The Thing About Time

Hello everyone!
The day I began developing PAUL lies quite a while behind me now, so I’d like to write a bit about what sparked the project in the first place - what the core idea and initial motivation were back then.

In essence, it all has to do with time. Or rather, with the way time keeps moving forward and the pressure that comes with it. There’s always something that needs to be done, sent off, answered (preferably immediately, and ideally all at once). This constant demand means that some things simply get neglected or are done only half-heartedly. But time doesn’t care. It marches on, and with every step it brings new tasks, new obligations, new challenges. In that sense, time often feels like a conveyor belt and we are the conveyor-belt workers. That’s why one of the early sketches of PAUL showed him working on an actual conveyor belt at the beginning of the game (back when PAUL still looked like a fish).

How nice would it be if we could decide for ourselves when the second hand takes its next step. And that is exactly the idea behind PAUL: in this world, everything waits for the player’s next move. Reflex-based gameplay is replaced by planning and thoughtful action. PAUL can maneuver through a dense web of projectiles while the floor collapses beneath him and a fire spreads- step by step, carefully planned, slowed down. Instead of real-time stress, there is a world that waits for the player. Situations that would be nearly impossible to handle in real time suddenly become manageable in a turn-based context. It’s an action game without the stress, with a rhythm that adapts to the player.

Alright, I’ll get back to working on PAUL. I actually wanted to spend some time on the combat system today and finish a few things during the weekend—and the clock is ticking. 🙂

All the best,
Tobi