drip-feeding lore in this way, we can fill out parts of the world which were only gestured to previously, without overloading you with information or sacrificing the sense of exploration & discovery at the core of our design.
addedIn this way, we hope to add context and depth to existing content such as item descriptions and newspaper stories. It also gives me an opportunity to slip some jokes in, an opportunity I’ll always take!
Ahoy Captains!
This is the first post in a series called Feature Focus where we’ll take a feature, system, or mechanic from Sea of Rifts, pin it to our Natural Philosopher’s workbench, and see what makes it tick.
Today it’s Narrative Designer Fergus here to talk about a new feature from May’s leviathan update to the demo. Among all the other exciting additions to Sea of Rifts, you might have noticed a new tab in your Journal: the Almanac.
I’m really happy with this feature as it helps us solve a problem we’ve had since first drafting the lore of Sea of Rifts, namely that it’s been rather tricky to convey it to the player. Given the nature of the emergent narrative sandbox we’re making, we don’t know when players are going to encounter certain events, what information they’ll have when they do, and if they’ll even remember it when they need it. As such, introducing lore in narrative events ran the risk of either being too repetitive or not making sense due to lack of context.
Enter the Almanac. As you sail around the Sea of Rifts and interact with world events, you’ll have the chance to unlock fragments for Almanac entries on factions, Rifts, and other core concepts. These build, piece by piece, into a readily-accessible explanation of the subject.
Steam post image Oh, that’s who that is!
By drip-feeding lore in this way, we can fill out parts of the world which were only gestured to previously, without overloading you with information or sacrificing the sense of exploration & discovery at the core of our design.
In this way, we hope to add context and depth to existing content such as item descriptions and newspaper stories. It also gives me an opportunity to slip some jokes in, an opportunity I’ll always take!
As I’m not arrogant enough to think that getting to read my lore & silly jokes is its own reward, we’ve had some fun giving the fragments mechanical applications. In situations where having knowledge on a specific subject would be helpful, you’ll see a little boost to your chances.
Is there anything in the world of Sea of Rifts you’re desperate to know more about, some tantalising, throw-away line which deserves a place in the Almanac? Let us know!
