In a hypothetical sequel...

[jack1974]

Ahem, don't think you'll see a sequel for this game this year, and probably not even next year (though might be possible). Anyway, I started the art production of Loren in February 2011, and was finished only 10 months later. So if I decide to do a sequel I would probably start the art this summer. The hypothetical question is this: you'd prefer to see a sequel taking place a few years later, so almost all characters would be present, since there wouldn't be any age problem, or many years after, so only a few could be present? Like Myrth since she doesn't age like other humans, and maybe the dwarves and Mesphit. But for example, Rei would be an old grumpy man...

[faerirose]

I think it depends on the plot. If you use

Spoiler:

Jul as the antagonist, I can't imagine her waiting very long to try to sieze power.

Or if you go the

Spoiler:

Amazon Prince

route, that could go either way. It could be during the rule of the child of

Spoiler:

Loren and Saren

or a century or two later to show how the changes in

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Amazon views on men and slaves and a friendship between humans and elves

have changed Aravorn as a whole.

That only kind of answers your question >_<

[jack1974]

Yes good points, stuff to consider when I decide to plan the plot.

Spoiler:

About Jul, she could be in charge now, but maybe wait some years to form another demon army, this assuming that demons will be the main evil even in the possible sequel

[pysali]

Off the top of my head I see four scenarios here:


1-3 Years later

Spoiler:

1. You set it almost immediately after the first game in terms of age. So 1-3 years later and Jul or another power rises up and everyone has to dust off and start swinging. Enough time will have passed to start seeing an impact, but you won't have to change too much art and everyone that was alive can still be alive (and sans babies or other things that would impact storytelling). This would be hard without making canonical ending(s) first of Loren being with either Saren/Elenor. Make it before babies and you don't have to worry about the Amazon prince not existing in the Elenor path.

20-25 years later

Spoiler:

2. Set twenty years in the future with different playables. The amazon prince if Saren/Loren or a new female amazon in power maybe? if it was Elenor/Loren though even the rise of a male amazon in the immediate future would cause a lot of strain on the amazons since they're radically and quickly changing a lot of their culture. Not every amazon would just go with that peacefully and be like 'you saved the world, so please, change our entire warrior culture! We are completely cool with that in an incredibly short time'. Hell Breza could even be the bad guy in this case or something. Some of the cast returning as party members and some returning as NPC's (mostly so there can be an impact from the first one in terms of what happens to everyone). That would be challenging unless you decided to 'choose' a canonical ending. And even then you'd need to choose two endings, one for Saren and one for Elenor's path. That would cause some crazy divergences depending on who was chosen and what happened for personal storytelling even if you kept it only to romancing Loren mostly because Saren/Loren make a Prince that could be the focus of the player character, but Elenor/Loren would make a... more Loren because she'd still be on the throne? A totally different person to follow around?

Hundreds to a thousand years later

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3. Set it hundred(s) of years in the future. Loren and the gang are almost mythical in the minds of modern people and have become something like the King Arthur/Robin Hood legends (a grain of possible truth buried under a lot of exaggerations). This could be really fun because you can also advance the society of the continent they live on. Want to keep it a level of fantasy magic? Okay, they could still be Conan/barbarian/dark ages villages and castles, or they could have advanced to a renaissance level and be in a weird age of magic!punk and mechanical devices (or industrial steampunk). You could reuse some art (with new clothes) though you'd have to commission all new art and backgrounds for a lot of it (and that would be expensive and time consuming) but storytelling wise it could be amazing. What's happened? Did Jul bide her time and decide to strike when people were at a peak of technology and culture, but had forgotten the demons and lessons of the past? Are the hero/heroine big fans of stories of old and want to find the hawk/I-forgot-the-name blade to fight off a new evil or because they're explorers and adventurers? Canon from the first game could be preserved with a simple opening survey since the 'truth' of what happened hundreds of years ago would be restricted to decaying parchment and local/regional legends so a player could select that they played Elenor, she romanced Rei or Saren, romanced Draco and it wouldn't affect more than one or two texts or pieces of lore the new players picked up.

Same time, different cast/location

Spoiler:

This one goes against what you're asking for in that it would be either a different cast of characters (possibly on a different continent?) who are also fighting evil/demons (maybe that's where Jul goes to build her army?) at around the same time as Loren and her gang are doing it on their continent. Since no one is really talking to each other from different lands it'd be the same setting.

Or you can do a side story and pick a secondary character as the focus. For instance you can do Breza and a band of characters that follow her around while she deals with political/social/world adventures during/after the first game. She's probably not going to be happy with what happened back home and perhaps strikes out with a newly freed servant to do some scouting/find herself/be a diplomat/offer relief services after the war and adventures ensue. Now the players can choose, be a freed man/elf who she's not happy she has to cart around, or perhaps a local elf/human woman who is tied to her by royal decree who she is not happy to have to cart around. And then a wacky goblin sidekick/comedy character and perhaps a hot nomad male/female, some new dwarves and so forth depending on where she wanders to.

