Specialized game design knowledge used by the quest-designer agent when designing main/side quests.
Quests are the glue connecting narrative and gameplay. If the game just repeats "go kill 10 of these," players will disengage. Combining diverse structural patterns is what keeps players saying "just one more quest."
| # |
Archetype |
Core Loop |
Narrative Function |
Risk Factor |
| 1 |
Hunt |
Eliminate a specific target |
Threat removal, proving heroism |
Can become repetitive -> Give the target a story |
| 2 |
Defense |
Protect a base/NPC |
Sense of responsibility, time pressure |
Frustration on failure -> Provide partial success options |
| 3 |
Pursuit |
Track a fleeing target |
Tension, spatial utilization |
Repeated failure -> Adjust difficulty with staged clues |
| # |
Archetype |
Core Loop |
Narrative Function |
Risk Factor |
| 4 |
Exploration |
Discover unknown regions |
World-building expansion, curiosity |
Loss of direction -> Guide with environmental storytelling |
| 5 |
Collection |
Gather items/information |
Deepening world understanding |
Tedious errands -> Add mini-narrative to each item |
| 6 |
Puzzle |
Solve puzzles/ciphers |
Intellectual achievement, learning world rules |
Getting stuck -> Provide tiered hint system |
| # |
Archetype |
Core Loop |
Narrative Function |
Risk Factor |
| 7 |
Escort |
Accompany an NPC |
Relationship building, character development |
Slow NPC -> Ensure AI behavior quality |
| 8 |
Negotiation |
Resolve through dialogue |
Exploring faction relations, role-playing |
Obvious answer -> Assign a cost to every choice |
| 9 |
Delivery |
Carry goods/information |
World traversal, NPC network |
Simple travel -> Insert events during travel |
| # |
Archetype |
Core Loop |
Narrative Function |
Risk Factor |
| 10 |
Infiltration |
Achieve objective undetected |
Tension, alternative play style |
Detection=failure prohibited -> Switch to combat on detection |
| 11 |
Competition |
Compete against NPCs/players |
Achievement, social comparison |
Unfairness -> Visual progress indicators |
| 12 |
Dilemma |
Irreconcilable choices |
Moral weight, player identity |
Correct answer exists -> Ensure every choice has pros and cons |
[Surface Layer] What the player sees: "The village elder asks you to find herbs"
[Mechanical Layer] What the game tracks: Travel -> Collect -> Combat -> Return + Flag changes
[Narrative Layer] What the story conveys: The elder's hidden past, the true purpose of the herbs
- The objective must be immediately understandable — "What do I need to do?" is grasped within 3 seconds
- There must be 2 or more paths to the objective — combat/stealth/persuasion
- Progress must be visible — 0/5 -> 3/5 -> Complete
- Quest steps should be 3-7 stages (under 3: too simple, over 7: fatigue)
- Each step should utilize different game mechanics — combat -> dialogue -> exploration variations
- Define failure states — What happens on failure? (Retry/Branch/Permanent consequence)
- After completing a quest, the player should learn at least 1 new thing about the world
- NPC requests have hidden motivations — the surface reason and the real reason
- Quest outcomes should affect subsequent quests — no isolated quests
| Element |
Description |
Application |
| Delayed |
Delayed rewards — non-immediate rewards |
Main quest rewards come at chapter end |
| Random |
Random rewards — variable ratio reinforcement |
Loot probability systems |
| Intrinsic |
Intrinsic rewards — story, character growth |
Emotional cutscenes, relationship changes |
| Progressive |
Progressive rewards — cumulative achievement |
Achievements, titles, skill trees |
Quest Reward Value = (Time Required x Base Reward Rate) x Difficulty Coefficient x Choice Bonus
- Base Reward Rate: Baseline experience/gold per minute
- Difficulty Coefficient: Easy(0.8), Normal(1.0), Hard(1.5), Hidden(2.0)
- Choice Bonus: 1.2x-1.5x for completing bonus objectives/moral choices
Difficulty
^
| /\ /\ /\
| / \ / \ / \
| / \ / \ / \ <- Each tooth = quest chain
| / \/ \ / \
|/ \/ \
+----------------------------> Progress
- Each tooth's peak: Boss battle or key branching point
- Each tooth's valley: Recovery quests, story development, exploration
- Overall slope: Gradual increase — Chapter 1's highest difficulty < Chapter 3's lowest difficulty
| Progress |
Main Quest |
Side Quest Role |
| 0-20% |
Tutorial + World introduction |
Basic mechanics learning |
| 20-40% |
First crisis |
Adding depth to factions/characters |
| 40-60% |
Twist + New objective |
Discovering hidden narratives |
| 60-80% |
Final preparation |
Securing key items/alliances |
| 80-100% |
Climax + Ending |
Epilogue, hidden content |
### Quest: [Title]
- **ID**: Q_[Chapter]_[Number]
- **Type**: Main / Side / Hidden
- **Archetype**: [Choose from the 12 archetypes]
- **Prerequisite Quest**: Q_XX_XX
- **Recommended Level**: Lv.XX
#### Overview
[1-2 sentence summary]
#### Trigger Conditions
[Quest start conditions]
#### Steps
1. [Action] — [Game Mechanic] — [Narrative Function]
2. ...
#### Branches
- Choice A: [Result] -> [Subsequent impact]
- Choice B: [Result] -> [Subsequent impact]
#### Rewards
- Experience: X / Gold: X / Item: [Name]
- Narrative Reward: [Relationship changes, new information]
#### Flag Changes
- SET: [flag_name] = [value]