Things have kind of exploded since my last post - I seem to have accidentally assembled a team of very talented people who have all been so gracious with their work and ideas that it creates so many options. (And also forces me to lift the game to the standard that they've set.)

One of the things I'm happiest to see is that every contribution makes ripples into the rest of the game; In other words, a piece of music can inform story beats, character arcs and even fundamental game mechanics, which the case I'd like to explore a little here today. 

Recently I asked the lovely musician Eugene Li to help add some zest to a new scene in which a cryptic stranger hacks your phone - He produced two versions of the same theme; one alien and cold and the other warmer and inviting. 

This set off a few ideas in my head - It seems to me that this could be used as signals in a game of hot-and-cold across the city and I suddenly saw the end-game scenario for Noir and the changes that will be needed to make things work. 

Basically - The game will be made up of standalone chapters but the endgame will be reached when you locate the stranger through a series of clues scattered from chapter to chapter. In order to make this 'locating' system more interesting, I decided that I need to expand the map system to include a street-level view and many, many possible locations for this stranger character which will be assigned at the beginning of each campaign. 

I know that might sound complicated and perhaps even impossible - But it's actually already been done in another form. I don't think many players realise that there is already a system in place that randomly generates individuals' social network profiles and my current goal is to reuse that system to create 'real' people in 'real' locations that you can knock for and pester on a whim. Some will have problems, some will have information. 

And I know this is already crazy, but it's about to get a lot crazier. 

Another fact I don't often share is that I recently earned a Master's Degree in Social Policy. 

So, if I say that in recreating the HK population, it's actually quite straightforward to find accurate statistical information by which to divide the randomized pool along demographic lines (Class, gender, ethnicity, language, etc.) please believe me - It's highly doable and... I'm a maniac. I really want to!