Cameron Powell Specialism Story Production

 Introduction

This year, I have been given the task to do a Specialism project. The aim of this project is to develop skills in areas we can improve on and develop new skills as well.

The theme I picked for my project was superheroes with an art style influenced by Japanese animation. I spent most of my summer drawing concept sketches of my characters. I intend to develop on them by explaining their personalities and backstories as well as their sources of inspiration.

The type of game I want to make is a 2D Beat 'Em Up style game inspired by Streets of Rage and the original Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles arcade games. Since I have not developed a game like that before, I will be looking at tutorial videos online about creating 2D sprites and programming them in Unreal Engine.

I have also decided to create a story behind the game, developing on the lore and characters.

The Story

In a world where superheroes were deemed illegal, a young college student named Axel Jones touched a meteorite that gave him super powers. He unwillingly discovered that he had electricity powers when he ran fast enough in a sports track during a marathon, indirectly injuring the surrounding students. This deemed Axel as a fugitive superhuman, which garnered the attention of a secret superhuman service, codenamed S.U.P.E.R (Syndicate of United People with Empathy and Righteousness). The S.U.P.E.R tutor Axel to prove that he is capable of being a hero.

Elsewhere, a group of rogue superhumans plot to purge the world of the human race. They are led by a disgraced member of S.U.P.E.R, a Fire user named Ash Burton, also known as Afterburner. Only Axel and his newfound allies can save the humans from Ash, even if it means going against the law.

The Characters

Axel Jones/Static Speedster - Axel is the S.U.P.E.R's most recent trainee. He is an Electric user who can run at high speeds and produce static electricity. 

As mentioned above, Axel was a college student who gained his powers from a meteorite and involuntarily exposed them to the public during a marathon. After being deemed a fugitive, the S.U.P.E.R took Axel under their wing and has been training for them ever since.

His personality can be described as humble and self depreciative with hints of optimism. Although he appreciated the hospitality of S.U.P.E.R when they took him under their wing, he feels like he does not belong there. Nevertheless, he tries his best to look on the bright size and does whatever it takes to be a hero.

Axel was primarily inspired by fictional characters who are capable of reaching high speeds, such as the video game character Sonic the Hedgehog and The Flash from DC. I was particularly inspired by the 2020 movie version of Sonic the Hedgehog, where he possessed the ability to generate Chaos energy by reaching high speeds, similar to how Axel can generate static electricity by running fast.

Axel was also loosely inspired by Izuku Midoriya from My Hero Academia. Both have similar personalities, have spiky hair and possess electrical powers and super speed. Admittedly, the inspiration was unintentional on my part but I cannot deny the similarities. 

Cole Bunker/Captain Granite - Cole is the leader of S.U.P.E.R. He is an Earth user who possesses super strength and can use the power of different minerals to his whim such as gravel and concrete.

Prior to becoming a superhuman, Cole was a Riot cop from Brooklyn who lost was fired due to his short temper and excessive use of police brutality. He got a new job as a construction worker afterwards and was rather content with it, that was until he unwillingly dug up a special meteorite which flashed at his face, giving him his Earth powers. Afterwards, Cole decided to quit his job as a construction worker and use his newfound powers to help others in need, with the help of other superheroes such as Florence and Queenie.

Cole can be described as a grouchy, apathetic middle-aged man returning to work after years of retirement. Despite this, he does care about his teammates and willingly supports them. He is especially close with Florence, viewing her as the wife he never had.

Cole was primarily inspired by various Comic Book brawlers who possess Super Strength, particularly The Thing of Marvel's Fantastic Four fame. Both were born and raised in New York and 

Queenie Hornetta/Hornet - Queenie is S.U.P.E.R's Reconnaissance Unit. She is an Insect superhuman who possesses the ability to fly and crawl on walls. She also wields a variety of weapons and gadgets, particularly her crossbow called The Hornet's Sting. 

In her youth, Queenie was an orphaned girl who was adopted by a cult of female assassins who performed heists revolving around rare treasures and mystic artefacts. One day, the assassins infiltrated a top secret research facility that heralded a special meteorite. Upon touching said meteorite, Queenie gained her insect like powers while her assassin friends died at the hands of the base's advanced security drones. Since then, she joined the S.U.P.E.R when they were looking for openings.

Queenie can be described as level-headed and intelligent. 

Queenie was primarily inspired by Comic Book bowslingers, such as Marvel's Hawkeye and DC's Green Arrow. 

Florence Chrystanthe/Orchid Queen - Florence is S.U.P.E.R's personal Medic and Outfit Designer. She is a Nature user who can summon orchids that heal her teammates.

Florence had a rather unpleasant childhood, her rich mother died of an illness and her step sisters Felicia and Bernadette would bully and downplay her for glory. This continued from her childhood to adulthood, where they would disinvite her to parties and ask her to clean up after them. Longing for freedom, Florence ran away from her household and as luck would have it, a meteorite approached her, giving her the ability to manipulate plant life she has today.

