So, you’ve decided to dive into the world of game development, have assembled a team of mighty warriors to take on all the important challenges, and are ready to create the next best game in the industry… superior to WoW, Guild Wars…, (you get it). You’ve interrupted all your brainstorming and put together some really cool concepts for a storyline, and you’re ready to go. But among all the programming, character concepts, dungeons and quests – what are really the most important aspects of your game that will determine whether someone enjoys it? Read on and let me share with you what I think.
When we decide to take the plunge in the development of a new game, there are five things that you need to think carefully and give them a lot of attention. There may be other ones that will hinder or help you along the way, and your order may differ from mine, but this is what I always consider the most important. Over the next week we will cover each aspect, and at the end of the week we will release the full article. Today we will start at the top, with number 5.
Number 5: Storyline
When creating a game, there is no better source of inspiration for features and activities, quests and dungeons than your own meticulously designed and custom storyline. Some may disagree with this statement, arguing that the storyline is easily overshadowed and unnecessary when you have intense graphics that make your fingers tingle, or when you have combat so intense that you literally dodge your monitor. While these things definitely make the game awesome and can cause a lot of emotions (in fact, they are on this list too!), they cannot make up for the lack of a storyline. One thing that many players crave, consciously or not, is a strong storyline that keeps them interested in the game – it seduces you – and makes you feel
The storyline not only helps players get involved in everything you’ve worked and worked on, it also helps you, the developer, along the way. If you were smart and came up with an intoxicatingly deep story for your game setting right from the start, it will serve you consistently throughout development. This will give hints about what features want to be part of the game, what should not be included, and what is or is not suitable. One of my architecture professors once said, speaking about architecture, that we can learn a lot about what we should be building on a building site just by visiting the site and “imagining the invisible building we want to build.” be built.” That’s how it is in architecture.
The storyline may be important, but is it more important than a chic game setting so rich and vibrant that you’re tempted to stick around indefinitely? Well, maybe, unless your 3D image gets bogged down in hundreds of thousands of nasty polygons or quads. In any case, why is a work of art so important?
Number 4: Artwork
I have heard many, many times that drawings/3D models/characters found in your game won’t do or break anything. I agree with this in that it won’t make or break the whole game, but the artwork and professional looking/feeling models will definitely help you along the way. Think of any movie you’ve seen recently where the sets were absolutely incredible and stunning – one such example (although not necessarily “recent”) is the Lord of the Rings movies. Throughout the film set, rich and varied settings abound that help the immersion factor in a way you won’t believe. Would the film have been “broken” by less impressive scenes? Probably not, because in the case of The Lord of the Rings, there were many other incredible aspects. Did the awe inspiring scenes make the movie so much better and did they give him enough more to make him drool over? Yes, definitely. The same effect can be observed in the gaming industry. playing games with incredible graphics (EVE Online) and others without it (Dark Ages). However, I’m addicted to both of these games for different reasons, but you can bet that EVE’s amazing environments certainly help inspire a large number of players.
In addition, your illustrations can seriously affect the mechanics of your game. Many developers overlook an incredibly important aspect of their 3D models – the number of polygons… That is, the number of triangles (or shakes quads) in your game. Many of the free 3D models you can find online are great, but so incredibly detailed that it would be unwise to use them on a computer in real time, because you’re usually trying to access as many systems as possible. Console systems have the luxury (for the most part) of assuming that everyone is playing equally. Those of us who develop games exclusively for computers don’t have that luxury. Suffice it to say that it’s important to find quality low-poly game content, and it’s certainly worth it.
The lower the polygon count in your 3D models, the smoother your environment will run on a wide variety of computers…usually. Throughout this process, be mindful of how your engine handles polygons and figure out what ideal polygon range you want to aim for for characters and scenery. In most cases, polygonal images with a lot of symbols are more acceptable, and decorations (buildings, trees, etc.) are less polygonal. Another feature of the engine to keep in mind is whether the engine supports Level of Detail (LOD). LOD for those who may not know is a system where the engine will use very low poly versions of a model if the player is far away, replacing the model with high quality versions as it gets closer. As far as I know,
On the way we go with number 3: Music! Some might say (and object) that music for an online game should be included in the “Artwork” category – while that may be true, depending on how you look at it, music in a game is incredibly important beyond your 3D. models and 3D characters, so he gets his place.
