Jennifer Liao
03
The Missing body problem
Overview
Name
The Missing Body Problem
Category
Party game - Card game - Bluffing - Deduction
Platform
Mobile
Players
4
Duration
40 minutes
Mechanism
Role-playing, Traitor game, Voting
Definition
The Missing Body Problem is a deduction party game for 4 players in which everyone gets a role.
The game is set in the 26th century, involving elements like sci-fi, clone, robot.
One of the four players will be randomly selected as the killer at the beginning of the game; the killer will kill a player during the game, and the deceased will continue to stay on the field as a clone.
Ultimately, the killer needs to escape the charges, and the other three's goal is to find the killer and vote him out.
Players are free to develop the game branches and decide the ending of this story by themselves.
Features
No moderator, no elimination.
Nov 2019
Game Design
Individual Work
Insights for playing party game offline
Currently there are some problems in the way people play party game:
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The process to hold an offline private party takes a lot of time and efforts.Problems about how to find a common leisure time, a place to hold the party bother them a lot.
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There’s not a rational time limit during the game process, which lead to the flow of the game uncontrollable and tediously long.
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People who are moderators can't play roles in the game, although they can have a different kind of fun
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To actually sit around a table and act in real life do create a lot of atmosphere. It won't be replaced by online game app.
Flowchart
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One of the four characters will be selected as the murderer during the process of "Draw the cards"
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In "Killing Time", the murderer must select one player to kill.
Four characters‘ background scripts
Mr. Asimov - the scientist
I am a recognized genius scientist in the 26th century and the founder of Android Technology. My android butler Alfred is one of my masterpieces. He is completely the same as a human in appearance, but he is much industrious and more durable than human beings. I stated in the core of his code that he must obey any order given by Mr. Asimov. My brain data is synchronized with the cloud every 10 minutes. Once my body is detected to die, Alfred will use the data stored in the cloud to reshape my body according to the order I previously issued. It can be said that I am the closest person to God in the world.
In the eyes of others, I have a happy family, but this is not the case. My wife is frizzy and can't do anything well; my son Leo's only pleasure is smoking marijuana, the only reason for his visit is to ask for money.
Yesterday morning, Leo came to the house again, trying to make me meet his needs with rhetoric. After I scolded him severely, he went away with anger. This little thing is not on my mind.
Yesterday afternoon, I found my wife’s text message with a stranger under the bed in her room. She wanted to leak the results of my lifelong research to others.
If I want to get rid of a person, an electric shock chip would be the best choice. As long as it is installed on a person's heart, it can control the release of current according to the positioning device on the chip, it can kill a person at any time without being noticed, and it will just look like a heart attack.
Timetable
In the morning and afternoon, I will concentrate on scientific research in the laboratory with Alfred.
Every night at 19:00, I will enjoy dinner and wine in the garden.
Mrs. Asimov - the spy
I'm Mrs. Asimov. I have had heart disease since childhood. My husband, Mr. Asimov, is one of the greatest scientists of this century and the founder of Android Technology. His ex-wife died early, leaving Leo, who was only 6 years old at the time. After I got married, I realized that no one could stand the "dazzling halo" of my husband. In the eyes of others, he is a genius scientist, but at home he is a demon. Once the experiments do not meet his mind, he will turn the anger on me and beat me. He has a high reputation in the eyes of the general public, as if he is a living saint, no one would believe my word.
Asimov's rivals have been secretly contacting me in the hope that I can steal the core secrets of Android Technology. Yesterday afternoon, I told the housekeeper Alfred that I would go to a nearby park to relax, actually, I went to meet these people. I told them that the core information had been obtained by me, as long as they helped me escape from Asimov, I could give them immediately. They were very surprised and provided a pack of poison, hoping that I could find a way to kill Mr. Asimov. I agreed without hesitation. This is not a big deal, after the violence he has taken against me for so many years, I finally have the opportunity to return with a revenge.
Domestic violence over the years has pushed me to the limit. As long as I can escape this house, I am willing to hurt anyone.
Leo - the son
I'm Leo. I'm probably Mr. Asimov's son to most people. They have no idea that the famous Mr. Asimov is a selfish, cold-blooded monster. His head is filled with cold data and experiments and doesn’t care about anything in the world. My mother died early, free from enduring him for these years.
