Did you read my design document?
What about this one.
What about this one.
I'm really not the person to critique a game design document, as I'm learning it myself. However, since I've opened my big mouth I better follow through.
First of all, where is your development schedule? How are jobs to be broken up? What technology do you intend to use? How many people do you think you need?
Nearly all objects on the battle field should be destroyable. This is a major strategic component of the battles.
One of the things the book I referenced above mentions is to be wary of "pie in the sky" technology without detailing how it works. Fully destructable scenery is, to my understanding, very much a holy grail. The way you describe it, the game is fully 3D, so you're going to need some cool physics in there. Yet, you don't mention the physics technology you want to use. This game will be made for the Playstation 3 as Sony has established themselves firmly as the number 1 seller of video game systems in the current market. The game may also be ported to the Xbox 360 and the Revolution.
Given the sales of the PS3, compared to (say) the X-Box, don't you think that this is a risky strategy? Also, what is the cost of PS3 dev tools? The X Box dev tools are free - and Microsoft has in place a distribution platform for Indie games.Honestly, the design document reads to me like a draft, with lots of details to be added. How about some screen mock-ups? I'm having difficulty visualising what the screen would look like (I'm an FPSer rather than a RPGer).
The non-linear design of the battles, customization of the player-characters, and amazing storyline are designed to keep the player interested throughout the gaming experience, and to keep the player always wanting more.
If you're going to make a statement like this, back it up in the document, otherwise it comes across as just another detail that's going to be worked out later. I personally didn't find the 2 page storyline all that amazing (in fact, it all seemed somewhat linear). You again get the chance to fly around freely and do side quests, of which, there are now more to act in.
Where are the side quests listed? What do you accomplish in them? Does successful completion (or otherwise) affect the outcome of the game? Can I just ignore them?I don't want to come across as dumping on you. I know it seems like it, and I also know you've done a damn sight more work on this design document that I have on mine. But it's not complete. It's like 25% complete, with all the hard boring work ahead.