(semi-)permanent test drive meme

[gamedevs]

test drive meme

"On" Tutorial

It’s pitch black. Is the darkness an old friend or a source of anxiety for you? Who’s to say what you were doing before, but right now there’s only one thing before your eyes: an ominous word over a slowly generating bar.

LOADING...
All at once - you’re plunged into color.

> A1. TUTORIAL START

If you’re lucky, the first sights that greet you are lush greenery, dancing street performers, and a grand statue of an elephant with assorted birds nesting nearby. Welcome to Avisle’s Town Square. Depending on the current Duocaeli event, it may look a little different... Jumping straight into the thick of things is always an option. (OOCly, this means prospective players are welcome to read the latest month's event log and updates to try prompts from!)

After a quick once-over, you’ll find that everything that you had on you before arriving is accounted for–so if you were barefoot and in your pajamas, you might not have much–with one notable addition: a glowing crystal in your pocket. The roughly cut gem fits in your palm and is already fastened on a chain for you.

Soon after finding it, the crystal will begin to project information in front of you that is remarkably legible, even if you’ve never seen these particular runes before. It reads: New Worldwalker’s Checklist. Below, a series of tick boxes await you. You may need to start asking around or exploring. Seems like you’ve got things to do!

If you’re less fortunate, it seems you’ve landed just a bit outside the maintained grounds of the city itself. Somehow you’ve spawned in the middle of a pack of wildlife! Or just... angry wolves. Huh! Well. You can see the city not too far from here, so maybe if you’re quick… Time to learn on your feet!

Whenever you do get to safety and complete the same inventory of your person, the crystal will respond to you just the same. Apparently you just decided to play on Hard Mode.

> A2. THE BUSTLING GUILD TOWN

☑️ Join a Guild

Avis Isle is a deeply uncharted place, welcoming explorers and curious adventurers. The Guilds do their best to provide structure for the city proper and for those getting a grasp of their magic; the Interguild Alliance (IGA) oversees the Guild Hub where quests are posted and dungeon crawls are organized. While there are all sorts of Guilds around, there are five main wings for each of the Grand 5.

Why not get to know them better? NPCs will call you over and try to encourage you to join them, some with challenging jeers and others with sincere, kind invitations–don’t you know that the very first guild that you join is free? Choose wisely! The guild’s mascot animal, some type of Avian, sits upon a very nice and color-coded throne in their respective wing awaiting your choice. Once you’ve made your selection, it will croon (or honk) at you, and your membership is complete. While you can’t actually hear the words, you have a feeling you’ve been told something like, “Now get to work, fresh meat!”

—Though if you're dallying, guilds aren't without mischief. A stray bird (though never The Throned Mascot Bird) may suddenly run by, webbed feet slapping on tile, and steal one of your items before ducking into the respective wing of their guild. The same goes for those that try to leave without joining a guild. Theft is a great marketing strategy, right?

> A3. BEGINNER’S QUEST: adventure!

For all new worldwalkers, there is one quest that you must complete upon joining the server. Some call it fun-datory, some call it hazing. Don’t worry about it! Your crystal will blink at you before providing the details of the quest:

☑️ Clear Your First Dungeon

Any of the permanent dungeons are open for business! Though should there come a moment that you find yourself low on energy, whether it be from simple exhaustion or magic use, your communication crystal will flash. A new understanding will come to you: it is possible to transfer mana to one another via gestures of affection, borrowing from your traveling partner’s own energy. Why don’t you go and try it now? Holding a hand might just make you feel better, and not just emotionally!

Additionally, the system will continuously suggest quests as characters pass their general vicinity. These bite-size adventures require a little less coordination, for those looking to dip their toes into their new home(s).

> A4. TUTORIAL END

And with that, you’ve wrapped up the Duocaeli tutorial! Congratulations!! That said, while it's understandable to get off-track—if you outright ignore the prompts from your to-do list, you’ll find yourself respawning in front of the goal you need to accomplish! Come on, work with us a little here. Or don’t? You can be trapped in a loop if you really want.

If you poke around the options on your Communication Crystal, or just spend long enough logged on confused, you will eventually find it prompting you through the steps of Logging Out. Seems like there’s more still that awaits you.

