Oskar Schröder: Remnants of Thaln by The Animation Workshop

OSKAR SCHRÖDER

An Introduction

Pages 6-7

A history in the stars

Pages 8-9

The lands of tHaln

Pages 10-11

Those who remain

Pages 12-17

Echoes of the Past

Pages 18-21

Ancient technologies

Pages 22-23

A conflict reborn

Pages 24-27

The video game

Pages 28-37

An Interaction

Pages 38-45

Media Landscape

Pages 46-49

Early Development & Shape Language

Pages 50-55

Moodboard

Pages 56-57

An Introduction

This book contains a moon and whatever is left of the rest.

This project looks to describe a world, highlight its different people and places and show you, the reader, what this creation is capable of breathing life into.

Remnants of Thaln is a fictional world in which the last humans in the universe remain on a moon orbiting a destroyed planet.

It is a world unlike our own, an alien moon which was terraformed in the far future to be barely inhabitable. Technologies that would seem like magic to us are part of everyday life and instead of rain, meteors fall from the sky. The world of Thaln is a hostile one, having pushed humanity to the brink of extinction and to this day causing most to barely scrape by. But in the face of danger is where Thaln brings the people together, forming strong communities which have to depend on each other to survive.

Remnants of Thaln centers its themes around community, found family and survival in the face of overwhelming odds. It looks to create stories in which a broken world brings its people together, may it be through shared tragedies, dangers that need to be overcome or awe inspiring discoveries. These stories are driven by the treacherous environment that Thaln poses, which is filled with both natural and unnatural dangers which put its characters constantly at risk. Additionally, the powers that be, which were thought to have fallen with a galaxy spanning human empire, have reemerged and have reignited a conflict which caused the world to break to begin with.

One of these stories is described in this book and it takes the shape of a video game. ‘Remnants of Thaln’ is a traversal and exploration based game in which we follow the young woman Zon on her journey through this world. The world of Thaln has not been kind to Zon and so she is looking to find an escape while trying to avoid forming connections to those she encounters, a task she will find to be increasingly difficult.

A history in the stars

Humanity had spread to the very ends of the galaxy. The government that reigned all of humanity was called ‘The Long Empire’, its reign having lasted for millenia.

The limits of conventional expansion had been reached and so the planet Hesperin was turned into a haven for the sciences. Its goal was simple, to find the next step in humanities evolution beyond the stars.

The moon Thaln that orbited Hesperin was found to have large quantities of a rare mineral called Prys which, when refined, could be used to create what was previously thought to be impossible. Due to the secrecy of Hesperin, the mining of Prys was designated to be done through prison labour.

Centuries passed and Hesperin grew more self-sufficient and independent. Then, a major breakthrough was achieved. A way to ascend to the next plane of existence. They called it ‘The Gateway’.

However it was found that the Gateway would affect the entirety of humanity, without exceptions.

Before long, the planet descended into a civil war over the decision if the invention was to be used or not. The Long Empire’s military had gotten wind of what had been going on and established themselves on Thaln. As the civil war descended into chaos the military attempted to intervene, only escalating the conflict. The Gateway was activated by a rogue group and in a last ditch effort to stop it, the military destroyed Hesperin.

It was too late.

As the military armada was swallowed by the destroyed planet a pulse shot through the galaxy.

Every human being outside of the Hesperin System was turned into a being of energy. However the Gateway had been incomplete. While humanity was ready to ascend, they lacked the guidance to move to the realm beyond. And thus humanity became the seekers. Beings of energy which are in search of a place they may never reach.

After a hundred years of meteor rain on Thaln, the last remnants of humanity emerged. Their ancestors had been undesirables and criminals. Now, they were all that was left. The people called this time ‘The Century of Ruin’.

The landscape of Thaln is a treacherous one. Frequent meteor showers constantly reshape the surface. Many experiments and inventions from Hesperin survived the planet’s destruction in shells of Prys and have since fallen onto the surface of Thaln. However most people never returned to the elaborate cave systems they had taken shelter in.

Hundreds of years later, most people still roam Thaln in nomadic groups and survive off of debris they have specialised in collecting and trading with others. While the conditions may not allow for enormous cities to emerge once again, it is a silent understanding that none would be able to make it by themselves.

