Keepsake Interview - Part 1

Lydia is outgoing and friendly, the type of person who almost invariably makes a positive first impression. Born to a relatively poor family, she has become street-wise, quick of mind and resourceful enough to make some money by crafting various trinkets to sell at the town market. Ever since a childhood incident where she was saved from a fire by magic, her goal has been to become a mage. To this end, she has gained acceptance to the Dragonvale Academy. Arriving there for the first time is a special occasion made even better by the opportunity to be reunited with her best friend after not seeing each other for several years. However, Celeste isn't there to greet her. Indeed, the institution is deserted. Lydia finds only one sign of her, a doll she had once given her as a memento.

Keepsake is a medieval fantasy-themed adventure title in development at Montreal-based Wicked Studios. It is described as a story-driven offering with suspense and mystery at every turn. Naturally, our heroine sets out to find out what has happened to her friend and the school. In this quest, she is accompanied by Zak, a wolf who says he was once a mighty dragon, the familiar of a great sorcerer. Some other features of note are an interface that reportedly evolves as new features become available, a distinctive hint system and puzzles that will apparently challenge players' wits without requiring exceptional dexterity or quickness. Having learned of the project some time ago, we noted it as one about which we'd like to know more, so we were pleased when President Yves Bordeleau and Game Designer Bruno Parenteau agreed to answer our questions.

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Jonric: How would you summarize Keepsake and its main features and elements of interest? What has most influenced its design, and what kind of gameplay experience will it provide?

Yves Bordeleau: Keepsake is an adventure game that blends some old-school elements with the new genre gamers are used to see now. We tried to design the game in a way that it will appeal to many types of gamers as well as newcomers. In adventure gaming, there are more or less two types of game people are used to seeing - the classical "point and click" adventure and the first person "puzzle-oriented" kind. With Keepsake, we tried to bring those two relatively different worlds together with a medieval / fantasy environment as a bonus. ;)

You have the fun of an RPG without the character management and the fights. The pace is a tad slower than an RPG, but relaxing and enjoyable. We challenge the player's wits rather than his dexterity.

Keepsake is also an adventure game that focuses a lot on the main character's interactions. There is smaller cast of characters than in other adventure games, but those characters are deeper ones, and they all have some very interesting twists to their stories.

Bruno Parenteau: Being hardcore gamer ourselves, we wanted to make a game that wouldn't be stuck with what we consider some "flaws" other games of the genre might have. Since having the player closing the game in frustration because he is stuck is the worst one, we decided to counter this with an "in-game walkthrough" and clue system that removes the need for the player who's stuck to search on the Internet for a walkthrough, and maybe lose interest in continuing his investigations in the world of Keepsake. Our in-game walkthrough will help those persons who get jammed without giving them spoilers of what is to come after the step they're having a hard time to finish, and will thus prevent the mood of the game being broken.

Jonric: With the adventure category less prominent than it once was, why did you decide to make a game of this type, and what did you set out to achieve in doing so?

Yves Bordeleau: First of all, we decided to go for an adventure title because we ARE adventure game fans. From the first King's Quest to the new Syberia, I've always liked the way adventure games make the player travel through different eras and worlds. I think that with Keepsake, we wanted to bring back the medieval / fantasy setting to adventure games since most of the latest titles are either horror / investigation or the Jules Verne-inspired type. With the hype made by the Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings movies, we thought that the genre was more than due for a fantasy comeback.

Bruno Parenteau: It was also a challenge for us to bring a new and different view on adventure games, and to try to incorporate new ideas taken from other genres as well. Since it can become what seems to be an endless amount of minutes between two main story elements are triggered, we came up with the optional conversation system that will throw in some dialogue here and there, and let the player decide if he wants to extend the conversation or not.

Jonric: Among Keepsake's main features and elements, which do you regard as most likely to interest RPG fans?

Yves Bordeleau: In overview, Keepsake is taking place in a world of magic and mystery that is inspired by medieval and fantasy elements. I think that the game setting itself will interest RPG fans. Personally, I'm a huge RPG fan, and, thinking about it right now, I'm quite sure that the first adventure game I played, King's Quest, led me in some way to buy my first RPG.

Adventures are a bit in the same spirit as story-driven RPGs, but without the fighting or heavy stats and skills to manage. Keepsake could be especially interesting for RPG fans because of its unique storyline and also because of the general setting and mood of the game.

Bruno Parenteau: You have the fun of an RPG without the character management and the fights. The pace is a tad slower than an RPG, but relaxing and enjoyable. We challenge the player's wits rather than his dexterity.