Or a side story with Jul as the main focus. You play an up-and-coming minion (hot goblin of course for maximum player enjoyment ) who has to help their mistress rebuild her empire and fight skirmishes amongst the other demons for total power. Hey Jul can say she's the new Demon Queen, but she's gonna have to earn that title, especially with goblins and other critters.

[Themobboss]

I could see a few directions this could take.

A. Direct sequel with little time elapsed:

Advantages:
- It would be easy to establish backgrounds of characters since many were present in first game
-it would be cheaper to re-use some artwork
- emotional connection established for players and would help to hook people starting off with #2 into playing the first one

Disadvantages:
- It would require establishing a canon ending of Loren #1 or some method of player choosing the situation (who died, who's together)
- If re-using all the same cast it would limit new romances unless all the player characters are new and all or most of the old cast are non-playable
- Considering the unity fostered in Loren #1 a challenging foe might have to take a much different path (perhaps a seeking quest instead of battle of armies)

B. Direct Sequel long duration - Would have the advantage of canon being easier to fudge since so much time has passed. You'd lose some of the emotional connection initially since most or all of the established characters are gone. In reading the spoilered off suggestions I'd offer up another

Spoiler:

Since it's established in this universe that demons eventually become accepted in general society you could alternatively present a situation where Jul comes to redeem the demons in the eyes of the other people instead of being the big bad.

C. A third possibility not covered above could be to do a prequel.

Spoiler:

The history of Fost uncovered in the first game hints at two (at least) major plotlines in the area's history that could be expanded into a full game. The first would be the previous fight against Fost that left his armor split up and entombed. Since Loren the first is willing to show a bittersweet ending there's precendent in doing it again. You could have a younger Apolimesho leading a group of totally different heroes into an epic fight to blunt the first or previous attack Fost launches.
Another possbility is a story that covers Fost's initial journey since he obviously didn't start out as an empty suit of armor. He obviously started off as a powerful hero before his fall. What challenges did he face before falling?

[jack1974]

Wow thanks, lots of interesting suggestions I definitely want to do a steampunk game, though as pointed out most of the art wouldn't work - it's not like I'm planning to reuse ALL the art but maybe if some locations could be reused would be cool. But even excluding the "art problem", I would need also to redesign the game world, since for example there would be mechanical devices like guns, and of course would need new skills and such.

I honestly like also the idea of playing as Breza's companion or as Jul's minion, it could be interesting Also a sort of Jul's redemption. Considering that the expansion might change the end radically (when you'll play it you'll see, no spoilers) it would be cool to play a "good" Jul and would explain why the demons are accepted in Aravorn years later (in my other game Spirited Heart).
Also the prequel idea is very nice, though the ending might be a bit spoiler for those who played Loren already,

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like you'd know that Apolimesho daughter would die in the battle with Fost for example

. But still maybe would be worth playing it... thanks lots of good ideas to think about!

[pysali]

@Themoboss I love that prequel suggestion. That would be awesome.

@Jack You're welcome. I think about this game. I think about it way too much. :D

In way of the prequel suggestion

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It's okay to know in advance that someone is going to die. It's seeing them live that can be the amazing part. I would love to see Apolimesho's daughter especially if she's not treated as a victim or sacrifice, but as a capable party member/NPC that is working hard to fight Fost. Plus you already have a bunch of cast mates. Young Apolimesho, young two human generals and young Dark Elf Tobaar. Plus young previous Druid. No amazons though, unless you have an outcast/runaway who doesn't return since Loren's people weren't aware of what was happening/didn't participate the last time Fost got angsty.

[jack1974]

Spoiler:

I definitely don't imagine Apolimesho's daughter being a sacrificial victim, but more like a cool female wizard/apprentice that would fight until the end. As for the Amazons yes, probably none of them would take part in the game, maybe except for an outcast/runaway as you said.

A fully spoiled post!

[fleetp]

Let the elapsed time equate to the time between the release of the first game and the sequel.

[faerirose]

Wow thanks, lots of interesting suggestions I definitely want to do a steampunk game, though as pointed out most of the art wouldn't work - it's not like I'm planning to reuse ALL the art but maybe if some locations could be reused would be cool. But even excluding the "art problem", I would need also to redesign the game world, since for example there would be mechanical devices like guns, and of course would need new skills and such.

I honestly like also the idea of playing as Breza's companion or as Jul's minion, it could be interesting Also a sort of Jul's redemption. Considering that the expansion might change the end radically (when you'll play it you'll see, no spoilers) it would be cool to play a "good" Jul and would explain why the demons are accepted in Aravorn years later (in my other game Spirited Heart).

My eyes lit up at the

Spoiler:

steampunk future option. You tweeted that you were again inspired to do a steampunk game, and a Loren steampunk sequel would do double duty for Loren AND steampunk I mean, if you were planning on spending time and money on a steampunk game, might as well have the money do double duty, right?

Playing

Spoiler:

Jul's side of things would be pretty interesting. I finished playing Christine Love's Analogue: A Hate Story and she managed to create some sympathy for a character who killed a whole ship full of people by slowly revealing a back story. And I do think that it would be a good bridge to the Spirited Heart series where demons are feared, but not all are bad. As I played Loren, I did find myself wondering what happened between Loren and Spirited Heart that made demons acceptable in society.