"OFF" Tutorial

> B1. HOME SWEET HOME

When you awaken in the OFF world, the pressure on the front of your face is a little more apparent. Taking off the digital visor is easy—and it can turn compact right in your hand! Getting it to snap back into your cell phone just right might be a pain, thank goodness it’s durable—oh right, did we mention you have a cell phone? Whether you’re familiar with the device or not, it’s right there in your palm, the same color as your Duocaeli crystal. A closer examination of your clothes will also reveal that while your threads are familiar, they’re not exactly what you had in Duocaeli. Ever heard of a department store? They’re a little more like what you’d find there! Finally, your phone will suddenly beep and provide you with a new checklist, starting with:

☑️ Locate Domus Hosus Room

Seems like the first one is to find your room… But as you take a closer look around you, you might finally notice it—the way that the tiles on the floor seem to be shuddering in excitement at your awakening, the opening and closing of windows and cabinets to get your attention and say hi. Not only is the house alive, it seems to be happy to see you! Make your request—maybe a passing soul tells you that the house likes to be called Dodo, rather than the formal Domus Hosus—and see if it can be answered! Dodo so wants you to be comfortable here.

…and perhaps be a little mischievous? As you try to find your room, designated by your name on a plaque, you might be in for a surprise. Maybe the stairs suddenly turn into a slide, prompting you to tumble into another person. Perhaps the doors flicker and switch at the last second, prompting you to find an unfamiliar neighbor instead of your own lodgings. Is this what they call… a meet cute?

> B2. SURVIVE THE INTERNET

☑️ Post on DUONET

You have some questions, right? Don’t worry, whether for the inquisitive mind or the petty complaint, there’s always the internet! Through your cell phone, you’ll be prompted and guided through the steps of posting on DUONET, which is available to your fellow Worldwalkers. Don’t forget there’s also an Anonymous function, though it’s not without its own hiccups!

> b3. Okay get a job?

Sometime while you’re minding your business, you’ll be interrupted by a neat little beep beep! On the screen of your phone:

☑️ Go to Your Internship in Crane City

Tapping the prompt will bring up the Maps app and directions to what is apparently your internship! And it looks like it’s in the same format as other checklist quests–aka, it won’t stop beeping until you complete it.

If you don’t want to go crazy from notifications, you'll simply have to go out and explore the big city. Maybe you have to go and work the concessions stand at the movie theater, which appears to be showing Shrek and Cats if you want to sneak into a showing, or you get the ever coveted position of cat cafe barista. Perhaps you’re suddenly a neurosurgeon! Wow! Don’t fuck it up, guy! While you do get compensated for your work, it seems like an amount gets automatically deducted for your Duocaeli subscription. Uhhh, is that legal? Apparently.

OOC Notes

Feel free to use locations for inspiration as well! TDM content can be used for in-game canon as players please. As we have an app queue, we won't be putting up new TDMs regularly; we may refresh content and posts as necessary, but please think of this as your semi-permanent test drive space!

---

duocaeli duologs duolingos FAQ & Game Info / Calendar / Locations / Mechanics
Taken / Applications / Hiatus & Drops

FULL NAVIGATION

Comments

[flagbearing]

[ It's a good thing Moondae isn't the head of Crane City and thus gets no say in which villagers residents get to stay and which are forced to pack their boxes and leave.

Though it looks like they're both being forced to vacate the premises anyway if the swarm of angry bees is anything to go by. This isn't quite how Elysium imagined his afternoon going? Now he's got a bump on his head and a bunch of bees chasing after him. But, well, again, it could probably be worse. At least he's got a nice pair of long legs to help him skedaddle outta here faster. And it's not like he can blame Moondae for this turn of events. The guy did say he wasn't particularly good with handling a net. It's not his fault. It just means they need to come up with a better backup plan. ]

H-hey, hang on! We still need to figure out how to catch the bees!

[ Says Elysium, running at full speed right behind Moondae.

But it looks like the bees are catching up to them no problem, because he's pretty sure he can hear the buzzing behind him (right next to him??) growing even louder. RIP. But instead of worrying about himself, his concern naturally goes straight to his partner. ]

You're not allergic to beestings, are you?