Here is a mod story idea. The characters, setting and details can be changed to anything whilst still leaving the story the same. I’ve started by writing a short story to help set the scene.

A man sits at a corner table in a quite bar on the edge of Fortune City. He’s waiting. He’s been waiting for a long time so another few minutes won’t make any difference, or so he thought.

He has waited in this corner, of this bar for the last 3 weeks. The instructions made it very clear. No deviation or the deal is off.

Every night for 3 weeks is a long time, but not as long as he’s had to live with the memories. Maybe tonight will be the night he can change that?

In walks a figure, probably alien. You can hardly tell nowadays with all the treatments available. The man’s right hand puts his glass down and slides around to inside his coat and slowly removes an ancient Earth handgun. You have to be careful in Fortune City.

The figure sits down. “You have the information”? it says in nearly unintelligible English. The man nods, too nervous to speak. “Show me”. The man’s left hand shakes as it moves towards his coat pocket. A small package is removed and slid across the table. The man wasn’t really sure what the information was he was trading and he didn’t care.

The alien removes a pen-like object and places it over the package and an inaudible to human sound confirms that the information is that which is required. The alien’s breathing changes, almost prompting the man to shoot it. The man is shaking with fear and excitement. Could this be the moment?

Sensing the fear, the alien says everything is in order. Another package is placed on the table, this time by the alien. The man opens it. “A watch?” “What better device for controlling time?” responds the alien.

It gets up to leave. “Beware, this is an alien device and may not work the way humans expect”.
The transaction is over. The nightmare is just starting.

OK, sorry for my bad writing, I've read too many 40's and 50's sci-fi and detective stories. I wanted to set the scene and not just give the details. So here’s the deal. The man caused a million humans and aliens to die and wants to put things right. In return for supplying the information he is given a time machine. Nothing new so for.

What happens now is that the man activates the machine and finds himself waiting in the bar 25 minutes in the past. The machine didn’t work properly! It was supposed to take him back 12 years. Only now his trouble is starting because a group of aliens somehow know about the TM and want it.

He uses his old Earth gun to escape and lives the bar running and hiding from the aliens. Exactly 25 minutes after the level starts it goes back to the man waiting in the bar. Things are different this time. The bar is slightly different. He leaves the bar and finds the outside slightly different. A quick walk around the block and he’s sure. This place is different from the Fortune City he knew. A vehicle turns a corner and heads straight for him. The nightmare has begun again.

This continues for a set number of times and if the man hasn’t found the original alien then the cycle continues returns to the first level, this continues indefinitely.

The alien can be found every fifth level and not very close to the man’s starting position.

The changes made to each time/level can be very subtle; location of aliens, textures, building layout etc. We are not talking completely new models or weapons.

By killing the original alien the cycle is broken and the scene shifts to the first time the alien walks in the bar. The information is given but the package is refused.

“Sometimes you just have to live with your past” says the man as he walks out the bar.