Soldak wants design help from YOU

Steven Peeler, the guy behind e.g. Depths of Peril, begins design of a new game and <a href="http://www.soldak.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1538">wants your feedback</a>. Don't rush and copypaste your multifaceted TB combat system design, though:<blockquote>Our next game is going to be more of a hardcore, realtime dungeon crawl (hardcore compared to Kivi that is).

It's going to be an action RPG that is going to take some elements from Depths of Peril (no covenants though) and some from Kivi's Underworld. I'm thinking of having some of the key features revolve around random elements (controlled randomness), a very dynamic world, and lots of smaller game mechanics that can interact to result in some more emergent gameplay than is usual in an action RPG.

This doesn't give you much to go on yet, but now is a great time to give your input of what you would like to see in a realtime dungeon crawl. Don't worry I have plenty of ideas to make this a really cool game, but I love hearing feedback from all of you.</blockquote>If you think you know what the key ingredient missing from all recent realtime dungeon crawlers is, drop Soldak a line <a href="http://www.soldak.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1538">here</a>.

Spotted at: <A HREF="http://www.rpgwatch.com">RPG Watch</A>

For god sake use a new engine plix.

That's tech advice, not design help. Engines are tricky motherfuckers, and your programmer's gotta know that shit front-to-back to make stuff work. Just sayin' - it's not like switching a plug from one socket to the other.

Asking for design feedback is both a good idea and a terrible one. A very tricky beast. One should always be open for suggestions, but the level of expectation on the internet is so goddamn high that should their idea NOT get implemented, the party in question will probably start screaming like a toddler in a restaurant. Without listening to your fans, though, your work will stagnate, and you might lose buyers. Bad news.

Like I said - it's a tricky beast. Best of luck to him.

Annie Carlson said:

One should always be open for suggestions, but the level of expectation on the internet is so goddamn high that should their idea NOT get implemented, the party in question will probably start screaming like a toddler in a restaurant.

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All depends on the maturity of your target audience. Look at some of the design discussions over at Iron Tower and how they've had an influence on Age of Decadence. Good stuff.

I posted some generic stuff to help give a few ideas on weapon types, along with some nudges towards adding in some lore here and there. Hack and slash can be fun, but when it has a bit of background and setting detail, it can be even more fun.

Dynamic jiggling titties.

And moar sexable female characters than other games, with real time cut scenes.

I sent him the American Hare design doc. I hope I get selected!

Fat Dragon said:

All depends on the maturity of your target audience. Look at some of the design discussions over at Iron Tower and how they've had an influence on Age of Decadence. Good stuff.

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This is very true, and I've been continually impressed with the stuff there - I should've called it out as such.

Plz to forgive in that regard - bear in mind where we are, and the fact that I found my way here as a result of me posting in the BioWare forums. Bleeeeeargh. :twisted:

But yeah. Good feedback from fans who are committed to making the game better is awesome for both parties. That is a rarity on the internets, and when I find it, I enjoy it much.

Annie Carlson said:

Asking for design feedback is both a good idea and a terrible one. A very tricky beast. One should always be open for suggestions, but the level of expectation on the internet is so goddamn high that should their idea NOT get implemented, the party in question will probably start screaming like a toddler in a restaurant. Without listening to your fans, though, your work will stagnate, and you might lose buyers. Bad news.

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That is indeed a danger. I'm sure I will upset a few people because I don't use their ideas. They will just have to deal with it. I did mention in my starting thread that some times ideas really are great, but just aren't feasible for some reason or another so hopefully that will lessen any screaming. I can dream right?

Codex isn't exactly a perfect match for an action RPG game, but you guys are welcome to give feedback also.

speeler said:

That is indeed a danger. I'm sure I will upset a few people because I don't use their ideas. They will just have to deal with it. I did mention in my starting thread that some times ideas really are great, but just aren't feasible for some reason or another so hopefully that will lessen any screaming. I can dream right?

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Well, if they are mature about it, there's no problem. If they are immature, well...fuck 'em. Just because a developer asks for what folks want in a game, that doesn't mean that the developer has to or is going to choose to use everything.

You can't throw in everything you and others want into a game, though it is always tempting. There's always the barriers of development time, development style, and the suitability of the concept towards the title being made. Plus, the idea might just be stupid to begin with. :D

While the Codex does favor a lot of P&P style CRPGs, I'd say a fair portion also like the dungeon crawlers for what they are as well. Titan Quest, King's Field, and a few others are favorites of mine. Personally, I love a lot of genres.

Annie Carlson said:

Asking for design feedback is both a good idea and a terrible one. A very tricky beast. One should always be open for suggestions, but the level of expectation on the internet is so goddamn high that should their idea NOT get implemented, the party in question will probably start screaming like a toddler in a restaurant.

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My experience in the matter is that if you're not going to implement a feature, don't lead them on into thinking that you are. Shoot 'em down cold, and flat out say "No.". Interestingly enough, this works pretty well on babies, too. The problem is that people are unwilling, or simply not allowed to, flat out state that a given idea is impractical or even outright STUPID, and thus the same bad ideas keep cropping up.

I just remembered I should check back UFO: Enemy Invasion, the open source X-Com inspired 3D TB community project using the Quake engine. For an open, community project, they've been doing tremendously good and consistent work, even after some of the guys who originally started the project left after a while.