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Périple Studio is an independent video game (PC and mobile) and mobile application development studio founded in 2021. The studio is behind the game Tales Up, which won
"Pégase" award for Best Mobile Game 2023 (https://talesup.io/).
From september 2021 to august 2024, I had the pleasure of working for Périple Studio as Narrative Designer.
Whether on Tales Up or on other unannounced projects (board game, survival game, etc.), this experience allowed me to improve in the field of narrative (writing, characters, etc.) but also to discover, learn and improve in other facets of production that I will talk about below.
On this page, I'm going to explain how I created the interactive stories for Tales Up, the project I spent the most time on at Périple Studio.
What is Tales Up ?
Winner of the Best Mobile Game award at the 2023 "Pégase" Awards,
Tales Up is a video game for mobile and PC. Somewhere between a text based role-playing game, a "Choose your own adventure" book and visual novel, its unique feature is that it can be played in mupltiplayer mode.
The game features a large number of stories and series, each with its own unique universe, gameplay and rules !
Pre-production :
The creation of a story begin with the choice of the story.
To begin with, I prepare several synopsis taking place in different universes and i propose different types of gameplay (within the limits of the possibilities of the game and the engine on which it is developed). These stories are presented with their possible endings, their underlying messages and reference images to represent the universe and the characters.
Synopsis, introduction to the world and plot of "Of Coral and Gold"
Synospsis and presentation of
"The Eternal Arrow" universe
Sequence of episodes 1 and 2 of
"The Eternal Arrow"
The story is then selected with the rest of the team, taking into account the players' interests, production time and any difficulties that may be encountered.
Once the story has been decided, I draw up a "sequence", a timeline showing the major events, encounters and choices in the adventure. I then go into more detail to refine these "scenes"' and get a clearer idea of how they will progress, which will help me later on with the writing process.
Then, following meetings with the rest of the team, a first round of editing is made.
At the same time, I am starting to write character sheets (using the Character B.I.O.S method) and I start looking for references to better depict the world, but also to have a library of images to create moodboards for the 2D artist.
Production - Wrinting :
Once the sequence has been validated, I start writing on draw.io so that I can better visualise the decision tree.
Here are some examples of scenes from "The Eternal Arrow" : each square represents a "screen" in the game, the yellow diamonds represent the choices (they can also be red when the choices have a timer), the purple rectangles represent the illustrations and the blue rectangles the modifications to the variables.
These variables can change through the adventure depending on the decisions made by the players (or a particular player) and unlock additional or different choices or texts, as well as items or status changes.
For a game like Tales Up, as well as working on the stroytelling, I also have to take care of the game design of the story. This involves setting up events/challenges that are consistent with the story and that players can enjoy : fighting opponents, solving puzzles and enigmas, convincing characters, exploring places to find the way out, etc.
Alongside this, I prepare moodboards of characters and illustrations for the artists to communicate the key points of these elements. I then exchange ideas with them as they progress, to modify and correct the graphic assets so that they are as close as possible to the episode's requirements.
In the same way, I prepare a document listing the music, ambiences and SFX I need, as well as descriptions and references to help the sound designer. Then I discuss any modifications with him.
Production - Integrating the story :
Once I've finished writing on draw.io and I've checked, exchanged and fixed elements of the story with my superior, we do a playtest with our team to see if everything works (it's a bit like a role-playing session where I'm the game master), then I modify it according to the feedback.
I then move on to integrating the story.
As the engine we use at Périple Studio reads .txt files, I have to translate my draw.io document using a specific langage. If I prepare the decision tree and the variables well in advance on the draw.io, it's a fairly quick exercise ; all I have to do is follow the guidelines I've left for myself during the writing phase.
SOn the TXT, I also leave notes to indicate on each screen the presence of a graphic or sound asset, the beginning or end of a music or sound effects, etc... This allows me to add these assets more quickly during the next phase.
Evolution between writing phase, TXT phase and final rendering
Each passage is composed in the same way: the name of the passage and its number, the quest notification update (if needed), the variable modifications (if needed), the passage text , the choices, a timer (if needed), notes for myself to indicate the assets linked to the passage (if needed). There are also special variables for managing achievements and "important choices" that will be displayed to players at the end of the story.
La production - Integrating the assets :
Once the TXT is ready, checked, corrected and modified in case of any final feedback, I upload it to the engine that manages the game and I move on to integrating the final assets that I have received from the 2D artists and the sound designer.
Using the notes I left when I was writing the TXT, I get all the scene numbers and the sounds and images associated with them, then I copy this into the engine so that it adds the right assets in the right locations.
Release :
Before the launch, a playtest is carried out with volunteer players on the test version of the game, after which a few corrections can be made. Then the story is released on the official version, along with cosmetic items in the shop (I talk to the 2D artist beforehand to choose the skins and story-related items that will be used).
I can also contribute to the communication around the release of the story by providing the person in charge of communication with sentences related to the story.
Once the story is published, I move on to a new story. However, I keep a close eye on all the stories that have already been published in order to fix any problems that may arise, or to make modifications to particular texts.
About my work at Périple Studio :
During my time at Périple Studio, I was able to produce several stories :
The Signal from Centauri (a standalone science fiction story set on an unknown planet),
Sunken Legends (a 4-part series set in ancient Greece),
Meowfia Mayhem (a standalone story where players are cats left to themselves in a big city),
Forgotten by Time (a 4-part series set in a dark steampunk town),
Of Coral and Gold (a 4-part series in which players are fish on an adventure across the ocean),
The Eternal Arrow (an 8-episode saga set in a gigantic, unexplored tower filled with floors as strange as they are dangerous; the biggest project in Tales Up to date),
The Gallery (a series of 6 special unlockable episodes, linking all the stories together and acting as a guiding line as the player progresses through the application; the story takes place in a rather unusual art gallery...),
The Curse of Potirouf (a standalone story in which a retired adventurer must return to action to save the vegetables in his garden from an angry wizard).
As well as an unannounced story.
I also had the opportunity to help and participate in other Tales Up stories, to participate in the localization of some stories and texts, as well as taking part as Narrative Designer and Game Designer in the pre-production of an unannounced board game connected to Tales Up.
Outside of Tales Up, I was able to work on the pre-production of an unannounced survival game as Narrative Designer and Game Designer, working on lore, story, characters and quests, as well as gameplay.
Our team :
Victor Jaffeux: Co-founder / CEO / Producer
Adrien Lambel: Co-founder / Programmer
Mathieu Bouchonnet: Co-founder / Programmer
Chloé Bonneaud: Communications Assistant
Emilien Massemin: Narrative Designer
Martin Ringot: Narrative Designer
Gabin Jirodet: Narrative Designer
Alex Harbuzinski: Interface Designer
Jessica Soumier: 2D Artist
Constance Vermare: 2D Artist
Loline Bongiraud: 2D Artist
Corentin Brassart : Composer / Sound Designer
Jasper Marcus : English localization
Kessem Quarks: English localization
QUICK INFO
Phone +33 6.29.26.16.40E-mail emilien.massemin@gmail.comLinkedin https://www.linkedin.com/in/emassemin/
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