Number 3: Music
In many ways, music is the heart and soul of any environment you can create in 3D – it’s literally the sonic trick under which events happen, players win battles, return home, etc., etc. Music is a vital tool, used to set the mood in any setting, and without it, your game will feel dead and like something is missing. In many ways, music helps to convey the mood of a particular area to the player, reinforces and emphasizes that you relate to your player. Do you want them to feel sad, anxious, excited, afraid? Since hearing is one of our main senses (sight, smell, etc.), it can be argued that it is just as powerful in binding and creating memories. This should be one of your main goals, making people remember your game – making your game memorable is one way to make it both enjoyable and one that people will tell their friends about. The ear and the music in your game are some of the more subtle qualities that play a huge role in the feel of the environment. Think about how your favorite movie would sound without sound and music?
This highlights another important aspect that is a subcategory of music: sound effects. While music is the key that gives your environment feel and life, sound effects are what make the environment tangible and realistic. When the player is able to knock over a trash can and hear the screech of aluminum and tinplate rolling on the concrete they are standing on, the player’s sense of interacting with the environment is heightened. Think about the effect and life the environment takes on when the player goes from walking on rock, where their shoes can click, to walking on dirt or mud, where the sound will naturally change quite dramatically. Making good games is all about mastering the small (but powerful) details that immerse your player.
Many indie developers may shy away from putting that much emphasis on the music played in the game, because in some ways it can be hard to find for people on a budget. While music can be expensive (okay, don’t be fooled, it’s expensive) to have it custom-made, you can find great deals on royalty-free music to buy online. In many cases, these tracks are professionally made and available under flexible licenses, either for independent individuals or commercial studios. For example, it’s not uncommon to find 5-6 indie-licensed tracks for around $100.
GarageGames.com has some great music and sound effects suggestions – the sound effects found there are definitely worth checking out. You can find the page directly by visiting their content packs.
Gamedev.net also has some great resources for in-game music and a good directory of sites containing both stock and free music. Check it out here.
At a later time, it would be nice to include your own catalog of some great music resources. Look for it later. In the meantime, let us know what you think about the music and sound effects in the games you’ve played, whether you find them effective and important to your gameplay… And if you don’t agree, you can let us know too!
Now that we’ve covered most of your game (story, graphics, music), we’re going to dig a little deeper into game design and really define your game’s skeleton – the foundation that ultimately keeps people coming back to your game day after day. The storyline, artwork and music are all important things that will really make your game complete and lessen the chance of people standing in your local village and looking around wondering “what’s missing?” But ultimately, when it comes to developing your game, we’re now moving on to what’s really important. Which brings us to today’s post…
Number 2: Game progress
When it comes to game design in today’s world, there are three main types of flow that your game can follow. What is gameplay? The gameplay or structure of your game is how players interact with it, as well as with story events, quests, missions, etc. It determines whether players can expand and make the game the way they want, or they are blocked. on a path that leads them to traps and turmoil. Accordingly, there are three types of flow: sandbox, roller coaster, and a hybrid mix of these. In many cases, how your game attracts people and how it makes them interact with the environment and progress in the game will determine the types of players you attract to your game.
