Submersed (Demo)

A short 2,500 word demo for one of my 2nd year univesity assignments, which involved creating an original world that was pitched to a panel, and then creating a short demo to demonstrate the world.

Submersed is an original concept for an open-world RPG which takes place in our own world 200 years in an alternate future, in which a growing and aging population caused a heavier demand for fossil fuels, causing the ice caps to melt completely, and flooding the earth, causing the sea level to rise dramatically.

This catastrophic event forced the remaining population to live on the islands of rubbish and debris that humanity had left behind during the flood, with only the rich being able to afford to live on the small number of soil islands that remain.

The extract takes place in the city of Flooding Likely, one of the larger cities in the area, an archipelago comprising several small islands connected together using ladders and bridges.

The core themes of Submersed are upcycling, environmentalism and man-made climate change, as people have been forced to use previously thrown-away items to create new, useful objects.

Although the script contains no real mechanics, ideally there would be a points-based skill system, which would increase by levelling up and earning experience from mechanics such as crafting, combat and passing skill checks.

The character you play as has one of three backstories that you can choose from: Aristocrat, pirate and salvager, which provide occasional unique dialogue options, as well as different starting stats and abilities. Although the script extract will only show the beginning act of the game, the arc the player would have would depend on the choices they made throughout the game, such as what faction they join and what ending route they pursue.

The extract finds the player at the start of the game, down on their luck and low on funds, which leads them to take on a job from the rich landowner, Jack Bennett, which unintentionally puts the player in the centre of the game’s major conflict between violent, water-worshipping religious extremists and pacifist earth-revering monks.