Original Game Ideas – Winter Island (Setting)

Yesterday, I went over the characters of Winter Island. For a reminder, here’s the schedule for the week as seen yesterday:

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Winter Island – Setting:

The game Winter Island is set from September 1936 to November 1936, on the island of Terra Vita, which is exactly 30° north of the equator and 180° east of the prime meridian (in real life, no such island exists at that location). Seasons are mostly mild, but the eternal winter that lasted in 1936 has hurt the island.

Geographical Facts:

• The island is, by average, 30 miles in diameter.
• In the middle, there is a tall plateau with a 15-mile diameter that is over 200 feet above sea level. There is a slightly bended river that divides the plateau between north and south.
• North and west of the central plateau, there exists beaches where the highest point is 20 feet above sea level. The western beach is more straight and has a river cutting through it, dividing the region north and south. The northern beach has a circular bay that makes the land crescent-shaped.
• South of the plateau, there is a desert region that is hot and dry. It is 100 feet above the sea level, with high sea cliffs at the southern edges.
• East of the plateau, there is an even taller mountain that goes as high as 1,600 feet above the sea level. 800 feet above the sea level is another valley.

Lumen City:

Lumen City is the largest city and urban center of Terra Vita. It takes up the entire central plateau. It is home to 200,000 residents, more than half the island’s entire population.

Lumen City is divided into four different districts. The two districts north of the river are the Angel District and the Faith District. The two districts south of the river are the Liberty District and the Eagle District.

• Liberty District – the high-income southeastern district of Lumen City. It’s based on the French Quarter of New Orleans and is decorated for Christmas all year long.
• Eagle District – the classic southwestern district of Lumen City. It is where the administrative center can be found. The district is based on Savannah, a city in Georgia.
• Faith District – the low-income northwestern district of Lumen City. It’s where the cult’s church is located. The district is based on Charleston, a city in South Carolina.
• Angel District – the high-tech northeastern district of Lumen City. Because of one of its locations, the Sci-Fi Labs, the entire district is futuristic. The district is based on Houston, the largest city in Texas.

Because it’s the largest city on Terra Vita, it has several points of interest. The most important ones are the cult’s church in the Faith District, the squad’s base of operations in the Liberty District, the city hall in the Eagle District, and the hospital in the Angel District. Others include the Power Plant and Water Treatment Plant (from the Angel District), Grand Lumen City Library (from the Eagle District), the Faith District Park (from the Faith District), Pluton Hills (a gated community from the Faith District), the Sci-Fi Labs (from Angel District), Lumen City Sports Arena (from the Liberty District), the Isle Subway (all four districts), and the Lumen City Cemetery (from the Eagle District).

Palm City:

Palm City is the capital of Terra Vita both under James’ control and at the end of the game. It’s home to 25,000 residents, coming from five different districts. While the entire southern plateau is part of Palm City, much of the city is an empty sandy place with cacti and succulents. The civilized spots are the villages called “districts”.

• Church District – the central district of Palm City. This is where the Palm City Cathedral is. Around the church are low-income houses.
• Train District – the northwestern district of Palm City. It’s where Palm City’s Isle Subway station is, as well as a few shops and a hotel. Most residences are low-income houses with some exceptions.
• Arena District – the southwestern district of Palm City. It’s where the Palm City Sports Arena is located, along with some shops. Most people who live here are low-income.
• Diamond District – the walled northeastern district of Palm City. The richest people of Terra Vita live in this district. There are no commercial services except for a grocery store and a school. The Star Estate is in this district.
• Rocky District – the southeastern district of Palm City. It’s where the middle-class citizens live in.

Despite the rest being a desert, there are roads that connect districts. There’s also at least one point of interest in the wilderness. It’s the Cold Caves, a network of ice caves and tunnels.

Moonlight Harbor:

Moonlight Harbor is the oldest city of Terra Vita, shared by 50,000 residents. It takes up the entire bay area. The western shores is where the amusement park is, but is thinly populated. The eastern shores is the more populous area, with more than half the city’s population. It’s where the lighthouse, the seaport, and the Isle Subway station is. The eastern shores is divided into three different districts, which are the Penguin District, the Seal District, and the Bear District.

Other than the seaport, the lighthouse, the amusement park, and a haunted house, Moonlight Harbor plays little in the plot and the sidequests.

Agrarian Beach:

Agrarian Beach is Terra Vita’s farmland, taking up the western shores and housing 20,000 residents. Aside to a few facilities, most of the places are farms. South of the river is the district of Flora, where it’s strictly fruits and vegetables. North of the river is Fauna, which is primarily livestock, but some crops like wheat are grown there.

One point of interest in Agrarian Beach in the second half of the game is a giant sand castle, which was hidden underground. But once the curse for Agrarian Beach is lifted, the sand castle doesn’t appear again.

Aurora Village:

Aurora Village is the smallest village on Terra Vita, home to 5,000 residents. It’s also higher on the mountains, at 800 feet above sea level. Even before the eternal winter, Aurora Village has forever been covered in snow, thanks to Penelope Sky. It has became a spot for a ski resort that people can go to all year long.

Aurora Village does very little in the plot. However, it does have a few points of interest. One of them is a robot tower that allows people to get on board with the robot airship. There’s also the Sports Arena.