Game Master

* Original
* Remake

**Game Master** is a 2014 role-playing video game developed by Great Potion Games, using the RPG Maker VX Ace program.

The original game was released on 24 December 2014 on various platforms for free; later developed a remake under the name **Game Master Plus** released on New Year of 2019, using the RPG Maker MV program.

## Synopsis

Set in a fantasy world, a spirited teenage girl named Elsa has just moved to a small town called "Home", with her mother. A package has been delivered to their house by accident, and Elsa’s mother asks her daughter to bring it over to a neighbor, the Engineer. The package contains a Mana Core which the Engineer uses to build a robot. He gives the robot to Elsa as a "welcome present". She learns that the robot is capable of fighting and decides to explore the nearby forest. There she finds a mysterious stone gate. As she touches it, it activates and opens. She ventures through it and finds herself on a kind of supersized game board.

She learns that there are more of these boards and that in the past, completing all of them would allow the player to meet the Wizard, the inventor of the Game, who would grant them a wish. Elsa, brave and curious, sets out to complete the Game. She soon discovers that the old legends about the Game, the Wizard as well as certain other things are somewhat inaccurate.

## Gameplay

*Game Master* features with turn-based battles, exploration, puzzles, and a complex use of story-driven in lore. In addition to battles and quizzes, the player allows to interact many NPCs, side quests to complete and treasure to find.

### Game Boards system

The focus of the game consists in a new system called Game boards, ancient contraptions which were abandoned centuries ago. For some reason, they can be re-activated and completed by Elsa. In accordance with a feature, the young heroine finds different types of fields which trigger a battle or a quiz or partly unlock the path to a boss battle and a chest which constitutes the goal.

Completing every Game Boards and afterwards defeating the so-called "Keywarden", which allows Elsa to visit the Moonlight Palace where the Wizard, the inventor of the Game who disappeared long ago, may still reside. Elsa hopes to receive an answer to the question why she alone seems to be able to "play the Game".

### Equipment

The equipment design in the game is not simply linear but allows for a lot of character customization. Ir constitutes the core of the player’s strategic approach to the turn-based battle system. For example, the player can freely equip and unequip so-called ‘Gears’ (literal gears) on robots which not only provide stat bonuses but also enable skills like area-of-effect attacks, heals or buffs.

### Classes

At the start of the game, the player chooses one of each two classes for Elsa:

* **Fighter**: A traditional class which acquires and upgrades damage skills and offensive buffs via level-up. Elsa also gains points on level-up which can be spent to increase ATK (Attack), DEF (Defense) or TMP (Tempo). The fighter’s main weapons are swords which can be dual-wielded or combined with a shield.
* **Tinker**: A class that focuses on supporting allies. While the early game may be a little more difficult, the tinker can learn very versatile skills later on. She can also equip so-called gears with a wide range of passive abilities and skills for additional flexibility. Her weapon is a hammer that can be upgraded with material salvaged from fighter equipment.

> **NOTE**: Due to their very different nature, the two classes provide a strong reason to replay the game.
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## Development

### Game Master

The original game was built-in RPG Maker VX Ace program over a year of development since 2013. According to the developer, *Game Master* was the first game developed by Great Potion Games. After numerous half-hearted attempts at projects with all RPG Maker installments on PC (starting with RPG Maker 2000), developer Saireau felt that Game Master was a game that needed to be finished and released. *"I like planning a game way more than actually making it"*, he explains, *"but Game Master was different. I really wanted people to experience its gameplay and story. I also wanted to finish a project for a change."*

### Game Master Plus

The streamlined expansion of the original game began in 2015 shortly before the launch of RPG Maker MV program with most characters and tilesets from MV were "stock and reuse", but the story and some features still the same.

With a 60-page script of game design prepared, developer Saireau completed the alpha version of the game in about five months. The release was delayed due to the difficulty of finding a reliable JavaScript programmer for custom features such as the combo mechanic or the critical-HP indication for enemies.

## Trivia

* Both the original and remake versions use most assets from programs were "stock".
* The game contains a lot of secrets, easter eggs and references to well-known games such as Illusion of Gaia, Terranigma or the Zelda series.