High Concept:
I want to create the ultimate co-op experience. I've coined the term "co-dep (codependent) game".
The players take on the roles of Kerss and Ohmen, champions from two opposing factions: the Tarrus and the Ouros (respectively). War has ravaged the land for years, and now after reaching a stalemate, the two nations have decided to come together and try to negotiate a treaty. But in the midst of their peace talks, the Ouros ruler is assassinated and Kerss and Ohmen framed. For their crime of conspiracy, they are banished and sentenced to be bound to one another by a chain that links not only their bodies, but also their souls. Now, two lifelong enemies must work as one to escape their captors and discover the truth behind the assassination in order to clear their names and regain their freedom. But, will they choose the path of penance...or vengeance?
BOUND
War Divided Them. Fate Will Bind Them.
Peoples and Characters:
Tarrus - A savage, beast-like race. Quadrupedal. Shamanistic culture. Proud and strong. Seek balance with the world, misunderstood to be
barbaric by the Ouros.
Ouros - An ethereal race of humanoids. Value wisdom over physical prowess, spiritual, mystical, arrogant. They believe themselves to be
superior to the Tarrus, and therefore seek to subjugate and "civilize" them.
Kerss - A Tarrus champion. Despite what the Ouros believe, Kerss is a calm, calculating warrior whose perceive brutality in battle can be
most aptly described as controlled chaos.
Ohmen - An Ouros champion. He is wise but, as a warrior, also strong among his people, a skilled brawler and adept in the use of magical
attacks.
Key Gameplay Mechanics:
The Chain - The players will be linked together physically by a chain, which while limiting their mobility, also affords them the ability to perform special attacks and will be used to solve environmental puzzles in the vein of games such as Tomb Raider, Prince of Persia, Ico, etc. The chain will grow in length as the characters advance in the game.
Game Stats - All game stats, such as health, experience, etc. are shared between the player. So, if one character dies, they both die; if one player levels up, they both level up. There will be mechanics in place that will enable players to "save" a dying ally.
Complementary Skills - Each character will have a unique set of abilities that can be used in and out of combat, and those abilities must often be used in conjunction with one another to solve puzzles and advance through the game, thereby forcing the players to coordinate strategies together.
Moral Paths - In the tradition of such games as Fable, KOTOR, etc. there will be several different paths that players may choose to progress through the story. Since the players are linked together, they must make these decisions as one, even though it may mean one character forsaking his own people.
What I'm looking for:
I am looking to assemble a small team of passionate and talented (READ: not necessarily experienced) artists, programmers, and designers to help develop this concept into a working title. At this stage, the goal (as I've mentioned previously) is to create a working demo that can be presented to potential investors, put forth to the public on a site like Kickstarter, etc. in order to garner interest in this concept being developed into a full scale title.
Feedback is also welcome if you see any flaws in the outline presented above, any ways to improve the concept, or if you just think it's total crap and I should abandon it all together
