Terminus: Lockdown Gameplay

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ATLAS FALLEN (2023)

Platform: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Microsoft

Windows

Company: Deck13 Interactive

"Atlas Fallen" is an open-world action RPG that can be played solo or co-op. You take on the role of an "Unnamed" who unearthed a magical gauntlet that grants access to shape-shifting weapons and devastating sand-powered abilities. As the Gauntlet Bearer, set out on an epic journey to challenge the oppressive Sun God and liberate the world of Atlas.

MY contributions

When I first joined the team, the quest department was new. The existing quests were not up to standards and had many narrative issues. Thus, we were tasked to rewrite and redesign them. While I was the main owner of some quests, I have also supported others with tasks like building cutscenes, writing adjustments, and bug fixing.

Aside from that, I took on other responsibilities such as NPC behaviours and refining quest UI logic. I was also involved in the creation and early iterations of some quests for the DLC: Reign of Sand, but they were cut due to budgetary reasons.

Quests

One of the biggest challenges to quests in Atlas Fallen is that they need to fit both the narrative-driven and seamless co-op aspects of the game. Quests were designed with scenarios that do not restrict solo or co-op playstyles while maintaining the depth of gameplay and story. I was allowed to be extremely hands-on in developing a quest, from writing the quest to scripting the logic. The quest logic was made using the visual scripting system of Deck13's proprietary engine, Fledge.

Some quests that I have worked on:

Eyes in the Desert

This is an exploratory quest. While visiting Castrum VII in Caladrias, players meet Keeneyes who explains that her siblings are stationed as lookouts throughout the desert and asks to check on them. Players need to set out into the desert and reach their locations. They soon discover that one of the lookouts is missing, leaving only a journal and a "treasure map" as clues to his whereabouts.

In this quest, players are incentivised to explore the desert and learn some of the villagers' backstories. Incorporating the "treasure map" creates an interesting scenario where players try to seek out the landmark on the map to find the missing lookout. This part also serves as an introduction for players who have not discovered "treasure maps" yet.

The Old Mine

This is a combat-driven quest. Tasked with overseeing the duties of Castrum VII's villagers are the sons of the elder. If players offer to help, they will learn that Wraiths have infested the mine near the village, restricting access. Players must enter the mine and defeat the Wraiths before reporting to Cutstone, the mine foreman. Alternatively, players can also start this quest by talking to Cutstone first.

These 2 NPCs also act as guidance. Their dialogues brief players about the status of the village and hints about other potential quests around the level. Through this quest, players learn more about the Essence mines nearby and also get introduced to the Shellbasher enemy type.

Poetic Muse

The quest weaves several gameplay elements together into a storyline. Upon entering the Craters in Monsalar: The Wildlands, players can hear the echo of a ghastly voice. Players can choose to follow the voice, which leads to an inept Sonneteer lamenting about his writer's block. He will send players out to bring back 3 specific items that may help his inspiration. Each of them is acquired through different challenges: breaking the Sungod Statue, combat and traversal. Upon returning with the items, players can also help compose the poem.

This quest has a more comedic tone to it. It is a slight break from the bleak world that ends with a poem of hope (though it was dreadfully composed by the Sonneteer).

The Scouts

The Scouts used to be an official quest but was cut due to budgetary reasons. Instead of completely scrapping everything, they were salvaged to be modified as guidance NPCs that would provide hints to the player on available quests or points of interest. Players can discover them near major locations with quests or items of interest. After removing the quest logic, I staged these Scouts throughout the level and rewrote their lines to fit the change.

quest cutscenes

At that time, we lacked resources on the animation side and I was assigned certain cutscene tasks. I made the cutscenes without additional animation support using only gameplay animations and existing assets.

Some cutscenes I built:

Building Bridges Quest Cutscene (Side Quest)

At the end of the Building Bridges quest, the player raises the broken stone bridge and restores the path to Castrum VII, ending the plight of the stranded villagers.

Conjurer Boss Fight Intro (Main Quest)

After crushing all Sundial chains, the path to the Citadel opens. However, Thelos stands in the player's way before summoning the Conjurer.

The Black Alms Vista (Main Quest)

Upon arriving at the Black Alms, the player will reach a point with a visible vista of the area. Nyaal and the player discuss their next goals from there.

NPC behaviours and staging

I was primarily responsible for the NPCs in the Caravan Camp, Castrum VII and Fortress of Bastengar. My tasks involved plotting their pathfinding behaviour, staging, and ensuring they had the correct setup. Additionally, I fixed bugs and narrative inconsistencies for the ones with dialogues. I collaborated closely with the narrative team to align on the culture of the world and made sure NPCs would behave in cohesion with it.

The Tithe Caravan

After character creation, the player finds themselves in the camp. It is learned that the caravan had barely escaped a deadly sandstorm and set camp to recover. Having survived a catastrophic event, the people around the camp are mostly dejected and exhausted. The camp allows the player to discover more about the social castes in play.

Castrum VII

Castrum VII is a settlement located in Caladrias. The villagers are growing restless from the increasing Wraith threats, and some of them are stranded on the other side of the desert due to the bridge's collapse. The player can explore the village to learn more about its people, and their activities and help some of them.

The Fortress of Bastengar

An underground fort where the remnants of the Knights of Bastengar reside. After the events in Caladrias, the player will escort the Castrum VII villagers here. The knights are initially sceptical of the Gauntlet Bearer because of their history with the Gauntlet, but they welcome the player and the refugees nonetheless. The player can learn more about the knights here or visit the refugees in their camp below the fortress.

QUEST INDICATORS

I was also in charge of the quest indicators for all quests and ensured the logic for each quest would update the indicators correctly. This included quest markers on the map, quest icons on the NPC's name and quest-related dialogues.