Hell Corp [Office, Dark Comedy, Point&Click][GxB][GxG][BxB]

[Strangerella]

Notice: The entire game is going through major revisions right now which means we largely had to start from scratch although we still had our old assets. However, everything should look nicer in the long run and be more visually dynamic.

Hello, hello, all you fine people!

This is a project that’s still in very early development and we’re just looking for some initial feedback and criticisms. At the moment, the game has a skeleton of a working game (in regards to coding/programming) and we’re presently compiling resources like GUI, music, art, and story/writing.

The game is intended to be a point-and-click-esque adventure game where you play as an immortal (the player chooses their gender and name) who works as an HR representative in the afterlife at Hell Corp which is a systematic means to sort and assign punishments to the souls of the damned. The story takes place in a pseudo-office setting where most of the players time will be spent completing bizarre tasks for their insane boss (Horsehead) which range anywhere from mundane errands to full-blown criminal activity.

Right now there are 5 characters whom the protagonist can befriend or romance and there are no gender restrictions.

Characters

Preview:


+The Immortal (Protagonist)
Concept: http://i1370.photobucket.com/albums/ag2 ... protag.png
The protagonist who, contrary to appearances, is not human but an immortal. Despite their immortality, they are not invulnerable and are cursed with a fleshy fragile form. This coupled with chronic bad luck and Hell's violent denizens makes them an easy target for misfortune, which usually takes the form of them getting horribly maimed and dismembered. They have recently been hired on as the HR Director at Hell Corp which may be a sign of their changing fortune...Or maybe not. Whatever they were expecting from their new job it certainly wasn't obeying their insane (and violent) bosses every whim like a slave (and punching bag).

+Pipnip the Impish Assistant
Concept: http://i1370.photobucket.com/albums/ag2 ... e/cast.png
A lesser demon also known as an imp, who like all other impish-kind, serve greater powers and entities in Hell. Pipnip is assigned to the immortal/protagonist as their personal assistant to aid them in their assignments. He is helpful and professional but the occasional scathing and cruel remark may hint that he doesn't appreciate his servitude to the protagonist.

+Horsehead the Director
The cruel, violent, and erratic demon who rules over Hell Corp and all of its employees. He may not have the best business sense but he is respected and feared nonetheless because of his vast power and knowledge. Despite his violent tendencies and insanity, he considers himself modest and unassuming. Recently, his two most favorite things are the mask he wears which he obtained from the human/living realm and trying to kill and maim his new employee, the immortal/protagonist.

+Skully the Janitor
Concept: http://i1370.photobucket.com/albums/ag2 ... y-glow.png
A timid skeleton (who in fact is a will-o'-wisp possessing a skeleton) with a fragile resolve. A wretched soul who often indulges in her misery—some might even call her a masochist. She becomes particularly attached to the protagonist who she sees as a soul mate or kindred spirit in that they both have terrible luck and are treated poorly by their co-workers (which often causes them both bodily harm).

+Billie the Secretary
Concept: http://i1370.photobucket.com/albums/ag2 ... billie.png
As far as anyone is concerned, she is not an employee of Hell Corp neither does she have an inherit name—rather taking on the monikers that others give her. An extremely enigmatic entity that seems to be known throughout Hell's denizens in stories, existing only as a legend. She seems to be on good terms with Horsehead. An ally to the protagonist/immortal, she offers them aid in their endeavors although her motivations are unclear.

+Shugug the Thousandling
Concept: http://i1370.photobucket.com/albums/ag2 ... shugug.png
This mysterious entity frequents Hell Corp despite not being an employee. It could be considered a benefactor as it often gives rare and unusual gifts to Horsehead and his employees when the mood so strikes it. It lives for chaos and is quite fond of Hell's violent and erratic culture. Despite this, itself is not a particularly violent entity, preferring to watch then participate and is, in fact, quite civil and mannerly, even if can’t communicate with most of Hell's and Hell Corp’s denizens (speaking in gargles and a foreign tongue).

...And there more characters presently in development but these are all the protagonists co-workers.

Backgrounds

Preview:

Features

*Point-and-click-esque adventure game.
*Gender select—play as a female or male
*5 romanceable/friend-able characters (2 male, 2 female, 1 other) and no gender restrictions.
*Relationships aren’t determined by stats nor do you have to pick the “right” choices—there are multiple ways to befriend and romance each character.
*Three different endings and 10 epilogues depending on the characters you romanced/befriended.
*Collect mad ties to show off you excellent taste and impress your co-workers!
*And many ways to get horribly injured including dismemberment, decapitation, and immolation! (But don't worry, you're an immortal, you'll shake it off.)

