JETG-Synopsis
From Barbelith
| Table of contents |
3-4 PAGE COMIC INTRO
Jenny Everywhere is depressed. All the Jennys everywhere are. One Jenny in one dimension's much-loved Granny has died and it's affecting her in every other dimension. She's trying to drown herself in "work", but not even Escaping The Infinite Oubliette Of King Na-aal IV! or Subjugating The Invading Govorian Army In An Epic Battle Across The Horsehead Nebula! seem to be providing the escape they once did. After Granny's death, they all seem a little familiar. Like a million wonderful adventures all drawn on the same paper. There has to be something more?
Jenny goes to the shop, the place where her Granny really lived and worked but a place Jenny never really knew. In there she meets Mrs. Yin. Mrs. Yin is Granny's best friend and has been since they made the trip across on the boat from China as little girls.
Jenny looks around at the shop. A really cool old wooden place with a thick counter behind which are shelves and shelves of jars full of all sorts of fascinating things. She can't believe that's she's never been here before. Mrs. Yin says that's nonsense, she was there all the time when she was a little girl. Or has she forgotten?
She is glad Jenny has come, because she is to give her a present that Granny was going to before she died. Jenny opens the parcel, inside it is a new scarf. Mrs. Yin says that it looked like she needed a new one, she's grown so much since Granny knitted her the last one. She asks how she is. Jenny, for some reason, tells her everything. Mrs. Yin tells her she can help her and invites her into the back shop. Jenny puts on the scarf and follows.
END COMIC INTRO
From now on we are in the game engine proper. Cutscenes and playable bits are all done here.
We're in the Back Of Shop, the main area. Mrs. Yin offers to let Jenny stay with her. Jenny can have Granny's old room in return for helping out with the shop and household chores. Jenny can clear Granny's old stuff while she's here and get back on top of herself. Jenny agrees and the game starts.
Themes
This game is a story of Jenny, first and foremost. We're not really adding backstory or changing the character but using her as more than just a device for fantastic adventures. We are using her to explore universal themes of growth and death.
Jenny's arc is based on her attempts at reaching past the flatness brought about by Granny's death through learning principles of self-betterment. It's also a metaphor for Jenny the character moving from comics to games, growing from one medium to another. Shifting through a million different adventures is Jenny growing branches sideways, but they're all on the same level. She needs to move upwards to put out new branches. It is Mrs. Yin's ulterior motive to help Jenny make this transition.
The Characters
THE SHOP
The shop is the main hub-area where most of the game is played and which leads off to the other worlds. The shop consists of:
Front of Shop - The customer area of the shop.
Back of Shop - Jenny and Mrs. Yin's main living space.
Jenny's Room - Jenny's bedroom. Holds her Altar.
Aviary - Houses Mrs. Yin's plants and Granny's birds.
Back Garden - Grassy garden with pond. Mrs. Yin's meditation and Tai Chi area.
Mrs. Yin's Room - Mysteriously locked.
THE GAME DAY
The game is set up in daily episodes. Each day has its beginning and ending in Jenny's room and we play her as she goes about her daily chores. Each day has an overall theme or lesson, that is built up by the different tasks that it consists of. Jenny will visit one new world on every day.
Jenny's Daily Routine consists of:
- ALTAR OPENING,
- HOUSE CHORES,
- MRS. YIN'S LESSON,
- SHOP CHORE and finally
- ALTAR CLOSING.
For an overview of all the episodes of all the days in order, see the EIGHT DAYS OF JENNY EVERYWHERE.
Back to Jenny Everywhere: The Game
