Hiya folkd. I am currently learning C# and C++. Below are my ideas that I plan to eventually make, once I have learnt enough, so I will probably won't be making it for a while yet. However I plan to design all the level layouts and do a story board for each level in the time being as well as all the class designs. Could someone please tell me if I am headed in the right direction in designing this game. and what other documentation I need to do. Thanx. Also if you think it is a good idea for a game. Super Secret Agent Overview In Super Secret Agent, you play special Agent Sam Stone in a quest against the Crime bosses and Drug Lords of New York. At the start of the game you ae a Narc, however after your family are professionally asassinated, you become a Secret Agent for the FBI and go on a downwards spiral into madness in your quest for revenge. Tis game will have a very dark and moody atmosphere, there will be no happy endings in the levels, just more pain and misery. The levels will be dark with atmospheric lights. style Super Secret Agent is a 2D platformer with RPG elements. As the game progresses you can upgrade skill's and abilities which will dictate how you play the game. You will be able to go in all guns blazing or you will be able to use stealth and sneak around the ventilation system or the sewers. You will also be able to take control of security systems and use them on the ememy. You will be awarded be style points for kills for example, shooting someone in the head will give you a bonus and so will shooting someone in the back. The whole aim of the game is to be as ruthless as possible. As you collect these style points, special items and abilities will be unlocked. Each level will have Primary and Secondary Goals, these will include Assassinations and destroying set objectives. Also hacking into computer systems for information will be one of the secondary goals. Envronment The game is played in a 2D environment. However there will be multiple routes through each level. Lighting will play a large part in the game. It is posible to hide in the dark, however so can the enemy. Also Line Of Sight applies if someone is ducked behind a crate you will not be able to see them, however this works both ways. Also if an enemy finds a corpse of another enemy they will sound the alarm and come hunting for you. The enemy will also notice if a door that they shut is open and thy will lock it agin and search the area for a possible intruder. Security Systems include video cameras, infared detectors, gun turrets and security bots. Accessing the computer systems will enable you to use these to your adavntage if you have the skill. Also everything that you do will make a certain amount of noise, so it will pay to be as quiet as possible. Weapons Weapons in the game are bought with credits from completing missions, and you can also find them on the corpses of enemies. Knife: Used for stabbing, slashing and throwing. A basic weapon that easy to obtain and also silent. Ideal for stealth kill bonuses. If thrown at eenemies head, will result in an instant kill. Chicken Wire: Used for garroting enemies, which is a good stealth kill. Also if there is pipe nearby you can use secondary fire mode which enables you to hang your enemy. Where as this results in a large style bonus, any enemies stumbling across the hanging corpse will be very pissed off. 9mm: Your basic starting weapon. Until you get your hands on a silencer this is a noisy weapon. Also only garunteed to get an instant kill if you go for a head shot. ALtjough shooting you opponent in the crotch will disable them and give you a nice bonus. Magnum: If you are lucky enough to find one of these, you can do some serious damage to your enemy. Brings a whole new meaning to head shots, as this weapon will take out your opponnts head easily. Uzi: Same strength as 9mm but puts down a rapid rate of fie, also has slightly longer range. Shotgun: Need I say anymore. Assult Rifle: Highly accurate, high rate of fire, good range. Puts down the enemy with a few rounds. Cannot be silenced. Sniper Rifle: This weapon has an extremely long range, also due to the high calibre of the weapon, who ever it is on the recieving end will come to a messy demise. Minigun: If you wanna cause a big bloody mess, this is the weapon to use, although this weapon is big and slows you down, there is not much that can stand in your way. Also due to the high rate of fire this weapon is ideal for crowd control situations. Flame Thrower: Fires a red hot jet of flame. Will combust any human in it path, also engulfs the area in flame so hiding behind a crate will not help. Also good for cleaning out the ventillation system, which is one of the things the enemy use it for. Rocket Launcher: Fires a missile which explode on impact. Secondary fire is a rocket that can be guided by the mouse. Good for taking out security bots and getting through locked doors. Frag Grenade: Good for room clearence. Explodes after 5 seconds, however the enemy can throw these back if they are fast enough. Gas Grenade: Release a toxic gas that sends anyone it comes into contact with mad, causing them to run around shooting randomly. Can be funny in crowded rooms. There are also one or two experimental weapons to be fownd however I am keeping quiet about these as I do not want to ruin the surprise. Abilities Speed: Determines how fast you move, how high you can jump and how agile you are. Strength: The stronger you are the more gear you can carry. Also enables you to carry kit such as the minigun and rocket launcher. Stealth: This decides how well hidden you are in various lighting. It is believed that if you are stealhy enough you will become invisible. However this des not help against Infra Red Detector and security bots. Aim: The more accurate you are the more damage you will inflict. Also stops the cross hair from shaking as much. Hacking: This skill decreases the amount of time it takes to hack computer systems, also allows you to use tools such as the electonic lock pick. Utilities Remember that the enemy can also use these items and they will. Health Packs: Normally fownd in the med centre this allows the user the administer any wounds they have and restore their health. Gear: Although taking drugs is highly illegal, these can be used for a burst of speed and strength. However there are side effects too, such as being fatigued after use and you may hallucinate as well. Silencer: Can be attached to the pistol and uzi for some silent shooting. Laser sight: Allows a more accurate shot. Flash Light: Allows you to see in the dark, however enemies cansee the beam of light so notvery stealthy. Night Vision: Allows you to see in the dark, without a beam of light giving away your position. Stealth Suit: Bends light so you cant seen as easily. Also stops you from showing up on night vision. Infrared Claymore: Lay one of these and when someone breaks the Infrared beam.... BANG. Grappling Hook: Allows you to scale walls. Satchel charge: A remote controlled