lewis96

      Lately I've been thinking of developing a realistic RPG. No monsters, no goddesses.. that kind of thing. Which.. could seem boring but I believe it's possible, if your creative enough, to make a very interesting story that's realistic. Or mostly realistic (e.g. in real life you don't find treasures laying around, usually ).

 

Edit:

     The elements in the story are what lean towards realistic. In other words, you fight soldiers.. Possibly animals.. And not monsters, demons, etc. You don't need magical power to throw fire, you need gasoline or tar or something... Or you need stamina to perform special attacks. However, the story itself might be somewhat unrealistic, because a 15 year old boy usually doesn't take on massive armies.

 

So what do you all think? Good or bad idea? Any thoughts to add?

... While facing a much technologically superior enemy.
So far I think that what I just described will be the base of the game. Since no one else has the courage to stand up, a young man, who hardly even knows how to fight, set's out to fight the enemy destroying his country and set an example for his people. He starts out humbly, facing a large army, but display's courage. He learns new techniques along the way. Fighting-based game.
I'm still working on the basics, like fighting tactics. I have the base down. It should take place in the 1600s. Here are my questions...

1. Should I include a bow, that you shoot by holding a key to pull back and release to shoot, in addition to the sword? Or should I focus more on the sword and the way the hero uses it? I want to keep the game somewhat simpler, but allow new things to be "learned."

2. Should he start out young, or start out as a lone soldier? I want to make the hero likable because of his courage. Which sounds better? [answered]

3. What is the max number of combos you would suggest be possible by pressing only one button? Should I make moves different when you combine pressing the action button and one or more movement buttons? [answered]

4. Should I focus more on combos, or let the player switch between different weapons? [answered]

Edit: 5. Do you have any ideas as to new things to learn for the bow? Longer range, fire arrows, possibly exploding arrows, etc are my ideas. The bow should be just as important as the sword. The advantage is the range. The disadvantage is that the sword is more powerful. Any thoughts? Should the bow and sword really be equal?

Edit: 6. Should I also make puzzles, keys, and other challenges a big part of the game? Or should I focus mainly on different kinds of enemy soldiers for variation, while still using keys, maybe switches, etc? Maybe this is a matter of my personal preference and goals for the game but I would like your input.

I'm kind of looking for experienced advice. Please explain your answers.

Edit: This is probably going to be a simple game, with simple graphics (at least characters, attacks, etc). But also very serious. I don't intend to add strange supernatural aspects to it. Courage VS Strength should be the theme. Learning should be an important aspect. I plan to do all the art, all the music, and all the programming, probably the reason I want to keep it relatively small and simpler.

Title says it. I'll start:

Thoughtful.

A lot of games seem to follow the pattern of their genre. In other words, the developer only uses things that they have already seen in other games of the genre they are making. Of course, they may combine them to a certain extent. And sometimes games with only a few original elements can turn out great! But then you may want to develop new ideas.

How do we develop ideas that are new?

Before I talk about that, I'd like to point out that new ideas shouldn't be used unless they are actually fun. But I will also point out that basically any idea can be combined with something else to spawn a new idea.

One way is to brainstorm about ideas until something new and interesting pops into your mind.

Another way is to take very basic building blocks of, say, motion, and think of every possibility of what could be caused by motion and then try to apply that to a game.

Still another way is to try to find inspiration in everyday life, like going around the house, looking at random objects and thinking of a way to apply them to a game.

Please share your own thoughts on developing new, fun ideas for games.

What inspires you to begin developing a game? For the sake of making a game, or does a good idea pop into your head that you MUST use?

And which of these motivations to develop a game do you think makes a game turn out best?