Dev Blog #10: The Design Behind “One More Try”

I've been calling StormTome's core mechanic "One More Try." The inspiration comes from Legend of the Red Dragon, one of the games that inspired me to build StormTome, an old BBS game where players could venture into the forest and "Look for something to kill." What always intrigued me was that you didn't necessarily find a monster. Sometimes you found gold or gems, met a strange character, discovered a fairy garden, or stumbled upon an event that could improve your abilities.

You never quite knew what would happen next.

That's the feeling I want to capture with StormTome's Explore button. Every time the player presses it, there's an element of risk and reward. It could lead to a battle, a treasure, a quest, or something completely unexpected.

Then I realized that this is basically a slot machine.

Every press spins the reels. Most outcomes might be ordinary, some disappointing, but occasionally something genuinely exciting happens. The possibility of finding something rare or discovering something new is what makes trying again so tempting.

More Than Random Battles

Imagine exploring a forest. You might encounter a pack of wolves, find an abandoned campsite with a mysterious backpack, or meet a wounded traveler asking for help. Perhaps you discover an ancient shrine with a puzzle to solve. Or you stumble upon a hidden location that opens up an entirely new quest.

These are the kinds of encounters I'm considering for StormTome. I want exploration to offer more than combat and loot, with enough variety that players remain curious about what comes next.

The Psychology of Randomness

There's a psychological principle called variable reinforcement. When rewards arrive unpredictably, people can become more inclined to repeat the action that produced them. It's one reason slot machines are so compelling.

Games have used randomness for decades. Diablo makes finding rare equipment exciting, Fallout uses unexpected encounters to make traveling interesting, and Legend of the Green Dragon expanded on LORD's forest exploration with additional events.

But there's an important difference between rewarding players and keeping them curious. Finding a rare sword is exciting. Discovering a character or a quest you didn't even know existed can be just as rewarding.

That's the balance I'm interested in exploring.

Just One More Try

I don't want StormTome to be a game where players simply press a button hoping for a lucky reward. I want them to feel that there's always something left to discover.

Maybe the next exploration will be another ordinary battle. Maybe it'll be something completely unexpected. That possibility of discovering something new has kept players up late into the night for decades.

Just one more try.