Despite her rough childhood, Florence manages to maintain a calm and elegant persona into her adulthood. She acts like a caring motherly figure to the younger superhumans. 

 Selena Thalassa/Merlady - Selena is S.U.P.E.R's Defence Specialist. She is a Water user who can create shields of water for herself and her teammates. 

Selena is a half-blood superhuman, her mother Emmeline was a pure human while her father Waylon was a superhuman who served as a member of S.U.P.E.R. When Waylon isn't fighting crime with his allies, he spends time with his family, taking them to beaches and aquariums, which developed Selena's passion for marine life and creatures. Sadly, when Selena reached adulthood, Ash and Clara took Waylon's life when they coerced him to join them. This led Selena and Emmeline to go to seek refuge at the S.U.P.E.R base. 

Ash Burton/Afterburner - Ash is a disbanded member of S.U.P.E.R who became a superhuman war criminal. He is a Fire user who can ignite his entire body, run at high speeds and fly. 

Back in the day, he was a noble trainee at S.U.P.E.R much like Axel, only Ash was arrogant with little regard for the common good. Despite his demeanour, Cole saw Ash like a son to him and believed he was destined for greatness. That was, until one night when Ash left to commit what he views as "heroic acts" which includes burning defenceless human burglars alive. That night resulted in the loss of several human lives, including three members of S.U.P.E.R he was friends with; Connor, Wendy and Hugo. This led to Cole disowning Ash, sending him to a prison for superhumans. The incident was also instrumental in the Government deeming superhumans illegal.

Ash's fire powers were mainly inspired by some famous comic book superheroes who use fire. I was particularly inspired by Marvel's Human Torch. Both have blonde hair, have cocky personalities and are part of teams with big brawlers, Cole and The Thing respectively. In a way, Ash is an evil Expy of Human Torch.

Backstory wise, I was primarily inspired by the Star Wars character Anakin Skywalker, another hero turned villain. He was a Jedi Knight mentored by Obi-Wan Kenobi but he eventually joined the Dark Side after Emperor Palpatine manipulated him, eventually becoming Darth Vader. Similarly, Ash was mentored by Cole but rebelled after murdering humans to prove his worth to the S.U.P.E.R.

Another character who I took inspiration from in terms of backstory was Syndrome from The Incredibles. He used to idolise Mr Incredible, even going by the nickname Incrediboy, until he was told to "Fly home, Buddy. I work alone". This led to him killing countless superheroes so that he could pretend to be one when he sent the Omnidroid to Metroville. Ash's backstory is identical, as he also turned evil after disobeying S.U.P.E.R.

Clara Voyant/The Clairvoyant - Clara Voyant is Ash's right hand woman and the co-founder of his Superhuman Supremacy Regime. She is a Psychic user who can foresee the future, which she primarily uses to avoid incoming attacks from her enemies. She can also read her victims' minds and lobotomise them with a wrist syringe.

The Terrible Three - These three are notorious enemies of S.U.P.E.R. While not as important to the plot as Ash's Superhuman Supremacy, they still play a role in Axel's training. 

The Terrible Three comprises of the following:

Lord Steelbone is the self proclaimed leader of the Terrible Three. He is a robotic skeleton and a rather incompetent one at that. He commands an army of Robones and pilots mechs that more often than not get destroyed in a matter of seconds. He has no clear backstory and would always make a couple up in hopes that Superhumans take pity on him, but to no avail.

 Atta De Struct is a slender old woman who is incredibly vain. She possesses a mind control staff and also has some robotic henchmen of her own in the form of DeStruction Bots. 

Candace Kane, AKA: The Lollipop, is the youngest member of the Terrible Three, who is ironically the most competent. She is a Superhuman of the elusive Candy variety, she can create an army of candy themed minions and fight using a candy cane with a chocolate wafer mounted to it.

Connor, Wendy and Hugo - Connor, Wendy and Hugo were S.U.P.E.R trainees back in the day. They were good friends with Ash before his heel turn and their eventual demise.

Connor was a Wind Superhuman and the Scout of Ash's Group. He possessed large metallic bird wings that allowed him to fly and shoot metal feathers as projectiles. He was as light of heart as he was as light of foot, always willing to motivate his teammates when times get awry. 

Wendy was an Earth Superhuman and the Muscle of Ash's Group. She was capable of lifting large chunks of terrain from the ground and punching through surfaces of any kind. She was rather stubborn and prone to angry outbursts but she still managed to keep her head in the game and proved to be a good ally to her friends, especially Queenie.

Hugo was a Psychic Superhuman and the Brains of Ash's Group. He could teleport from place to place, create mind blasts and use blades of psychic energy to cut any who oppose him. He was the smartest and the most level-headed member of Ash's Group.