Underworld Mood Boards

Alice in Wonderland, Pandora and Alice Madness Returns

French Catacombs

Dia de los Muertos, Aztec and Mayan

The idea behind the Underworld is that it is removed from time and space entirely. The entrances and exits span different eras and different places. There may not be an entrance for every time and place, but there are reoccurring places that are continually open throughout time (resonating times, many souls that linger)
I wanted to build a level dynamic based off of the different cultural aspects and interpretations of the Underworld. For example, the Dia de los Muertos would have a set cultural time, when the idea was the most strong. The Cultural interpretation would manifest physically as a section of the Underworld.
This leads to the obvious growth of the Underworld as time progresses. However, there is also some decay as older sections loose resonance and power. Or they morph and turn into something else.
I do not want the Underworld to be scary. I don't want it to be threatening at all actually. I would like to be able to focus on story and problem solving rather than combat and monsters etc.
So I am thinking that since it is not focused around combat that I could create an array of tools for the character to use to navigate through the levels of the Underworld.
Obviously not all the demons in the Underworld are going to be friendly or helpful. Maybe even violent... but I really don't want that to be the focus and I would rather mirror the demons to the human world and give them towns, houses and families. It would be an exploration of culture I think.
I was really digging the color palettes that I was creating for this. The warm color I think really add to the sense of adventure and give it an air of safety almost. Festive possibly. I want the player to feel comfortable to explore in the space and not be concerned that something is going to come after them.
As always light is going to be a huge part of my development. I really liked the cool lights used in the Avatar movie, I would really like to bring that bioluminescence into the Underworld somehow. I think I will use as a more ambiguous setting in the world, not really influenced by a culture or time. So maybe Demon Towns and Cities, the roads between the culture sections...
I also plan to change the appearance of the character based on the time and space/culture. It would be fun to have a variety of costumes and tools that are good for a variety of levels. I want to have it so that the puzzles can be solved in more ways than one too, lending itself to a more creative problem solver.
That's all for now, expect more very soon!