- Google Playstore Ratings:
- 10K+
Solaria: Dawn of Heroes
- Team Size: 25
- Developers: Glaive Games
- Genre: Action RPG
- Platform: Mobile
- Engine & Tools: Unity, Confluence
- Contribution: Worldbuilding, Lore, Storyline, Character design, Barks
When I joined the project, Solaria had a playable demo with 2 characters and a cozy environment. They had some ideas about the game’s world, but nothing cohesive. I was assigned to develop the game’s lore.
Design Process
Step 1. Genre and Content Research
First, I started with researching similar games to:
- Find creations to draw inspiration from and broaden my creativity horizons.
- Figure out what people like about these creations and what makes them so popular.
- Get a better idea of what works in the genre, what doesn’t, and what the audience wants.
- Get a practical understanding of the genre strengths, limitations, and conventions.
- See what already exists and how I can stand out.
2. Thought Process
After circling some ideas in my head, I drafted three premises, each built upon a distinct theme.
- Idea 1 was based on the irony behind gray morality: Evil is bad, but the Good can be much worse. I drew inspiration from Amon from StarCraft and Inarius from Diablo – we can justify their aspirations, but fulfilling them would be the worst possible outcome. So we ally with evil to save the world from the righteous good.
- Idea 2 took a simpler route: Gods created the world, but one of them went rogue (just in case the moral complexity doesn’t work with a mobile game audience). I drew inspiration from the world of The Lord of the Rings – a straightforward and easily digestible approach to the concept of good vs evil.
- Idea 3 dwelt on the old adage that absolute power corrupts absolutely, so the world of Solaria exists to entertain the gods as they plot their schemes. I drew inspiration from the Ancient Greek and Nordic mythologies, where the Gods are megalomaniacs, manipulators, and absolute jerks.
3. Initial Ideas
4. Further Thought Process
After a productive brainstorming session, the studio picked Idea number 1. They liked the unique take on the “good vs evil” and wanted more of it reflected in the narrative.
How it resonates with me
As someone who grew up on game series like Witcher, Dragon Age, Allods, and Diablo, I was naturally drawn to the idea of having to choose the “lesser evil”. Thus came the idea of a creator god who, in order to defeat the darkness, wants to destroy its own creations, the mortals. And the evil wants the mortals to live, because it feeds on twisting and corrupting them. Stuck between the hammer and the anvil, mortals have to choose between two evils.
Inspiration
I remembered the Sin War trilogy of the Diablo universe: two rival factions, equal in power, fighting each other to win the mortals to their side. I decided to stray from the idea of “equal powers locked in an eternal conflict.” Instead, I made one side significantly stronger, so that the other side created humanity as a “hope.” When I wrote up Sol’s character, I took a little bit of inspiration from Inarius, the creator of humanity from the Diablo universe.
5. First Draft
I started developing the 1st draft of the world’s lore. For a start, a one-pager that follows these principles:
- History of the World – every historical event must be relevant for the present.
- Current State of the World – what factions exist in the world, who the player is, and who the enemies are.
- Main Problem/Conflict – the main powers, be it natural or artificial, that threaten the world.
- What Triggers the Story – the key event that introduces a major change to the world and kicks off the story.
6. Feedback for Draft 1
I was worried when introducing such a convoluted theme for a cute mobile game. This isn’t Witcher or Diablo. I feared that our target audience would prefer the simple “good vs evil”. But the studio liked it, so I got to develop it further.
My next step was to develop the world in depth: species, factions, geography, cultures, beliefs, kingdoms, rules about how magic works, and, of course, storyline.
7. Draft 2
As I started developing the world’s lore, I broke it into several steps
- Overview – key elements that define the game’s world. It should give the basics about the setting.
- History of the World – I delved into historical details and leading up to the present state of the world.
- Races/Species – added more fantasy species and gave them a place in the game’s world.
- Factions/Organizations – added factions, with cultural elements, goals, enemy types, and NPCs.
- Storyline – I took into consideration that the story should not “end”, but rather be episodic.
8. Feedback for Draft 2
I’ve got quite extensive feedback, mainly to develop and expand upon lore elements related to the game’s features. They also asked to incorporate some of their early ideas and designs.
These were the ideas/features they wanted the lore to justify:
- Combinations of magic elements.
- Void tears and rifts that randomly pop up on the map.
- More fantasy species (Undead, Giants, Wendigos, Golems, Mushroom people, Treants, Goat people)
- Shadow merchant that sells rarities and curates events.
- Sea and pirate battles.
- A fire nation/tribe for the fire mage playable character.
- A zealous church that hunts the player for some reason.
9. Final Draft
I expanded the existing lore, focusing more on the gameplay this time:
- Unique Core Features – added a justification on how characters can combine different types of magic.
- Metagame – defined how, why, and when events or rifts occur in the game.
- Characters – left the world open to allow adding factions and species from which characters derive.
- World Enrichment – added more species, factions, powerful entities, and areas to enrich the setting.
- Future Content – I prioritized a dynamic world over finite stories to be more flexible in adding content.
10. Presentation
My work was finally approved! My document became the “source of truth.” The studio published the game’s lore in a presentation format. I did NOT make the presentation. I’m only responsible for the lore content.
Player Character: Leo
Leo is one of the first two playable characters of the game. The studio specifically requested a “good” warrior fighting evil. An easily relatable “noble knight” who goes to save the world. Though he is not a simplistic character at all. He has a tragic backstory that made him both a strong and a sarcastic person.
When writing this character, I took inspiration from Leonardo of the Ninja Turtles and from Captain America. He is the devoted leader of the squad who drives the team toward the objective. But to break the cliche a little bit, I made him slightly sarcastic: he would throw a joke here and there.
I find Leo interesting because, despite being a serious hero saving the world, he might surprise the player with silly jokes that make them go, “WTF, Leo?!”
Leo is a high DPS melee warrior with lightning-infused abilities.
Player Character: Embra
Embra is one of the first two playable characters of the game. She is designed to give a fresh, young take on fantasy, mainly due to her witty sarcasm. Just like Leo, Embra also has a tragic episode in her life. But her way of dealing with it is rather optimistic. If bad things have already happened, how much worse can it get?
When writing this character, I took inspiration from Ms. Marvel, Nori from Rings of Power, and Misty from Pokémon. A witty teenage girl who wants to belong, possessing a high level of self-reflection and strong improvisation skills.
I find Embra interesting due to her dominant trait: she never plans anything and doesn’t know anything, but she always makes the right judgment in dire situations.
Embra is a fire mage with ranged attacks that deal area-of-effect damage.
Voice actor casting sheets. Each sheet contains:
- Visual Design – to convey the general vibe.
- Character Info and Bio – to give an idea of who the character is, including relevant info about their speech.
- Dialogue Lines and Barks – the character’s lines, including context, mood, and voice direction.