The Lands of Thaln

Thaln was originally established as a prison labour mining colony due to its high concentration of the mineral ‘Prys’. The surface of Thaln contains high amounts of the mineral, leading to it being easily deformed through meteor strikes.

Terraforming was only applied to the moon in a limited capacity as it was never intended to be inhabited outside mining operations.

The most prominent type of flora is a moss which was engineered to create an atmosphere. It grows at such a rapid pace that it can be observed with the naked eye.

During the century of Ruin, new species of plants found their way onto the surface. The moon’s geography was reshaped completely, large ice crystals from the destroyed planet creating oceans. ‘Rockfall’ is always an imminent danger, as meteorites continue to rain down.

The people of Thaln rely on observation of the sky to predict when larger meteors might come down upon them, smaller rocks however are hard to track and may come down at any moment.

The temperature on the surface is quite temperate, but the moon’s active core increases the temperature drastically below the surface. Wildlife was never introduced to Thaln, however some of the debris of Hesperin has carried organisms with it which now make up the bottom of Thaln’s food chain. At the top of this chain are mutated machines of war, infected with a virus turning them into mad beasts.

Those who Remain

During the The Century of Ruin, the people of Thaln survived in isolation in disconnected cave systems, and many lost hope of ever returning to the surface. When they did finally emerge, they found they were the only humans who had survived the cataclysm. Thus, they named themselves the Remnants and swore to live out their new lives under an open sky.

The Remnants are a nomadic people, constantly on the move to avoid dangerous rockfall and in search of useful debris, the ability to move freely being a core tenet of Remnant life.

Most groups are no larger than ten people, often an amalgamation of blood relationships and those who were picked up along the way. To the Remnants, family are those who you choose to travel with and Children are raised by everyone who wishes to do so.

When a Remnant comes of age they are encouraged to strike out on their own, both to test their aptitude in surviving on the surface of Thaln and to one day find a family of their own.

All of Remnant society functions heavily around trade between families. Each family specialises in locating and repurposing certain kinds of debris, which will then be traded to fulfil their needs. When two families encounter each other, a fair deal will always be struck over a meal, no matter if there is need or not. A strong community is formed over a shared meal and a heated debate.

Remnants sacrifice their safety every day in order to live their lives freely, relying on each other to live their lives to the fullest.

Armour pieces made of prys that are handed down through the generations to protect themselves against the constant threat of rockfall. Taking off the armour is a show of great trust and is not taken lightly amongst strangers

Kites with attached flags are used to communicate with distant remnant families.

The flags might inform about environmental hazards, interest in trade for certain items or simply invite others to share a meal

‘Devices’ are used by every family as a mechanised beast of burden. Many families will come up with different ways to customise their device and assist them with their individual debris specialisation.

Floating carts are attached to carry their belongings. These carts are fashioned from otherwise unusable prys shells and can be turned over in an emergency to be used as shelter.

Few Remnants make the risky decision to settle down. They choose protective overhangs after long lasting surveys on the safety of the area. These small towns are widely known and quickly become hubs of trade and gatherings.

The families who take up permanent residence in these settlements specialise in hospitality and medical care. Knowing where to find a doctor is incredibly valuable to the nomadic Remnants and these families are held in particularly high regard.

Echoes of th e Past

It was the invention of the gateway that, according to the scientists of Hesperin, would allow humanity to take its next step in evolution and move beyond the physical realm.

Nobody knows if the error occurred because of the destruction of Hesperin, or if the Gateway had a flaw in its design. The entirety of humanity outside of the Hesperin system ascended into an immortal shape of pure energy.

Billions of people were suddenly erased, all individuality stripped from them, only leaving something behind that was not meant for this universe. Billions were doomed to roam the universe until the end of time, seeking for passage that would never come.

Thus they were named ‘Seekers’.

Every now and then a seeker will fall to the surface where they will finally meet their end after roaming the land and slowly sizzling out of existence. This short window of tangible existence allows the people of Thaln to capture the energy of a Seeker. Their energy can be harnessed and allows the reactivation of machines that were beyond any point of regular repair.

To some this usage seems crude, they theorise that a captured seeker can be utilised to achieve feats that were thought to be impossible even during the reign of the Long Empire.

