Omnimaga
Calculator Community => Other Calculators => Topic started by: ztrumpet on July 23, 2011, 10:38:52 pm
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So, I've been doing a lot of thinking recently about my own RPGs, Elmgon and Midnight, and I began to expand on their concepts and daydream. I got to thinking about what the perfect calc RPG would have, and what would make it perfect. However, since everyone's definition of perfect is different, I decided to ask for everyone's opinion. I want to know what your dream calc RPG would be like. So, let's start a list and begin this thought process of what would be the most perfect calc RPG ever.
I'll start with a few of my thoughts:
1. An amazing story. Without an incredible hook no RPG gets above "bland" unless one of its other aspects really stands out.
2. A great battle system. Whether it's a screen of its own or on the map, turn based, or action packed, the battles must be easy to control yet fun throughout the experience.
3. Character depth. Something must be know about the characters so there's some sort of motivation to keep progressing through the game. You have to feel for the character, and want to control them so they will succeed.
4. Suspense. Keep the player on the edge of their seat at key points throughout the game so they'll want to keep playing so they can figure out what happens next.
5. Validation. Reward the player for playing. This can be achieved by something as simple as leveling up or something as difficult as bonus mini-games that will keep rewarding the player for advancing in the game.
6. Resolution. Make sure all the loose ends are tied up at the end of the game so people aren't left wondering what happened to some character or characters.
Let me know what you think. I'd love for this topic to turn into a resource where people stuck in RPG development (like myself) can turn to to get ideas. Thanks!
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7: One into which a person (who's a complete newb at RPG's) can enter and won't be lost from the beginning, wondering what "mana" or whatever is.
8: Different difficulty levels ;D (read: easy =P)
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9: Places and reasons to explore. It's generally no fun to play an RPG where you're forced to proceed linearly.
10: Knowledge of how to proceed. While it's great to have 50 dungeons available for you to travel to, sometimes it's nice to know that you need the crystal of Cthulhu in dungeon #37 to beat the others. By a similar token, sometimes you just want to stab Navi. Too much notification can be a bad thing.
11: Just like with books (http://xkcd.com/483/), make the names pronounceable. It's fine if I've never heard of Hyrule, but I probably won't be playing long if my only weapon is a "Krytosis."
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12. Game Progression. I think players shouldn't be grinding for hours before progressing to the next boss. There should be just enough grinding so that the game isn't too easy and quick, but not too much that it will make the players get tired.
13. Skills. I think when there's a skill that just triumphs all the other skills and you end up using one skill over and over again no matter the enemy, it just makes the game a boring routine. Add in variety of skills, give few enemies immunity, and make players think while in battle!
14. Graphics. Now it doesn't have to be 4-grayscale, Escheron-beauty. I just think that many of RPGs that claim to be graphical on ticalc.org are actually menu-based with a picture on a title screen.
15. Speed. Again, it doesn't have to be ASM speed. I would like to be able to move about without having to wait for a whole minute to move one tile or whole 10 minutes for the map to load.
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16. Environment. By developing the world the characters live in, you can create a more immersive experience for the player. I think it would be more interesting to play when you not only want the characters to succeed in their quest, but you also want to see as much of their world as you can, outside of dungeons and places you have to go.
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17. Sound would be epic, but not necessary. I know it's a little bit difficult to make a game with a little background melody in Axe, but of course it would be possible.
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18. An RPG needs experience points, like Pokémon and all other games. In my case, it's what makes me addicted to the game.
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1. Agreed. I don't like bland story lines. Also, cliche's are usually hard to avoid, but if a game can be completely free of them then its automatically awesome.
2. Agreed, though I also like really complex battle systems such as those in higher-end dungeon crawlers (though, they're a pain to get used to, but are awesome once you realize how every different key combination functions)
3. Herp, agreed, in some circumstances. Depends on the game mood. I prefer either no character development or the full blown deal, not in the middle.
4. Again depends on the story. In some games I like it where the player gets a break from the suspense for a while and can just do stuff like explore for a while.
5. Agreed
6. Agreed
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I think what finale said ua very important, its what makes nostalgia so good.
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To tell the truth, here's a few I LOVE to see in games:
19. A real sense of adventure. Something that makes the player feel as if they're exploring a new world, doing things they couldn't do normally; essentially the daydreaming factor.
20. Keep the mood of the story progression, the theme of the graphics, the limited genre of music somewhat stable, etc. Don't go from cartoony game to intense adult game with sex, drug, and gory references. Keep it the same throughout.
21. Make the player FEEL like they're the main character, not like they're some distant force that tells the main guy where to go. Quoting the old Zelda series for this, they simply 100% meet this ideal of mine.
22. Make the world feel magical and appealing to the player's younger self. Make it so that the player can vividly imagine themselves in this world, and that the world in the game is like an "escapist" realm from real life.. Reality.