Storytelling Applied - The Game Maker's Companion: Game Development - page 201

guide. He finds a fishing boat that takes him to a merchant ship, on which he gets the post of
ship's boy (our second level).
Crossing the First Threshold
Flynn crosses the threshold in the third level. As the pirates attack, he crosses over to their ship to
hide and to let them take him to the Pirate King. Before then, he would have been able to go back
on the merchant ship, but this is the point of no return and now he can no longer go back. He has
to stay hidden. The fog also stops him from going home. Even if he did manage it, his ordinary
world is now no longer the same, as it is being poisoned.
Tests, Allies, and Enemies
Here's the fun part of our story. We'll have plenty of scope to throw baddies and challenges at the
player. Flynn arrives at Rogues' Rendezvous, the pirate town, and has to find his mother. He
rescues several prisoners (unexpected allies) in an attempt to get the right piece of information.
Finally, he is led to the town sheriff, who is a major baddie himself. Flynn defeats him and he
promises to show the way to the Pirate King and Mary. He takes Flynn to the entrance to the
caves. As Flynn enters, the sheriff chuckles to himself; although he is actually telling the truth
about the Pirate King's lair, he thinks that there is little chance of Flynn surviving the journey. The
scary path is full of poisonous spiders and maggots. Even if he survives that, there is the guardian
at the other end to consider.
Let's have the sheriff talking to himself as he walks away from the cave. Flynn doesn't hear
him. “Heh, good luck tackling the guardian, my young fool.” This is another bit of foreshadowing
and it helps us instill a bit of caution and fear in the player. Who exactly is the guardian?
Approach to the Innermost Cave
Flynn survives the cave, of course, and at the end there is indeed a giant monster. The boss of the
cave level waits here as a final test before the innermost cave. This could be a huge fire-breathing
dragon. As it breathes fire, it sets alight some of the poisonous mushrooms, which then explode in a
rain of acid. Flynn has to trick the dragon to set fire to mushrooms that explode near its own body.
Archie will here be extra helpful, so that what happens in the next stage is more of a shock. As the
dragon is defeated, Flynn takes a deep breath as he steps through the door. He is about to see his
mother for the first time, and he is nervous. Behind him, Archie follows with a guilty look on
his face.
The Ordeal
Here, we arrive at the first twist in our tale. Flynn manages to get past the guardian and is allowed
an audience with the Pirate King.
But what's this? He is actually expecting Flynn. “Well done, Archie! Who knew a stupid parrot
could be that useful?” Archibald is revealed as a trickster! He has taken Flynn through thick and
thin to deliver him into the hands of the Pirate King. To his defense, he looks slightly ashamed of
it. The Pirate King has plans for Flynn. He has Mary locked up, but hasn't been able to get the
information he wanted from her, even though he has tried every nasty piece of torture he could
think of.
He calls for Mary and the guards carry a bedraggled woman in and throw her to the floor. The
Pirate King explains that this little lady stole his treasure 17 years ago and made off with it.
The first time Flynn sees his mother, she is presented as a thief.