A captured seeker is so valuable that the usually cautious Remnants will push their devices close to and sometimes over their breaking point. It is a risk worth taking as any good trader will offer up a fortune to get their hands on a well preserved seeker.

Mobile telescopes allow the detection of falling seekers who are basically impossible to spot when not seen in large groups during night. Once a proficient remnant deciphers the data spat out by the modified machine it’s a race against time for a successful capture.

Society has come to a silent agreement that the seekers no longer possess a mind of their own, despite being observed to act quite human on occasion.

Devices brought back through the energy of a seeker will often exhibit strangely intelligent behaviours and almost develop lives of their own, much closer to that of an animal than that of a machine.

Ancient Technologies

All machines on Thaln are made up of two elements; a shell of refined prys and a mass of biological cables and processors which mimic a nervous system. These basic building blocks enable a wide range of functions. A majority of all existing machinery on Thaln has its origin on the destroyed planet Hesperin, the prys shells protecting them from the destruction of the planet and their descent onto the surface.

Devices are the most commonly found type of machine, seeming to have been an abundance on Hesperin. Their processing units are quite simple and they require constant attention by a ‘driver’ to guide them.

Despite their sturdy shells, many of them were damaged during the Hesperin civil war, leaving them unusable or even dangerous. Finding a fully functional device is considered to be incredibly lucky.

New discoveries in the usage of machines are huge achievements, their complexity only being fully understood by their original creators. Different functions of a machine will seem completely unrelated or even random at times. It took hundreds of years of trial and error to find combinations of machines that could be

The hostile environment of Thaln makes it impossible to establish any kind of farming operations.

Because of this, Food Printers are the most highly valued machines on Thaln.

They print a standardised nutrition stick which is dense in calories, has an indefinite shelf life and tastes like absolutely nothing. Being able to turn the sticks into an enjoyable eating experience is a highly sought after skill.

The Food Printers need to fueled with organic matter and are powered by the energy of Seekers.

A conflict Reborn

The Ox Empire was founded by what remained of the military of the Long Empire after the destruction of Hesperin.

They dug deep into the moon during the Century of Ruin and founded a network of cave cities. Ox stayed in hiding, licking its wounds for much longer than the Remnants until they emerged hundreds of years later and established the very first nation on Thaln, the shadow of a fallen empire.

The landscape of Thaln has not been easy on the young nation as they’ve struggled with adapting an old idea to a new environment.

The Gates of Pharus pose one of the greatest enigmas on Thaln.

An enclave of surviving Hesperin scientists crashed right into the heart of the recently emerging Ox empire, creating one of the largest craters to date.

The Hesperins used their advanced technology to erect an impenetrable city in the middle of the lake, only accessible by a singular bridge.

What lies beyond the walls of Pharus is known to none and so the city has been shrouded in mystery and myth. Only one thing is sure.

The Scientists who caused the downfall of the Long Empire survived the destruction of their planet and have now found a new home to create wonders and atrocities few could even fathom.

Ox has viewed the founding of Pharus as a declaration of war, the two nations continuing a conflict that had already brought humanity to the brink of extinction.

During the civil war on Hesperin a virus was released that infected devices and made them go berserk. After Hesperins destruction some of the infected devices fell onto Thaln and quickly became the apex predators of Thaln’s ecosystem.

Infected Devices continuously seek to absorb any living matter, growing into monstrous sizes. Remnants try to avoid them at any cost as the virus may spread over to their highly valued healthy devices.

One of the few machines not introduced to Thaln by the destruction of Hesperin are the ‘Enforcers’ used by Ox. Built for combat, they are the most dangerous presences on the moon.

They possess no capability to act by themselves and must be controlled by a driver who is directly interfacing with the enforcer through a direct connection to their brain.

Enforcers are the only machines who might be an even match for a Wild Device.

The video game

‘Remnants of Thaln’ is an environment traversal and item gathering focused small scale indie game that can be completed in about 15 hours.

In ‘Remnants of Thaln’ you traverse the open wilderness of the moon Thaln, gathering resources to obtain passage to a mythical city which might finally let you leave this hostile world.

You play as a young woman called ‘Zon’, who recently lost her sister and is now looking to find a way to leave Thaln entirely. Zon is clumsy, awkward and is afraid to let people get close to her after her recent loss. Throughout the story of the game, she has to deal with her grief and learn that close connections to people can make an environment as hostile as Thaln worth living in.

