WARNING! This post contains spoilers!

In this post, I want to reveal not only how we created the game, but also the background of the story on which the game is built.

If you haven't played our game Vyšehrad Fortress yet, consider whether you want to continue reading or save this post for after the game.

You might miss the element of surprise and thus a greater game experience!

Initial idea

The fact that Martin and I chose Vyšehrad as the location for our first outdoor escape game Vyšehrad Fortress was not a coincidence.

It is an iconic cultural monument with a rich, but also very troubled history.

Historical background of the story

Perhaps the most significant event for Vyšehrad was its plunder during the Hussite Wars, when the Hussites extensively damaged and looted the original castle.

The current characteristic appearance of Vyšehrad is primarily associated with the construction of Prague's fortifications in the 17th to 18th centuries. During this period, Vyšehrad rapidly transformed into a modern Baroque fortress, which we can largely admire to this day. This period is part of the history of the Czech lands that has always, to some extent, attracted me.

I had previously had the opportunity to become more familiar with the ring of forts around the city of Olomouc, the fortress city of Josefov, or even the most perfect bastion fortress in the world, Terezín. All these objects still commemorate an era associated with fascinating fortification construction in our country.

The Baroque fortress of Vyšehrad has a story to tell.

But back to Vyšehrad. Specifically, I knew very little about the Vyšehrad fortress until then. And that was a great shame!

If I wanted to tell something about Vyšehrad and not make up stories, I had to first "delve into its rich history". I browsed the internet, explored antique shops, and soaked up information like a sponge. At first, I was inspired by legends and mysteries surrounding Vyšehrad¹. Then I came across amazing monographs on the history and events of Austria-Hungary² in the mid-18th century. The preserved historical maps⁴ depicting the development of Prague and also some significant events (e.g., the siege of Prague) are absolutely fascinating.

Thanks to these and many other materials, I slowly gained a more complete picture of the era, and against this backdrop, the entire story gradually crystallized!

A story that was to take place in Vyšehrad in 1736...

Emperor Charles VI., his daughter Maria Theresa, then nineteen years old, and Saxon Duke Maurice de Saxe. These are just some of the historical figures who influenced the history of the Czech lands and who necessarily had to leave their indelible mark on our story, our escape game.

These figures, broadly speaking, form a kind of foundation that frames the historical background of the story. Of course, I also had to come up with the role you, the players, would play in the story!

Here I have to be a little vague, because I don't want to reveal too much. I have a feeling that some of you who haven't tried the game yet couldn't resist the temptation and started reading this post despite the warning. However, if you are interested in revealing more or in a closer historical context, please write to me here in the comments.

Back to the players' role in the story...

From the beginning, Martin and I knew that we wanted to be as generous as possible with you. Not only will we "allow you to intervene" in crucial historical events shaping the development of the Czech lands, but above all, we wanted to give you more freedom in how you navigate the story.

Depending on your choice, and also on your success in making your way through the game, up to three scenarios for completing the game are possible. This somewhat led to a few extra technical problems that needed to be solved. Last but not least, three story variations also mean dozens of extra pages of dialogue. However, we believe that it was definitely worth the effort and that a certain freedom in the story and dialogues draws you into the game and offers a more intense experience.

Application programming

Once the branching story scenario was complete, we faced the somewhat less engaging task of programming the game, its endless testing and debugging. We have to admit that this development phase consumed an unimaginable amount of our free time. If we ever doubted, it was during those nights when we chewed our way through converting the scenario into "ones and zeros" at a speed only our chewing muscles, or rather our counterparts, allowed. We thank them once again for their patience...

Game's visual design

In parallel with testing, we worked on the visual aspect of things. From the beginning, it was clear that players would need to be not only guided through the story but also through the intricate paths of Vyšehrad, task by task. During testing, it became clear that if hints didn't help, perhaps only... a map would?!

I admired the skill of contemporary cartographers⁴, and so it happened that I humbly tried to create a similar map and at least remotely approach the masters of cartography. Unfortunately, I am not a cartographer, but working with map data is not entirely foreign to me as a designer.

I didn't pick up a pen and paper, but in my case, a mouse, design software, and the open digital technical map of Prague available from the Prague Institute of Planning and Development portal served me well.

On an orthophotographic base, the task was "only" to filter out the edges of individual objects from all the data, i.e., walls, ramparts, buildings, fences, paths, trees, and other clutter. Simply work I live for :D.

The cleaned data could then be processed in a common graphic editor and converted into a bitmap image. The result is certainly not comparable to the art of contemporary cartographers, but it hopefully serves our game well. Its role in the story is ultimately far more significant than just navigating from point A to point B in an emergency. Those who have already played the game will probably agree with me...

How do you like the result?

What do you think of the result of our work? Write to us at [email protected].

Also, let us know if you'd be interested in how the individual ciphers, puzzles, and tasks in the game were created.

Thank you for your support,

Notes:
¹A very good publication about mysterious and enigmatic corners not only of Vyšehrad but of all Prague is "Praha záhadná a tajemná" by P. David and V. Soukup. Considerably less readable, but no less interesting, are the "Vyšehradské fejetony" by Popelka Biliánová.

²A comprehensive look back at the War of Austrian Succession is Luboš Taraba's publication "Sukně proti kalhotám" (Skirts vs. Trousers). In it, you will learn not only about events on the battlefields but also about the political games and disputes that took place during this time. The "skirt", of course, refers to Maria Theresa.

³What actually happened in Prague not long after our story can be read on the website of the Military History Institute Prague here.

⁴An amazing tool for finding and viewing historical maps, which can even be overlaid on existing topographical maps, is available online here.