10: A Question of Class? The Three Estates as mechanic in Foundation

Philippe Dion, @foundationgame, Polymorph Games

Today we'll talk about the thought process of having an immersive mechanic in a sandbox game that responds to player actions rather than getting in the way. Our vision of Foundation is of an asymmetrical experience that encourages players to create villages full of unique monuments. We spent a lot of time finding the backbone that would justify player actions toward that goal while ensuring a high level of immersion.

Inspired by medieval France’s Ancien Régime, players get to please either the Labor, Kingdom or Clergy estates by raising the splendor of their village toward one, or many of them. This is achieved by constructing monuments like castles, markets and monasteries. Each Estate focuses on specific gameplay mechanics and unique strategies. The Labor path values villagers’ promotions and taxation; the Kingdom path focuses on helping the realm with soldiers; the Clergy path excels at trading luxurious resources like wine and herbs. In the end, players are presented with various victory conditions, which are optional. A village can focus on a prosperous economy with just a small priory trading wine. Or it could develop a major outpost that will allow the Kingdom to shine on the military front. It’s a constant challenge to keep our game grounded. We are trying to find the right balance between being factual and fun. Sometimes, it’s facts that inspire us game mechanics. Other times, we’ll work to justify a game mechanic that we believe should be in the game.

As for our narrative take on the Ancien Régime, we lay emphasis on equal representation of all three estates from the players' perspective. Another concern we have in mind is the approachability of storytelling in a city builder facing complex historical elements. In the popular history of High Middle Ages, the third estate is often poorly personified. Not much is told about their own story, but rather their rulers or other people of interest. Who is dedicated to the well-being of the laborers? History tells of sympathizing dignitaries, leagues, communes, city-states, and more—people resisting the “upper estates” through extraordinary events. However, it is preferable to have relatively harmonious estates for players to be systematically independent. A certain degree of conflict between the estates is necessary to create interesting storytelling, as long as players start with a blank slate. Free from external pressure, they can then decide which aspect of the old regime will influence their city building most.

Foundation’s optimistic aesthetic helped in simplifying historical elements that would have gotten in the Player’s way. This includes difficult notions such as serfdom, extreme social inequality and dogmatism, which would have led to stark perceptions of the estates. Our desire to streamline the Ancien Régime into a city-building game is a careful balancing act between meaningful gameplay, engaging storytelling and historical immersion. We aim to use this harmony as the keystone upon which we build Foundation's future.

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