The game looks to create an atmosphere of wonder that invites the player to explore a fantastical setting while feeling accomplished through overcoming traversal based challenges. Tonally, the game strives to hit a sweet spot between cosiness and introspection with more serious themes being mentioned indirectly. The game is suitable for audiences aged fourteen and up, but will most likely resonate more with older players.

The Gameplay loop is built on two core mechanics. In an exploration section the players traverse the landscape openly in a third person view, collecting debris and other precious items that can be used for trade with NPCS.

While the playable map is presented as completely open, certain areas that are needed for story progression can only be accessed through obtaining upgrades for both the device you use for traversal and other items needed to face the dangers of Thaln. The economy of Thaln is based entirely around trading goods and services and so the player must find and trade relevant items and fulfil requests of NPCs to obtain these upgrades.

This is where the second section of gameplay comes in, in which the player interacts with NPCs in visual novel-esque branching dialogue sequences. Through engaging in character driven

The main challenge to the player in ‘Remnants of Thaln’ is finding the right tool for the right job and learning how to deal with the various environmental hazards of Thaln. Zon traverses the lands on the back of a small device that has to be repaired and upgraded to be able to, for example, climb steeper inclines, hide from rockfall, swim through bodies of water and carry large items.

A heavy emphasis is put on the physicality of interacting with the environment through the use of items such as pulleys, ropes, and ladders.

The inventory space of your device is a limited grid, with every upgrade and gathered item taking up space in it. Because of this, the player has to constantly make decisions on which tools to take with them and which items they have the free inventory space to store.

Next to the inventory system, the map plays another big role during exploration. By itself, the map is only equipped with rudimentary geographical descriptions, so it is up to the player to mark areas of interest and the locations of NPCs.

The wildlife of Thaln pose the only combat encounters in the game and are meant to be more of another environmental obstacle that needs to be overcome, rather than epic battles. More often than not the player has to find a way to repel creatures rather than killing them, or circumvent them entirely.

The story of ‘Remnants of Thaln’ is one that is deeply personal to its main character Zon. It is looking to be a story set within a fantastical universe rather than completely unravelling every mystery that the world might have to offer.

The world of Thaln presents its draw through the characters that Zon interacts with. The characters will mention details in conversation that hint at larger mysteries that the player may investigate through further inquiry. This way, the world of Thaln is built up organically through conversations and discoveries of people who feel like they live in this world, rather than characters being conduits that exist solely to explain the world to the player.

‘Remnants of Thaln’ draws heavy inspiration from the indie game ‘Dredge’ with its mix of exploration, resource and inventory management. ‘Death stranding’ is its largest inspiration for the physicality of traversal.

‘Remnants of Thaln’ looks to distinguish itself from these titles through its interaction with the setting through much more intimate dialogue and relationships with NPCS.

mockup screenshot of the gameplay of ‘Remnants of Thaln’.

All of the different upgrades that can be acquired for Zon’s device will be able to interact with the player model and the environment around it. Ropes can be wrapped around rocks, the kite will drift with the wind and the player will have to physically pick up any equipment stored on the device’s exterior.

Zon’s spyglass is always available to the player. It’s use of seeker energy allows it to see clearly at any time of day and makes it possible to track a seekers path well before being visible to the naked eye.

Zon is an anxious woman with big emotions in her early twenties. She is spooked easily and so the harsh environment of Thaln has always taken a toll on her. Because of this Zon relied a lot on her sister Nala to soothe her, who she looked up to for her whole life. When talking to others, Zon has the kind of anxious curiosity and willingness to listen to anything that brings people to open up to her very easily. Her big emotions make these connections quite difficult for her, as she can’t help herself but feel what others around her are feeling ten fold.

After the death of her sister Nala, Zon has been trying to close herself off to others and must learn throughout the story that the pain of forming genuine connections to others is much preferable to numb loneliness.

Tutorial

Zon and her sister Nala finally have a lead on where they might be able to find a slate stone. The two sisters grew up together and stuck with each other after disaster struck and their original family was fatally surprised by rockfall. Ever since then the two have bounced from family to family, never truly finding connection as they grew more and more bitter about their circumstance. Finally, Nala overheard a rumour that the Hespins on the mythical island of Pharus were building a ship to leave Thaln. The sisters might be able to leave the hostile lands of Thaln behind. All they would need is a slate stone, rare debris that is said to grant entrance to Pharus.

