Seeking advice on RPG stats and potential issue of game scale

[TheSinningDev]

I'm currently making a life-sim game in Twine that takes much inspiration from games like Degrees of Lewdity and Course of Temptation. Progress is coming along nicely and the game is slowly taking shape, however I feel that the scale of the game seems to expand in scope with every update (the game is currently up on Itch.io).

The most recent issue is the expansion of the PC's Attributes and Skills (which take some inspiration from Disco Elysium), which are now relatively numerous despite still having more planned. I'm worried that having too many options for skills and attributes may leave the game with a feeling of incompleteness if I don't adequately fill the overworld with options to use the PC's Attributes and Skills, though I'm also worried that if I have too many it will leave the game feeling cluttered and perhaps poorly planned out (which I guess wouldn't be wrong).

I'm mostly looking for advice on how others have managed their game's scale getting out of hand and how I might go about ensuring that having numerous Skills might still be enjoyable for players to deal with.

I'd also be very interested in knowing how others plan out their own game's features.

 

[Insomnimaniac Games]

Can you consolidate things? Like, for example, pickpocketing and lockpicking could be married into a "sleight of hand" skill?

 

[TheSinningDev]

Can you consolidate things? Like, for example, pickpocketing and lockpicking could be married into a "sleight of hand" skill?

I could, the issue being that, as it's currently set up, pretty much every skill exists as a subskill under a master skill, with each master skill having three subskills. In this case, pickpocketing and lockpicking (as well as a third skill, dealing) are subskills under the stealth skill.

I personally quite like this format for my game, and would prefer to maintain the 3-subskill to 1-master skill format if possible, though I suppose I'll have to consider it.

 

[Insomnimaniac Games]

I could, the issue being that, as it's currently set up, pretty much every skill exists as a subskill under a master skill, with each master skill having three subskills. In this case, pickpocketing and lockpicking (as well as a third skill, dealing) are subskills under the stealth skill.

I personally quite like this format for my game, and would prefer to maintain the 3-subskill to 1-master skill format if possible, though I suppose I'll have to consider it.

Even reducing it to two subskills would probably make it way more manageable. If you're thinking 3 is too much now, it'll definitely be too much later down the road.

 

[FromOtherSpace]

No game released yet for me.

I would advice to always start with the minimal amount possible (of attributes) and add more when its mandatory.

On player pov, it's hard to follow dozen's of separate stats. And, unless all of them are really usefull, you forget most of them even exist.

For skills, it's about balance and situation. If 2 skill are enough to beat the game and others are useless, most player are gonna to use only those 2. If each could be great within a given situation and terrible in others, you can create a variety (like 5 * 3) and players will enjoy it. Also the payoff could be a way to balance and force variety, as rarity (like a badass skill use a rare item/ressource)

 

[TheSinningDev]

Even reducing it to two subskills would probably make it way more manageable. If you're thinking 3 is too much now, it'll definitely be too much later down the road.

I suppose I'm less worried about managing it from a development standpoint and am more worried that from a design standpoint it may be too intimidating/confusing for players. At the moment there are 12 Attributes and 25 Skills planned (though skills can easily be dropped to 19).

If that sounds like too much for most players to reasonably handle, then yeah, I guess I'm just going to have to cut stuff.

 

[Insomnimaniac Games]

I suppose I'm less worried about managing it from a development standpoint and am more worried that from a design standpoint it may be too intimidating/confusing for players. At the moment there are 12 Attributes and 25 Skills planned (though skills can easily be dropped to 19).

If that sounds like too much for most players to reasonably handle, then yeah, I guess I'm just going to have to cut stuff.

Well, BG3 has 18 skills and 6 attributes, and we all know how much that game achieves with those numbers. Do with that what you will. Whatever you decide, good luck my man!

 

[Mano_Muerta]

I'm working on an rpg game that already had an alpha release but I'm currently remaking everything (mostly for embarrassement lol)

if you plan to expand the game scope to a non defined yet point and the classic skill three is not tour cup of tea then I can recommend you to do something like the fallout's S.P.E.C.I.A.L system where you have a core stat and "perks" instead of a classic skill system, where you combine most classic skills like lockpicking with other "skills" that have an effect over the player's game style

for example, having the skill lockpicking that allows you to pick locks and also have a skill called for example "backstabbing" that gives you extra damage and extra critic chance when attacking in stealth mode, and both of them as "childs" of the main stat of stealth

this way you will also not have to remake big parts of your skill system and could add as much as you think

also, a way to know when you need to stop adding new skills is when you cannot think in anything interesting anymore and you're adding things like "this skill allows you to chop wood 3% faster during night in full moon and while wearing a green robe", I think I explained my point