7 replies to this topic

[Stars]

I suddenly feel the need to rant.

It figures that within months of deciding to forgo making RM games in favor of using all my story ideas for prose fiction, I would get ideas for half a dozen games in a matter of days:
> First, for some reason, I had the urge to think up a Final Fantasy game.
> Then I started thinking about the possibilities of a Zelda RPG, one based on the history of Hyrule given in the manual for A Link to the Past.
> That idea turned into a desire to make a Zelda Tactics RPG...then I remembered that I have no idea how to code such a thing.
> After mulling over the two Zelda ideas, I rediscovered the Metroid manga and wanted to make a Zelda-style Metroid game.
> While thinking about an action-adventure Metroid game, I started getting ideas for a normal Metroid RPG, but since Samus always works alone, I came up with a spin-off idea to have a group of Galactic Federation Troopers doing missions and such in the Metroid universe.
> I tried to forget about all these ideas since I knew I'd never actually make any of them, but that just got me thinking about a Final Fantasy game again; this time, it would be an adaptation of an older idea I had.
> While that idea sounded awesome in my head, it would mean getting rid of some of the fun plans I had for the older game, so I thought up a way to save those in another game concept that ended up merging with some elements of the Metroid RPG. Then it turned into a sandbox game, and I knew it was time to stop.

That makes seven ideas so far in about one week. I don't even have the time to play games that professionals have made much less attempt to make my own right now.

I think what I'm trying to get out by saying all of this is that this semester needs to end soon so that school can stop sucking up all my free time...

[Monkeydog]

I opened up RPG Maker 2003 and looked at it seriously for the first time since it came out.

Man...it's so stupidly simple, it's annoying. I am thinking of making a game with it now.

[Stars]

And now it starts again. Only a few weeks into the new semester and I'm already getting more RM ideas, mostly for battle systems this time. But the terrible thing is that I've got to write a bunch of non-genre stories for a fiction class this semester.

I am finding that I simply cannot come up with stories that aren't science fiction or fantasy. The one I'm writing at the moment (which is due tomorrow, so I really shouldn't be here right now <_< ) is loosely based on part of a fantasy RP I did online with Kamau and Puffin and a number of other people a few years ago. The main difference is that it's in a modern setting with all the magic bits taken out.

The only other idea I've gotten so far is based much more closely on a different RP I did with Kamau and Puffin. This one still has a bit of magic in it though, so I'm hoping I can get away with calling it "magical realism." Apparently this is different enough from "fantasy" that it still counts as "serious fiction."

That aside, some of my favorite RM ideas that I've come up with so far remind me of Chrono Trigger's battle system (including fun things like double techs and such). I really, really need to try making a game again at some point...


Kinda old topic, but I don't care. I needed somewhere to post.

[Monkeydog]

Stars what is with you bumping an extremely old topic and quoting me from a year ago? WHERE IS THAT EVEN QUOTED FROM?

That's lame, though.

I would enjoy hearing your battle system ideas.

[Stars]

I was poking through old topics and found that line in the System Down topic. My sig links to that post of yours, btw. =p

That aside, I've mostly been thinking about possibilities for dual techs lately. See, I've been trying to come up with magic attacks that don't involve fire, ice, and lighting, or anything relating to the four Greek elements. So I started thinking about space manipulation magic and come up with some neat ideas.

One of my favorite dual techs so far involves a warrior-type with a high-power, low-accuracy special attack and a space mage with a displacement (teleportation) spell. When used at the same time, the space mage teleports an enemy over to the warrior and gives the warrior a chance for a surprise attack to make his low-accuracy move hit 100% of the time (possibly with a chance to insta-kill weaker enemies).

Another idea I had for space magic was that teleport spells could split things (including living things) in two, but they would still be "connected." It's hard to find the right words to explain what I mean, but say for example, if I used a displacement spell on myself, and my legs were over on the other side of the room, I would still be able to move them, and blood would still flow to and from them, so they wouldn't die. Such a spell could be used to split a character into left and right halves that could attack two enemies at the same time (provided there's a weapon in each hand).

For more dual techs, I've always liked the idea of using potions and other chemicals to increase the power of magic spells (probably because of Negi's first fight with Eva). If I made a game, one of my characters would specialize in such potions, and he would use them to do things like making other characters' single-target attack spells large enough to effect the whole screen.

One more idea I had today that involves the system more than the attacks themselves is a stamina system. I figure it wouldn't make sense to have purely physical special attacks cost magic points, but I wanted to think of something to balance out their usage. The solution I came up with was to have a separate stamina meter that is drained a little by any sort of action. Normal attacks and simple spells would use up very little stamina, but special melee attacks and spells that require lots of concentration (especially spells that last more than one turn) would drain it much more. (Spells would still cost magic points on top of their stamina cost.) I haven't decided yet how you recover stamina (other than via recovery items), but I've also considered making it to where a character can't have more stamina than they have hp, so if someone has taken a lot of damage, their stamina can't go very high until they recover their health. It would certainly keep players motivated to make sure everyone is healthy, but it would make weakened characters kinda useless. =p

I'm tired now, so that's all I can remember and be bothered to type up.

[Kamau]

Ooh, sounds fun. Is this all part of that game you were plotting and telling me about through IMs? (And even if it is, what RPs were you talking about? :D )

[Stars]

Nah, these are mostly things I came up with withing the last week or so. I don't think I'll ever make that druid/ranger game, though I would still like to use some things from it (such as a certain animal transformation we both liked).

My first story was loosely based on Yolanda seeing Lara fight in the tournament, then getting inspired by it. The other one I want to do is based on Alanna's father being killed, then her meeting up with Kaine and Quillon (though with altered names, obviously).

[Stars]

More stuff!

During a battle, each character can take up to three actions during their turn. Some special attacks and dual techs will take up more than one action, and each one will use up stamina. A character can optionally do nothing and simply defend for one or more of their actions in order to conserve stamina. This also makes speed more important since characters that are too slow will be three attacks behind the enemies instead of just one.

I'd also like to make an inventory system similar to the one used in Deus Ex, where the item menu is a grid, and items take up more squares the bigger they are. Items would also have a general weight class assigned to them, but instead of limiting how much weight characters can carry, heavy items would just lower their speed and evasion stats. Additionally, the inventory would be similar to Earthbound's in that each character has their own set of items that they carry around. Characters can only use (or share) items they have with them; they cannot use someone else's items unless they are given to them on the other character's turn.

Final thing for this post: I'm having fun coming up with an over-the-top selection of playable characters.
> Space Mage - As mentioned in previous posts, this guy has spells focused around teleportation and perhaps other things such as gravity.
> Alchemist - Also as mentioned in previous posts, this guy makes potions with various effects, such as boosting the power of others' skills and probably the mandatory healing effects.
> Ninja Pirate - What more can I say? He uses a variety of weapons ranging from pistols to katanas (been watching too many Red Steel 2 trailers, I think) and has a wardrobe that combines aspects stereotypically associated with each of his inspirations (cool boots and hat, mostly black, etc.).
> Pyrotechnician - Flamethrowers and fire works. 'Nuff said.
> Cyborg Ghost - The ghost of a man who is still bound to the robotic body parts he used in life.
> Morphling - Depending on the current environment, he can partially transform into different animals in battle. For example, he might use a shark's head for underwater fights, or a gorilla's arms for jungle fights.
> Sumo Wrestler - I dunno, it just sounded awesome when I thought of it. I can't remember ever playing an RPG with a playable sumo.

EDIT: In order to do away with anything resembling RPG magic, the mage is now a telekinetic brain-in-a-jar.