I'd like to present a game concept to a developer who could actually do something with it. I don't have resources or training, just an idea. I realize this is probably very common, and that it's unlikely to happen, but the idea is bugging the hell out of me. And just to make matters real complex, it's an idea relating to a licensed IP. So, does anyone have any suggestions? Do you need more details? Or should I just give up on the idea now and save myself the inevitable disappointment?

Good news and bad news.

Good news: Your analysis of the issues is 100% correct.

Bad news: Those issues make it nigh impossible to proceed further with the idea.

Developers typically develop their own ideas first or contract their services out to publishers (EA, Activision, etc) only. Developers avoid IP issues if possible and let the publisher take care of it.

Effectively, you would need to become a publisher in order to do this; you need a massive amount of money to pay developers, a legal team to negotiate IP licensing contracts (along with more money to pay them), and after this you would still be at the complete mercy of the IP holder as to whether they would even allow a project to begin with.

Even finding developers is difficult. Many studios are owned by publishers, and don't take any contract work at all. Other studios have their hands full on existing projects - they may be able to expand, but hiring people skilled in game development is extremely hard. If you DO find a development studio, they might not have the particular skills you need for your particular project. You need to find a team experienced in the type of game you want to make. You wouldn't hire the FarmVille team to make Skyrim, for example. This process requires you to have extensive knowledge about established developers and how to get in contact with them.


You should probably give up, unless you're *extremely* wealthy and have a lot of time to manage such an undertaking.

Lack of confidence mostly. Also I don't want to irritate you guys, I'm sure devs on this forum see this kind of shit all the time.

But here goes.

My concept is for a Warhammer 40,000 stealth/third person shooter with heavy RPG elements. The player character would be an Interrogator for the Inquisition. You would have a variety of options for what sort of background you would have, tech priest, psyker, guardsman, ex-mercenary, that sort of thing.I personally like the idea of being able to play through your PC's rise from acolyte to Interrogator, but I recognize this that is most likely impractical. You would have a variety of characters from your Inquisitor's retinue to use, all of them would of course have their own backgrounds, stories etc. But in keeping with the tone of 40k, every one of them would be able to die during the game. Not as a result of a bullshit no win situations, always as a result of decisions you make. Anytime someone dies, it is absolutely the player's fault and it can be avoided. Other things that can happen as a result of bad decisions should be things like plagues, massive victories by xeno or heretical forces, and the deaths of many guardsmen. Detective work should be a major component, shooting your way through should be possible, but not ideal.

Haven't really started working on story ideas yet, this is just a rough outline. I'm sure I'll think of things I forgot later, but I'm a bit under the weather right now.

Lack of confidence mostly. Also I don't want to irritate you guys, I'm sure devs on this forum see this kind of shit all the time.

But here goes.

My concept is for a Warhammer 40,000 stealth/third person shooter with heavy RPG elements. The player character would be an Interrogator for the Inquisition. You would have a variety of options for what sort of background you would have, tech priest, psyker, guardsman, ex-mercenary, that sort of thing.I personally like the idea of being able to play through your PC's rise from acolyte to Interrogator, but I recognize this that is most likely impractical. You would have a variety of characters from your Inquisitor's retinue to use, all of them would of course have their own backgrounds, stories etc. But in keeping with the tone of 40k, every one of them would be able to die during the game. Not as a result of a bullshit no win situations, always as a result of decisions you make. Anytime someone dies, it is absolutely the player's fault and it can be avoided. Other things that can happen as a result of bad decisions should be things like plagues, massive victories by xeno or heretical forces, and the deaths of many guardsmen. Detective work should be a major component, shooting your way through should be possible, but not ideal.

Haven't really started working on story ideas yet, this is just a rough outline. I'm sure I'll think of things I forgot later, but I'm a bit under the weather right now.

Well, basically what you're describing is a game based in dark heresy, so right now you would have a problem with the publisher of dark heresy game and the creator of the universe. And the creator, games workshop, is really picky with their licenses.

I always think about how awesome would be a rpg based in dark heresy universe, but for now we can only wait.

Lack of confidence mostly. Also I don't want to irritate you guys, I'm sure devs on this forum see this kind of shit all the time.

But here goes.

My concept is for a Warhammer 40,000 stealth/third person shooter with heavy RPG elements. The player character would be an Interrogator for the Inquisition. You would have a variety of options for what sort of background you would have, tech priest, psyker, guardsman, ex-mercenary, that sort of thing.I personally like the idea of being able to play through your PC's rise from acolyte to Interrogator, but I recognize this that is most likely impractical. You would have a variety of characters from your Inquisitor's retinue to use, all of them would of course have their own backgrounds, stories etc. But in keeping with the tone of 40k, every one of them would be able to die during the game. Not as a result of a bullshit no win situations, always as a result of decisions you make. Anytime someone dies, it is absolutely the player's fault and it can be avoided. Other things that can happen as a result of bad decisions should be things like plagues, massive victories by xeno or heretical forces, and the deaths of many guardsmen. Detective work should be a major component, shooting your way through should be possible, but not ideal.

Haven't really started working on story ideas yet, this is just a rough outline. I'm sure I'll think of things I forgot later, but I'm a bit under the weather right now.

Well, basically what you're describing is a game based in dark heresy, so right now you would have a problem with the publisher of dark heresy game and the creator of the universe. And the creator, games workshop, is really picky with their licenses.

I always think about how awesome would be a rpg based in dark heresy universe, but for now we can only wait.

The only thing is that recently we've seen three very lackluster 40k games. Armageddon was a turn based strategy game on a hex grid, not bad, but nothing compared to the quality of Dawn of War or Space Marine. Regicide was 40k themed computer chess. And then Storm of Vengeance, which was basically a Plants vs Zombies clone with cards (it sucked ass), so I don't know what the hell GW is doing with their licenses since THQ folded, but they seem to be throwing them at anyone who can make a game.

The suggestion I've received from other people I've talked to, is to learn Unity, make it myself (or with help from people more competent than myself) and submit it to a publisher. I'm not sure how feasible this is, or how much of the game I would need to put together before presenting the idea. It seems like it would be a massive waste of time to make whole thing only to find out that the game gets rejected.

Yeah this makes perfect sense to me. I mean, to be perfectly honest, I have little expectation of this stuff actually going anywhere. I'm not a game designer, I have no history in the industry, I don't know anybody, and there are a few personal circumstances which make most of this more difficult as well. Mostly it's that I love games, I love 40k, and I would love to see a game like this. But of course, I have no record to look at, good or bad, publishers have plenty of people they can look at who have already proven they can make games that will sell.

And it's intimidating to learn this stuff from scratch, particularly if, like me, you really don't have the money to go to school and get a degree for an industry that's as fickle and overloaded as video games. But the idea was bugging me, and I had to ask someone if there was something I could do with this idea, some way to get someone on board who is more knowledgeable and competent than myself. But yeah, I can see that I would probably have to teach myself and see how it goes from there. Not a pleasant reality, but not unexpected either.