bomb, that goes bang when you press the button, you can lay up to 5 at once. Electonic Lock Pick: Allows you to bypass the lock on electronic doors if you have the skill. Holographic Projection: Creates a holographic projection of the user to confuse the enemy. Exoskeleton: A highly experimental sytem that gives the user super human strength. Enemies Security Guards: These guys are ound in guarded compounds. They are normally armed with shotguns. They usually operate alone, and get scared easily. They are also not ver professional so will wonder off from their posts and sleep on the job. Crack Heads: These scum are found on the street, they usually have knifes, operate in gangs. Although they have no protection they are usually that high on drugs that they are immune to pain. Mob Bosses: These normally run the slum houses, they are bad ass, have decent weapons, and usually have one or two body guards. Body Guards: These muscle bound thugs will do anything for who ever it is they protect an they dont care who gets in there way. Asassin: The assassin will track there prey until they feel it is a good moment to strike, they are skilled at making themselves appear invisble. They also have no problem with crawling through ventilation ducts especially if it gives them the advantage. Special Op's: These guys operate in squads of 4. They are very good fighters, will take cover whenever they can and work as a team. They also use grenades to flush out the enemy. Enemy AI Enemy AI will be behavioural based. They will have various behaviours which will be triggered by the player or other events. Enemies will have the same LOS limits as the player and will be able to pick up and use weapons and utilities just like the player. They will also assess who they are fighting and if they think that they cannot win they will hide and try to get a backshot or find some friends and attack in force. Certain enemies will hunt in groups and provide things such as cover fire. The assassins will not attack straight the way they will follow there prey and wait until there prey is low on health or in a fire fight and then attack. Also if an enemy gets low on health it may run off unless it is feeling brave. If an enemy has nightvision or a torch it may also hoot out the lighting to give it the upper hand. The Levels The Slums: Detective Sam Stone has been given a tip off about the location of a well sought after Drug Dealer. To get to the dealer he must enter the slum district of New York get past numerous crack heads who will stop at nothing to get money for drugs. The second half of the level is an old factory where the drug dealer lives and works. After a roof top showdown the drug dealer escapes and swears revenge. The Wedding: Detective Sam Stone is at his sisters wedding. The Drug Dealer he persued only a week before crashed the wedding and kills everyone except Sam Stone. Sam fights off the Drug Dealers army of crack heads and has another showdown with the daler, this time only one of thm will survive. FBI Training: After the loss of all his family, Sam Stone decides to become an undercover agent for the FBI. This level teaches the player the various weapons and items in the game. At the end of the level he discovers that the Drug Dealer he was after was working under someone elses order and decides to investigate. The Drug Lab: Several leads send Agent Stone to crack factory. This is a multistorey level, with plenty of security sytems in place and a large ventilation system. Halfway through, the lab gets stormed by special Op's who seem more intent on killing Stone than anyone else. Stone realises he is alone and realises he must prove his innocence. At the end he faces the runner of the lab who is off his face on a new drug and finds a new weapon that has been stolen from the army. All trails point to a night club. Boss: Travis Walker, a big time drug dealer who also uses his products. He is using an experimental drug. The effects of the drug include a massive increase in strength however they deform the abuser making him a sort of mutated Hulk. The boss will appear halfway through the level, take the drug and the rest of the level will basically be a showdown. To kill him he must be pushed into a furnace to be burnt alive. The Night Club: Stone goes to what appears to be a derelict Night club. However inside he finds people being used as sex slaves and decides to issue his own justice. Below the night club is training facility for an anti goverment organisation. Close on Stone's trail are the Special Op'swho have been following him. Stone realises he must destroy the whole facility, but only after a show down with the Night Clubs Owner. This level will have several strobe lighting effects. Helicopter Chase: After blowing up the nightclub and everyone in it, Sam thinks his work is done, however several Special Op's helicoptors appear in the sky and start chasing him. This level level takes Stone through several Sky Scrapers in a deadly game of Cat and Mouse where he must destroy the helicoptors before they destroy him. The Showdown: Sam goes back to the FBI to find out who the Special OP's are and why they are after him, and it turns out that the Deputy Director has turned rogue and wants to turn the USA into the worlds biggest terrorist nation. After blazing his way through the FBI HQ, Sam kills the Deputy Director and finds the Director locked up in a closet. After being personally thanked by the President Sam decided to finish the night with a beer and a cigar. Level Designer I intend on using World Creator 2.5 to draw the levels for Super Secret Agent. However I will probably have to write custom software for a program to place entities such as the player, enemies, items and doors, etc, etc. This custom software will be written using Microsoft Visual C#. I also intend on usig existing textures for the game althoobviously some of them I will have to create myself using Adobe Phoshop 7.0. I will alo hopefully be using pre existing sprites for the player and enemies otherwise I will have to pay a 2D artist to do them for me. 2D Engine Details The Game Engine will 2D using DirectX technology. It will use either DirectX 9 or 10. All levels will be multiple screens ith horizontal and verticle scrolling. To give the game more atmosphere, all the levels will be initially dark with DirectX providing Lighting Effects. All sources of lighting will be destroyable, so there will be no permanent lighting. Sound And Music The game will have a techno/hardhouse sound track. Each level will have a different sound track. Different areas of the levels will have set beats and music. For example boss fights will have a very fast beat. Where as parts of the levels where Sam's friends and aqquatiences will have an uplifting trance sound track. Most of the music will promote drug abuse and violence. Sound effects will be very loud gunshots, explosions and screams. most enemies will have there own phrases that they say, these will be very abusive towards the player.