The player learns pieces of this backstory as Nala and Zon traverse the environment and the more proactive Nala gives Zon a refresh on the basics of traversal. The two reach a crash site they were told might contain a slate stone and Nala starts shifting through the debris. Zon is hesitant at first, but while looking at her sister she decides she is finally going to get over herself and for once put her caution aside. The ground shifts as the two dream about what wondrous lands they might discover when they’d finally leave Thaln. Nala spots the tremors and tries to get them to retreat, but Zon is set on finding the slate stone. That’s when the weakened ground falls away and the two sisters fall into a brittle cave system below.

Zon awakes in a camp. A kindly older woman tends to her and tells her that they were not able to save Nala.

Zon is heartbroken and rushes off during the night. She is now truly alone. As she mourns the loss of her sister she resolves to keep going and leave Thaln for good.

More than ever there is nothing keeping her here.

From this point on, the player is let into the open world and gets to explore to the best of their ability.

Zon is looking to find a new clue on where she might be able to find a new slate stone and through this gets to know a wide variety of people who roam the land.

Zon is heartbroken during this act. She shies away from acts of kindness and cuts conversations short when she realises she is opening up to people. She is not going to stay in this awful place, so she is set on not letting herself grow attached to anyone.

At the end of Act 1, a particularly heavy rockfall leads Zon to a hermit in a mountain pass in which she finds an old astronomer who has been erratically documenting any debris falling in the area. Zon prods the man and he gives her a hint that she might find a slate stone up in the mountains of a particularly treacherous area.

Act 2

Zon knows what she has to do now. After confiding with a rogue Ox soldier she makes a list of certain equipment she will have to acquire in order to make it to the slate stone. Most of Act 2 is spent on acquiring these items.

As most of the equipment is hard to come by, Zon finds herself having to grow closer to the people she trades with. As she has her goal within her sight now, she starts to let loose a little and grows closer to those she interacts with. Bit by bit she finds herself opening up about her past and her fears to people the player interacts with on a more frequent basis. Eventually, She assembles her equipment. She steels her resolve and begins her journey.

Though the climb is treacherous, Zon manages to reach the

Act 3

Once again Zon awakes in a camp. She is heavily injured and clearly in no condition to make the journey to Pharus any time soon. This is rock bottom for her. That’s when a group of people the player has grown closest to appear and offer to help her on her journey. Zon is overjoyed and the party sets out after she’s had some time to recover.

This act doesn’t take place in the main map anymore as the group journeys towards Pharus. This section represents an epic final gauntlet of challenges of larger scale than ever before that investigate the players ability around the various hazards they’ve had to overcome. Spirits are high and Zon is soon in the best state she’s been since Nala’s passing.

The characters who have joined the player help Zon overcome challenges she would have never been capable of mastering by

The bridge that leads to Pharus marks the final stop for the group. Without a slate stone, none may pass the Hespin guardian that protects the bridge. Feelings are mixed as Zon gives a final goodbye to those who came with her.

Zon’s stone is accepted and the guardian leads her down the bridge. Zon has made it. She is finally going to leave this place behind. The guardian states that once she has entered Pharus, she may never leave again. She looks over her shoulder and sees her friends watching. Her feelings are in turmoil as the guardian opens a path to the island from thin air. Zon walks closer and closer but stops right before stepping through the doorway. She hears a yell in the distance. ‘Don’t go!’.

Here, the player is presented with two choices which will determine which ending they experience.

Choice 1: Leave Choice 2: Stay

Zon has come so far and can finally fulfil the dream she and Nala had together. She does not look back. The guardian leads her down the bridge and past the mighty walls that surround Pharus. The city is almost an alien Landscape, the rules of reality seem to have been rewritten. Zon is asked about her purpose in Pharus and she simply states ‘to leave for a better place’. She is led to an enormous building in the centre of the city that is referred to as ‘the gateway’. Here Zon finds out that there never was a spaceship that was going to leave Thaln. What does exist however is a smaller version of the machine that turned humanity into seekers. This version however is capable of moving seekers to the furthest reaches, to the plane beyond our own. Zon is in awe and agrees to experience what so little people have gotten to before. As the machine activates she thinks of Nala and wonders if she’ll perhaps even get to see her again. The game finishes as the world turns to streaks of light around her.

