If I'm going to be honest, I was at a loss for what sort of theme to use for my top-down adventure level. Unlike my platformer where I instantly knew what I wanted to do, for this project for most of the time I was thinking "fantasy, probably" but not much more than that. Thankfully (depending on your perspective), I like to surround myself with cute knickknacks and baubles and one little figure I had on my windowsill gave me the inspiration I need:
Say hello to "Twinkles Beetlebug"
A tiny little plastic ladybug (with a glittery noggin) was just the right size to fit in a single square on the map, so I worked around the idea of a little beetle adventurer. The dungeon would be a palace made of a fallen log, and the decor would be empty snail shells and leaf patterns. The weapon was originally a wooden sword, then a twig, then an evil-banishing wooden staff with a crystal flower. The boss is a worm hydra and I've been back and forth on what the enemies should be. I'm also still undecided on the protagonist's looks (sorry Twinkles).
The basic story idea I wrote at the top of the paper map is this: The Kingdoms of Sweetgrass have slowly been falling to evil magic, causing the inhabitants to mutate and change into mindless beings. One day, an adventurous young Beetlebug found the legendary Wand of Lilieae, Banisher of Evil, and became the chosen hero, and set out the purge the Kingdoms of their corruption.
For colors I know I want a lot of earthtones, browns and greens. I've picked out a couple different palette ideas.
I really like "Break for Lunch" but it may be a bit too light for the mood of an old hollowed-out log turned into a castle full of creatures irreversibly transformed by evil magic. Really, "Orchid in the Attic" is probably the most reasonable, but I want to toy around with the others too!
