June 6, 2011

Storyboards from MNOLG, 2001

For all the fans of the old Mata Nui Online Game, we’ve dug up some concept art and storyboards from the original game that appeared online in 2001. After reconnecting with the good folks at BZPower we realized these might bring back some memories.

Those of you unfamiliar with the original “MNOLG,” as it was called, Wikipedia defines it:

“Mata Nui Online Game - released on the LEGO Bionicle website, it continues from Tales of the Tohunga and shows Takua going around Mata Nui and helping the villages. It is much beloved by older fans of bioicle. The game was removed in 2003, and returned as a download in 2005 due to high demand. Bionicle comic author Greg Farshtey considers it non-canon, however, most fans consider it canon. In fact, many consider it the definitive storyline for 2001.”

More definitive descriptions and walkthrough of the game can be found at the Biosector Wiki.

Below are a few of the artworks that outlined the very first episode from January of that year. We’ve got more to come, but these should serve to bring back a  few memories for those that followed the game back then. Also included are excerpts from the script that was used to get approvals from LEGO and also to describe internally the functionality for our engineers and artists.

I. Beach Area

Image: Beach View – South.png

Screen I.1-S: Beach View – South
This is a wide stretch of beach, with unbroken ocean stretching to the horizon to the South. From time to time, SHADOWS OF SEABIRDS skim across the sand in the foreground. Ahead, at the water’s edge, is an odd CAPSULE and some debris.
HOTSPOTS: Forward, Back
SFX: Distant ocean, seabirds
MUSIC: Low ambient

Image: Near Tahu’s Capsule - South.png

Screen I.2-S: Near Tahu’s Capsule - South
This is a wide stretch of beach, scattered with various biometallic DEBRIS, half-buried in the sand. A trail of odd FOOTPRINTS leads from the debris West, along the water’s edge. A large CAPSULE of some kind is washed ashore to the South, marked with arcane symbols and draped with seaweed. The front of the capsule appears to have been removed, or blown off; it lies nearby. To the East, tall sprays and a shadowy hulk indicate a wall of volcanic rock that projects out into the sea. At its peak, a tall structure can be made out above the ocean mist.
HOTSPOTS: Cliffs, Back; Sand blows around Footprints (I.2A), Debris gleams (I.2B), Capsule gleams (I.2C)
SFX: Surf, seabirds
MUSIC: Medium ambient

Image: Beach Footprints.png

Screen I.2A: Footprints
CU of strange, robotic footprints in the sand, heading West along the beach – toward the volcanic activity.
HOTSPOTS: Forward, Back
SFX: Surf, seabirds
MUSIC: Medium ambient

Image: Base of Beach Cliffs - South.png

Screen I.5-S: Base of Beach Cliffs - South
A wide stretch of black, volcanic beach. Here and there large, rough rocks are clustered. Directly ahead, a massive wall of volcanic rock reaches into the sky. The cliffs emerge from the jungles to the North, travel across the beach and extend out into the sea to the South. Waves pounding its craggy outcroppings send fantastic explosions of white spray high into the air. High above, a lone watchtower stands. To the East, the cliff’s uneven face looks as though it might offer some solid handholds for climbing, and a rough path can be picked out among the crags. To the West, the CAPSULE is visible.
HOTSPOTS: Cliff path, Capsule
SFX: Crashing waves, seabirds
MUSIC: Low ambient

II. Observatory Area

Image: Top of Beach Cliffs - East.png

Screen II.1-E: Top of Beach Cliffs - East
The cliff’s summit is a narrow stretch of rough, black volcanic rock with a breathtaking view of the surrounding terrain. Below, the cliffs form a half-pipe shape, almost like a funnel to the sea. There is no apparent way to get down the Eastern face. Beyond the far rise, the beach continues in an arc, pierced by giant rocky areas left over from age-old flows. In the distance, a red glow reveals a live flow, where it strikes the ocean further along the beach in a great torrent of steam and ocean spray, sending a tall white cloud into the atmosphere. Two large boulders loom starkly to the north; one of them is black, spikey volcanic rock, and the other is smooth, lifted from the beach below by the magma. Nearby, across a bridge that may have been fashioned by builders, a strange platform overlooks the sea. It seems to be in disrepair. Perched on the bridge, SEABIRDS look curiously at the Visitor.
HOTSPOTS: Back; Stones glitter (II.2-N); Seabirds fly into the air (II.4-S)
SFX: Distant ocean, wind
MUSIC: Low ambient

Image: Interior Observatory - South.png

Screen II.4-S: Interior Observatory - South
A strange, serene place jutting out from the cliff, overlooking the sea. Composed mostly of stone, it is open to the sky, and decorated with ornate carvings. It appears to be very old. In the center of the dais is a an alien device, similar to a telescope.
HOTSPOTS: Back; Telescope gleams (II.4A); Star Charts rotate (II.4B)
SFX: Distant ocean and wind heard from interior of tower; spinning and clicks as Telescope swivels; scraping of stone Star Charts
MUSIC: Medium ambient

Image: Another early sketch of how the telescope would look.jpg+Star Charts.jpg

Screen II.4B: Star Charts
CU of a strange, faded collection of stone diagrams and symbols, obviously describing the heavens. The chart’s main feature appears to be a single star, with a projected traverse that carries it through a series of adjacent sectors. Each sector appears to be related to a different cataclysmic event, described through symbols and drawings, similar to the Zodiac.
HOTSPOTS: Star Charts
SFX: Distant ocean and wind heard from interior of tower
MUSIC: Medium ambient

Image: Observatory Bridge – North.png

Screen II.3-N: Observatory Bridge – North
Facing North on the bridge, the stone shrine is visible on the far side of the clifftop, and off to the left is the cliff path.
HOTSPOTS: Stone Shrine gleams, Dust blows across cliff path
SFX: Distant ocean, wind
MUSIC: Low ambient

Image: Stones - North.png

Screen II.2-N: Stones - North
CU of the two large boulders, sitting side by side as though they were some kind of shrine. Clicking them initiates the LEGEND episode.
HOTSPOTS: Back; Stones glitter (EPISODE)
SFX: Distant ocean, wind
MUSIC: Low ambient
EPISODE: Memory of Legend. The Visitor’s view dissolves into a flashback sequence. The LEGEND OF MATA NUI, as described with stones in the Tohungan temple, begins. The Legend appears according to storyboards provided in the BIONICLE Style Guide. At its conclusion, the vision fades, and the Visitor is left standing on the clifftop, quietly regarding the two stones.

Image: A rough layout of the screens as they appear in the first episode.png