Before the Storm

Frame · Time relations temporal

Something big is imminent – the calm before, the preparation, the last chance to act before everything changes.

Design question – Your game takes place before a great event. What is coming – and how does knowing it change every action in the here and now?

Reference example – Fallout 4: the morning before the nuclear strike, an ordinary day in the suburbs. Plants vs. Zombies: planting before the first wave arrives.

Associations

• Typical Activities – Preparing, Stockpiling, Warning, Deciding (what matters?)

Coherence

Mechanisms: Timer (implicit – the event is coming), Stockpiling (laying in supplies), Escalation (the signs grow clearer). Activities: Preparing, Stockpiling, Warning, Deciding (what matters?). Ludic Narrational Structure: linear narration (build-up to the climax), Kishōtenketsu (the turning point as the event itself).