Reavermyst

Is this a good idea? would we be hunted down for using actual religions in a game?

 

 

Religion is a pretty tough topic in certain parts of the world (US, middle east), so it might draw a lot of attention of all kinds there.

 

Since religious (and others, really) fundamentalists usually act irrational, there's no good way to predict what might happen.

 

Anyway, I suggest you watch these 2 videos to get a feeling on what's a good approach to the topic from a game design perspective:

http://penny-arcade.com/patv/episode/religion-in-games-part-1

http://penny-arcade.com/patv/episode/religion-in-games-part-2

Kudos for the Extra Credits!

One website I can recommend to you for Blender, is the BlenderCookie division of CGCookie.  They have many modeling tutorials available for free and many more if you're willing to go into a subscription program.  The tutorials available for subscribers are pretty top notch, but the free ones will give you a basic idea to the functions of Blender.

You can find them at http://cgcookie.com/blender/

When it comes to Character Creation and Progression, I like to keep two things in mind: style and personality.  The thing I find great in games, Multi-player in particular, is individualism.  Making a character that represents you and your play style, makes the experience that much more meaningful.

So with Style, I'm obviously referring to the appearance of the character.  I've found that the most depth in the customization options there are, the larger a player's creativity can shine on.  All Points Bulletin, that 'GTA MMO' as most would call it, has possibly one of the best Character Creation systems I've ever seen in any game.  The deformers and texture detail are mostly done in dual axis sliders and the number of textures for each part of the face make for a great starting point.  There are also added details that can be placed through UV projection such as custom tattoos or scars that can be placed almost anywhere on the body.  With the ability to create custom fashion as well(I.E. added textures and logos to clothing/ equipment) players can create their own style that is practically impossible to replicate with matching gear unless traded.

Now for Personality, I'm speaking on the play-style and skill sets of the character rather than a literal standpoint.  When you can choose the way your character progresses, It adds immersion into the game world for the individual whether it would be a player who specializes in ranged weaponry or someone who will try to be a jack of all trades, it's all about freedom.  Having basic frameworks is nice for those who just don't want to sit and work out the numbers or spend hours planning out, but also having the option of a bare bones "Custom" character class adds to creativity in a way.  Make it simple for the general audience to be able to pick up and play nicely, but allow room for the more hardcore players to tinker and experiment to find their niche set up.

Missing an eye, scars, etc options then offer you bonuses to an intimidation factor with a wide range of NPCs, but may negatively harm your ability to interact with others.

This is a great point to also consider.  I actually have a concept in mind of a race created from human volunteers, ends up facing higher prices at stores and general distaste from from Pro-human NPCs.  Applying ratings to visible features that influence NPC reaction or behaviors would add to the depth of a game world.  So if you have a ton of scars, war-torn complexion, and a blank eye, NPCs would be wary of you, show defensive posture and reveal tells of intimidation when you communicate with them.  But if you decided to be a handsome, charming looking fellow, that would make NPC characters seem more comfortable and find you easier to trust.  And for the sake of humor, maybe if you make yourself look totally ridiculous, NPCs will hardly take you seriously and possibly make snide remarks.  If I had the time and knew of a Programmer who would put the extra time in, I'd probably want something like that in a game.  Maybe we'll see something like that out there!

I would personally like to see a city builder like Simcity or Cities XL for my capital city.  But, it needs to be able to interact with the game world constantly.

 

 

That is definately the plan.  perhaps not simcity completely, but closer to sim city than Empire .  but a bit of both I imagine.  I hadn't really considered it to be too close of a clone to Simcity, but that could be nice, to have a bit more feature coverage from there.

 

 

Let the things you do in the RTS element influence things like trade and bonuses to certain areas like completing a mission gives you a surplus of industry good which gives a bonus to commercial demand or simple cash rewards that allow you to build more housing developments.

 

 

Definitely, I'm planning on the tactical games to tie in to rewards and such, and there are some things you only get by completing battles.

Or directing the wars.

 

 

Sounds like an awesome combination.  If I had to reiterate, I'd say add the un-expected nature of SimCity and the economic strategy of Cities XL into your City Builder element. 

I've played/enjoyed a few City Building games, and I'm considering building one now.  What do you think makes a good City Builder?

 

Here's a few basics I can think of, what do you think should be added or edited?  Or just in general, what have you really enjoyed?

 

1) Simple rewards over time, Money for doing things.the question is how fast.

2) Tasks lists.   Can do more than one thing.

3) Tech trees.  I.e.  can't have an armory without a black smith.  Need farmers before making a farmer's market.

4) Need resources: Coal, Wood, Iron, Food, Soldiers, Weapons.

5) Prepare defensive military: soldiers, etc...

 

 

I thought you were making an RTS?

 

 

The game is intended to feature a stand alone City Builder as your Home city.  Safe, constantly improving and give benefits to the other parts of the game.  However, I want to make sure I'm really hitting good things about this area by itself.  It should be self sufficiently fun on its own, and I'm hoping for good ideas to shape it.

 

 

There is a game with a similar feature, and it's predecessors had a similar mechanic, where your capital city was customization both in upgrades and cosmetics.  I'm talking about the Age of Empires Games, more notably the third installment and Age of Empires Online.  The third installment was simple and you only had a few buildings to upgrade that influence tech costs.  Age of Empires Online lets you place key buildings anywhere on a separate map, essentially letting you design your city and use key buildings to manage your tech tree, unit equipment, and materials for crafting.  Both of which are pretty small metagames as opposed to being a major mechanic as all it is essentially is an over-dramatic menu system.

 

One city builder I found to be pretty good was Cities XL.  The game itself was okay but the ideas in it's mechanics promoted strategic play due to it's economics, where you have to manage the trade of surplus between cities to influence their economies differently.

 

(I.E. City A has a bunch of farms so they produce more Food and City B has more Office Labor since it has more offices and trade between each other)

 

If you're going for an RTS kind of game like AoE online, I would personally like to see a city builder like Simcity or Cities XL for my capital city.  But, it needs to be able to interact with the game world constantly.  Let the things you do in the RTS element influence things like trade and bonuses to certain areas like completing a mission gives you a surplus of industry good which gives a bonus to commercial demand or simple cash rewards that allow you to build more housing developments.