"The Big Heat" [working title] Game Design Document

Last update: 7-Dec-1997 by ABS.

Contents:

• Preface -- A Warning to the Reader
• Section 1 -- Structure and Substance Summary
• Section 2 -- Story: "The Case of the Missing Fork"
• Section 3 -- Technical Notes
• Appendix A -- Time Stations and Eras Reference
• Appendix B -- Locations Reference
• Appendix C -- Characters Reference
• Appendix D -- Equipment and Artefact Reference
• Appendix E -- Vehicles and Transportation Networks
• Appendix F -- Further Resources
• Appendix G - Graphical Reference [see attached]
• Appendix H -- Historical Reference

FRAGMENTS

 
random notes: 

10/31/94 
 
The Watchers 
 
Live with Indians and watch explorers from afar, found  
earthquake through years of patience, basically  
anthropologists, had to be ready during the same time  
interval each day to make the jump out over a 20 year period! 
 
11/1/94 
 
The game is like a comic book.  The player moves from frame  
to frame.  A framecan have: narration, thought balloons,  
dialog balloons, active objects, and animation/view change- 
ability.  Some frames are totally staic, some are like an  
interactive flight simulator. 
 
"Punting" 
 
It has been my experience that if you use a medium too  
aggressively, you create an impression of limited response,  
often the opposite impression you intend.  Conversely, if you  
attempt effects which the medium is "overqualified" to  
acheive, you can create an impression of unlimited  
capability, responsiveness and resolution.  I call this  
effect "punting."  One interesting example of this effect  
being used well is at the Magic Kingdom at Walt Disney World,  
in the Walt Disney Story attraction.  A film is shown of  
Walt's life, but it appears to be a photo album on the  
screen.  For a few minutes we look at black and white still  
pictures in the album, and then some of the pictures begin to  
move and change colors, which for a moment seems astonishing  
because our expectations have been set so low. 
 
11/15/94 
 
A lot of time recruits in '46 were told that they were  
testing captured secret Nazi weapons. 
 
Octet is run by what look like ETs (really humans in the  
future, after genetic engineering) and their envoy to 20th  
century humans is a guy called "Joe from New York" (really  
Judge Joseph Force Crater). 
 

• rainy night at mission
• >>>
• [see dictaphone tape]