Collin McNulty's blog: February 2014

Collin McNulty

02/19/2014

Media & the Creative Process

Breaking Bad Game Ideas

Hey everybody! As you know Insomniac Games needs some game ideas for the world renowned Breaking Bad television show, and fast! We need to beat out our competitors. Below is a list of some potential ideas i’ve brainstormed. I need feedback as soon as possible, please and thank you.

1. For Nintendo: In this game, the player will simply try to sell as much meth as possible. Money can be used to purchase meth as well as purchase special abilities. Players must go across a flat screen (no gravity), in a Pac-man like atmosphere. As players encounter customers, they will make sales, depending on how much meth they have on them. Once out of meth they return to the ‘lab’ spending as much time as possible at this point (the more time spent at this place the more meth) with a maximum of 10. Players will not always be able to stay here long however, for they will constantly be pursued by police characters. If caught by a police the game ends immediately and the score is tallied. The longer players survive, the more police units will enter gameplay

Special abilities:

1. Stealth - police cannot see character

2. Speed - character moves twice as fast

3. Strapped - player acquires a weapon to kill police unites

4. Backpack - player can carry twice as much meth

See sketch #1

2. For the Internet - an action shooter, wherein players play as Walter White. This is a platform shooter. In it, Gus has killed Walter’s family as he often threatened and Walter is bent on revenge. Shoot-em-up styled gameplay with as much violence as possible. Kill various bad guys as you progress across levels, collect meth for extra points, and gold to upgrade weapons.

See sketch #2

3. Fun Family Game - we could advertise this one on the show’s website, since it is much more family friendly and is more accurate to the story of breaking bad. This game uses interactions and choices, and focuses solely on not getting exposed as being the Heisenberg of the game. Multiplayer, on of the players is Heisenberg and players all investigate each other. The game ends when Heisenberg is exposed, in a game similar to the Clue experience. An alternative ending Heisenberg earns one billion dollars, at which point all other players lose. Various ways to determine who Heisenberg is, incomes are kept, each player has a different job and “secrets” that give players clues until they know enough to make a guess. This game requires 4 players.

See sketch #3

4. Alternative 1 - In this game each player owns their own lab, with scientists and protective men. The goal is to be the first to develop “pure meth”…this is done by completing quests. The pieces of formula are scattered across the board and must be collected, as well as the supplies to make them. The supplies will be different each time since the formula changes each game (it will be a random combination of elements and recipe not the actual meth formula obviously). Supplies must therefor be gotten after players know what the recipe is, so there are two stages to the game for everybody.

5. Alternative 2 - “Meth tycoon” essentially. You start as a small town cook, and must know how to manage your finances to expand your empire. Money will be given initially and must be spent on meth supplies as well as dealers and a safe place. Finance options increase with money, and it is possible to accept money from dealers if you are talented enough to use this money to pay them back. This is a fast way to increase your empire however if it goes wrong the game will end that much faster, for example if you spend your finances in the wrong way, and don’t make enough money back they will kill your family and then capture you unless you somehow purchase more military men than them. If you are captured, there is nothing further you can do in the game.