Boomerang Design (for BotW)
Game Description
Nier Replicant is an action-adventure game and was developed by Nintendo.
In this game, the player takes control over an amnesiac Link, who awakens from a hundred-year slumber to regain his memories, defeat Ganon, and restore the kingdom of Hyrule.
One Page Design Definition
The purpose of a one-page design is to explain/show something (f.e. a game mechanic) with just one page.
Document created in
2022
Programm
Procreate
Type
One Page Document / Design
Download Link
My Goal
Breath of the Wild became one of my favorite games but one feature I really missed was the classic LoZ Boomerang!
So I decided to make it myself.
First I created this one-page design to simplify and document my idea.
After I was satisfied, I used it as a guideline for my prototype- check it out right here.
+ click picture to zoom +
The Standard Throw
The first picture describes the boomerangs default action, which occurs if it simply doesn't hit anything.
The boomerang would fly its max. range in a straight line and then return to Link with a slight curve to it.
If the player moves Link to a different position, the boomerang would follow until it catches up to him.
Because of this, the boomerang would need to be faster than Links running speed.
The Boomerang can't return
The next case I had to consider was: what if there's an obstacle, such as a wall, between Link and the boomerang.
Looking at how BotW handles weapons and realism, I believe it would be most fitting if the boomerang hits it and falls down.
Hitting an Object
If the boomerang hits an object, it immediately returns to Link, even if it didn't travel its max range yet.
The Call Back Feature
However, having to pick up your boomerang over and over again could potentially be annoying, so maybe we could include a special "glove" that can call the boomerang back manually and re-materialize it once lost/out of sight.
Re-materialization is nothing new to BotW since this is already used to teleport Link to different locations.
To fit the story and worldbuilding, this glove could be obtained from Scientist Purah, together with all other "special/magical" gadgets.
Use Case: Breakable Objects
The boomerang can be used to break objects such as pots, barrels, and other things.
Just like any other weapon in BotW.
Use Case: Switches
In BotW, arrows can be used to activate switches, so it only makes sense to allow the boomerang to do the same.
The difference between the two would be that arrows immediately hit the target once the player shoots, while the boomerang has a slower flying speed.
This could be especially useful for timed events/quests since the player could already act or move while the boomerang is still on its way to hitting the target.
Use Case: Enemy
If the boomerang hits an enemy it should of course be able to damage and defeat it like every other weapon as well.
However, this wasn't the case in some of the previous LoZ titles.
In some of them, the boomerang could only stun enemies or defeat very weak ones.
To not disregard the stun mechanic completely, I thought the boomerang could have a certain chance of stunning instead of damaging the enemy.
I believe this could make it feel more realistic, but playtests/prototypes would ultimately tell us if the stun chance is worth keeping.
Use Case: Items
The boomerang can be used to retrieve items that are out of Link's reach or to open/collect treasure chests.
I believe this could be an interesting, fun way to find and collect hidden trinkets in the open world of Breath of the Wild.
It would change things up and players could decide if they want to try to challenge themselves by using their throwing skills, or if they rather try to find a different way to reach their objective.