Progress:

Character Art (*Expression Sheet)
Total: 31%
[60%] Female PC* | Concept| Draft| Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[40%] Male PC* | Concept| Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[40%] Horsehead* | Concept| Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[40%] Billie* | Concept| Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[40%] Skully* | Concept| Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[40%] Shugug* | Concept| Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[40%] Pipnip* | Concept| Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[40%] ???* | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[20%] ??? | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[25%] ??? | Concept| Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[20%] ??? | Concept| Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Generic Soul | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Generic Demon | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Death’s Emissaries | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color

Backgrounds
Total: 16%
[5%] Purgatory (Street) | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Purgatory (Shop) | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Apartment (Exterior) | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Apartment (Interior) | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[40%] Office Hall 1 | Concept| Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Office Hall 2 | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Cafeteria | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Janitor’s Room | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[75%] Horsehead’s Office | Concept| Draft| Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Billie’s Room | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Protagonist’s Office | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[5%] Elevator | Concept | Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color
[40%] Reception Hall | Concept| Draft | Clean Lineart | Touchup | Color

Writing
[10%] Outline (Main Story)
[10%] Outline (Character Scenarios)
[10%] Outline (Mission Scenarios)

Other things to do
[0%] Color Backgrounds
[0%] GUI
[0%] SFX
[0%] Music
[2%] CGs
[15%] Programming

Early Development Feedback Questionnaire

*Presently being re-worked/written.

Staff

Strangerella
Chikao (http://chikao-art.tumblr.com/)

[gekiganwing]

*Are there any features you’d like to request while the game is still in early development?
...
*Would you like more romanceable/friend-able main characters at the expense of longer development time? Potential candidates right now include Death, Anubis, and a denizen from heaven but we're also open for suggestions.

Your project already includes quite a few elements: point and click gameplay, a variety of characters, multiple possible relationships, and several endings. Be careful with scope creep! You will benefit by making sure that you (and your team) do not commit to creating more than you can handle.

Do you plan to sell Hell Corp as an indie game? If this is a commercial project, then you can justify paying people to create art assets, playtest the game, and so on. However, if this is a freeware project, be very careful. I have seen a few too many ambitious freeware VNs and video games get quietly canceled because the creators could not justify dedicating time and effort to their projects.

*Relationships aren’t determined by stats nor do you have to pick the “right” choices—there are multiple ways to befriend and romance each character.

That's an interesting idea. It sounds like a good way to reduce frustration. I will try to remember it.

*What do you think of the corporate setting? At present, do you find it at all engaging or off-putting? Do you have any concerns or comments?

I like the "office in the afterlife" concept. It could be amusing, and it does not need to seem realistic.

*What do you think of the art style? Any complaints and/or criticisms?

I like most 2D drawn art, and so I find this appealing. I found the non-human character drawings interesting.

In my opinion, this could also work with 3D polygon art if it does not include realistic human characters.

[Strangerella]

Hello gekiganwing,

First off, thank you for your feedback! It’s really appreciated.

...

I agree completely. We’re being very cautious with our workload right now (in fact, we've started several projects before that all fell flat because we couldn’t keep up so we’re trying to learn from those experiences) and I’m perhaps makings this game sound more grand than it actually is. The story is relatively linear and the relationship system is just an added flavor to the game so I wouldn’t call it as in-depth as most standard otome or dating sims. Likewise, the point-and-click gameplay isn’t as engrossing as, say, Sam & Max or you know, any Telltale game. I’m not saying they’re not as integral to the game but we’re definitely keeping things on the simple side. Aaaand we only decided to go with a point-and-click adventure after the coding for it was finished.

We’re not sure if it’s going to be commercial. At present, we’re shooting for something more akin to an extended demo…If that makes any sense at all. That said, we want a minimum of a working game with most assets put together before we even consider asking for money.

...

Honestly, the idea of working with branches rather than stats comes from the early days of Baldur’s Gate mods. If I remember correctly (and it’s been a while), some of the old romance mods had you pick almost any dialogue choice you wanted and progression was made by some very obvious/blatant choices which would open up new dialogue branches. So that’s where I drew the inspiration from since I find stat systems often break immersion.

...

If I knew how to use 3d modeling of any kind, I probably would. Unfortunately, I’d rather stick with the skillset I have now instead of learning a new trade (even if would most likely reduce workload in the long run), but it’s definitely something I’ve considered and might pick up at a later date.

Again, thank you for the feedback. You really gave me some things to consider and keep in mind.

