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So, my team is working on a Valentines' Day VN special, and have decided that we're going to make it chat/text based. Basically, the plot is: Since the story will mostly take place on the chat app, I suggested we add features like private messaging and calls. The group feels that this is a lot similar to Mystic Messenger so they fear the backlash. I, on the other hand, feel that there's no reason to worry because a lot of apps have the same features.

I ask for your advice and suggestion on how to make it stand out apart from MM? How do we meet a happy middle?

I really want that call feature. ^^;

Why would there be a backlash? There are plenty of game clones of other games that have been happily received... sometimes fans of a game want more of the same.

In fact the usual reaction to me seeing a clone of a good game is "why isn't it MORE like what it's trying to copy?" (in terms of copying the good features about it).

SundownKid wrote:Why would there be a backlash? There are plenty of game clones of other games that have been happily received... sometimes fans of a game want more of the same.

In fact the usual reaction to me seeing a clone of a good game is "why isn't it MORE like what it's trying to copy?" (in terms of copying the good features about it).

This response makes me feel a whole lot better. I'm not sure why they feel like fans of the game will call us out for having similar features. I guess they don't want it to seem like we're stealing ideas? I mean, the story itself does have similar plot lines when it comes to the stalker and being in a group chat, but that doesn't mean it's 100% based off of MM. I just want them to understand it from my point of view

I would be more concerned about distinguishing it from Unfriended.

There is no such thing as originality any more, everything has been done one way or the other. I sometimes make a story that can be considered original and when I disassemble it to it's core parts, morality or general plot, I realise it's very similar to another story. And even when you don't know such a story, it's almost definately already made. For example, I made Pervert&Yandere because I thought the idea of a yandere being obsessed with a perverted MC was something original-ish. Then, about 4 months into the making and with my first draft long finished, I watched an anime called Shimoneta. I was shocked and in despair when I saw them feature (among other things) a yandere and a pervert trying to survive her antics in what was pretty much a more comedic version of what my story was. And they even had a gorilla-guy with almost the exact same personality as Madam Aberdeen. Never before have I watched the events of a series unfold with more dread than with that show.

Don't strive to make something completely original, if your game looks like Mystic Messenger then use that to your advantage. Look at what they did to make things work, what did they do wrong that you could improve upon, etc.

Mammon wrote:Shimoneta

To be fair, it's Kajou who's the pervert. Okuma is more or less dragged along for her antics.

Mama J wrote:I ask for your advice and suggestion on how to make it stand out apart from MM? How do we meet a happy middle?
I really want that call feature. ^^;

Danganronpa, Nine Hours, Nine Persons, Nine Doors, and Corpse Party are all about a group of trapped people trying to get out alive—two of which take place in a school. The premise for how they can escape is unique, despite the overall situation being similar. So it's certainly possible to write about the same subject from a different point of view. Just add your own spin to it.

So You Want To Be Original was recommended to me before.

Also, Everything is a Remix

I remember rewriting a story of mine half a dozen times due to this exact reason.
Each time I rewrote it, I found another media (made after I wrote my story) that was, in its basic structure, almost identical. In some scenes, word for word.

After a few years I realized I was getting nowhere so decided to just use my original story.
Screw what people think, it's my story and I'm the one telling it.
Admittedly, I always did have time stamped Google Docs backups as proof that I wrote it before the stuff I found it similar to, came out.

My point is, if you obsess over 'its too similar', you'll just end up circle-jerking and your project may well fall through.
Now if only you can convince your team of this.

Don't worry about copying story elements or mechanics. As has been pointed out, there is nothing original or new under the sun - and IF by some MIRACLE you discover something that hasn't been done before in a story that's probably an indication it would make for a horrible story, since the billions of humans before you have passed on using it.

EXECUTION is everything. The story you are telling often doesn't matter as much as how you tell it. And yes, if a game you are using mechanics from has BETTER mechanics, than by all means, steal those. Don't create an inferior version of the mechanics just because you feel like being worse would be more 'fair'. I'm like Sundownkid - the only issue I have with clones or copies of games is when they aren't at least as good as the original. "You had a blueprint of what worked best, right in front of you, and you ignored it! Come on developers!"

Go BEYOND what the other game did. Polish their mechanics and really make them shine. Add what you feel they missed - you get the benefit of their hindsight.

Taleweaver wrote:Also, Everything is a Remix

^^^This. Absolutely this!

I believe in this concept so much! Even stories that people describe as "original" can often be compared to other works. The difference between a perceived "remix" and a "rip-off" is that the creator takes already used ideas and does something that feels different than previous works. As Picasso put it, "Good artists borrow, great artists steal."

Katy133 wrote:

Taleweaver wrote:Also, Everything is a Remix

Even stories that people describe as "original" can often be compared to other works. The difference between a perceived "remix" and a "rip-off" is that the creator takes already used ideas and does something that feels different than previous works. As Picasso put it, "Good artists borrow, great artists steal."

Came to say this, too. There's really no such thing an original story--everything comes down to the same basic elements as something else. How you tell the story is what matters. I care more about the characters, their motivations, and how they interact with one another more than some unique setting or premise.

Yunou wrote:There's really no such thing an original story--everything comes down to the same basic elements as something else. How you tell the story is what matters. I care more about the characters, their motivations, and how they interact with one another more than some unique setting or premise.

A good place to look at for examples of films with similar ideas, but different executions are the video essays by Couch Tomato on YouTube. Each video compares two seemingly different and unrelated films and explains why they are the "same movie."

Here is one of my favourites: One film is a dark and gritty superhero movie, the other is a children's comedy. Yet they have some interesting overlaps.

I'm eagerly waiting for Batman V Richie Rich: Dawn of Money.

A couple years ago, the freeware VN group Music Box Studios encountered some difficulties. Their early Tumblr posts imply that their story would be called Katawa Shoujo 2, but that the project would not be a direct sequel. I believe they intended to create a thematically similar story in the same setting, but with different characters, and occurring several years later. This caused problems, because Four Leaf Studios puts limits on fan labor. Then there was a Tumblr post in which one person in the group wrote, "We are currently taking the necessary measures to rename the game so it is no longer related to Katawa Shoujo." A couple posts later, one of the members wrote "This will be an entirely new game."

I have no problem with visual novels being thematically similar. Though I would prefer if the similarities are limited to a few general, common elements. Something along the lines of "In both stories, heroic characters find compelling reasons to put aside their petty rivalry," or perhaps "In both stories, the antagonist and the protag have comparable backgrounds, but they aren't just opposites of each other."

I think it's wise to avoid writing a VN which is meant to have a strong resemblance one of your favorites. For instance, I would advise against writing fiction which is just like Dangan Ronpa, but the setting is a terraformed Mars. Likewise, I don't recommend creating a story which would be described as almost identical to Steins;Gate, but every character is ten years younger.

Trivia about Music Box Studios' project Full Hearts, if you're curious: