Some Insights from Gregg Mayles on the Design and Origins of Sea of Thieves

  • There's a lot here, all shared on twitter but I thought it would be good to have as a point of reference on the forums too -

    In no particular order -

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1079668864110206977

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DvvA6s9X0AAdDK4.jpg


    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1079455036235792384

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dvr9i92XcAE2-vK.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dvr-F5LW0AA1pqk.jpg


    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1079470441499119617


    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1079501251845468160

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DvsnufRWwAEslBB.jpg


    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1079516406104887297


    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dvv8zqtX0AAdxTM.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dvv81EmWoAA1Naz.jpg


    Added 1st Jan 2019

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1080160016680841221


    3rd Jan 2019

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1080521419652562944

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dv7HXgFXcAACgOQ.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dv7HYlFXgAUIGqG.jpg


    And from Mike too -

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1080951771600748544


    3rd jan 2019

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1080951771600748544

    and Mike's addition -


    Jan 4th 2019

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1081291484819795968

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DwGDDX_WwAcj-jB.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DwGDEp_WwAAIPXO.jpg

    and Mike's thoughts -


    15th Jan 2019

    Player titles

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1084966403785060352

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dw6QwbMX4AAJQ2s.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Dw6QxzQWoAMNTAr.jpg

    and Mike's input -

    https://twitter.com/ChappersChapman/status/1085068294766424064


    16th Jan 2019

    Captain Troll and The Brig!

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1085299586590224387

    Mike's reply -

    https://twitter.com/ChappersChapman/status/1085448972364365824


    17th Jan
    Power vs being able to play together and some unusual features that didn't make it into game....

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1086030665991233537

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1085626527616851973


    https://twitter.com/ChappersChapman/status/1086169700386697221


    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1087035141896196098

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DxXsF_rWkAI0xYd.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DxXsG0PWkAY4llR.jpg

    https://twitter.com/ChappersChapman/status/1087050872222375939


    22/1/2019
    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1087836232300838914

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DxjEhGKXgAIsBqp.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DxjEiy4X0AEyAc_.jpg



    23/1/2019

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1088192457035210753

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DxoHoj_XgAAvlf_.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DxoHpmuW0AIUJmZ.jpg

    https://twitter.com/ChappersChapman/status/1088207041326395392


    One of the first ships -

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1088560559950311424

    On testing tiredness and naps -

    The voyage system -

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1090371575264743425

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyHFmFOWkAA1Vu6.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyHFocOX0AMPSRd.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyHFqasXQAAUkuU.jpg

    Mike's comment -

    Andy's -


    On crafting..

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1091079347497254913

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyRJnOFWsAAs8fT.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyRJocJX0AA-TA2.jpg

    https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DyRJppfXQAAEWsL.jpg


    5th Feb 2019 - On digging up chests....

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1092678426052444160

    https://twitter.com/ChappersChapman/status/1092699756932071425

  • 53
    Posts
    38.7k
    Views
  • @katttruewalker

    Very cool! A great look into the creation of the Sea of Thieves. I have always worked in fields designing, creating, and implementing things for others to experience, enjoy, and make lives better. A great look peaking behind the curtain to see how the idea was pitched and grew to something that we all now sail in together.

  • @katttruewalker I really like how they explain the immersion between first and third person.
    And I never really thought about it like that, it’s very interesting and kind of makes sense. I don’t think I would want a third person toggle.

  • I'm personally glad it's first person and not third. Third person always breaks the immersion for me. First person allows me to get lost in a game for some reason.

    Also... that die better not be one of the features that won't make it into the game! You put it in the game or I swear!!

  • @x-crowheart-x said in Some Insights from Gregg Mayles on the Design and Origins of Sea of Thieves:

    @katttruewalker

    Very cool! A great look into the creation of the Sea of Thieves. I have always worked in fields designing, creating, and implementing things for others to experience, enjoy, and make lives better. A great look peaking behind the curtain to see how the idea was pitched and grew to something that we all now sail in together.

    I find anything like this fascinating to read, just makes for a more holistic view of the game I reckon :)

  • @katttruewalker Thanks for posting these here! Everyone needs to check these out. Some very interesting and rare insights into the origins of the game. So cool!

  • @katttruewalker said in Some Insights from Gregg Mayles on the Design and Origins of Sea of Thieves:

    @x-crowheart-x said in Some Insights from Gregg Mayles on the Design and Origins of Sea of Thieves:

    @katttruewalker

    Very cool! A great look into the creation of the Sea of Thieves. I have always worked in fields designing, creating, and implementing things for others to experience, enjoy, and make lives better. A great look peaking behind the curtain to see how the idea was pitched and grew to something that we all now sail in together.

    I find anything like this fascinating to read, just makes for a more holistic view of the game I reckon :)

    Me too! Thanks for sharing all this with us.

  • @knifelife Agreed.

  • What i find so intriguing is the fact that this Magical game came to be out of a few boards of post it notes...That proves that Great Ideas still originate from a few words on paper ,just like many hundred years ago...Oh , imagine all the time between those post it's and what we have today , i'm so glad to be witnessing how this Great Game keeps growing...Can't wait what 2019 will bring because SOT and Epicness are two words that can't be seperated anymore from eachother...

  • Nobody mentioned the Dice!!! #Seaoftease

  • Added today's tweet too - all about theme, humour and audio :)

  • slapping with fish next update confirmed.

  • Things like this could answer so many "whys" players have when things aren't the way they would have made it, especially near launch when so many had short sighted requests.

  • Added another for 3rd Jan :)

  • Added another insight from today!

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1080951771600748544

    It would be nice to have some "temporary" items that we have to scavenge from islands.

  • Sadly, in their theorising and analysis, the Rare team failed to identify another player type:

    alt text

  • @surveyorpete Not that I agree but that was fun lol

  • Cool inside look on game design.

    One thing I’ll never get over is how you make a completely cosmetic reward game, first person. The only rewards in this game are cosmetics and you can never see them unless you emote. Makes no sense why they didnt add third or first person option. If in pvp you like first person, right dpad toggle first person, if exploring is better for you in third person, right dpad toggle third person.

  • Jan 4th added - crew harmony and betrayals

  • @katttruewalker great post buddy a very interesting read 😁

  • @uberkull

    The only rewards in this game are cosmetics and you can never see them unless you emote.

    Not true. The “rewards” are the hours of fun you have playing the game.

    As for the clothes; most long term players I know have settled in a single outfit: many wearing as few as possible.

  • Added new post on player titles and their role from 14th Jan!

  • @katttruewalker that's really interesting. I'm in work so I don't have time to read it all, but from what I've skimmed through it's amazing how well they nailed the essence of what they outlined there in the game that they delivered. Well Played Rare! It's fascinating to see how they transformed an idea in their heads and on scraps of paper into a tangible thing that I can interact with. That must be an amazing feeling, to be able to create on that scale and with that level of fidelity to your original vision.

  • Interesting one today around the Brig mechanic in game and the reasoning behind it - designed to combat behaviour which is unreasonable or morally wrong.

  • They only seem to consider 'in crew' grief and antisocial behaviour. There has since been the reliance on a recommendation to 'scuttle' for repetitive and unecessary pvp strategies and no consideration of balancing crew skills.

    Still not worth trying game again.

  • @stratcat51 Fair enough, you're allowed have that opinion, there's other games for you to play.

    I think you're missing out, but if you don't like it, it's better that you're not on crews bringing them down and making them miserable because you aren't enjoying yourself.

    1 question though. I remember you from launch or thereabouts, you were full of misery about the game then too. Why are you still here? It's a free world, you can do what you like, I just wonder if you'd be more optimistic about things if, when you don't like a thing, you just got on with your life and let other people enjoy it.

  • @katttruewalker said in Some Insights from Gregg Mayles on the Design and Origins of Sea of Thieves:

    Interesting one today around the Brig mechanic in game and the reasoning behind it - designed to combat behaviour which is unreasonable or morally wrong.

    Thanks so much for giving us these installments. Really building up into a good deep dive into the brains of Rare and the guts of the game.

  • I swear I’ve read this thread about 6 times now aha!
    Always fascinates me! And surely I can’t be the only one zooming into those sticky notes looking for every bit of information xD

  • And I'm just stuck on the one post-it that says

    Shopping on the Ship: Parrot Orders

    EQ2 had /pizza for ordering Pizza Hut.... maybe parrot can do the same?!

    And now I'm stuck on the crossed out SPOILER one.. how you can troll your crew... hmm.

  • January 17th

    Power advantages vs being able to play together and some unusual things which didn't make it into game 'poking stick'!

  • I like the characters being, at some point, some Tic Tac with eyes and mustache! Also the stick used to push the boats that are near land or docks was pretty op! In this week dev stream, Shelley said that as soon as she and Andrew got back from their honeymoon (or vacation, don't remember exactly), that was the first thing they went for to test :D.

    Besides that, awesome insight on the early stages of the game and its progression. I am passionate about game development and I'm currently working on a 2D platformer, just a self project to learn and gather new skills.

  • I can see how they have the potions be purchased or found, but only for that session like cursed cannonballs.
    Or you can get iron to patch your ship making it take 2 hits to make that hole again or something.

    These reveal that they were deep in ideas, and chose to simplify or combine them to make the game easier to just play, allowing these ideas to resurface later to fit the direction of the game.

  • @king-deka sagte in Some Insights from Gregg Mayles on the Design and Origins of Sea of Thieves:

    Nobody mentioned the Dice!!! #Seaoftease

    Nobody mentioned the Flame Thrower!!!
    #Seaoftease

  • Further insights posted today...

    Some beautiful designs for islands... I wonder if there's chance any of these ever make it into the game. Would love to see some needle rock islands to climb.

    https://twitter.com/Ghoulyboy/status/1087035141896196098

  • @musicmee Interesting to see the list of islands that "made it" verses the islands that were "cut." Kraken's Fall certainly looks a lot different than the Kraken's Fall we currently have! I also wonder if we'll ever see the islands that were checked off but haven't been added to the game or if any of the crossed out islands will be reworked and added at a later date.

    I very much like Devil's Nest and Serpent Pass. One of the things I like most about Thieves Haven is being able to sail right through the middle of the island. I think Serpent Pass could offer some interesting choke points / game play mechanics if it gave players an incentive to sail through it.

    Thanks for posting Musicmee!

53
Posts
38.7k
Views
1 out of 53