Narrative Work
Quest - My Neighbor Alice
Quests in My Neighbor Alice were designed to connect storytelling with core gameplay loops, particularly the Crafting system. Working with design and development, we created a quest framework where players receive blueprints as rewards, integrating narrative motivation with mechanical progression.
Location & Purpose: Content NPCs were placed in Town Hubs, where players naturally gather. These hubs offered specialisation quests that allowed progression while reinforcing community interaction.
Design Philosophy: Content quests were short, accessible, and fun, meant to complement regular activities like farming and fishing.
Narrative Cohesion: Each NPC was developed around 1–2 strong character ideas, with a tone reflecting their region’s identity. Their problems and quests tied back to the island’s Protector Spirit theme (e.g., Creativity, Unity, Freedom…).
Balancing: Quest requirements always matched the narrative setup, while rewards were left uncontextualized for flexibility in balancing.
Quest Design: A Sprout for the Heart
Region: Tourney Wolds (Medieval Plains)
NPCs involved: Hope & Jakob
Design Goal
This quest was designed to reinforce the region’s lore and tone. Hope embodies romantic idealism, her personal arc mirrors the Medieval Plains’ theme of change and adaptation. By planting a beanstalk, she connects to the myth of the Golden Goose and brings local legend into gameplay.
Design Choices
Lore Connection: The beanstalk links back to the Region’s founding myth (the Goose & King Socks VI).
NPC Personality: Hope is dreamy and idealistic, her quest reflects her belief that love can grow from magic.
Gameplay Integration: The quest requires Edamame Seeds, an item already available to players, making the task both accessible and meaningful.
Theme Alignment: The sprout symbolises growth and transformation, echoing the main narrative principle of the Plains: “Change is constant.”
Inter-NPC Dynamics: A parallel quest with Jakob references Hope, hinting at a budding romance and rewarding players who notice connections.
Outcome
Strengthens immersion in the Medieval Plains’ lore.
Adds emotional texture: Hope’s romantic quest complements Jakob’s “Romantic Fountain” quest, making the town hub feel interconnected.
Provides a low-friction, thematic quest that players can complete alongside farming or fishing, reinforcing core loops.
Dialogues:
Hope: Oh, hello there! [emote_wave,2] You startled me. I was just... thinking about love.
Ever since I heard the tale of the Golden Goose and King Socks VI, I can't help but wonder... maybe there’s hope for me, too. [emote_clap,3]
They say true love found them atop that very beanstalk. Perhaps all I need is something magical, like a little beanstalk of my own.[emote_confused,4]
Could you help me gather some seeds to plant?
I imagine edamame would do it!
If I get 6 of them and plant them together, it will become big and maybe grow taller! [emote_thumbs_up,3]
[Player returns with the quest requirement]
Oh, thank you! I feel so hopeful already. Let’s plant them, shall we?
This little bean is just a sprout, I know, but it gives me hope. Maybe I’ll sit here for a while and witness how it grow. [emote_heart,3]
.Worldbuilding - Medieval Plains Island
The creation of Medieval Plains shows how I approach worldbuilding: starting from an emotional core, layering cultural and visual references, and grounding the island in stories that connect to gameplay, NPCs, and environment design.
Starting with a feeling
I began with a guiding atmosphere:
"The Medieval Plains are anchored in an ancient time, with a landscape full of low vegetation and stonework. A great spot for your cows to graze."
This emotional foundation set the direction for the map design and visual exploration.
Influences & Integration
I researched and defined cultural and visual influences: originally a Swedish-inspired world, adapted for a multicultural audience. We experimented with Mediterranean and Chinese references, but found the strongest fit in the romantic aspect of medieval tales.
The art team designed a central landmark (a giant sprout inspired by the tale of Jack and the beanstalk) that served both narrative and gameplay needs (a vertical element marking the town hub).
The Foundations of Medieval Plains
The explorations led to keywords and visuals to always go back to when designing a story, concept art, planning resources in-game or generally adding to the lore of the island.
Landmark Stories
From there, the team developed the foundational story of the beanstalk, tying myth, characters, and player interaction into a living landmark:
"A lonely poor old goose, with nothing to her name except a couple of golden seeds she found near the trash, stumbles upon a rich soil plot that looks perfect for farming. As she tucks the gold seeds ever so gently under the soil with her fluffy white wing the ground starts to rumble.
Up shoots a giant beanstalk unlike anything she’s ever seen. As it grows and grows, it lifts her straight into the air. She’s now stuck on the highest leaf. King Socks VI happens to be visiting the area when he hears the commotion. He rushes over to find the most magnificent beanstalk he’s ever seen! He's heard of magic beanstalks like this one but though they were passed into legend, he's shocked to see one right in front of him!
He notices a beautiful goose at the very top calling for help. Mesmerized by her beauty, King Socks VI braves the beanstalk which no one has done for centuries! Climbing a magic beanstalk can be fatal (or so he's heard in all the folktales).He courageously hops from leaf to leaf until he reaches the very top to save the damsel in distress. As he lays his eyes on her, he’s in shock! The legend is true. The Golden Goose exists! By planting the golden seeds, the lonely poor old goose was transformed into the legendary Golden Goose as a reward for planting the seeds and not giving up hope.
Their eyes meet and right then, they knew it was true love. They decide to get married right there in that magic beanstalk! Now, their offspring thrive in tiny pea pods attached to the beanstalk. They chirp hello to any visitors who drop by as they play on the beanstalk creating happy memories to go along with the memory of their parents love for one another. There is also a monument that lives at the top to commemorate their love for one another and to tell the story of strength, courage and hope.’’
Expanding the World
These myths informed the design of shops, NPCs, and player interactions. For example, the Tailor Shop emerged from the story of foxes and mice learning sacred weaving techniques, grounding the building in cultural lore:
"Foxes born into the court of Rävelot were raised with luxuries and privileges. One of those luxuries was receiving beautifully woven quilts and clothing from the royal families world-renowned tailors.
The once selfish fox, Sir Reinard, who encountered a small mouse community that saved him from starvation, vowed to spend his days repaying their kindness by improving their community, which included providing them with royal quilts and clothing. The mice were so astonished by the beautifully woven clothing that they urged Sir Reinard to allow them to learn from the world-renowned tailors. The mice and other foxes studied the tailors sacred weaving techniques and began to practice, making tiny hats, tail and ear warmers and other clothing and quilts for each other until they perfected the technique.
Now, the mice and foxes work together to gather precious materials to weave the softest and most comfortable clothing. Every piece made is of the finest royal quality for everyone to enjoy."
Finally, we added NPC backstories that could later drive quests or interactions, like the fox shopkeeper with hypermetropia and his accountant companion:
"The shopkeeper of Medieval Plains is a fox with hypermetropia who is incredibly talented at crafting stone buttons but terrible at mathematics. He was losing money for the first time since his great-great-great-grandmother started the business, so he had to hire an accountant. They both stay up late many nights, delicately polishing and sewing buttons and going through the bills
Outcome
Through this process, Medieval Plains evolved from a simple “feeling” into a fully realised island: a coherent setting shaped by mood, cultural references, landmark stories, and layered NPC stories. This foundation created not just environmental storytelling, but concrete design assets (shops, NPCs, items) directly usable by the design team.