Devlog · Episode 21
The Interlude: a place between places
I made a region that sits halfway between the world and whatever comes next. Here is the mood I wanted for it.
The Interlude started with a simple question: what happens between one place and the next? Every game has the map where you fight and the map you travel to. I wanted a place in the middle, a breather that is neither one nor the other.
The problem I wanted to solve
The valley is all about hurry. There are monsters to kill, quests to hand in, items to pick up. It is fun, but it wears you out. The game lacked a corner where nobody asks anything of you and you can just look around.
I already had plenty of maps for those who want action. What I did not have was a place that told the player, without a single line of text, that they can lower their guard for a moment.
How the map was designed
Everything there is slow on purpose. Paths are short and full of little nooks, and the objects look like someone left them a moment ago. You walk and keep finding things, without feeling you wasted time.
The color is different too. It turns colder, the light is lower, the fog drifts slowly. It is the opposite of the valley, which pushes you forward. Here the game asks you to stay a while.
What you will find
I will not say what is there. I will only say there are people to meet and stories to hear, and they are not on the path of whoever is rushing. Those who walk slowly find more.
Even without saying what, I can say what I feel when I walk there: the map seems to be waiting for you, not rushing you. That was the feeling I chased since the first sketch.
How it plays
In practice, the Interlude is a place to catch your breath between one journey and the next. You arrive through the loading screen, see the name of the region and land on a calm map, with no pressure of level or time.
I am still adjusting details, but the mood is already how I imagined it. When you feel the game went quiet for a moment, that is it.
I wrote this map for the player who sits down after a tiring day. You can walk without hurry, look around and notice that the world has corners made only for catching your breath. Combat and rest need each other, and the Entrelinha is my way of reminding you of that in the game.