SPHERE

Written by Terry Starker Based on the game treatment for SPHERE from Symbolic Communications and Cartography class in Full Sail University.

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Executive Summary
Sphere is a PC/Mac massive online player game based in an imaginative environment with challenges creating a rich game of entertainment. Characters will travel through a new world far from earth hoping to survive a possible extension from an alien enemy no different from humans.

Sphere

Terry Starker tstarker@fullsail.edu

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Audience Analysis
The target players for the game of Sphere is anywhere from teen to adult. Ages of 14 and older and of any technical experience. Specifically, this game will be targeted to males. However, there are elements in the game that will appeal to a female audience. Because Sphere is a game that will immerse the player into a world of fighting both with close combat and far combat the idea will be more likable to the audience who enjoy first person shooting games. According to the Entertainment Software Association, 68% of gamers are 18 years of age and older. The average age is around 30 and this age group has been playing games for at least 12 years. At least 47% of all players are women. They are shown to be a larger part of the gaming world then boys of the age of 17 and younger. References: Entertainment software association. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.theesa.com/facts/gameplayer.asp

Sphere

Terry Starker tstarker@fullsail.edu

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Story
Survival of the human race is the key to this nonlinear game concept. You control the main character (avatar) in this one of a kind world. You start your struggle of humanity in a crashed lifeboat (spacecraft). Commander Muriel Ashina is known to be the commander of the spacecraft Echron before it was attacked in space. She is now the queen to this strange new land. Ashina is the main character of legend that is the only living hero to the human race when your character arrives at its new home. The sphere is a futuristic world created many years in the past. Most of the inhabitants have the technology to maintain the sphere. Medieval structures litter the land and weapons from the similar era of earth are all that remains of some of the people who once inhabited the sphere. The landscape closely resembles earth. The natural Atmospheric conditions causing a variety of rain and varying temperatures are closely created mechanically by a large rotating mechanism surrounding a small star in the center of the sphere. Mountains and large bodies of saltwater oceans help to create a natural process of weather patterns. Beneath the thick layer of rock dirt and water are several levels of corridors and tunnels. Below the surface the labyrinth is an expansive place to explore and fight. The fate of the human race is in your hands. Your ship escaped the battle in space. Your last view of the Echron was from your cockpit window of a helpless burning spacecraft tumbling through space. Your small lifeboat floats around in space for several years while you are in hyper sleep. Eventually your ship crash-lands into an unknown planet and after you wake you set out to discover a whole new world. As far as you know, you are the last of a few humans alive trying to escape the destruction of earth. The alien enemy who are only known as Achturians, attacked earth destroying all possibility to survive there. Along with the Echron the aliens launched their last surviving ship when earth was destroyed. In the final battle with the Echron it too was badly damaged and crashed on the surface of this great spherical world. For many years the Archturians kept to themselves on the far side of the sphere. The forced peace would soon end as both the Archturians and humans expanded their new Sphere Terry Starker tstarker@fullsail.edu

Page 4 empires and eventually claimed land the other side wanted. The only difference is the human race want the land in order to survive, the Archturians wanted to land for power and to wipe the humans our of the sphere. The path to becoming a hero leads the character to the main city of the humans. In Echron City the story continues of the human struggle to survive in the sphere. There are many different structures in the sphere unknown to the natural inhabitants of Sphere. Thousands of years ago the Sphere was abandoned and the technology forgotten. The races that were left picked up the pieces and grew together as one main race of people. The native inhabitants are known as Krylians (Pronounced - Krill-ee-in) and are sometimes friendly to both sides though there are factions who are sympathetic to one side or another. The Krylians hide the answers to many of the secrets of the sphere. Their knowledge is limited to how the sphere was created and how it works. If the sphere is left alone then it will soon deteriorate and no living creature will survive the destructive forces that will rip this world apart. The human race has discovered this much and they are working on a way to keep the world together. The Archturians are the ones who wish to destroy the only world known to support life. As the human race struggle to keep the sphere together they must keep the Archturians from destroying it as well. The road continues beyond the walled human city into the world where active encounters with the Arthturians set out to kill humans. The sides develop into war slowly pulling the other inhabitants into this ancient conflict. Dorgan Moradau, is the current general to the human city. While the human race struggles for a foothold, Dorgan will lead the first major attack on the Achturians. His attempt will lead to a massive retreat as the Archturians have a solid foothold in the sphere. As you help in this intense battle only to be lost by the humans, you will have to find other ways to lessen the impact the Achturians are having in the sphere. The human race will need to change what the Archturians are doing to the sphere. The alien race is out to take the sphere apart and salvage the pieces to create more ships. The sphere must be fixed if it is possible. Hidden throughout the lower levels of the land are many control rooms and forgotten libraries that may contain the key to how the sphere works. Miscellaneous tasks and quests will call the adventurer into new and uncharted area of the Sphere with random monsters and bosses to stop in order to save the natural Sphere Terry Starker tstarker@fullsail.edu

Page 5 inhabitants living in the sphere. The whole goal for the human race is to live in peace with the Krylians and survive in this new spherical world.