Though I am his son, he had no feelings for me, and he doesn’t even want to help me to pay my credit card. It's all because he refused to help me, I had to gamble for money to solve my drug addiction. I didn't expect that my debt became more and more, in the end, I owed thousands of dollars. This is just a small amount of money for my father, so yesterday morning, I came to my father's house and was ready to beg. Unexpectedly, he totally ignored my situation. He yelled at me out loud and kicked me out. He doesn't even care about me!
I have been good at all kinds of firearms since I was young. In order to solve this debt, I would never mind using them.
Alfred - the andriod butler
I'm Mr. Asimov's robot housekeeper, Alfred. From my appearance, you can’t tell any difference between a human being and me. There is an immutable section in my core logic: I must obey any order given by Mr. Asimov, and I must defend Asimov's family.
Sometimes I'm confused about my host's behavior. He lost his temper on his legal spouse almost every day without reason, and even beat and kicked Mrs. Asimov often. I am responsible for healing Mrs. Asimov every time. Spouse is a significant other in a marriage, I don't understand why my host wanted to hurt his spouse.
Yesterday afternoon, Mrs. Asimov was not at home. As usual, I assisted Mr. Asimov's experiment in the laboratory as an assistant. At this time, Mr. Asimov could not find the human experiment report last week and left the laboratory. After a while, he returned to the laboratory grim-faced. Later, I found out that he used the equipment in the laboratory to make an electronic shock chip. As long as the chip is installed on a person's heart, it can control the release of electric current according to the positioning device on the chip, causing people to die at any time, and it will look like a heart attack.
This behavior is undoubtedly unhealthy. For me, the Asimov family must live together as a whole, and no one can hurt another. I have instructed the clone machine in the laboratory long ago: no matter which of the four characters in Asimov's family is detected to die, one will be cloned again based on brain data stored in the cloud.
If necessary, I will take measures to correct unhealthy human thoughts and defend the Asimov family.
Gameplay
Victory conditions
As a murderer:
Kill a person and get away with it.
As others:
Find out who the murderer is and vote him out.
Timetable
Players can check the Timetable during the whole game process by touch the Plot button.
UI design
Before the game starts
Main page
Introduction to script
In the room, wait for other players
10 mins for reading and self-introduction
Draw the cards, one of the 4 players will be selected as the murderer.
Everyone read their own background scripts.
Self-introduction, players can speak freely.
Killing Time
the 1st Round
The murder shall select one of the players to kill. However, the clone machine in the laboratory once detects someone is dead, it will use the backup brain data to clone an identical person. All non-murderers will wait for the murderer to make decisions. When everything is done, there will be still 4 players in the game.
*Actually the murderer can kill himself. Who would do that?
15 min for the 1st Round
1 Public Clues
Laboratory:
There is a dead body in the lab, and the police are urgently using the equipment to read the information.
The laboratory has cloning equipment that can clone an identical human or robot from any complete fresh corpse.
The lab produced an electric shock chip yesterday afternoon, which will send an electronic current once it detects a distance from the signal source.
Mrs. Asimov:
Red wine in the refrigerator is poison, people will die and after drank it for a while, and it will look like a heart attack.
There were medicines that can help manage the symptoms of heart disease on Mrs. Asimov's bedside table.
She has a personal communication device. There was a conversation with a stranger in it:
Mrs. Asimov: I got the data.
A Stranger: 14:00 PM Central Park
Leo:
There will be a firework show in the city at 19:30 tonight.
Leo owes thousands of dollars confidently.
Leo has won first prizes in regional shooting competitions.
2 the 1st Discussion
The 1st Discussion. Players ask and observe each other. People can check the public clues at any time.
3 Who's the dead
After the 1st Discussion, the police do an autopsy on the dead successfully. This means that all Players get to know who was murdered in the Killing Time.
15 min for the 2nd Round
1 Dead's brain data
Players can check the dead's brain data - the "dead's" whole scripts.
Players have 15 minutes to talk about all the clues before.
2 the 2nd Discussion
The final vote : Who's the murderer
Wait for other players voting
