Hat-based puzzles / secrets?

[Own]

It didn't even occur to me that this was possible in the game until I talked to a certain NPC or two with the Crown and realized, hey, hat interactions are a thing. And I thought, the hat-based interactions in Ocarina of Time and Majoras Mask were pretty sweet. Wouldn't that be neat in SoG, especially if there were an NPC who hinted to you that different hats may make people or places perceive you in different ways? Try to appeal to them with a hat relevant to them and see what happens?

Hat-interactable NPCs could have a special icon above them when approached, if 'talk to an NPC in town to get hints about hat-interactable NPCs' seems too vague, but that might just make people cycle through all their available hats if they see an icon.

So for example, you might go to the Flying Fortress and see a special locked phase plate here with a sign next to it stating: "OCULAR AUTHORIZATION REQUIRED: Phaseman or higher."

Stand on the plate or whatever with Phaseman's head on, it unlocks and you can warp to a secret room filled with top-secret lore or other goodies, maybe just a lot of Flying Fortress crafting materials?

Or in Winter, maybe one of these caves could be sealed with a Frostling's head peeking through a slit and closing it. Talk to the door, hear "Frostlings only!" Obtain a Frostling Hat, wear it and get inside?

Talk to the fisherman with the fish hat on, you impress him and get a treasure map to a special X-marked fishing location (behind the library? Off the bridge?) with a special, one of a kind, incredibly difficult to catch fish that awards +### EXP to any one stat when fed to a pet?

Chubby dude with the Chef's Hat on, he assumes you're the cook and initiates a sidequest to gather the materials for a special meal and cook them all together within # minutes (at Candy's cauldron, or the crafting menu?) and bring them back to him for a reward? A giant drumstick bone would be kind of funny.

Having to speedrun between all the areas to get special cooking ingredients before they go bad within # minutes could be interesting, like a global and timed version of the Halloween Woods Bishop quest. Especially if you have to have the Chef's Hat equipped the entire time. Bee Wings, Boar Porkbutt, Pecko Eggs, Yeti Fingers and Halloweed Herbs would make a disturbingly tasty stew. ;D

The most obvious one, Purple Flower Garland.

 

[Teddy]

Needless to say, I'm all for interactions that are affected by hats! I like semi-secret content (meaning it should be alluded to quite clearly for those who're paying attention).

The scarecrow should definitely get his Purple Flower Garland interaction! I should probably throw in a place holder easter egg conversation there... it's indeed pretty anticlimactic to have him talk about Purple Flower Garlands and not react when the player is flaunting it right in his face!

 

[KoBeWi]

Hats can be interactable, because they are visible on the character. But there are more things that could work, like face-gear, weapons (Lumber Axe for lumber quest) or even general appearance (quest requiring specific outfit color, making stylist actually more useful).

Talking about hidden quests (maybe it's worth new topic), there could some quest lines including these interactions. Example would be that you find a text on a wall, but is too dark to read, so you need night visor face-gear (Flying Fortress?), the text is password to some hidden chamber somewhere, that holds another key (and other loot) etc. It would be fun if the game had few secret "progression lines" whose ultimate reward would be some unique items (exp increasing etc., something without regular stats). Not only single rooms with few chests like it is now.

As for "hat quest icon", I'm actually a bit opposed even to normal exclamation marks for quest (too mainstream). Removing them would make people actually talk to people and explore the world. The only icon could appear above person, who's quest is currently tracked.

A good video covering quest design (there's also a second part):

I know I went a bit out of topic, but I thought it's some good opportunity to talk more about quests.