The Pillars
I want to state some core goals as reference points for the design. At some point a succinct description may fall out.
Character
As mentioned previously, I want the game to be centred on the concept of character. Consequences should flow from an understanding of personality and the player’s interactions with the game should always reflect this focus.
Scale
The game must provide an appropriate sense of scale and the ability to play at various levels of that scale. However, it is always an individual character that is the gameplay focus — nations aren’t playable, kings are.
Player Flexibility
The player should be capable of playing the game at one sitting once a day or playing it for several hours interactively. The granularity of control should be intuitive so that players are not surprised or disappointed by the outcome of choosing to play in one mode over another.
Story
The game should grow stories. The ability to act out something that can be narrated should be embedded in the mechanics of the game and re-enforced by the presentation.
