While I like the premise, player choices are poorly accounted for, you have a fairly specific character in mind for the MC and won’t really let the player change anything about it.
Choosing something along the lines of “I like this life” shouldn’t lead to “I wouldn’t do it if I had the choice but it could be worse”, and I’ve noticed many similar instances.
Maybe I just picked the choices aligning with traits/stances you really don’t want the MC to have, but extenuating the player’s decisions to fit into what’s basically a fixed character, making the choice nothing but flavour, isn’t the right way to handle this.
It’s just very obvious that you either feel uncomfortable with certain reactions and unconsciously try to diminish them, or simply want to write about a specific kind of MC.
None of this is bad, just a normal reaction from a writer who isn’t used to letting go of their characters, but maybe you should think about what you really want to do with this story.
A fixed MC? Leave out choices that would influence the characterisation and focus on observation and action, just state in the description that it’s a fixed MC and choices limited to actions and/or story progression. Account for personality shaping? Then try to let go of the character you have in mind and treat it as roleplaying or an alternative universe, so you can stay in-character according to the player’s choice.
At the end it’s about you having fun working on this and if you actually want to write a fixed MC, then don't hesitate. It’s better than railroading characterisation and spares you complains that would trickle in once the game becomes really popular, which I have no doubt will be the case.
I wish you all the best and hope this IF will become something you look back on fondly, proudly, and with a smile.
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While I like the premise, player choices are poorly accounted for, you have a fairly specific character in mind for the MC and won’t really let the player change anything about it.
Choosing something along the lines of “I like this life” shouldn’t lead to “I wouldn’t do it if I had the choice but it could be worse”, and I’ve noticed many similar instances. Maybe I just picked the choices aligning with traits/stances you really don’t want the MC to have, but extenuating the player’s decisions to fit into what’s basically a fixed character, making the choice nothing but flavour, isn’t the right way to handle this.
It’s just very obvious that you either feel uncomfortable with certain reactions and unconsciously try to diminish them, or simply want to write about a specific kind of MC.
None of this is bad, just a normal reaction from a writer who isn’t used to letting go of their characters, but maybe you should think about what you really want to do with this story.
A fixed MC? Leave out choices that would influence the characterisation and focus on observation and action, just state in the description that it’s a fixed MC and choices limited to actions and/or story progression.
Account for personality shaping? Then try to let go of the character you have in mind and treat it as roleplaying or an alternative universe, so you can stay in-character according to the player’s choice.
At the end it’s about you having fun working on this and if you actually want to write a fixed MC, then don't hesitate.
It’s better than railroading characterisation and spares you complains that would trickle in once the game becomes really popular, which I have no doubt will be the case.
I wish you all the best and hope this IF will become something you look back on fondly, proudly, and with a smile.