13 replies to this topic

[FB-Productions]

Should the Prehistoric strategy game I'm working on be in 3D or fake 3D or just top-down? I can't choose!
I haven't worked with 3D much and isometric games are sometimes a pain to make and top-down would be easy but would make the game look like nothing to buy.
Please post a screenshot of the style you're going for!
And post a description explaining why!
(I will (+) the idea I like)

EDIT: Please bold the choice you make.
Post example:
"Blah blah. I like 3D. Blah blah. Use it."

Thanks!
FB-Productions

Edited by FB-Productions, 08 July 2012 - 07:58 PM.

[Jobo]

Isometric and pseudo-3d are not the same concepts.
However, I think you should go with isometric. It looks good if done right, and it adds one more visual dimension to the game.

Of course, it often depends a lot on the game itself. But isometric is good in general.

[FB-Productions]

Hmmm...
But isometric sometimes leads to depth errors.

Edited by FB-Productions, 08 July 2012 - 02:29 PM.

[Jobo]

Only if you're doing it wrong.

[FB-Productions]

Anymore comments?

[dannyjenn]

I don't like isometric all that much. I do like some isometric games, but I don't really feel that they are all that much better than normal 4-directional or 8-directional games.

Second, fake 3D can be done in isometric but it doesn't have to be. You could have fake 3D as a non-isometric 4- or 8-directional game (one example that comes to mind is Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty's Revenge for GBA). If you think programming isometric would be a pain or not look good, you could go with non-isometric.

Third, my personal preference is to never go with a top-down game. I absolutely hate that style... the only time it looks decent is if it is in 3D but with a fixed camera giving it the top-down view, and even then it's usually pointless to have such a view (unless the particular game is like, from an airplane or something).

I'd say go with either full 3D or non-isometric fake 3D if you want the 3D look... otherwise just plain 4- or 8-directional non-isometric 3/4 view.

[FB-Productions]

I don't like isometric all that much. I do like some isometric games, but I don't really feel that they are all that much better than normal 4-directional or 8-directional games.

Second, fake 3D can be done in isometric but it doesn't have to be. You could have fake 3D as a non-isometric 4- or 8-directional game (one example that comes to mind is Banjo-Kazooie: Grunty's Revenge for GBA). If you think programming isometric would be a pain or not look good, you could go with non-isometric.

Third, my personal preference is to never go with a top-down game. I absolutely hate that style... the only time it looks decent is if it is in 3D but with a fixed camera giving it the top-down view, and even then it's usually pointless to have such a view (unless the particular game is like, from an airplane or something).

I'd say go with either full 3D or non-isometric fake 3D if you want the 3D look... otherwise just plain 4- or 8-directional non-isometric 3/4 view.

Hmmmmm....
I like your opinion. Thanks. Although I still want to see a bit more opinions.

[TheSnidr]

The easiest way to make an isometric game would be to make a 3D game without perspective. It would take some work to get the camera right though, but when that is done, the 3D system would take care of the depth for you.
Perhaps if you could place the camera really far away with a tiny view frustum, you'd get near isometric view... Hm... I want to make a game like that some day! ^^

[kburkhart84]

I don't think there is anything wrong with a top-down game, but it tends to fit more when the game is full of action, like a shooter. For a strategy game I'd say go with either the isometric or the non-iso side view at an angle, like 45 degrees.

There is nothing wrong with 3d, but I'd think in general if we are using GM, it is better to use 2d. I know GM can do 3d, but GM's 2d tends to look better than 3d. And you can use GM's collision system, etc... That doesn't mean you can't get a 3d look. I use Blender to create 3d renders for my sprites so I can get the 3d look, and I especially would use the same idea for iso or side view graphics too so I can base all view angles off of the same models. But then, I can't sprite well so that also influenced my opinion

[FB-Productions]

EDITED first post. Please bold your choice in the post!

[Nocturne]

I can't help feeling that us telling you to make a game with a a certain style is really quite pointless. YOU should know your capabilities, and YOU should know how you want your game to play... If you do not, then noone here can help you, and getting a list of people saying "I like blah..." is no use unless they can apply "blah" to YOUR specific game.

If your topic even went into depth about the actual gameplay you want to have and explained why you think each graphic style could be good and why it could be bad, then I'd understand, as you are offering discussion material to the people on the forum. However, as it stands, you offer nothing and ask people to make a judgement based on that... which seems pretty pointless. So, please add into your topic some information about your game so that we can give an INFORMED opinion, and maybe outline your thoughts on each possible style and why you think it is good or bad.

[Johnjwj]

Unless done very well, you should avoid a 3D RTS, if that's the sort of game you're making. But please include more information regarding sprites/models you would include, such as units or buildings.

[FB-Productions]

Anymore opinions?

[Nocturne]

Anymore opinions?

Since you chose to completely ignore my "nudge" to improve the topic, no...