Going more into the differences between Mata Nui and Okoto:
First of all, Mata Nui is very reminiscent of the original 2001 island. It’s very much the tribal feel, and as such, Toa are revealed as these spirit warriors that are incredibly rare. In fact I personally think that the Kanohi and Toa Tools that the Toa must find are the only ones on the entire island. They are ancient artifacts that were kept in temples awaiting the coming of the next Toa, lost to time as the matoran were forced to abandon the temple, be it due to natural disasters, Rahi incursions, or simply giving up hope that the Toa would come.
Okoto on the other hand is completely different. First of all, they have a higher level of technology than Mata Nui, not like Metru Nui mind you (nowhere near that advanced), more like if Mata Nui is in the Stone Age, Okoto is in the Bronze Age. I imagine it as a cross between Metru Nui and the Ancient City in G2, with the culture leaning toward Metru Nui but the appearance and actual architecture closer to the Ancient City. That being said, in Okoto Toa are common. And thus Toa Tools are also common. As matoran are trained in these monasteries they are instructed in all manors of combat, across many disciplines from swordplay, to archery, and even hand to hand. Their choice of weapon is ultimately their own, in what they choose to specialize and eventually master. Kanohi on the other hand are still held with reverence, but in a much different way. Where on Mata Nui masks were relics of power that were prized possessions of the tribe as a whole, on Okoto they are far more personal. You see: Okoto has mask forges. Masks are made everyday, and are seen less as relics or artifacts and more like masterpieces. While many masks may have the same power, and many may look similar, they are in no way mass produced, each one is carefully crafted by a mask maker, and is in some way unique, even from those of the same power and design. But more important than this is the process by which a Toa receives their mask because the way I see it, Kanohi are very much like wands in Harry Potter, and while a Toa may choose his tools, the mask chooses the Toa.
On some other topics as far as references to previous generations, the general structure of the world, of course everyone’s favorite thing: Jargon:
First, some throwbacks:
I think that Kohlii should totally be a sport on Mata Nui, it’s a great throwback and adds to the general feel of the world. So I thing that there should be a whole story arc about it? Heck no! But it is a nice little detail that takes practically no effort to include and makes the world feel alive.
Similarly I think that Kanoka should exist in Okoto. I love Kanoka. They were incredibly unique and had so much importance in world building as they were used for making masks, as well as being weapons, and being used in the sport Akilini, which I think should also be included for similar reasons as Kohlii.
Now for world structure:
I think that the original island of Mata Nui was absolutely perfect and that nothing about it needs to change. That being said, Okoto should not be a diamond shaped island decided into sixths by mountain ranges. Islands come in different shaped, and Okoto shouldn’t be shaped anything like Mata Nui. I also feel that the cities on Okoto shouldn’t be placed so they all share boarders. Perhaps the center of the island is a vast desert housing the Elemental city of Stone, and the other elements are planes around that. Maybe the Jungle for the Element city of Air (Oh yeah, I think we should bring back air as the main element and put jungle/plantlife back as a secondary) is placed between Stone and Water. Instead of the Elemental city of Earth being just a village built in caves, it should be a vast city carved into the mountains like the dwarves cities in the Lord of the rings. (By the way, I’m not suggesting we call them elemental cities, I’m just refraining from using jargon because I havent talked about it yet).
Also, speaking of the secondary elements, I think they should be present on Okoto. However, they are very rare, and their small villages exist in the suburbs of the elemental cities. Since on Okoto Toa are created by way of the Toa Stones, and there are only Toa Stones for the main six elements, Matoran of the secondary elements that become Toa are trained in the monasteries of their companion elements (each secondary element would be paired with a main element that they are “compatible” with such as air with jungle) and when they become Toa their powers are of the main element, but they still maintain partial powers of their original element. Mind you this doesn’t always work, sometimes even those that succeed the trials do not become Toa, just because they are incompatible with the Toa Stones.
Finally, jargon:
First of all I think we need to bring back all of the elemental prefixes. They were great and they make life so much easier. Next, the return of the word koro, meaning village, this all of the villages on Mata Nui would once again be the koros, but also the smaller villages of the secondary elements on Okoto. In the same vain I think we need the word Metru, meaning city, to describe all of the elemental cities on Okoto. Finally, I think that Turaga should be redefined as simply “elder” instead of it being reserved for the end cycle of a Toa’s life. The way I figure is that eventually a Toa’s power begins to wait and they turn back into a matoran, but usually they are very old by this point and have this already crossed over into being a Turaga.
Anyways, that was a lot. It didn’t seem like that much in my head, but now that I’ve typed it out I’m starting to realize just how much world building I’ve gotten in to… As always I look forward to your thoughts on what I’ve said, be it positive or negative.