Creating Quests
Written by ThrondirIntroduction
Quests are various tasks that are given to the player for a reward. A player would possibly have to find keys, kill dragons, save damsels in distress. Requiring skills, quick and sharp thinking, as well as a bit of hard work and patience. But in the world of scripting and game creation, quests have different requirements until one is able to create a meaningful quest.
But first, some general background on quests.
Types of Quests
There are different types of quests, each have their own unique flavor that can add to the whole of a game project. Some quests require a lot of time, in which a player would have to do task after task. Some may require logical thinking and problem solving, where a player may be confronted with a witty, riddle-spurting dragon. And yet some others might just need a few well-placed blows; the accumulation of a player’s training.
Side-Quests
Side-quests are exactly what their name implies; quests on the side. They are not essential to the progress of the game’s story, nor do they need to be completed for a person to finish a game. In most cases, side-quests are a chance for the protagonist to acquire something of value. This can range from experience points, enchanted weapons and armors, treasures, background information, or new joinable or playable characters. With the completion of a side-quest, the game can get easier for the player. It can also offer insight in the game’s story background. Such as in a quest where a peasant is saved by a group of soldiers. After the exchange of swords, the player might found out that an evil king rules the land. Dispatching the group of soldiers may not be essential the the completion of the game. A player is still able to confront the evil king without even seeing the endangered peasant, but the little bit of information given from such a quest, can provide more clues to the game’s story.
Quest Chains
Quest chains are referred to the quests that go in a sequential order. Usually the beginning of a quest chain happens near the time when a player first encounters something new. Be it encountering a new race of creatures, seeing a majestic city for the first time, or simply beginning the next chapter of the game. Quest chains usually tell a single story, the progress of the story revealing itself little by little, for each part of the quest chain that is completed. The quest chain would increase in difficulty for each part of the chain. With each step completed, it will explain the reason for each quest, and how it ties with the previous ones.
Plot Quests
Plot quests are usually a series of different quest where the player will have to find and solve different parts of a quest to form the bigger picture. Plot quests are usually for long and segmented stories where the protagonist will collect pieces of information in order to fully understand the whole point of quest. Each different part of the plot quests are usually different from each other in that they will have all together different storylines. One part of a plot quest can be about the extermination of a whole village of goblins by ruthless soldiers, while another part could be of the protagonist’s discovery of an enchanted sword. It may not be apparent to the player that the two are connected, but as the plot quests unfold, the player will find out that the two seemingly separate quests are actually related. Maybe the reason for the soldier’s march on the goblins is because they are looking for that very sword which the protagonist discovered. For each part of the plot quests that are completed, another piece of the puzzle is added, until the player will be able to see the whole picture. Plot quests don’t have to go in a sequential order, and the player could choose to do one part of the plot quests before doing another. However, this is something a game author should decide on as it might be needed to do some parts first before doing some others. At the end of the plot quests, there is usually the last quest where it ties in all other quests and parts.
Fetch Quests
These types of quests are related with the many overused quests in role-playing games today. They usually deal with the player finding an item of worth to an NPC (Non-playable character), ending with the player giving that item to the NPC. Fetch quests are in many cases sequential. Usually in the sequential fetch quests, a player will have to give an NPC an item, only to find out that the NPC needed another one or a different type of one. This can go on for as long as the game author sees fit. Fetch quests also deal with the killing quests, where a protagonist would have to slay a creature or rival of an NPC in order to complete the quest. Once the job is done, the player would then report back to the NPC, and either be rewarded, or given another quick task.
General Rules for Quests
Everything has rules! So it makes sense that there are rules for creating and forming quests.
Repetition is one thing to keep in mind when one is creating a quest. Nobody wants to play a game with the same task over and over again. Pretty soon, the game gets boring, thus all the hard work from creating all those similar quests are wasted. Many quests could be repetitions of each other, however, there must be a difference with each one. And if there is to be a repetition, it must be so that it would be accepted, and that a game author would know if a player will be willing to do such a thing again. Quests that are repeated should also be simple and quick quests, with a small reward at the end. An example of one, is of a trader who would buy Bear fur as long as the player has a few.
Playability is another factor for keeping quests interesting. As long as a quest is possible to do, and that it won’t take a heavy amount of time to accomplish, it is good. For quests that may require hours and hours of work that can be tedious, be careful, for that is dangerous grounds. The only reason quest can go on for hours, days, and maybe even weeks, if that if the quest has different aspects. In this way, the player won’t get bored to death before the end. There should always be something that will spark the interest of a player.
Rewards should be directly related to complexity of a quest, and the amount of time and effort a player puts in. If rewards are not balanced out equally, it can lead to a complete negligence of a quest. If perhaps doing a certain quest can lead to bigger rewards, and is easier to do, than naturally, the player would finish that quest first before tackling on to quests that have lower rewards for their difficulty. Rewards for players who have proven their worth in the game should also be available. For those players who manage to accomplish the top level of a game, complete one of the milestone quests, or have their combat skills so efficient that they can complete the hardest combat quests, then their work should be rewarded substantially.
What to add
A good game would be a type of game that has the benefits of all the types of quests. But of course, there are many different types of players, and so, making the right balance of the different types of quests would be one for the game developer to figure out and to decide what his target audience would be. Generally speaking however, a game developer should focus on sequential Quest Chains, and the Plot Quests. Usually, these are the main two ways for the story and plot of the game to unfold to the player. Not only that, these quests usually take most of the time as one would need to brainstorm the ideas for his quests, and present the quests to the player in a fitting and memorable way. Side quests and fetch quests would be good additions to a game, but remember, these types of quests are usually easier to script and write, and should not take a huge percentage of the time to develop the game.