Sorry I also forgot to ask, can people give me sensible ideas on what they think will make the game better. Even if its just ideas for weapons, items, etc.

The best idea right now is *not* to think about what the weapons are. Instead, just jot down things like "there will be support for a bunch of different kinds of weapons (handwaving description of some possibilities goes here)". You want to write code that's flexible enough to let you add more weapons easily, as you think of them.

But before you can get to that step, you have to learn what you're doing. Probably the best approach - when you're a beginner and you already have a very specific "goal game" in mind - is to take that sketch and strip it down further, in steps... create a list of several simpler games, in order. Then make the first. Don't know how to make the first? Then you didn't simplify enough. :) Once you make the first, you can go on to the next one, etc. Ideally, you will find yourself frequently reusing both things that you created, and things that you learned.

As for whether "it's a good idea for a game", pretty much anything is. I mean, you're not planning to sell the thing (I hope - I don't think Ubisoft will be particularly amused if you try [wink]), so it really doesn't matter how popular it will be - you should make something you will enjoy playing, because you will probably be playing it a lot (for testing).

Thanx for your info. I understand that I won't be able to make this game straight way. I was gonna do a couple of text games first. Then move onto 2D graphics with something like SDL which is basically an interface for DirectX from what I understand.

The text games will probably be text based RPG's so I can develop a simple RPG like class, experience and inventory system. As I would rather figure it out with a text interface before I start worrying about the graphics.

Then I was gonna do some simple platform like games. First single screen games. Then move onto horizontal scrolling then implement vertical scrolling as well.

Then probably just play with code to get used to things like AI and lighting effects.

Is this the right sort of approach????

So I am probably looking to a year at least before this game even has its forst line of code typed. Altho I am hoping to build up a library of useful code from previous games that I make.

I was just wondering if UML diagrams and the like are useful for games, as I have only done them with multi-user database apps so far, then it was only theory we didn't actually code the app.

Thanx.