Emmrich Mission - The Sacrifice of Souls
Mission Overview
This is the final mission in Emmrich’s narrative arc, and the mission that sets up a pivotal choice that will leave the player picking between Manfred’s life, and Emmrich’s dreams.
While designing this mission we had two main goals that acted as the pillars. Firstly, Manfred had to be a part of the mission and needed to play a role in its success. We crafted moments that highlighted his growth, giving the player opportunities to see his personality shine and further emphasizing Emmrich’s and Manfred’s bond.
Secondly was the Bone Golem, Hezenkoss’s undead creation. I pitched and designed the attacks and phases, that would allow the Bone Golem to participate in the fight in a meaningful way; not just existing as a narrative set piece. At the same time, keeping the focus on Hezenkoss as the primary antagonist, striking a balance between the two threats.
In the end we created a follower mission that upholds Emmrich’s values as a character, delivering the emotional stakes needed for the difficult choice while meeting the player’s expectations of a climactic fight against a master necromancer and her monstrous creature.
My Contributions
Direct IC from Concept to Shippable
Whitebox / Layout Design
Mission Scripting
Encounter Design and Scripting
Bone Golem Design and Scripting
Cinematic, Conversation and Banter Scripting
POD Runner
Polish and bug fixing
Dear Sweet Manfred
Video Timestamps 6:55, 10:43, 12:51
While designing this mission, we didn’t want it to be just a gauntlet of fighting enemies until you reached the big bad at the end; that’s not Emmrich, nor would it leave room to highlight our lovely skeleton butler Manfred. Throughout Emmrich’s arc, Manfred is a character that players would fall in love with, and the POD and I wanted to make sure that he had moments to shine before his ultimate sacrifice.
To design these moments, we needed to be creative with how we utilized Manfred, working with his limitations rather than against. I collaborated closely with Emmrich’s writer to fully understand Manfred’s personality and use it to shape the beats that highlight him as a character. Whether it was squeezing through cracks in the foundation, avoiding encounters, appearing when needed or reaching out of reach places to create ways through for the player, we ensured the design made his contributions feel integral and memorable.
These small moments of levity, where Manfred was the focus, not only gave the player a break from the action but also reinforced the bond between the characters, making his sacrifice and the choice players would have to make, all the more impactful.
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