Separate instances and dungeons guide the adventure deeper into the story and deeper into the shell of the sphere. Finding out what makes the sphere work is the first priority. The problem with making your way throughout the land is there are dangerous creatures blocking the way. Most of these creatures are wild. Anyone who adventures beyond any of the cities may be attacked. In the end whoever controls the power source keeping this world alive will control the sphere. Both the humans and the Achturians know they cannot destroy the sphere completely or their race will no longer exist. The ultimate goal for the human is to stop the Achturians from taking over the sphere, control the power generator towers and discover who is the Achturians leader so you can help plan the attack to destroy him before they rape the world of its natural recourses.

Sphere

Terry Starker tstarker@fullsail.edu

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Characters

Commander Muriel Ashina Commander Muriel Ashina is a small structured woman who has medium length dark black hair. She is human in all physical aspects except stands at a height of five foot six inches with a complimenting weight of around one hundred twenty pounds. Muriel Ashina has never liked using her first name and after serving with the government for years she normally uses her last name in all respects. Jay Merack A human male having extensive knowledge of the land and has traveled for years in the world of Sphere. He is known as the main person who is known as the wilderness survivalist. His knowledge is a little limited to the surrounded area of the main city. Harold Reiner A human male who has slowly worked his way up to the rank of general during the remnants of the war on earth. He has asserted his position after the Echron crash landed on the Sphere. Shoney Raise A young female medical student and studies the natural remedies grown in the land. Her specialty has been in botany in Sphere. Her knowledge of edible and poisonous plants has been fundamental for the survival of the human race. Dorgan Moradau Dorgan is the current general to the main human city. Sphere Terry Starker tstarker@fullsail.edu

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Competition Analysis
The market for online games known as Massively Multiple Online Player games (MMO) is flooded with a variety of fantasy games. However, none of the popular titles released in recent years rivals the features set available in Sphere. Compared to some of the fantasy games available, Sphere will give a player the ability to concentrate on a single character while exploring the world and completing quests. The world is expansive and could delve into a world of space exploration and starship fighting. World of Warcraft by Blizzard, has released several expansions updating their characters, but lacks the popularity of expanding a single avatar through several professions. Character traits are spread throughout different classes as with individual builds to enhance their characters. Sphere will allow a person to create a unique character and continue to build a single character with every new expansion. New professions will be added and a single character will be able to develop these professions in a variety of ways. Characters will be more human and not as animal like. A more realistic atmosphere with a human life compared to unusual looking creatures with a variety of languages unlearnable by the enemy.

Sphere

Terry Starker tstarker@fullsail.edu

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Gameplay
Sphere creates an enjoyable atmosphere mixed with danger around every corner. The land is hostile and the human race is at stake. The player is immediately immersed into a new world that looks like earth. By far, the creation of your avatar makes this game stand-alone in the gaming world. Your avatar is your own creation, as there are features that will make your appearance different from others. However, this area of creating your character will be a little limited as more emphasis will be needed into the actual gameplay and not the physical features of each individual character. As you advance in experience, there will be more professions to discover and open, in order to make your avatar one of a kind in Sphere. There is no purpose to create multiple characters in order to play all of the different professions offered in Sphere. There will be the ability to play one character with multiple roles. Professions will move up as they are used. Some of the professions will be required to make certain weapons and armor for a greater range of destruction and protection. To make the characters more unique and realistic each player will be able to choose a number of main professions. The rest of the professions the player will be able to use the basic skills to enhance their play experience. After leaving the small ship the player will learn to control his/her character in the environment around the crashed ship. They will have to learn different forms of fighting with a variety of weapons at their disposal. Each character can use all weapons available after they have learned the basic functions. There is anything from an archaic bow to advanced laser beams. While making your way around and examining this world the quests will guide the characters out of the beginning area to the main city. The city is a crashed ship called the Echron. The main city in this world is constructed around the last starship of the human race. The ship crash-landed on this spherical world several years before your character arrives. In the main city is where the character will learn the first of several professions and train in some skills before heading out further into the unknown world. Different professions will help the character during the course of the game and will need to become more developed over time in order to overcome some challenges. For example an engineer skill will be able to repair machinery or weapons where an archeologist skill may be able used to solve puzzles or find hidden passageways. Primary professions will be used to develop more intricate abilities. The secondary professions may be used to make items used for basic living and moving objects.

Sphere

Terry Starker tstarker@fullsail.edu

Page 9 Due to the nature of the mechanical and magnetic energy created inside the sphere some energy beam technology and weapons have some limitations in the sphere. The same faulty mechanics cause weapons with the greatest destruction such as nuclear weapons to become inherit. Many of the weapons to be used are older such as bows and arrows, swords and maces. Other weapons can be created over time and discovered throughout the land. The world is open and seamless. Characters are able to travel anywhere within reason of natural mechanics of the world. To traverse over the water an avatar will need to either swim or have a boat. If the player is swimming they will be able to only travel a certain amount of time ore distance before they need to rest. If an avatar wishes to travel in the air they will need some sort of flying mount or machine to get around. As far as the ending of the game is concerned the human race will put down the boss of the Archturians. As with many fantasy games this cannot end easily. The game moves on with another story and another enemy to fight or maybe the boss of the Archturians gets away and recruits a larger army to continue the fight.

Sphere

Terry Starker tstarker@fullsail.edu