Puzzles and Level Design

[BentonGrey]

Howdy guys, I'm working on something that I want to be mostly a puzzle level, but sense I'm using EZScript, I'm somewhat limited in what I can do.  Does anyone have any suggestions for creating interesting puzzle and trap levels in FF?

[BentonGrey]

Well, feel free to offer thoughts, but I've got this particular mission figured out.  Whether or not it will be fun to play is another matter....

[spydermann93]

Benton, nothing that you have made thus far has been terrible, or even bad.

I'm sure that whatever you came up with or whatever that you will come up with will be excellent in quality and playability.

[BentonGrey]

Thanks Spyder, that's very high praise, though I doubt if I live up to it.

[Cyber Burn]

You more than live up to any praise we can offer up Benton.

[BentonGrey]

Shucks guys, you're makin' me blush. 

[cmdrkoenig67]

I love your mods, B...I wish I was even half as adept as you are at making EZ Script work.

Dana

[BentonGrey]

Thanks Dana!  Practice makes perfect man, and to get things done you often have to make compromises.

[cmdrkoenig67]

Very true, B...I'd love to see puzzles or more elaborate traps being used in a mod (or even be able to put them in mine too).  I guess it takes some careful thought about what can actually be done in the game and what can't.

RIDDLE PUZZLES:

1. A simple puzzle I thought of is a riddle puzzle involving two doorways.  One doorway is trapped (perhaps with a fire, electric or acid trap) and the other is safe to walk through, with a tricky riddle to try and lead the player to the correct door.  Perhaps the riddle could appear in text as the character nears the doors (maybe a "local cutscene" could be set off to display the riddle)?  This lady or the tiger concept can be used for treasure chests, one is a trap and the other is the real treasure.

2. Another simple riddle puzzle could involve a series of levers, only one opens a door and all the other levers trigger some sort of trap?

3. Another riddle also based on the lady or the tiger concept (like the two doorways in example one), could involve an object to be touched (like a series of statues...A row of angel statues perhaps).  The riddle will lead the player to touch the correct object and they get their prize, but if they touch the wrong one, a horrible monster appears to beat the heroes up?

OTHER PUZZLES:

1. A puzzle level could involve a number of buttons or switches to reveal a prize or treasure, but only one works.  There doesn't need to be a riddle involved, just randomly pulling the switches until you find the correct one.

2.  Another simple puzzle could be lighting torches to open a doorway or to reveal a secret passage that could take you to another level?

3. A minefield puzzle involving different colored markers on the ground where some would indicate safe zones and some would indicate where the mines are (the mines could be fire, marked with red or freezing mines marked with blue and maybe green areas mark vine traps, safe areas could be marked with black or white, etc...).  This could be a riddle puzzle also, with the riddle maybe indicating the safe markers?

4. Teleport trap that has several teleportation disks to stand on, one disk might get you closer to your goal, some might send you into danger zones and others might take you back to the start of the map?

That's all I can think of at the moment, B....But maybe they'll spark some ideas for you.

Dana

[BentonGrey]

Those are great ideas, Dana.  I had adapted a very rough version similar to one of those already, but you've given me some ideas on how to expand it and make it less lame (hopefully).   

I REALLY wish One-Shot Power Trap worked in EZScript.  That would make this INFINITELY more do-able.  As it is, I can't figure out how to do some of these things.  What I'd really like is to do a riddle trap like you suggested, the wrong answers exacting a cost in damage via some type of trap.  There might be some way to approximate that through the simple choice encounter, but I can't think of any way to do it with objects as opposed to a character.

[oldmanwinters]

I don't think I've ever played a puzzle level in FFvTR.  Sounds fun (and potentially frustrating, but maybe in a good way)!

[BentonGrey]

Haha, as it stands, this level won't be much more than a curiosity.