Questions on plot-driven gameplay

Hello there, everyone.

I go by Omni. I'm a conceptual writer and design many otherworldly settings that my RP group regularly plays out. Responsible for many adventures, the people from my group have given some very good feedback on my settings and characters, and now I feel like taking this hobby of mine to the next level.

My wish is to make a plot-driven game (a walking simulator of sorts) featuring a significant number of player characters but little to no combat. I've been looking into RPG Maker VX Ace and it seems like the ideal platform to portray my ideas, but one of its more pronounced selling points seems to be its combat system.

I'm pretty set on getting the software just to dabble around with it, but before I spend my hard earned cash I want to make sure that my desired project will work effectively.

Is there anyone here who can provide feedback on creating a walking simulator type of game, stories told through very loose interaction, maybe some exploration as well, without much combat or fail states? I would be very happy to hear about it.

Thanks in advance!

RPG Maker VX Ace is for you, then. I personally have mixed feelings about games that don't let you fail. But story always is the highest selling point for me in a game (aside from music, but that's a given). If you need an example of a pretty good story-driven game, try To the Moon, also made using VX Ace. Or perhaps you've already heard of it?

Either way, best wishes in your decision making! =D

Well, not trying to advertise here but you can try the demo of my game (link in signature).

It's a story-driven, no combat game. That might give you ideas of what can be done.

Yes, To the Moon is a good example of a story with no combat nor "you lose" situations.

But I think it was made with RPG Maker XP, not VX Ace.

Thanks for the great comments - and so soon, too! I will be looking into your game, cabfe. Maybe it is what I'm looking for. Either way, I've decided that I'll pick up the software and work my way around it until I'm happy. Just the confirmation of its flexibility was enough to convince me.

VX Ace can definitely make non-combat games, as cabfe mentioned.

In a non-combat game, I like to see intellectual challenges, maybe a "I lost X, can you find it?" and that lost item X is hidden in a maze.  

Sort of like Myst --- puzzles become the main draw, along with the story.

VX Ace also has a built-in character generator so you can make loads of characters, each looking a bit different, but all in the same style.

Greetings,

From what I've read in the first post, the first game that comes to mind to me is the Walking Dead game. In case you people haven't played it yet, it's about a standard zombie apocalypse, but it's completely built on it's story and interaction with players. What made it stand out were the characters, the pace and atmosphere and the "illusion" of choice you had at times. The rest of the game consisted of quick time events, which might be possible to put into the game, but aren't necessary. 

Hey there, Groningen. You're not far off at all, though my intentions were more along the lines of the Chinese Room's titles, Dear Esther and Amnesia: a Machine for Pigs. The gameplay of these is little else than turning around corners, clicking things and minor puzzle solving. You can probably say that they aren't games because of their lack of a fail-state and instead argue that they are visual novels or interactive stories, in which case I'll correct myself and state that I'm looking to create an interactive story.

Either way, I am convinced now. I'll pick up the software ASAP and start poking my way around it.