Ok, it is indeed hilarious, a football game with historical figures, haha. But can you see me laughing? No, you cannot. That is because, though ΖΩΗ is supposed to be partially (ok, largely) borderline ridiculous fun, it will also have a certain footballing depth that you surely are not expecting, provided by player attributes which are not entirely random or invented, but rather have the support of a unique concept. Here’s the deal: Each player’s skillset will be a kind of translation of his/her historical relevance. Take Plato for example: considering he was one of the greatest thinkers in the history of the world, he will be depicted in ΖΩΗ as a centreback with one of the highest Defense and mental stats in ΖΩΗ: his real philosophical brilliance therefore translated as the rock-solid legendary defender he will be in this game. On the other hand, a legendary conqueror such as Alexander the Great will be, you guessed it, one of the best strikers of ΖΩΗ – alongside the world’s greatest warriors and conquerors, who shall be one of the most offensively dangerous individuals in the game, from Attila the Hun to Julius Caesar.
Of course, even with such a concept as a platform, one will still have to get very creative here: how much Short Pass Speed should Vasco da Gama have? Should Napoleon have a Scoring special skill? Admittedly I will have to invent a lot, even if it is possible to, say, reproduce Donald Trump as a high Balance, low Speed and Agility footballer because of his out-of-shape body, or Woody Allen as a talented but physically frail footballer because, well, of his physical appearance. I imagine, for example, actor John Wayne as a potent CB, though not exactly the most defensively talented, but, again, looking at his physical profile, as well as his typical “movie persona” he cultivated during his career as a rather stoic, no-nonsense, old-fashioned man, I “translate it” to a footballing persona similar to that of a no-nonsense CB (ML Defaults Vornander is a great example, so is Gentile, Tony Adams, Jorge Costa, etc.). A talented artist/inventor will have high Technical stats, great explorers shall have top stamina, etc. Then, as soon as I get the pillars of a “footballing profile” for a specific player, with a bit of creativity, the final “avatar” should be ready.
Then, it’s not enough to get that accurate footballing “translation”: players will have to have realistic differences between them. For example, Karl Marx is one of the most influential thinkers in history, so probably he will have a phenomenal Defense attribute, but Plato will just have to have more. Sir Francis Drake was a legendary explorer, but will he have more Stamina than the G.O.A.T Marco Polo? Of course not. As you can see, ΖΩΗ becomes an even more monumental project. I know some history but I will need to read a hell of a lot more to be able to build this database – and, surely, I will need help.
Next Up: Building ΖΩΗ
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