jbadams

Right at the very top of any page on the site there's a black bar -- the one that contains the reputation, notification and sign-out widgets on the right-hand side.  If you look on the far left of that bar you should see a link to "AuthorCP" (Author Control Panel).

The "my articles" tab (which should be selected by default) in that page will list any articles you have contributed, including those saved as drafts.

Let us know if you have any trouble! 

It sounds like you're specifically interested in games that are rendered in 2d but appear to be 3d.

There are two main categories these fall into: "2.5d", typically used for first person views (Wolfenstein 3d for example), or "isometric" (or similar view) games as you might commonly see in strategy or role-playing games (such as Diablo).  You can achieve some pretty impressive results with these techniques, although for certain situations it can be easier to use 3d graphics from a fixed perspective rather than faking it with 2d.  Also note that as mentioned above, it's increasingly common to use 3d assets to produce 2d versions for use in-game.

How impressive can 2d look?  I believe the original Starcraft is 2d, and Diablo II certainly is (although I believe the graphics are produced from 3d models).

frob gave some excellent advice on how you might decide between the two.

Hope that helps! 

Do you keep your operating system up-to-date?  Do you have virus/malware protection that's up-to-date and run on a regular basis?  Have you recently changed any hardware?

The last things I did before this happened was install some custom windows themes

What sort of custom windows themes?  While some people don't experience any problems, software like WindowBlinds and AstonDesktop can sometimes cause instability or hog resources -- especially if you're using a more complex theme.  Microsoft go to great lengths to ensure the default Explorer shell for Windows is compatible with almost any reasonably modern hardware you might be using, but the companies behind these sorts of theming packages just don't have the same level of resources to test on such a wide variety of set-ups.  If that (or something similar) is the type of theme you're talking about it could potentially be the culprit.

If you choose SDL you might be interested in Lazy Foo's SDL Tutorials, or if you choose SFML you might be interested in Game From Scratch C++ and SFML Edition. 

How can a game have any personality what so ever if everyone involved gets a real say as to what direction the game goes in.

Are you suggesting that the industry has never produced a game with "personality"?

There may be a lot of blandness out there, and a lot of games that aren't to your liking, but in the overwhelming majority of cases most if not all participants in a games creation have some impact on the direction of the final product, and I'd say there are definitely some games that have real character that have resulted from this process.

Compare it to music -- which is typically considered an art -- and where it's common-place for multiple people to collaborate on the writing and production of a song to produce the final product.  There's no reason you must have a single artist to produce a piece with "character" or to stick to a vision, and music provides thousands of examples of that -- even in Classical music where the composer has dictated the entire piece note-for-note and often includes additional instructions, performances can vary greatly based on nuances introduced both by the conductor and by individual musicians.  Songs are also often covered by bands with completely different styles who produce an entirely different take on the original piece, or remixed to produce an entirely new piece of music.  All of this is widely accepted as art, and all of it is the product not of a single individual's vision, but of a collaboration between many people who all contribute.

If music is art produced by collaborations then why can't games be the same?  Perhaps the solution is not for individual designers to establish dictatorial control as you're suggesting, but for teams to learn to work better together with a shared vision.

Agreed on all points really -- but unfortunately I think this is just one of those mistakes that the majority of people have to be allowed to make at least once -- everyone in the world can tell them a project is almost certainly too difficult, but if they have the mentality that they'll be different the only real solution is to try, fail, and hopefully learn from the experience -- more people telling them how difficult it is isn't likely to sway their opinion.

I think there is a place for that kind of advice, but unless it comes with more on-point answers to the questions being asked it unfortunately just goes ignored in most cases, and even assuming people are deluding themselves about what they'll be able to achieve I think providing some path to continuing usually provides more value than not.

It's your job to post your dreams and our job to kill them.

Sadly, an all-too-accurate assessment of many of the replies to this and similar topics -- but kudos to those who also chipped in useful advice!

Yes, making an online game is a difficult undertaking.  Yes, an MMO is beyond the capabilities of the majority of would-be game creators.

