[Eclipsing Reason] Animal Power!!!

[CJC]

I have decided to be less secretive about my quest projects, despite their low level of completion. As such, I have a question for the community!


Part of my quest is going to involve segments of "Dark World" in dungeons [If you've played Quest for the Hookshot 2 by Moosh, think about his last dungeon]. The quest is not going to have a moon pearl, and thus will feature ANIMAL POWER just as Twilight Princess did. That is, being in the dark world will give the player a completely different set of tools to utilize. I won't get into the other differences between the worlds now because they are not relevant to the poll.


So here is my question: I have two (mostly complete) sets of 'animal Link' sprites, and I'm trying to decide which one to use. The two are largely incompatible in terms of equipment and thus this decision could very drastically alter the design concepts of these spans of dungeon.

I am leaning in a particular direction and I may defy the poll. Still, I'd like to hear opinions on both options.


Turtle Link
FireBreath (Arrow) ArcticBlast (Non-Return Boomerang) ElectroJolt (Flamethrower) Sword (Hammer) Withdraw (Shell attack)
In general I'm ripping off the Bowser dragon vibe to give the guy all sorts of elemental attacks. Since the Light world will be mundane (lacking any form of magic) this will add a nice contrast to the worlds. As such, Dark World dungeon segments would be combat-heavy to accommodate the walking tank.


Raccoon Link
DropSword (Bait, only stuns, triggers some secrets) Scent (Lens of Truth) Light (Candle, does no damage) Smoke Bomb (Button-Trigger bomb) Jump (Roc's Feather)
Unlike the Turtle, the Raccoon will be practically helpless when it comes to combat. This could make the dark world sections of dungeons very exhilarating because there is no effective way to clear rooms. Due to the presence of the Lens, they would likely be heavily puzzle-based.


FYI, Link's normal equipment will include: Sword, Spear (Very Short Hookshot), Crossbow (Wand), Iron Chain (Cane of Byrna), and an Active Shield.



Thoughts? Criticisms? Alternatives? Flames?

EDIT: In case you were wondering, I voted other to avoid revealing my bias.

[bigjoe]

I voted Raccoon. I like the idea of having to rely on other methods than combat to survive. The enemies can be scaled to make it to where you have to use different methods to avoid them.

[Ventus]

I don't know they both sound like great ideas, Maybe you use them both in the game, and have them available to switch around like a transformation item that let the player go between the two forms.

[CJC]

Unfortunately, because of the way I'm implementing this mechanic (dmap swaps and item restrictions) the quest will only be able to handle one form.

I could try to let the player pick one at the very start of the quest (by picking a personality for the character), but that might get a little dicey. Each dungeon would need three forms and the tile warps would have to adapt based on item possession.

Alternatively, I could have some dungeons use the Raccoon and some use the Turtle, but I'd need a way to explain why the dark world changed his appearance in the different regions and I'm not sure what I would use to explain it.



Raccoon is in the lead!

[Goriya]

I could try to let the player pick one at the very start of the quest (by picking a personality for the character), but that might get a little dicey. Each dungeon would need three forms and the tile warps would have to adapt based on item possession.

Now THAT could be interesting, it would give the quest a lot more replayability.

[Shane]

i like turtles

nice concept btw

[Nightmare]

King Cobra. Chases you down, bites, holds on, drains your life, and you die. ;-P

-James

[CJC]

I just realized that having users choose between turtle and raccoon is sort of like having them choose between Bowser and Mario.


Anyway, I've decided to give the player the choice at the start of the game. It's going to require building two completely separate questing environments, but I think it'll be worth it.

[SUCCESSOR]

I just realized that having users choose between turtle and raccoon is sort of like having them choose between Bowser and Mario.


Anyway, I've decided to give the player the choice at the start of the game. It's going to require building two completely separate questing environments, but I think it'll be worth it.

Sounds like a lot of work. I say do one and if you have it in you to keep going then do the other one.

[CJC]

Okay, it's been a long time!

Thought I'd share with you where I am with this: I've finished the sprites for all three forms and I've made some portraits for the speaking portions of the game.


You'll notice in the attached image that Link has four outfits: Tunic, Darknut, Wizrobe, and Hero. The portraits are not going to reflect these outfits (They will always display Tunic) because of the scripting and positioning involved in implementing all four outfits in all of the conversations.

So my question is this: should I go through that agony to make sure that Link always displays as a Darknut while wearing the Darknut Armor, or are players okay with me just using the regular portraits?


EDIT: The Link portrait is based off of Z1 Manual art; The turtle portrait is drawn from Bowser, of course; the Raccoon portrait used Tarin as a reference, for he is the original raccoon in Zelda.

[bigjoe]

I think just displaying the tunic will be fine. Having portraits for each of the basic forms is no small feat in itself. If you did go through the trouble, it would be pretty remarkable. But its not something you have to do.