Hello, my name is Alexander Grenus, and I’m a Game Designer on the team. Today, I'm going to talk about the Spirit and the process of its creation, what inspired it, and how the system currently interacts with other game mechanics already in place.
Alex's portrait.
I currently live in Austria and have been working in game design for quite some time. My first project dates back to 2000, with my first official release in 2007 with Steel Walker!
Later, I joined stillalive studios, where I worked for about ten years. During that time, I contributed to around ten games before eventually joining Trailblazers: Into the march.
My passion for game development started very early thanks to my older brother. I used to watch him play on PC, and one day he brought home Command & Conquer and THAT was the moment I knew I wanted to become a game designer.
Since 2017 I also work as a lecturer in game design and project management.
Alex's game box and a gameplay image from "Command & Conquer".
When I joined the project, the Spirit concept already existed. To better understand the original vision, I watched Howl’s Moving Castle, particularly the character Calcifer, which served as a key inspiration!
Calcifer and the moving castle from the movie "Howl’s Moving Castle".
The initial idea was that the spirit is what allows the ship to move. From there, the design team worked on adapting the concept so it would properly support both the game’s narrative and its mechanics.
In the current version, the Spirit resides in the heart of the landship and is connected in some way to the March (and the Bloom, which we’ll discuss another time). Its presence prevents the ship from being consumed by the Bloom.
→ The Spirit cannot move on its own and relies on crew members to be transported, creating a form of symbiosis: the humans depend on the Spirit for protection, while the Spirit depends on the humans for mobility.
→ The Spirit also enables the production of Pneuma, an essential material for maintaining the ship. Because Pneuma is heavy and slows down the crew member carrying it, the placement of the Heart station must be carefully optimized.
In gameplay terms, the Spirit behaves similarly to a crew member. It has moods, preferences, and opinions (likes and dislikes), so taking care of its emotional state is very very important!
The emotional aspect of the Spirit is a major pillar of the design. The Spirit is only one part of a larger system, and its emotion will directly impact the crew.
For example, the current version includes the Rage Spirit. It is angry and favors aggressive behavior. It enjoys combat rather than negotiation, prefers being offered raw meat, dislikes plant in its chamber, and oddly enough enjoys watching cats.
Its presence can provide combat-related benefits, reflecting its personality!
The different emotional states of the rage spirit. Illustrated by Michael!
Looking ahead, we want the Spirit to evolve further and gain new abilities. The goal is to offer multiple development paths so players can adapt the Spirit to their own adventure.
As the Spirit evolves, players may unlock additional abilities and increased Pneuma production.
We also plan to:
Introduce additional Spirit variants
Expand interactions with the Spirit (for example, letting it examine cats or weapons brought to it)
Allow crew members to transfer negative thoughts to the Spirit to relieve their mood (though they will remember that something was lost)
I hope you enjoyed this Devlog and had fun discovering the Spirit!
See you soon,
Alex