But here we have an original poster who doesn't want to make a WoW killer, clone EVE Online, or make the next RuneScape.  Here we have someone who wants to make a simpler 2d game.  That only wants to support a maximum of 5,000 players.  That isn't interested in being a global success, but just wants a game people in his own country might enjoy.  A person who apparently at least took the time to create some sort of design document, and appears to be trying to do their due diligence before recruiting a team.   

Is this still difficult?  You bet it is -- it's a difficult undertaking that would entail a lengthy learning and development process, and probably a couple of smaller (perhaps failed) games along the way.  

Is it impossible.  No, it's not.  Single developers and small teams have succeeded at more difficult projects than this one.

Here we have a user who specifically noted that this would be a "super hard" project and wants to do "whatever it takes" to succeed.  Someone who specifically asked not to be warned about the difficulty, claiming to already know; it's pretty obvious from the mention of this that this is someone who has done some basic research and seen similar warnings before, and although probably underestimates the difficulty has chosen to continue anyway.

Some of the most impressive projects around come from people who stubbornly forge ahead when faced with difficult or "impossible" challenges.  When community member Danny Green started with his goal of making high quality professional games by himself many people considered it overly difficult or not impossible until he started to show impressive progress.  Danny now has two impressive games released:  Urban Empires and Gettysburg:  Armored Warfare.  Flavien Brebion worked by himself for a good few years before building enough of a following to attract help he considered reliable enough, and his goal of a space-based MMO set in a highly detailed procedural universe seemed like an overly difficult dream.  He still has a long way to go, but Infinity has progressed in leaps and bounds and is incredibly impressive.  It's been around a decade since Radu Privantu created his small scale MORPG Eternal Lands -- and while it's no WoW or EverQuest it has attracted a stable and sizeable player-base.

Obviously these successes are the exception rather than the rule, but for the rest of us schmucks attempted and failing at these types of project is one of the absolute best learning experiences available.  When you tell the original poster that (s)he is underestimating the difficulty of this project what experience are you basing that on?  In many cases it's based on your own prior attempts at an overly ambitious project in which you would have learned a great many lessons and gained invaluable experience; I understand the drive to try to prevent others from wasting their time, but why rob a determined beginner of that incredibly valuable learning experience?

Warning someone about the difficulty is fine -- perhaps even a good idea if they seem unaware of what they're getting into.  But when someone claims to understand the difficulty -- even if they're probably underestimating it -- why continue to push the point?  Sure, give the advice if you feel it's necessary, but how about some actual detailed ideas for how to proceed with the project as well?  Maybe the original poster is one of those rare driven people who will just keep at it until the project succeeds, or maybe they'll fail and learn all those lessons more experienced developers harp on about.  Either way, post after post telling them their project is "too difficult" or "impossible" just isn't helpful.

</rant>

This is exactly why I said he needs to be really good. If his idea is dumb, he isn't a particularly good designer in my book.

The best designers almost universally agree that an iterative approach is most suitable for any non-trivial or non-clone design, precisely because they can still make mistakes or need to make many improvements along the way.

//EDIT:  Damn, took too long typing and had a couple of additional replies sneak in before I posted...

There's a real difference between a game designer and an "idea guy".

A game designer has real value; they provide vision and guidance, and are often the driving force behind indie projects.  A real designer is able to work within constraints, is able to "find the fun" and build a complementary experience around that, is able to measure and adjust for the impact of various elements within a design, and can often be the difference between an interesting tech-demo and a masterpiece of game design that can become a smash hit.  There are very few people who question this, but unfortunately most people who think they're designers are actually just "idea guys".

An "idea guy" is exactly as useless as common wisdom tells you it is, and isn't the person who fills the role you're describing.  They have an idea which may or may not be good, and offer little if any additional value to a project.  Projects with an "idea guy" on board are completed despite the idea guy, and are only better than "programmer only" projects out of luck if at all.

Essentially -- if we put aside the subjective and realistically meaningless point about games as art -- you're correct about a real designer, but the thing you've missed is that "the idea guy" is a very poor substitute for the real thing.  You'll find very few people who dispute the value of a real designer, but they're absolutely right to devalue the idea guy, and it's a real shame that particular scorn isn't universal enough to prevent hordes of projects that are doomed before they even begin.

