[Discussion] That Damn MacGuffin

[BonesTheRabbit]

@"What kind of initial plot devices have you experienced or used..."

In my experience, I have found that an opening cinematic of sorts fares
very well against all other ways to open a story. This could be a
flashback, some fancy event, and really anything you could imagine. The
first impression is what sells things nowadays.

I'm actually using an introductory cinematic for my own story. Though it's relatively obscure, for the sake of "What the hell is going on?" factor. It's actively meant to leave the protagonist somewhat confused. It makes it only a partial MacGuffin, in that sense. Though I suppose most introductions are that way, no? Daniel's Cinematic doesn't explain much, outside of an obscure reference to the shadow, beating the BBEG and and naming the protagonist.

Well, a fun idea is to leave hints of a legend that mirror the guiding
force of the story and make sure the player realizes this.

I recall a custom story which did this extensively. Was pretty interesting, but I can't remember the name. It was just a random Let's Play video I watched, that caught my eye. Some sort of archeology temple dealy.

Another is to send the player searching for something. As long as it makes them move, it's often fine.

This is currently what I'm considering. Very good option, in my eyes.