She thinks to herself that no matter what, at least she’s going to be in a better place.

Zon turns and sees her friends who have come up the bridge as far as they dare. They gesture wildly for her to come back to them. The guardian looks at her expectantly. Zon looks at the stone in her hand and thinks of Nala. Then she hands it to the guardian and turns around. The group embrace her and Zon walks off with them into the distance. Her new family did not want to lose her and she did not want to give them up either. The game finishes as the group settles around a campfire after returning from their trip. Zon shares a fond moment with everyone individually and thinks warmly about how much Nala would have liked everyone as she watches some sparks rise into the night sky. After so long, Zon finally found a better place.

A home.

The Playable Map

The map of Remnants of Thaln is based around providing interesting locales which provide interesting environmental challenges that the player needs to overcome. There is no linear path forward as the players are left to discover for themselves which areas are accessible to them based on the equipment they have acquired.

NPC Samples

Phaitus carries a virus within themselves after being mauled by a wild device. They give deeper insight into the machinations of the history of Thaln and the events around the failed ascension of humanity.

After getting injured due to friendly fire in a skirmish with Hespian combatants, Narma defected from the Ox army and has been looking for a purpose since.

Zon connects with her over their lone wolf attitude and the two are both surprised to learn to enjoy each other’s company.

An Interaction

The following is an example of what a cutscene in Remnants of Thaln would look like.

This scene takes place during Act one and shows Zon interacting with one of the first NPCs the player can meet in the starting area of the r iverlands. The quest the player was sent on puts them to the test for the first time on how they might approach a locale from different angles. The NPC Moura has tasked Zon with fetching her some fruits from a nearby crater. This is one of the first encounters with an injured but still dangerous wild device that the player has to find a way to avoid as they are not yet capable of repelling it effectively.

Moura is a kind hearted woman with a huge heart who immediately catches on to the state that Zon is in at this point in the story. If the player chooses to get closer to her throughout act one and two she becomes one of the close confidantes who help Zon on her journey in act three. Moura is a very motherly figure and challenges Zon to open up her heart and accept warmth from other people again. In act two Zon on the other hand can help Moura deal with feelings of guilt as Moura eventually opens up about her want to strike out on her own and become her own person again, rather than being defined as the head of a group.

You catch Moura directing some members of her family to set up a large stove. Chatter from a group sitting around a fire nearby drifts over.

“There you are! I was starting to worry that you were eaten by something.”

“I found the foods you asked for.” [Turn in quest items]

Laugh nervously.

“It got close enough. Here you go!” [Turn in quest items]

“Actually, I have something to attend to” [Leave]

Concern flickers across Moura’s face. You hand over the bag full of podling berries and pebblings.

“You didn’t get hurt did you? These ingredients are by no means worth losing a leg.”

Look at your bruised limbs.

“It got pretty close. Too close for the reward you offered.”

“I just want my reward and to get out of here.”

Point at the bag and change the subject

“What are these for anyways?”

With a fondness in her eyes, Moura Gestures over to the gathering.

“The Stew! Grimera is trading with the head of another family and we’re in charge of the meal for the negotiations.”

“What are you trading for?”

You remember pulling the berries out of that nasty pod. “You’re supposed to EAT that?”

“These aren’t naturally occurring, are they?”

Moura pulls out a knife, expertly inserts it into a slit in one of the berries and cracks it open.

“It takes a couple of steps, but if you know how to prepare them they’re tastier than any nutrition stick.”

Gingerly smell the opened fruit.

It’s pungent. Somehow it smells salty and sweet at the same time. You retch. Moura pats you on the shoulder with a full bellied laugh.

“Like I said, you need to know how to prepare it!” She offers you a jug of water.

Take a swig

“Your cooking must be amazing if you can turn that into something edible.”

Show your iron resolve and decline the water.

“This is nothing compared to the goop pod.”

Take a sip and say nothing.

A devious look flashes over Moura’s face. Somehow you get the impression that you’ve been manoeuvred exactly where she wants you.

