I'm am currently planning an online rpg and I was wondering what everyone would recommend I know before starting to program. Right now I'm Learning MySQL and PHP, also I know alot about basic web design already. I'm thinking &#106avascript and some kind of graphic design program for the 2D art. Anyone know of any tutorial references, a good graphic program, or even some basic information and creating and publishing your own game? Thnx ~ Ian <!--EDIT--><span class=editedby><!--/EDIT-->[Edited by - iandigges on January 10, 2006 3:54:47 PM]<!--EDIT--></span><!--/EDIT-->

few questions...

1. define 'online rpg'. because if you mean 'mmorpg' thing you are ready for a fun ride. and by 'fun', i mean 'annoying'. because there are 20834729837298347928374982734982734982 factors you are overlooking.

2. have you done anything past php? any c/c++/java or anything? these will definately help you.

3. are you gonna try to do a diablo type rpg if not an mmo? turn based? text adventure? mud? it sounds like you wanna do a web based game, therefore flash might be a decent idea. actionscript is powerful enough to handle the basics and then some.

he means an http based rpg, maybe mmo maybe not, but if so, more like urban dead than world of warcraft (not about real time graphics stuff - uses a basic submit model like standard web apps).

I think you should make sure and keep your game logic totally seperate from your rendering ... that way you can output simple xml ... or html ... or you can add cool features like 2D maps and art (as you mentioned) or render SVG images at the server if you want.

So whatver language and db you choose (php / MySQL it seems, which should be fine).

Then design your basic data model (the MOST important part for a particular rpg game).

and go from there

If you're creating a website game like neopets, then this post probably will not apply.

Not to be rude, but your idea of 'creating a game' is totally off. Even if you try to make a singleplayer in &#106avascript you'll be very busy with the 'overlooked factors' the above poster mentioned.
1) &#106avascript isn't powerful in terms of making games. It's a Scripting Language, not a Programming Language.<br>2) Assuming you want to create an &#111;nline game (what? another MMORPG? 8(), you'll need something better than &#106avascript simply because it can't handle the task and isn't capable of doing real-time queries to the server. Let aside it's limited 2D graphics display capabilities.<br>3) And further, MySQL and PHP will handle the serverside just fine, until you reach a certain amount of players (assuming MMORPG), so eventually you'll get yourself and your players stressing.<br><br>I'm not sure about MySQL and PHP's performance, but I'm sure a browserbased &#111;nline game will not perform well if you make it with &#106avascript. Look into Java Applets or Macromedia Shockwave. Or learn to create stand-alone applications.

I wanted to make a 2D turn based mmorpg accessed via a browser. Something simple graphic and concept wise but great gameplay. I also want a coop feature so players can join clans as well as solo based character building.

As I said, Java Applets and Macromedia Shockwave. &#106avascript will not get you anywhere, trust me. Of course, it's possible, but you'll have to be Einstein.

So I could do everything with mysql, php, and html? What about xml and a program for graphics? I wasn't planning on annimation although I could put some in eventually, any suggestions?

heck ... a good old 2D bard's tale like game would rock ... no animation required (besides just animating GIFs or SVGs).