Trials of Hercules is SMITE's take on a cooperative action RPG where 3 players fight some of the same legendary beasts that Hercules himself defeated as penance for his crimes.
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The level features varying types of monsters, three large themed areas for players to explore, and three bosses that challenge a party's coordination using SMITE's core mechanics.
Since the scope of the project was larger than normal, we needed to come up with a formula that can be applied to the three themed areas we planned to create.
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Each area would be focused around a theme (Forest, Cave, Swamp) which is heavily influenced by the boss at the end of each area. Once an area's theme is established we were able to begin prototyping the types of skill checks that would exist within each area.
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For example, the Forest area was made up of the inner forest and the Cyclops village that connected to the boss room. At the gates of the Cyclops village lies an ambush of Cyclops that catches most parties off guard. The ambush tested the party's ability to use their abilities efficiently enough to kill the large group of enemies before being quickly overrun.