The most “traditional” style of play, or rather the most used in the past, has been the roller coaster. This type of gameplay is exactly what the name implies – users start the game (get into the game) and carefully go through the build-up, storyline climax, pitfalls, exciting twists and finally the game ends with a rush of excitement. It could also be equated with the experience of reading a book where there is a definite beginning and a definite end to things. Many RPGs fall into this category, where your objectives in the game are clearly defined (defeat the evil sea demons and rescue the beautiful girl), and while these games are a lot of fun, in a sense, this system doesn’t always work in Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games too ( MMORPG). s) when you have tens, hundreds and even thousands of people interacting with each other. That doesn’t mean there aren’t MMOs that pull it off (Guild Wars in particular comes to mind), and it doesn’t mean that MMORPGs that go down the rollercoaster route aren’t a lot of fun (like Guild Wars is). This means that in recent years people have started to favor a newer variety of games where the options seem to be limitless and if instead of rescuing this beautiful girl from evil sea demons you want to go and be an innocent farmer. … more strength to you! s that follow the rollercoaster route are not very fun (like Guild Wars). This means that in recent years people have begun to favor a newer variety of games where the options seem to be limitless, and if instead of saving this beautiful girl from evil sea demons you want to go and be an innocent farmer. … more strength to you! s that follow the rollercoaster route are not very fun (like Guild Wars). This means that in recent years people have started to favor a newer variety of games where the options seem to be limitless and if instead of rescuing this beautiful girl from evil sea demons you want to go and be an innocent farmer. … more strength to you!
Enter Sandbox Games. In recent years there has been a big push to create these kind of sandboxes where people can do whatever they want. As with roller coaster games, this name is synonymous with its real part, the sandbox. The idea is that when you enter the game, if you choose to ignore the convoluted and existing storyline (think of our pretty girl), you can do just that without any significant repercussions. It is sometimes said that this type of game appeals primarily to hardcore gamers, although I’m not sure I fully share this philosophy. Often, I’ve met a lot of random players in sandbox games who just enjoy talking to each other, mining together, exploring, etc. without spending an insane amount of time following the main story events. In many of these games, you can find political and religious systems, as well as various professions. However, from what I’ve seen, these games tend to be much more time consuming than rollercoaster games, simply because of the amount of time you need to spend on your character to forge your own path (and achieve in him success). While many disagree with me here, I would argue that EVE Online can definitely be classified as a sandbox, as much of EVE’s content, gameplay, and action is created and inspired by the players themselves. Many consider GTA3 to be a sandbox game. This in itself is an important note: in sandboxes, you will usually find many systems controlled by the players themselves. these games tend to be much more time consuming than roller coaster games, simply because of the amount of time you need to spend on your character in order to forge (and succeed in) your own path. While many disagree with me here, I would argue that EVE Online can definitely be classified as a sandbox, as much of EVE’s content, gameplay, and action is created and inspired by the players themselves. Many consider GTA3 to be a sandbox game. This in itself is an important note: in sandboxes, you will usually find many systems controlled by the players themselves. these games tend to be much more time consuming than roller coaster games, simply because of the amount of time you need to spend on your character in order to forge (and succeed in) your own path. While many disagree with me here, I would argue that EVE Online can definitely be classified as a sandbox, as much of EVE’s content, gameplay, and action is created and inspired by the players themselves. Many consider GTA3 to be a sandbox game. This in itself is an important note: in sandboxes, you will usually find many systems controlled by the players themselves. While many disagree with me here, I would argue that EVE Online can definitely be classified as a sandbox, as much of EVE’s content, gameplay, and action is created and inspired by the players themselves. Many consider GTA3 to be a sandbox game. This in itself is an important note: in sandboxes, you will usually find many systems controlled by the players themselves. While many disagree with me here, I would argue that EVE Online can definitely be classified as a sandbox, as much of EVE’s content, gameplay, and action is created and inspired by the players themselves. Many consider GTA3 to be a sandbox game. This in itself is an important note: in sandboxes, you will usually find many systems controlled by the players themselves.