[Zelan]

*Are there any features you’d like to request while the game is still in early development?
Since you mentioned collecting ties, I'm going to use this opportunity to put in my formal request that at least one be a bow tie.
*What do you think of the corporate setting? At present, do you find it at all engaging or off-putting? Do you have any concerns or comments?
It's very cool There aren't too many games with settings like this. I played the demo for a text-only adventure novel called Choice of the Deathless a long time ago that I'm kind of reminded of (corporate setting, immortal characters, romance in Hell), but at the same time this seems to be a very different story.
*What do you think of the art style? Any complaints and/or criticisms?
I'm not really the best judge of art but I like what I see. ^_^
*Would you like more romanceable/friend-able main characters at the expense of longer development time? Potential candidates right now include Death, Anubis, and a denizen from heaven but we're also open for suggestions.
You have 5 options already (which is pretty much my favorite number for romance options - not too many to keep track of but still a nice amount to interact with). However, if you do end up adding another main character, I would really like to see the denizen from Heaven. If done right, the interactions between what would essentially be two different cultures could make for an amazing side plotline that I would love to be able to explore. (Think about the ideas and misconceptions that Heaven and Hell would have about one another!)
*Do you have any other questions about gameplay, story, characters, etc.?
Not at the moment, but I'll be watching this thread! c:

[Strangerella]

Hello hello Zelan!

It's funny that you mention it because we also wanted to add bowties. It's presently on the back log of development. Although it's not a priority and it may not make it into the final game, we're definitely considering adding bowties (and possibly other little accessories).

...

Shortly after you posted, I went out and read/played the demo for Choice of the Deathless and it was so good I bought it. It only took a few hours to read but holy crud, it was written really well. I think I found a new favorite author to add to my list of favorite authors, so thank you for the suggestion!

...

Thank you for the suggestion. Currently the heavenly denizens are in the concept stage but I'll be posting some of the concepts and (hopefully) some finished linework this upcoming Wednesday. That said, the story will have the player and protagonist interacting with heavenly entities for plot purposes.

And thank you again for taking the time to offer feedback/suggestions Zelan!

...

And on a related note; I updated the intro page with some minor art assets like colored portraits and backgrounds.

We've currently worked out a checklist of everything that needs to be done and what takes priority and hopefully we'll have a reliable schedule by next week, then we can start updating regularly. At the moment it looks like everyone can look for updates on Wednesdays or Thursdays.

[Hazel-Bun]

Funky premise but I'm loving it. Good luck!

[Strangerella]

Thank you Hazel-Bun!

Aaaaaaand, I'm just dropping in to update anyone whose interested in upcoming...er, updates. Finals were last week so we didn't really have time to work on anything but we should have more information this Wednesday (May 18th, that is). Also, now that school's done with for the Summer we expect to make substantial progress over the next few months. Right now, I'm working a technical demo for our own use and I hope to have the next batch of concepts up by (at least) this Friday which includes the antagonists, some generic NPC's, and a side character or two.

[Zelan]

School's over for you already? Lucky. cx Good for you, though! I'm looking forward to the future updates.

[Strangerella]

I feel lucky to! I was having a heck of a time trudging through finals this semester. In any case, thank you!

And hello again everyone!

As promised, here's some updated information* about Hell Corp. I put together a little progress report of sorts but I'll make it look more formal at a later date.

Progress

*Character Art: 9 of 13 characters have been drawn and outlined, 5 of 13 characters are colored.
*Maps/Background: 8 of 20 backgrounds have been drawn, 15 of 20 backgrounds have concepts/sketches, none of them have been colored beyond the initial concepts.
*Assignments/Mission Scenarios: 9 of 13 mission scenarios have been outlined.
*Writing: Main story has been outlined, individual character arcs need to be discussed and outlined.
*CGs: 3 of 15 CGs have very basic sketches/concepts/

Things that have yet to be started:
*The GUI
*Maps/Backgrounds coloring
*Item/Inventory images need to be drawn and colored
*Music and sound-effects

And here's a preview of the things we've been working on:







...With more to come in the following week!

*I'll be heavily editing the initial post tomorrow/May 19th.

[Strangerella]

Hello again, fine people!

I wasn't able to update sooner because we decided to rework everything from (mostly) scratch. That said, all character portraits will be done in a new art style (as drawn and colored by Chikao) and I'll be working on making more dynamic maps and backgrounds. We also changed some story elements, adjusted gameplay, and are talking about music and sound effects now.

While we technically set ourselves behind, the workload is now more evenly distributed and we'll be working on a proper schedule for the upcoming Summer. Aaaaaand I'm 99% certain that the art style won't change again so we'll be sticking with what we have now and should hopefully make regular progress from here on out.

[Zelan]

I'm liking the new concept for the female protagonist - the papers in her hand help to establish the setting a bit more. ^_^ Good to hear that you guys have organized things more!