Arc #486856, Nothing Else Remains - looking for feedback


Bubbawheat

 

Posted

I have an arc in progress that I would like some feedback on:
Arc ID: 486856
Keywords: Solo Friendly, Origin Story, Drama
Length: Very Long (5 missions)
First Published: 02/20/2011 10:26pm
Morality: Vigilante
Level Range: 20-29; 1-14 for the flashback at the beginning.
Enemy Groups: Skulls, Council, Two custom groups.
Description: Anathocleos had been tracking the man who murdered his family for years. The chase crossed star systems. Now that he had caught up with him on Earth, nothing was coming between him and revenge.

This is my first arc, and since I published it I've learned some things from playing really good arcs. I'm now vaguely dissatisfied with this one, and I've got a complete rewrite in the works, but before I take it down I'd like to have some people look at it and find out as many of the specific problems with it as possible.

-- The current lack of descriptions for the custom enemies is a symptom of the arc being unfinished. I'm aware that I need those.

-- Does the gameplay seem balanced? It's intended to be doable but challenging on solo.

-- Some things that I'm planning to keep after the rewrite include
* the 'tech dealers' custom group, including their boss, Will Jackson. Their power choices are a bit random; this is intentional, as they use a mix of alien technology from different sources. Do they seem balanced? Do the costumes look good? If not, are they too flamboyant or not enough? Are the engineers overpowered?
* the mechanic of having the player experience Anathocleos' memories. It will be restricted to one of four missions, though. In the others the player will take a more active role.
* the general outline of the story, including the fairly horrible things that happen at the end (i.e. in the fourth mission). This is supposed to be the story of the main character's crossing the line from hero to vigilante (or maybe from vigilante to villain?), after all. Is there a standardized disclaimer that I should put in the arc description? On the other hand, the player may be able to prevent the worst of it, I haven't decided yet.

-- I'm planning to take out the epilogue. I like the idea, but I put it together fairly hurriedly and in my opinion it's the weakest of the five missions. Having the player personally present for the events at the end of what's currently Mission 4 will leave the epilogue unneccesary, I think.

Well that was long-winded. Anyway, I'd appreciate it if anyone could post their comments on this. Thanks.


 

Posted

Here's those arcs that I suggested in chat earlier:

A Wake for Dead 6 #379160 by Clave Dark 5 - has alternate storytelling and shifting timelines.
Who Dares Wins #454805 by Zaphir and The Most Important Thing - both have a dramatic scene involving loss or sacrifice.
The Cave #459590 by Tangler - the first mission is a well done mostly empty mission, and there's a great ally/hologram effect.


 

Posted

Thanks.

Also, I've unpublished the first draft of the arc. The rewritten version is coming along nicely, though. Thanks for the advice, everyone.