Next game after Tetris?

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    • Next game after Tetris?

      So after a hiatus due to real life events, I've had the time to work on my game projects. At the moment, I've "completed" pong (as complete as I care to make it). At the moment my Tetris clone is more-or-less complete. I have a few loose ends to tie up, and one big piece to add: sound. Sound will probably take me some time because it's entirely new to me.

      All that is beside the point. Meanwhile I want to brainstorm my next project while I'm not coding. The platformer seems to be the next simplest game type out there. You move, you jump, maybe you shoot stuff too--straightforward. However, I wonder if a bigger step up should be my next move. Other options (all 2D) that have crossed my mind is a JRPG (ala Chrono Trigger style), action RPG (ala Diablo 1), or a puzzler. JRPG and action RPG seem a bit more challenging to me--maybe too large of a step? A puzzler seems like a more reasonable thought, but still a bit of a larger step over a platformer. Of course I could be estimating wrong: the platformer could be harder than the puzzler. I could also leap in another direction and try to create some 3d graphics (not a game per-say, but just some cool graphical effects for fun).

      Anyone have some thoughts on this subject?

      I did also think about break out, but I've always had a strange vendetta against that game. I feel compelled to avoid that game like the plague.

      P.S. Despite hating break out, I love Peggle--seems counterintuitive to me. Go figure?

      Edit: Fixed my missing em-dash issue with "double hyphens." It was making me bonkers.

      The post was edited 1 time, last by geshi ().

    • What's your ultimate goal? If you want to be an indie developer, what kinds of games do you want to make? If you want to be a professional developer, what type of programming do you want to get into? Also, list your top five favorite games of all time. Based on those answers, I'll give you my opinion as to what I think you should concentrate on.

      -Rez

    • Jeez Rez, way to throw out the hardball questions. ;)

      On ultimate goal, I guess I haven't fully decided what I want to do. I love both AAA games and indie games, and I think I would enjoy either type of game. Hypothetically speaking, since I have a background in physics, graphics programming or physics programming might be the easiest route for me (having a lot of experience with 3d math and physics). I haven't done much AI programming, but I may very much like that as well. I'm hoping to do some AI programming in my next project.

      It would probably be easier if I list my top 5 games/gaming series in no particular order (yes, I really like RPGs).
      Diablo series, Chrono Trigger, Elder Scrolls series, Monkey Island series, Minecraft.
      Minecraft was kind of arbitrarily chosen. Other options might have been Dishonored or Portal. There are some other indie titles I really love too.

      Also, I realized em-dashes don't work on this forum. If you see any words mashed together (especially in my first post), imagine an em-dash in there!

    • Graphics programming is basically the opposite of the AI programming. My question is less about what you think would easier and more about what you're actually interested in.

      I see three options for you right now. The first is a physics-based platformer, similar to Little Big Planet where there are a bunch of puzzles that all revolve around physics. The trick would be that you wouldn't be allowed to use Box2D, Bullet, or any other physics engine. You'd have to do it all yourself. If you want to be a physics programmer, this will help you get there.

      The second is to build a 3D engine and make a tech demo with it (kind of like Flower on the PS3). You will also want to build this from scratch using Direct3D or OpenGL.

      The third is a top-down Diablo-like game. Having a real-time RPG rather the traditional menu-based JRPG will force you to learn how to handle multiple actors in the game, have them all pathing around your world, and all running AI updates. You'll also be challenged with making each enemy a unique experience. The RPG side should relatively simple; nothing too complex. Ultima VII is a good example of the complexity I'd expect in terms of the RPG side.

      Actually, the more I think about this idea, the more I like it. You can build in some nifty 2D graphics effects for spells and lighting using shaders and even get some basic physics work in with a particle system. I think it's a good mix of the things you're interested in.

      So yeah, my vote is for #3. Remember to come up with a design for the game before starting, and try to scope what you really need to finish it. A game like this will probably take you a long time.

      -Rez

    • I guess the gist of my last post is that I'm not sure what I want to do exactly. I have a background in physics, so of course I enjoy 3d math and physics--both are things I've used heavily over the last several years. I've never done AI, but I'm very interested in at least *learning* about it. Maybe I'll find I love that too. I'm not even really sure if I want to do indie or AAA--both have their positives and negatives.

      I like your suggestion(s). I was leaning toward that 3rd option already, but I wasn't sure if that was too big a leap. I'm sure it will be a lot of work, but it sounds like a lot of fun. Tetris alone was a blast to make, but it wasn't particularly challenging. I'm excited for a bigger challenge. I hadn't really thought about being able to add some cool physics and graphical effects in a 2D game. Obviously that makes sense, but it didn't dawn on me that it's an option.

      I'm thinking this project will take a while to plan out--good to start now while I still have loose ends to finish up in Tetris! I think I should head over to GOG and check out Ultima VII. I assume this is what you mean. By level of complexity of RPG side, what exactly do you mean? I assume you mean the ruleset--I probably don't need a fully fleshed out DnD style ruleset?

      Thanks a bunch Rez!

    • Yes, I mean the ruleset. It's easy to bog yourself down with the details of the rpg aspect of the game, but that's not the real purpose of the game.

      Planning will be very important. You need to come up with a design and estimae how long you think each piece will take based on how many hours a week you're willing to put in. Thid will give you a rough idea how long the game will take.

      Good luck! I can't wait to see what you come up with. :)

      -Rez