Grab Bag Writing Challenge - October 2020
- acquaint - approach - context - establish - facet - familiar - gimmick - landscape - overview - panorama - prospect - remote - scene - twist - vista -
by Gail Allen
"For the cutscene, I think it would be good if we have the team approach the city first. They walk up the hill and you see the camera shift to view the landscape in panorama," he spread his arms as if to illustrate the vista that would be shown in the game by doing so. "That way we can establish a bit of the wider world too and give them an overview of where the next scene in the game will take place. Then later we can acquaint the player with the details that they saw in broad strokes in this scene."
The others in the room nod as he speaks, but when he stops, of course, there are questions; a good sign usually. When there are none, it usually means the idea is dull and too boring to have inspired much in the way of imagination in anyone. The prospects of a project that is pitched without significant questions being asked are not good.
"So what kind of place should we expect to see in this panorama view?"
"It's a rather remote place. There are mountains in the background, but otherwise a quite desolate plain with the city being the only man-made structure that's visible," he explains, "It shouldn't look too familiar; we don't want to run into issues of looking like we're trying to depict anywhere in particular and then get it wrong."
"But wouldn't it be a cool facet to have to have it be recognizable to people who live there?"
"Possibly," he admits, "but I don't want to have to twist even more content out of our budget and it would take a lot of research to make sure it's right and it might be a little much to spend on something that would essentially only be a gimmick for the people who live there and I don't think we need it to establish the context. We simply need a city that is in the middle of nowhere; people will understand that that means getting help from the outside would be impossible and their characters have to put out the fires themselves."
"For the cutscene, I think it would be good if we have the team approach the city first. They walk up the hill and you see the camera shift to view the landscape in panorama," he spread his arms as if to illustrate the vista that would be shown in the game by doing so. "That way we can establish a bit of the wider world too and give them an overview of where the next scene in the game will take place. Then later we can acquaint the player with the details that they saw in broad strokes in this scene."
The others in the room nod as he speaks, but when he stops, of course, there are questions; a good sign usually. When there are none, it usually means the idea is dull and too boring to have inspired much in the way of imagination in anyone. The prospects of a project that is pitched without significant questions being asked are not good.
"So what kind of place should we expect to see in this panorama view?"
"It's a rather remote place. There are mountains in the background, but otherwise a quite desolate plain with the city being the only man-made structure that's visible," he explains, "It shouldn't look too familiar; we don't want to run into issues of looking like we're trying to depict anywhere in particular and then get it wrong."
"But wouldn't it be a cool facet to have to have it be recognizable to people who live there?"
"Possibly," he admits, "but I don't want to have to twist even more content out of our budget and it would take a lot of research to make sure it's right and it might be a little much to spend on something that would essentially only be a gimmick for the people who live there and I don't think we need it to establish the context. We simply need a city that is in the middle of nowhere; people will understand that that means getting help from the outside would be impossible and their characters have to put out the fires themselves."
by Prof. Tarma Amelia Black
I was hiking along the bluff, enjoying the vista spied through the towering trees, when I spied an old acquaintance. Approaching stealthily, I was able to get within ten feet before she became aware of me. Spinning rapidly on her paws, she gazed at me with a familiar look – 'Treats?' "No treats," I replied, holding out my empty hands to establish the veracity of my statement. She huffed a bit and twisted around again to continue her surveillance of … of what? I walked up to her and she joined me on my hike, so that we both kept on towards the edge of the bluff, where the panoramic scene of cresting and wild ocean waters meeting remote islands contrasted greatly with the inland vista of a quiet landscape sprinkled with a small valley and groups of wild roses.
Occasionally my friend would twist her head around, again looking at … what? I was beginning to feel a little perplexed and attempted to put her actions into context. Finally, listening carefully (as well as I could, what with the wind sometimes roaring by) and being watchful, I was able to discern something moving off to the side, almost invisible, moving slowly. She panted, amused, and I began to wonder if this was a gimmick on her part, something to attract my attention. Hmm. The prospect of being a source of entertainment for her hadn't occurred to me, but the faceting of her mind were mysterious and while I'd known her for quite a while, I realized my viewpoint was just one of many that were in her own particular overview of the world.
Finally, I just had to ask. "What's going on?" She glanced at me and then a massive shape pushed me onto the ground and she grinned. "I'm training an apprentice."
I was hiking along the bluff, enjoying the vista spied through the towering trees, when I spied an old acquaintance. Approaching stealthily, I was able to get within ten feet before she became aware of me. Spinning rapidly on her paws, she gazed at me with a familiar look – 'Treats?' "No treats," I replied, holding out my empty hands to establish the veracity of my statement. She huffed a bit and twisted around again to continue her surveillance of … of what? I walked up to her and she joined me on my hike, so that we both kept on towards the edge of the bluff, where the panoramic scene of cresting and wild ocean waters meeting remote islands contrasted greatly with the inland vista of a quiet landscape sprinkled with a small valley and groups of wild roses.
Occasionally my friend would twist her head around, again looking at … what? I was beginning to feel a little perplexed and attempted to put her actions into context. Finally, listening carefully (as well as I could, what with the wind sometimes roaring by) and being watchful, I was able to discern something moving off to the side, almost invisible, moving slowly. She panted, amused, and I began to wonder if this was a gimmick on her part, something to attract my attention. Hmm. The prospect of being a source of entertainment for her hadn't occurred to me, but the faceting of her mind were mysterious and while I'd known her for quite a while, I realized my viewpoint was just one of many that were in her own particular overview of the world.
Finally, I just had to ask. "What's going on?" She glanced at me and then a massive shape pushed me onto the ground and she grinned. "I'm training an apprentice."