Right then:-
First off, this is a great demo of what you can achieve using the graphical interaction screens in RTC.
The prototype shows some good core ideas, but my gut tells me it is in need of some honest words: it feels a bit baggy, could be leaner.
Yes it is a terrific graphical trick and really shows promise, it is a pre-alpha, so of course all the houses are just placeholders: Nami's house and the acid-vial quest from prison cell show the sort of 'talk to X get object for Y sort of progression that is possible.
However, that does imply a LOT of criss-crossing the city:
RECOMMEND: get a MAP:
here are two mock-ups for navigation I would recommend:
http://marvl.in/ab9ch4 option 1, interactive map
http://marvl.in/308e86 option 2, map as an off-screen option
Map COMPLIMENTS navigation, so user is free to explore still.
Also, on Option 1, you will see houses are signposted: seriously did not know to click on these on my first playthrough.
Option2, where the map is seperate, means you can limit this to 'fast-travel' only to key places, reduce the overhead on each screen and force the user into some exploration.
Depends how you feel.
GAMEPLAY: Recommendations: [takes deep breath]
Now, the mechanics:
Pick-locks never seems to work. So not sure if implemented or just broken. Interested to see how that bit works.
Entering a house, as seen for Nabi, offers small quests. Great.
GUARDS
Guard Patrol arresting player randomly just forces me to quit and reload. Seriously.
Alternatives...
is to have this as a key / door blocker instead. Post message saying "Nearby guards stop you entering this building..."
Or maybe that's too close-minded: so this random thing can be cool, reminds me a bit of 'The Wild Bunch'
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4yl4RWXf-XY
If the user is railroaded into prison, you have a problem: limited coins, unlimited arrests. At some point , player is stuck..
Which is a bit of a pain.
So a logic check perhaps: no coins = no arrests!
Or if have no coins, caught and condemned instead of prison: Banished, teleported to a dungeon clearing outside of city to fight spawned monsters? [which when defeated, you can teleport back to city gates]
or some old classic like 'Perilous Swamp' - offer the players the old 'run, fight or bribe' options
http://www.zx81stuff.org.uk/zx81/jtyone.html
1/ offer to bribe guards, sure, til the coins run out.
2/ perhaps perform a sidequest, like kill lots of rats, to earn their trust.
3/ kill all guards? seems harsh (though currently you can kill the house inhabitants...) perhaps kill the unloved sheriff and take his badge?
Currently, the mechanism is too intrusive, I've no time for it. Sorry.
WHAT AM I DOING IN BANVILLE?
Q: Why am I trying to break into people's houses?
Appreciate you are being all open-world, but really could the city of Banville work better as a linear quest?
MAKE IT LINEAR? WHY? a rambling example...
complete quests for nabi: he direct's you to wuuf, deth and halk's house, for example. each house has an item. meanwhile all other houses locked (perhaps guards auto-arrest you).
nabi happy on getting all three objects. offers you sheriff's badge, guards no longer issue on 3 more houses. remaining houses can be reached but are locked.
get 3 more objects gained from the unblocked houses, then you can enter central building. ... and so on...
great stuff. linear, but still invoves exploration right?
MAP EVOLUTION OPTION...
option 1... segmented city.
ok, so you reach a key poitn, eg, central building, and MAP EVOVLES: perhaps north part of map now accessible.
option 2... same locations, different states.
Alternatively, Each time you sleep, map alternates between day version and night version. Certain houses are locked, some unguarded.
perhaps guards only arrest at daytime, and you can use lockpicks at night?
Suddenly exploration deviates from going A to B, now timing is a factor too... you need some trick here as navigating a beautiful city is nice but is not fun unless player feels involved somehow (and combat is not an option?).
Anyway, something to add some dynamic to the mechanism,
Otherwise - yes it is a pretty map, and I did say 'wow' when I first saw it, but it has to then deliver on it's promise of a thriving city full of people, give me direction of where to go and not become a chore to traverse.
It has potential, really it does. Hub areas are a good solid gaming mechanic. You could really tell a good NPC story and have the players running all over town (perhaps work for two powerful NPCs, Guild of thieves versus Duke of Banville, etc)
Lot of rambling feedback, so to summarise:
this is DUNGEON MASTER: that's the best bit, so use the city map screens to get between dungeons in a fun and interesting way. Walking around the city itself is not a fun replacement.
aye aye aye (re-reading, this is such a negative-sounding post!) - look, this is POSITIVE feedback, but I'm blunt when it comes to game design. Have had to be.