IP from scratch

Pinball mobile game. Pinballs are champions.
Specific places to start
-Interesting gameplay that immediately emerges
-Customization as part of how you use the hero
-Head-to-head champions/head-to-head pinball machine
-Turrets that affect behavior of the champions
-Earning stuff as part of customization
-Taking down the other champion's side (not permanent)
-Taunts
Refine using alignments:
-Head-to-head my village vs. yours
-Townspeople that invade, place flags, laugh when a building breaks, etc.
Refine using Iconic qualities:
-Visual style
-Making sure the pieces that make the "villages" distinctive are also really cool
Refine using Consistency:
-Consistent action of gameplay
-Characters all feel like they're variations within the same ruleset
-Worlds crash together

Spirited Away bath house
Specific places to start
-Weird and varied creatures all getting along
-Mud monster sequence---satisfying
-Live-in quality---weekend spa for weirdos
-Exploring a mysterious place---progressive disclosure
-All the characters have a part to play in the whole; trying to find people's purpose (Lady in the Water)
Refine using alignments:
-Chinese/Japanese concept of an appearing night market
-Old European---mixture of slavic, upper European mythologies
-House of Horror movie characters
-Fey/fairy mythology
Refine using Iconic qualities:
-Visual connectivity
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Refine using Consistency:
-Action


Farmer with pumpkin warriors fighting off the crows
Specific places to start:
-Plants vs. Zombies
-More personal---crochety old farmer with dark magic
-Cute, personality-filled army
-Ongoing dispute about food
-Mutated crows
Refine using alignments:
-Well of transformation used by both characters
-Pumpkins are scarecrows
Refine using Iconic qualities:
-Pumpkins' group personality
-Keep it short, leave some mystery to the world
Refine using Consistency:
-Ruleset for mutations

Loan shark that is a shark
Sherlock Holmes