Finally, more recently we’ve come across some people debating ways to make what you might call a mixture of sandbox games and rollercoasters. I have yet to find a good example of how this was done (or how someone is working on it), I’ve only heard a small mention of it here and there. However, from what I understand, there will be multiple central storylines happening at the same time, giving users a choice of how to proceed, and along the way, giving players ample opportunity to branch off into their own paths while still allowing them to return to the larger storyline. Some may again classify this primarily as a “sandbox”, but I would say that if at any point a big direction comes from quests, storylines and content created by the developers, that you start to get more involved in the rollercoaster elements. If anyone has come across what you think is a good example of a sandbox/roller coaster hybrid, please let me know! If you’ve ever read one of those Choose Your Own Ending style books that have plagued elementary and high schools, you’ll understand what a sandbox/roller coaster hybrid can be like. While the player has choices (maybe many, many options!), things still end up being “guided” by the overall storyline, leaving room for player-created content. After all, all this is easier said than done. style books that plagued elementary and middle schools, you’ll get an idea of what a sandbox-roller-coaster hybrid can be like. Although the player has a choice (perhaps many, many options!), things still end up being “guided” by the overall storyline, leaving room for player-created content. After all, all this is easier said than done. style books that plagued elementary and middle schools, you’ll get an idea of what a sandbox-roller-coaster hybrid can be like. While the player has choices (maybe many, many options!), things still end up being “guided” by the overall storyline, leaving room for player-created content. After all, all this is easier said than done. While the player has choices (maybe many, many options!), things still end up being “guided” by the overall storyline, leaving room for player-created content. After all, all this is easier said than done. While the player has choices (maybe many, many options!), things still end up being “guided” by the overall storyline, leaving room for player-created content. After all, all this is easier said than done.
Ultimately, deciding which game system you use, or the “Game Flow” method you use, will be vital when developing your game. Like the storyline, it will give you direction and make it easier for you to decide if a particular feature is right for your game. Not only will this help you make decisions, but it will help shape your game as a result. Direction and focus are absolutely essential in game development, and deciding on the flow of the game will at least help you in the direction department.
We’ve covered some incredibly important aspects of your game environment, from visual stimuli and sounds that draw your travelers deeper into your game, to inspiring stories and game mechanics that help shape your players’ characters. However, in the end, there is one aspect that will bring everything home and determine whether your game is teeming with eager players or an empty ghost town.
Number 1: Activity, baby!
While game friends come and go, quests are released and played, items are revealed and then conquered – after all, the gaming community is not much different from society as a whole; we are a disposable group of people. We love the hottest items, spells, houses, quests, but over time they become something of yesterday and stop causing the same excitement for people who hang around your game for a while. Many games fail because they don’t understand that new content is mandatory, even if the content you already have is incredible. The typical gamer can get through your average game in less than a month, and if you’re planning on releasing a game on a monthly subscription or need to keep players for a long period of time, that’s bad news for you. Ultimately, the solution to the question “What’s next?” and “Why do people leave?” is to fill your game and all its nooks and crannies with valuable content and things to do. This is the area where most of the dissatisfaction with games seems to come from, meaning that it’s essential not only to have a lot of activities in a game when it first comes out, but to supplement those activities with new things to explore, discover and participate in the months and years to come. game life.
Providing and planning activities in the early stages of your game development not only helps create a game that is fun to play, but can also inspire you in other areas of your development. Events can inspire your storyline, and your storyline can help, such as giving you ideas for action and new storylines. In many ways, this aspect of your game will help build and strengthen the social community in your game that ultimately connects people to specific games: friends and community that would be left behind if they left.
Ideally, you can create a range of events and action types in your game. Some of them are global in nature, involving almost everyone who is currently in the environment. Examples of such events would be those related to real-world holidays such as Christmas, Halloween, etc. Most often, these are periods of time in games where, if nothing new happens, your game loses out to real life in the excitement category. . People would rather spend time on other things than playing your game if that’s the case. Now, while we at TGS value family time and all, this is bad news for you. Create global events that coincide with real events that will make being in your environment at this time fun, exciting, and create an additional festive mood for your players. There are also recurring events such as player picks and hunting parties that give your players something to do all year round. Optimize these activities and make them accessible to players so they can easily participate and have fun.
There are countless events you can include in your game to make it more alive – we’ve just covered a very small number of them here. Perhaps in the next post, we can create another article to further inspire you in this category. We will see! An important thing to remember when deciding whether “activity” is your number one priority is that online play works best when there are plenty of things to participate in with others. When your game isn’t conducive to communication, it’s more likely to become quiet and empty, and let’s face it – do we expect people to play (and pay for) an empty online game? Food for thought.