secret passages

I wonder, could there be secret passage ways like in brtiania manor???

 

This is one of those things that would normally not occur to me to think about. SotA just never struck me as that part of the game. Maybe because UO didn't really have anything like that for houses I don't know.

Secret passages have been a big part of pretty much EVERY Ultima game in the main series. Secret passages in dungeons.. in LB's castle and elsewhere. So yeah we have to go there! How could it be Ultima's spiritual successor without a mechanic that was widely used since the early days of the series?

If you don't mind I'm going to ask this in a live chat first chance I get.

 

LB says: interesting idea, he took a note of it

 

ah ok.. I figured he'd like it if it wasn't already planned.

 

I don't think they will be put into players houses, maybe a hidden chest or something, or a book shelf covering a door to a room in a standard housing layout for customization. The reason for this is that all lots are the same size, excluding boats, since a normal house could not go on a boat lot. I could see it more in guild castles or large NPC structures, like a labyrinth, or LB castle

Maybe some NPC building will connect to a sewer system; not sure at what time the were implemented if at all in medieval times, maybe only cities

 

Consider that players may be able to eventually design their own home in-game. This isn't likely for game 1 but there's a total of 5.. and the next 4 will build upon the one that came beforei t.

Consider also that whlie rare.. some smaller buildings in Ultimas had secret doors.. though in general concept I agree that player homes won't likely see much of this any time soon. It would be a shame not to have them altogether.

 

they mentioned that yesterday during the 24hr telethon period, and they might include it for KS pledger only

it'll be interesting if they actually do it

 

I love this idea! I had a design wish back in Ultima Online where you could connect adjacent houses with underground secret passages.

 

I think this is a great idea! If they end up doing this for Lord British's castle in-game (or other NPC homes), they should offer this for player homes too. Perhaps they can do this as a type of house upgrade.

It could even be part of the quest system, especially for player-generated ones.

 

Intricate secret doors feature prominently in Brittania Manor and throughout the Ultima series. It would be a shame if player housing didn't feature at least a hidden alcove. Pianos should, for example, open at least a closet when the right keys are played... G, A, F, (octave lower) F, C

 

Has any game really done secret doors & passages well?

Torchlight 2 had hidden switches that would occasionally sparkle (so you had to pay attention to notice them), but that definitely put the onus on the player (not your character) to find them.

I think that the old UIV/UV system of secret doors (where brick walls had one missing pixel) isn't appropriate in the modern age - nor is pixel hunting with the mouse to see if there's a trigger somewhere.

So do you make the job of finding secrets the players, or the characters? What if I never invest in a perception skill in the game?

Personally, I love games that have hidden doors/passages/etc. I hope SotA includes them.

 

@Turguin,

One thing I enjoyed about Ultima VIII was searching houses for switches for secret doors. For me, the fact that you had to figure it out on your own was fun. I only didn't like it when it was obscured by a wall just because of the fixed perspective of the game that made some walls block your vision.

I would expect most secret passages would also have the edges of the door perceptible unless some trick was used to conceal them, like placing them behind a bookcase or at the back of the closet. And if the outside of a building looked larger than the space you saw accessible to you inside, that's a clue that there's a walled off area of the building with a secret passage. That wouldn't help you find underground passages, of course.

Of course, I wouldn't mind if some earned skill made levers and doors easier to detect by providing a clue. I like the approach to mini-games seen in the lockpicking skill in Skyrim where the higher your skill the easier it is.