“Well you’ll have to be the judge of that! The negotiations are starting soon and we have a spare seat that needs to be filled.”

This woman is sly.

“I- I really don’t want to impose.”

“No thanks, I have some food I gotta eat before it goes bad.”

“I’d really like that reward and to get going.”

Moura grabs your hand.

“Don’t be silly! We love having visitors, how do you think this family grew to be so big?”

Loud laughter drifts over from the gathering. Two burly men have started tossing some young kids back and forth between them. The kids squeal with excitement.

It’s been a while since you shared a meal with anyone. Could you really?

In that moment a small rockfall occurs and impacts close by. You jump. Moura seems unbothered, but your gut squirms as you look at her unprotected head.

Conjure a smile.

“I actually have some business to attend to, so sorry!”

“Aren’t you scared of the rockfall?”

Moura’s shoulders sink as her big smile shifts to a gentle look of concern.

“We’d love to have your company sweetie. No expectations, you don’t need to talk with anyone if you don’t feel like it. All I ask is that you share a meal and some warm company.”

“Maybe next time? I’ll be around the area anyways.”

Your Stomach growls.

“Just a bite.”

It’s

been so long since you let yourself be close to people…

Nala’s face flashes before your eyes. You remember the meals you shared together, the smell of food cooking over a fire. The laughter of the nearby group swells and you can almost hear her voice mixed in with the others.

You remember Nala’s expression as you plunged into darkness.

“I-”

Moura leans down and enters your field of vision, searching eye contact with you. Her genuineness makes your heart ache. You aren’t ready for this.

Push through it. Moura is so genuine.

“Perhaps you could show me how you make that stew?”

“I- I’m sorry I can’t do this.”

Moura gently touches your shoulder. You finally meet her eyes and after a moment she gives a slight nod. She takes a breath and her expression of concern dissipates.

“Well, well, I believe payment is in order! This should be worth something to just about any merchant.”

[Receive small seeker amulet]

This is way more valuable than what you had initially bargained for! Moura gives you a hearty clap on the back.

“It’s only right to give you a little extra for all the effort you went through! ‘No’ is not an option.”

Her expression makes you understand it really isn’t.

Give her a hug.

“Thank you, Moura.”

Dare a smile.

“I hope to do business with you again soon.”

Moura gives a big nod with an even bigger smile.

“I’ll be seeing you soon! We can always use an extra pair of hands.”

Just as you’re about to turn around she pushes a small package into your arms and guides you in the direction of your device.

“If you’re going alone, you might as well do it with a full belly.”

[End]

Media Landscape

Remnants of Thaln is a video game because the medium allows fictional worlds to truly come to life. In no other medium does the person experiencing it get to interact with the space on their own terms, decide who they want to talk to and which aspects of the experience they want to engage with. The world of Thaln is designed around the idea that something interesting can be seen from any vantage point. An open world, traversal and exploration based video game was a natural choice as its main platform to allow the player to strike out and forge a connection with the world in the way most suited to them.

The 2020’s have been a rough couple of years for the video game industry as a whole. The COVID-19 pandemic halted many productions, delayed release dates and in worse cases caused projects to be shut down entirely. This trend has only continued as larger studios and in particular publishers have become increasingly risk averse, deciding to cancel many productions who weren’t projected to turn a large enough profit quickly enough.

Larger game productions have been affected by this in particular as their production costs can be incredibly high and take many years to reach a point in development where they have anything presentable to show for it.

A particularly egregious example for this trend is the game multiplayer first-person shooter ‘Concord’, developed by Firewalk Studios and published by Sony in September 2024. Its production reportedly took over eight years of development and ate up over 400 million dollars, only for the game to be shut down and become unplayable two weeks after its release due to not meeting projected sales. Firewalk Studios was shut down by Sony only a couple of weeks later, leaving the entire industry shocked.

