The Quest for the custom quest system

Kill
Probably the most basic quest type, the task is to kill something in the game, for example; kill 10 goblins.

Gather
Again very simple, the task is to gather x things in the game world, collecting berries or the like.

Escort
The player must escort or follow a person or object from point A to B while keeping it safe.

FedX
The player is the delivery boy, they must deliver an item to a person or point.

Defend
The player has to defend a location from oncoming enemies, often for a set number of waves or time.

Profit
The player must have a certain amount of resources to complete the quest, contrary to gather quests these resources are resources the player would otherwise be able to use himself.

Activate
The player's task is to activate / interact with one or more objects in the game world or talk to a number of NPC’s. In some cases, this must be done in a certain order for a puzzle effect.

Search
Search an area, discover an area of the game world. This is useful for introducing areas of the map to the player and giving them a sense of accomplishment right of the bat, showing them a new quest hub or the like.

Arrowhead
The most basic quest pattern, the quest chain starts out broad and easy, the player has to kill some low-level cronies. The next quest is narrower, the player must kill fewer but tougher enemies, lets say the boss' bodyguards. The last quest is the boss fight, the player has killed the gang and can now kill the boss. This quest pattern is very straightforward and works well, giving rewards either at every stage or only when the boss is dead.

Side stub
A side stub is an optional part of the overlapping quest. Lets say quest A leads to quest C but there is an option to complete a side objective B, which makes completing C easier or it changes the reward, for example. The player must escape prison, the side stub is “free the other prisoners” in this example escaping with all the prisoners is voluntary but it might make it easier to overpower the guards or the prisoners might reward the player when he gets them out. The side stub differs from a generic side quest in that it is tied to the main quest directly.

Continuous side quests
These are side quests that evolve throughout the game, one unlocks the next, but they are also affected by external requirements such as story progress. This patterns is often found with party members in RPG games, where the player must befriend the party member to unlock their story quests.

Deadline
As the name implies these quests are time sensitive. The task can be of any type, the important thing is that the quest fails if time runs out. This could also be used for a quest with a side quest where the side quest is timed for extra rewards but the main objective is not.

Deja-vu quests
This kind of quest pattern gives the player a quest they have done or seen before. In some cases this “new” quest will have a twist or something that sets it apart. It can also be the same sort of quest that exists in different areas of the game world, perhaps there are more than one goblin camp? or perhaps the player has to pick berries daily.

Delayed impact
Delayed consequences of a previous decision. Often used in games where the story is important and the players’ choices matter. These quests are tied together without the player knowing. Lets say the player is set the optional task of giving a beggar some gold to feed himself. The player gives the beggar a few gold and is on his way. The next time he meets the beggar the beggar has become rich and rewards the player for his kindness with ten times what he gave.

One of many
The player is presented with a number of quests, they have to choose which one to complete, they can only choose one. The others will not be available.

Hidden quests
Hidden tasks that aren’t obviously quests at first glance or are hidden away for only the most intrepid players to find. This could be an item the player picks up with an inscription in it, if the player then finds the person the inscription is about he can get a reward for delivering it. A good quest pattern for puzzles, these kinds of quests can really make the game world come alive and feel a lot more engaging, allowing the player to uncover secrets, Easter eggs and discover all of the world created for them 

Moral dilemma
Punish the bread thief who stole to feed his family? often used in games that have a good/ evil alignment level for the players, these kinds of quests make the player make a choice about what kind of character they want to play, they get to choose if their character is good or evil.

Side quests
Optional quests, these quests are often found in level based games where the overall quest must be completed to get to the next level, the player can optionally do some extra tasks to get more points. The important part is that these are optional but they give the player a reward for, getting everything they can out of the game.

Tournament
Tournament style quests, a series of quests that get harder as the player progresses. An example could be a gladiatorial arena, if the player defeats five enemies one after the other he gets rewarded as the champion of the arena, but if for example, he fails at the third, the whole tournament is failed and he has to start all over from quest 1.

Vehicle missions
Despite the name these quests are not confined to being about cars, these are simply quests where the players control scheme changes to complete the quest(s). An example could be; changing from running around in the game world to driving a tank to destroy a fort.

The diamond structure 
The open world model, think games like The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim, the player is introduced to the game through a quest, but after that they can go wherever, and do whatever quests they want. There are tons of quests of the above types and patterns, the player is free to pick and choose which to do, giving the player the illusion of freedom within the game world (the diamond). However the game still ends by completing a quest that is locked and always a requirement to complete the game. This can of course be varied by different choices the player has made throughout the game or even have multiple endings. Quests can be concentrated into quest hubs, i.e. towns with lots to do or the like, but they don't have to be completed in a linear fashion

Linear hub structure
This structure consists of a number of required “bridge” quests that need to be completed in order to unlock the next area or “hub”, each hub can have any number of quests, this could be a town full of people in trouble, each with their own quests and quest chains to complete, when they are all done, the player moves on to the next hub through another bridge quest. Limiting the quest size of the hubs will make the quest structure feel more linear and thereby the game linear, and creating larger more open hubs can make the player feel more free.