I love video games and I love Doctor Who. But I’ve found most Doctor Who video games to be very disappointing.
I thought it would be fun to think of ideas of Whoniverse-themed video games.
I think one of the problems with the ones we have had so far is they all try to be “Action adventure where you play The Doctor” which is actually kind of dull.
They should use other genres and even small indie games for inspiration, and just take fun parts of the Whoniverse into the story.
For example, I’ll go first:
Cloister Bell!
A turn-based strategy game where you control either the Time Lords or The Daleks during the Last Great Time War. Based on Red Alert or Starcraft or one of the many other games in this genre.
What would make it stand apart though is the nature of battle - not just tanks and ships but time vortexes, paradoxes, going back in time and changing history over and over. The Skaro Degradations, the Horde of Travesties, the Nightmare Child, the Could-have-been King with his army of Meanwhiles and Never-weres.
Psychic Papers, Please!
A border inspector simulation game (based on the real game Papers, Please - I highly recommend you check it out if you haven’t) where you play as a worker at a busy spaceport, checking papers as different aliens enter.
You need to meet a quota so you have to work fast, but if you aren’t careful and you let in a hidden Slitheen, Auton duplicate, Android clone or The Master in disguise, you will be penalised!
Redecorating (I don’t like it!)
A chilled out, relaxing game based on House Flipper or Unpacking where you create new TARDIS interiors - design them, choose walls, furniture, fabric etc, and unpack boxes of goodies from past adventures which all have a little story to tell.
There could be different Doctors and companions who want you to design a room for them, and they all have certain requirements like Ben and Polly want a disco ball, The Thirteenth Doctor wants a biscuit dispenser, Fifteen wants a jukebox.
Return of the Harmony and Redemption
Based on Return of the Obra Dinn, you are a Time Agent tasked to use the tools at your disposal to uncover the mystery of the crashed starship (featured in The Husbands of River Song - ”History’s Finest Exploding Restaurants. The best food for free. Skip the coffee.”)
You can inspect the wreckage and rewind time to understand what people were saying and doing right before the explosion. As everyone on board is a murderer there are a lot of unsolved crimes to uncover!
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Yes I’ve thought about this a lot