The only winners of this climate in the last couple of years have been small indie game productions. Due to their much smaller scopes in production and smaller team sizes, indie games have been able to weather the harsh climate. Large parts of the video game community have been tired of large video game releases that have either been underbaked or have simply been another iteration of an already exhausted formula. And so large parts of the community have turned their attention to smaller productions who are able to present them with much more innovative and new experiences. An excellent indicator of this trend is the game ‘Balatro’, developed by solo developer LocalThunk and released in February 2024. Balatro released to wide critical acclaim, managed to accumulate over two million sold units within the year and was even nominated for Game of the Year at the annual Game awards. It is a huge achievement for a sole developer and indicates the video game community’s interest and willingness to engage with games that fall outside of

The indie games space has benefited immensely from word of mouth being spread through various social media platforms such as Twitter, TikTok and YouTube videos. Games that don’t have big publishers who can dish out big marketing budgets have a much bigger chance to reach success nowadays through initiatives like Steam Next Fest, which highlight upcoming indie releases through playable demos and encouraging players to give titles a try they might

Remnants of Thaln fits right into this space. Its world is designed to draw people in at a first glance, presenting them with a space they haven’t seen before.

A big inspiration for the game has been the indie game ‘Dredge’, developed by Black Salt Games and published by Team 17 in 2023. Dredge was made by a small team of developers who eventually found a publisher in Team 17 who helped them bring the game to a finished state. Throughout the production of the game the studio was actively posting work in process content on social media platforms and participated in multiple demo showcases. This ultimately led to Dredge launching with over 200.000 wishlist markings on the game platform Steam and selling over 1.1 million units over the next year and a half, amazing numbers for a new studio’s first release.

Dredge’s inventory management system and free flowing exploration inspired the trading and exploration mechanics of Remnants of Thaln.

Where Remnants of Thaln looks to distinguish itself from Dredge is in its world and its characters and the way the player traverses the world.

Dredge is set in a world close to our own which is haunted by eldritch beings in which the player interacts with mysterious characters who have a few cryptic remarks to give.

Remnants of Thaln places much more emphasis on being able to traverse its landscape through more nuanced means and give the player the ability to find unexpected locations. The lore of Thaln is designed to encourage players to find out more about it on their own terms. The story and characters of Remnants of Thaln are also much deeper, as the multiple choice dialogue gives the player an opportunity to form their own connections with the characters they like the most.

The trading relationships between Remnant families could make the basis for a board game centered around trade and table negotiations. The fantastical setting would lend itself to bring a more unusual aesthetic into a genre which traditionally likes to center itself around historical settings and aesthetics. Thaln has the opportunity to imbue a genre with new life and draw in an audience who are looking for a more unique experience. The deep world building of Thaln also lends itself to introduce an aspect of role play and mix up a genre that is conventionally heavily focused on pure game play.

A graphic novel would have the possibility of exploring a story set in the world over a much larger scale, while requiring only one person to work on it. This medium would be able to take full advantage of the sprawling landscapes of Thaln and present them alongside intimate character moments through being able to take advantage of page layouts. The scalability of a graphic novel would allow for many more aspects and stories in the world of Thaln to be showcased.

A series of plastic model kits would be able to take advantage of the modularity of the different machines and devices used by all people of Thaln and could very actively encourage kit bashing. Each kit could come with a small pamphlet which would highlight the different backstories behind the kit and expand the world of Thaln through new and interesting snippets of information. The kitbashing aspect lends itself perfectly to Thaln, as the mixing and matching of parts is already happening within the lore of the universe.

Early development, Colour and Shape language

Once I started to hone in on what the world of Thaln would be I had a pretty clear idea of the design philosophy I wanted to use. Going into the project I had always intended to use rounded, uneven and organic shapes and so I ended up finding reasons within the world building to accommodate those designs.

I wanted to reflect the relationship between the Remnants and the environment of Thaln through both the colour scheme, but also the shapes of their clothing. The colour schemes of the remnants reflect the greens of the environment, the rust on their armour mirroring the patches of red growth throughout Thaln.

The Remnants have bulky silhouettes, so while they might not be wearing armour over their entire body, they give off an aura of stability and endurance.

The craters littering the surface are also present on the armour of the Remnants and the shells of their Devices.

All in all, while Thaln is dangerous to the people inhabiting it, they’ve become a part of the ecosystem.

To contrast this, the factions of Ox and what remains of the Hesperin scientists go against the harmony established between the Remnants and Thaln. While the soldiers of Ox are still bulky and intimidating, their bold red colours set them apart and make them stand out. The bodies of the Hesperin scientists are long, frail and barely keep their human shape.