Mission Possible
August 18th, 2009 - SmallWorlds Chronicle
Greetings citizens. What an exciting week I’ve had. As you can imagine, it’s ‘all systems go’ here at SWHQ as we get ready to release V2.0 next week. The energy here is something special and every team member feels like a tightly coiled spring!
As well as doing what I can to help out with preparing the new release, I’ve been meeting up with some very interesting people in-world. This week I was lucky enough to interview some of our of some of our most prolific mission makers. As well as getting to know them a little better, I managed to get some of their ‘trade secrets’ to help you make great missions too! So, if you’ve been wishing for a few tips (or perhaps you’ve never made a mission before and you’d like to know a little more about how to do so) then this is the article for you. It’s all about making missions more… possible!
Firstly, let’s meet the mission creators, hear their stories and get their advice. Then I’ve got some useful ‘mission creator’ links for you… and peppered throughout the article are great missions for you to try out.
Meet Some Marvelous Mission Creators!Gopu One – 30 Missions created:
Mission-making is a real passion for Gopu, who has been a SmallWorlds citizen since December 08. The missions he is most proud of are AlphaTag (average 53 minute play time, payout of 492 Tokens and 123 XP) and HyperTerminal Research and Development (average 29 minute playtime with payout of 190 tokens and 48XP). He feels that what makes them enjoyable is the challenge they give to players. “I am proud of the fact that as far as I know AlphaTag is the only mission that people say “It took me 4 hours to do and I can’t wait to do it again!”
Gopu’s favorite missions: * School Days by Ang Jones - a great mission with a combination of all of the most commonly used tasks rolled into one mission.
* 1337 Gamer by Afswar Withlasers - I haven’t done any other mission quite like it. Once you figure it out it is not that hard but can be real tricky at first!
* Tomb Raider By Bella Gates - I think she did a great job recreating the feel of the Tomb Raider story.
Jaks Hayward – 17 Missions created:
Jaks loves the challenge of making an interesting story along with making the mission a little bit ‘tricky’. She’s been a citizen since January 09. One mission she is particularly proud of is Plane Crash. Jaks made this one to exercise your gray matter a little, so that “players would not have the answers handed to them but would need to think a little!”. Another creation, UR Hooked on SW, sounds like a lot of fun! “Nearly everyone that has played has said they laughed as they did it and could totally relate to the mission!” laughed Jaks.
Jaks Favorite mission: Lord of the Rings by Geno Lindley… but also I’d like to say a big thank you for programming SmallWorlds to allow us to be able to make them - it certainly makes SmallWorlds interesting!
Duchess Bean – 25 missions created:
A citizen since March ‘09, Duchess enjoys the challenge of bringing a storyline to life and uses creative interaction solutions to enhance the whole mission experience. “But most of all,” she says, “I enjoy the excited responses from the players after they have completed one of my missions. It makes every second invested in creating a mission worth it!”.
She is most proud of her newest mission, Blazing Belles. Players must seek out and use weapons or magic on 7 members of the Blazing Belles Gang to bring them to justice. The highest reported payout so far was achieved by Zenzen Supernova: 495XP and 1,996 Tokens.
Another creation of hers to which she has a very personal connection is Wild & Free: Mustangs. “Each teary eyed message I receive from players after they have completed the mission gives me hope for our dying herds of wild Mustangs”. Average playing time is 13 minutes and recent payout reports have indicated payouts of around 395 Tokens and 79XP.
Duchess’s favourite missions:“I could list a number of featured missions that are my favorite, but I’d like to name a couple that are not as well known”.
* Biffy Clyro’s Exploration of SW1.3 is another one of my favorite missions. The silly mission statements never cease to make me laugh and I love watching the reactions of the players in the rooms we visit.
* Zenzen Supernova’s Hot Tub Art Tour is another mission that makes it to the top of my list of favorites. The art pieces that she has chosen to share with the players are remarkable!
Happy Guest – 11 missions created: 
Missions are a fun creative outlet for Happy, who has been a SmallWorlds citizen since June 2008. Two of her creations she wanted to point you to are: Easy Mission #1 with a payout of 144 Tokens and 36XP (5 mins) or 137 Tokens and 35XP (9 mins completion time).
“Although it seems routine now, back in September 2008, not many missions included travel around SmallWorlds. I’m also proud to say Easy Mission #1 has about 30,000 plays!”. The other mission that she’d like you to try is Gardening Gone Wrong - 135 Tokens and 34XP (5 min completion) and 96 Tokens and 24XP (3 min completion). “I enjoyed writing the story line and like to hear some of the responses. My favorite reply to one of the word scrambles: ‘lamp tree’”.
Happy also wants to illustrate to citizens new to mission creating that although sometimes helpful, it is not necessary to have a fancy decked out room to host a mission.
Happy’s Favorite Missions:Happy wanted to point you to one easy mission (Ferry Ride Adventure), one intermediate mission (Journey to Doom Keep) and one challenging mission (Dr. Skedaddle’s Evil Lair).
What did you wish you’d known when you first started creating Missions?
Happy Guest: SmallWorlds allows more than one mission with the same title. I would have been a bit more creative with my first mission name. These days there are many tutorials in the SmallWorlds Forums and at fan sites such as SWFansite.com
Jaks Hayward: It would have been nice to have one source of info to refer to. I spent many hours searching the forums and the fansite. Best thing for mission makers to do, is if they see an interaction in a mission that they like…just approach the mission creator and ask them, most of them are happy to help.
Duchess Bean: I wish I had a better grasp of Mission Codes, Events and artifacts when I creating my first mission. They are really great mission writing tools, but I was a bit afraid of using them at first.
Gopu One: Artifacts and mission codes – they are magical almost mythical creatures that tie all interactions and stories together.
What makes a great Mission?
Gopu One: If you’ve never made a mission before, start simple. Make a quick emote mission just to learn the basics. Do not expect an instant hit. Even with my mission making reputation, some of my missions get hardly any plays. There is no secret formula to making a hit.
Jaks Hayward: Make missions that you like, not what you think will be popular. I don’t make mine for everyone - I make them for those (like me) who love a challenge!
Duchess Bean: I think the best tips I could offer a new mission creator are to base the mission on a strong story line, use interactions that follow the story as opposed to interactions for the sake of creating a task, and above all have fun making it!
Happy Guest: If frustrated, take a break, then go back and search for help. Do not get bogged down trying to incorporate every available interaction in your first mission. Start small, let the technical complexity of your missions grow, as your mission creation skills grow. Try to be available to welcome and assist players attempting your mission.
Useful Links for making your own ‘Mission Possible’
Here are links to some useful forum threads which should answer most of your “how to” mission-related questions:
* Creating your first mission
* Mission Setup – Overview and Glossary
* Creating a mission (with pictures and details)
* Useful Interactions Terms
* Tutorials on advanced mission interactions in the FAQ Forum at SWfansite.com
I trust this report has been useful, and that it opens up parts of SmallWorlds that have perhaps been ‘uncharted territory’ for you up until now. Making missions is part of what makes SmallWorlds such a great place to spend time. We’re looking forward to seeing what you create!
~ Honesty Blaize
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Topic: 8/17/2009 Mission Possible (Read 3993 times)