hi guys, i''ve been very impressed lately with the opinions and ideas that have been coming out of this forum, so i decided i''d throw my idea at you to see what you could come up with... i''m currently working on my 2D graphics engine using D3D and i wanted to do a rather small game at first as a test bed to make sure it would be useable for an actual game project. i decided i''d make a side-scroller, since it seemed like a quick project (well, quick compared to the last project i was working on...). the idea is to do a ninja fighting side-scroller, like Final Fight or Ninja Gaiden. I wanted to do more than just jumping and swinging a sword though, so i figured i''d put in a system for separate punch and kick controls, and also have a combo/special move system. with the right gameplay and visual effects, i figured that this game could be budget quality, and that i might be able to make a few bucks off of it. since most of the talk around here is about RPGs, i figured i might try you guys out for some simple side-scroller design ideas. i think that with the right gameplay and design, this could be an awesome game... any suggestions? dave -- davidw@heehaw.com neonstar entertainment

Most folks around here are very into RPGs...sorry but those seem to be the only things they like to discuss [it''s pretty much like that on any game design form I''ve seen] ...

For you side scroller...you may want to find insperation in Miyamoto''s games [mario, zelda]...the key is balance through diversity while maintaining simplicity...anyway I don''t see much wrong with your description [not that I''m some sort of game design god or anything ] but I would encourage you to persue some of the things Metroid has done...weapons with a diverse range of effects..something like: throwing star, grapple hook, sword, and those spiked things left on the floor for enemies to step on [maybe make them explosive..you can throw them and they stick to walls,etc..but when touched they go BOOM...you could use a throwing star to do this from a safe distance,etc..] also maybe a variation on the 2 hitpoint idea...er...sonic collected rings...if he was hit while he held at least one ring, he was okay [but lost all the rings]..mario was simular in that as he got a flower he gained an ability...but when touched he shrank back down to his normal pint sized form...there are still tons of things you can do with this genre