dpeg wrote:Yes, currently the race towards the labyrinth portal is probably a lot more exciting for most players than solving the maze afterwards. But even that could change.
A way to make Labyrinths a bit more exciting would possibly be to capitalize on the expectation of a player in a Labyrinth. Namely, players expect some challenges akin to puzzle solving (although let's not be too literal, I think no one wants the Nethack Sokoban level), and they expect traps.
Unless I'm wrong, I don't think the current version of Labyrinths has any traps. Currently Ossuary is the only portal vault with heavy use of trap, but they feel more like "things that will hit you once if there are no zombies around, otherwise zombies walk on it and detect it" than "actual traps that you should be careful not to detect". The fact that any room that has them is filled with them doesn't help.
Here are some of the things I propose, that have a chance of actually feeling more like traps. of course, i may be entirely wrong as I haven't tested any of this, so please give feedback:
* A room filled with bat-like monsters where some floor tiles may turn into lava as the player attempts to step on them (the action is wasted). The bats would give the player a reason to try to pursue them or go around them to reach the en of the room, possibly opening more similar holes. Of course there would always be a possible passage. maybe one of the bats could have a confusing attack?
* Pressure plates that cause a steel grate to drop on an adjacent square. It blocks of f part of the Labyrinth, but simultaneously makes sure another way to the center is opened. of course, you may have to go back a long way.
* Choosing the wrong path could have consequences besides loosing time. There could be places with two outgoing doors, one of them would have level-appropriate monsters hiding behind and one of them would continue towards the rest of the labyrinth.
* Coming across loot along the way. Players could encounter the skeletons of those who died trying to flee the labyrinths along with some good loot. It shouldn't be as good as what's behind the minotaur, but still decent enough to consider and somehow reward exploring the Labyrinth. Of course, no food of any kind should be found this way.