Hodgman summed it up very well when he said:

design is a real skill set, which is why most games companies will have a few on their payroll. However, it's not their initial ideas that make them valuable, it's their skill at being a guiding hand throughout the entire development of the game that makes them valuable.
Your stereotypical idea guy does not possess this skill set, or any skill set really.

See also some of the discussion from the topic "what programmers want from a designer", in which several people touch on the value of real designers.

I'm talking about an animation drawn by hand.So should it have 20 frames?

It should have as many frames as you need.  That could possibly be as few as two frames, or any number larger than that.  Take a look at this recent discussion "understanding 2D walking/run animation in games" -- specifically the great second reply from Anthony Serrano lists the number of frames used for a number of different famous characters.

Your issue with animation running slower or faster on different computers is another problem you'll need to solve, but you don't necessarily need to add or remove frames from your animation to do so, but instead make sure you're properly interpolating between key-frames for rendering.

Does that help? 

What skills do you bring to the table?  Ideally you should be a programmer so you can start the project and do most of the work for yourself -- this also frees you from relying completely on others.

You'll need to start by choosing a programming language for your project.  If you already have some experience you would probably be well off using a language you're already familiar with.  If you don't have prior experience I would probably suggest either Python (which was used extensively in EVE Online and Toontown Online amongst others) or Java (which was used for RuneScape and Spiral Knights amongst others).  You'll need to spend time learning the basics of your chosen language and become comfortable with creating some smaller games by yourself before you're ready to work with a team or try tackling a more complex project like an MMO.

I would agree with the above suggestion of working your way up to it by creating smaller games: start by learning to create a basic 2d side-scroller and a chat program separately, then work on adding multi-player and supporting larger numbers of players.

what should I do now and how many team members will I need?

It can sometimes be counter-intuitive, but most successful indie projects are completed by smaller rather than larger teams.  You should work with the smallest team you can possibly complete the project with and only bring additional people on board as needed.

You should begin with only a single programmer -- ideally you will be doing this yourself.  Once you have a basic framework of a game up and running you can get someone to start making graphics; start with only one person, and only add more if the first is unable to keep up and you really need the help.  Only add additional people when they are really necessary.  You do not need an army of designers, artists, audio people, etc.

what software should we start with?

You should begin by working with only a single person of each discipline -- one programmer, one artist, one composer, etc. -- and each should choose the software they are most comfortable with.  There's no point dictating choice of software as long as each person is able to do their job properly; but if you end up recruiting additional people it would be beneficial that they stick with the same choices as your original team.

Alternatively, take a look at HeroEngine.

Hope that's helpful! 

You have been warned multiple times about posting homework questions and bothering people about things you could solve with a simple search.

,

Do your own homework.  If you're stuck you can ask for advice, but you'll need to explain what you've already tried or what you already think the answer is and ask specific questions.  We won't do your work for you.

1.  You're in the wrong forum.  The Lounge is for off topic discussion, not technical questions.  I'm moving you to For Beginners.  If you're asking very basic questions that's probably where most of your posts belong.

2.  You've been warned on multiple previous occasions not to continue posting single line questions that are easily solved with a simple Google search.  I just typed your question into the Google search box, and the first couple of results all appear to answer your question.  If your questions can be solved that easily then you shouldn't be posting them in our forums.  You will not be allowed to continue posting if you keep posting this sort of topic without even bothering to respond to the people who answer you.

3.  You can find the answer to your question by following the link to my Google search and checking any of the first several results.

If you like instant gratification you may be better off with something simpler to use and more visual such as Construct 2 or Game Maker (or perhaps the free alternative ENIGMA, but I don't know much about it).  These types of packages are pretty capable and would be more than able to handle a text based RPG with simple graphics, and they're able to target all the platforms you're interested in.  You would also find it much more approachable, especially if you've been struggling with your initial programming efforts.  Both have free trial versions and are pretty reasonably priced.

Otherwise if that doesn't interest you I'd probably agree with the above that Java may be the simpler of the two options for you to get started with.

Hope that helps! 

Just came across the following article and thought it might be of interest to others:

Pixar's 22 Rules of Storytelling

It's a list of basic guidelines originally tweeted by Pixar's story artist Emma Coats.  Some of them seem more or less applicable to certain story types and genres, but there's some good advice that should be usable in most cases.

Hope people find it interesting/useful!