If You Could Create Your Own Video Game, What Would it Be About?

[LadyWallflower]

This is a topic I decided to create just for fun (maybe I should have put it in Just for Fun instead of Off-A?). 

 

If you could create your own video game, what type of video game would be it? What would the genre be? Or the plotline? Although this is my own thread, I am torn about what I would do!

 

1. I really like Child of Light, with the atmospheric fantasy and the turn-based combat. I think it would be great if there were more games like that. Maybe a game like that, which would also involve crafting elements and have a world you could explore? Sometimes game with similar stuff to this have sexualized characters. So please no sexualized characters.

 

2. I really like the battle systems in Final Fantasy 7 Remake and Final Fantasy XII: Zodiac Age. I would like to mesh those two styles of combat. So battle systems would work like 7, but the characters you are not controlling would be doing things according to the gambits you set up. I would like an atmospheric world with some color. I don't mean super bright, but a part of me is tired of all the dreary games. FFX and FFXIII had some really pretty areas.

 

3. I think it would be great to have a farming/crafting game that had more sophisticated combat and a larger world to explore. 

 

I will stop here for now! Or I can keep going, lol. 

 

[blunose2772]

I like the Meta games like The Stanly Parable and There Is No Game. I'd try to comeup up with my own take on something along those lines

[daveb]

Non-combat, turn-based, exploration (but maybe not first person - got dizzy trying to play one of those)

(but not horror or dystopian or dark - something lighter in mood)

[matt_lock]

It's be either a turn based strategy game (e.g. SMT, Pokémon) or heavy conflict (e.g. Dark Souls). I'm a fan of both.

 

In terms of atmosphere... dark. No romance, no sexualized characters, only a fight for survival and for the fate/survival of your people. Like, I wasn't really a fan of some of the SMT: Strange Journey mechanics, but the atmosphere of being a member Special Forces sent investigate and fight through a spacial anomaly threatening to swallow the world is much neater than being a random teenager.

 

Maybe a game where your task force are the colonization force for your people. Your home world is destroyed. All that remains is your team and a colony ship. Your predecessors have found a planet that should be inhabitable. This is the only available planet. If you can't settle here, your species is doomed to extinction.

 

Unfortunately, it turns out that the planet you're colonizing is already inhabited by sapients, and it is impossible for both your species to coexist on their planet. Your colonization force becomes an invasion force, and now there's two species at risk of extinction, not just one.

Like SMT, I figure I should offer different paths that can be attempted.

1) exterminate the aliens, save your species at the cost of the natives

2) side with the natives, allow your people and yourself to die

3) Try to keep both your people's alive. This would involve a peace treaty where the natives help you find another suitable planet and/or help repair/adjust your colony ship so that it can make it to the new planet without too many deaths. And of course, trusting that the natives try to help and succeed instead of subtly tricking you into dying. Game ends without knowing if this option succeeds.

 

I figure that the planet you're colonizing/invading is Earth, and humans are the natives.

[Captain_Tass]

Hmmm... Probably a platformer that tells a story through its mechanics and atmosphere (like Gris) but with 3 different endings. Haven't put much thought into it though.

 

I'm editing the message because I just thought of pixel art graphics, and it's quite an interesting thought. I don't know if it would have the impact of non-pixel art graphics, as atmosphere would be massively important. On the other hand, pixel art and animations can be extremely beautiful and detailed, so it might just work.

 

Edit #2: I just thought that maybe levels would end at a set point in the stage, and there would be no deaths, but if you missed a platform and ended up on the lower level, it would count towards a different ending than if you managed to land on the platform. I don't think that any ending would be accomplished by doing everything perfectly, as I personally don't like that kind of pressure, and I'd like the game to be a fun experience first and foremost, but there would certainly be an achievement or a reward for landing on all the platforms.

 

I'm getting way too invested in this, and I have class in about 5 minutes.

[Missing]

I thought it would be cool to make a fantasy RPG that takes place in more of a fairytale setting (as opposed to a more typical high fantasy setting). Similar to Child of Light but less combat oriented, more story driven, and a bit more open-world. The tone would shift a lot, so places like a dark forest or an evil sorcerer’s castle might take on more of a horror atmosphere while the friendly towns might be much more bright and lighthearted than they would be in most games. Random quests might end up feeling a lot like self-contained fairytales on their own, so if you randomly come across an old lady’s shack in the forest on your way somewhere, you may not know whether you’ve run into some good fortune along your journey or if you’ve found yourself in a story where the kind old lady turns out to be an evil witch who wants to cook and eat you. There will be some combat to the game, but you would mostly be relying on your wits and problem solving to get yourself out of peril, like protagonists in fairytales tend to do, but perhaps some of that can depend on the type of character you choose to play.

[Phalena]

About a child exploring a phantasy world that actually stands for coping mechanisms regarding the child mother's mental illness. Fran Bow and Little Ms. Fortune would be my inspirations. I'd love the art styles. Or I'd like it to be like Mad Father or Witch's house. Maybe with the lighting of Hollow Night but also a change between real world and phantasy world like in Silent Hill. Also in somewhat scary but into the direction of suspense.

[AsianChicken]

I'd probably do a lighthearted story driven game since there's so many dark stories these days. So maybe a platformer like Wuppo with the story progression of something like Mutazione.

 

I also quite like rpgs but find that they're all super lengthy and finding time to play them is difficult (i'm looking at you witcher 3 and persona 5😄 ) so maybe a rpg of sorts that can be completed in like 10-20 hrs

[everywhere and nowhere]

Adventure or adventure-RPG, and absolutely retro, good old pixel graphics. No ugly 3D. I like this kind of style best:

("Legend of Kyrandia 1", 1992, and "Legend of Kyrandia 2: Hand of Fate", 1993)

("Heaven's Dawn", 1995, and "Gabriel Knight: Sins of the Fathers", 1993)

("Tales", 2016, and "Foxtail", 2018 and so far a game in progress)

("Unavowed", 2018)

("Mage's Initiation: Reign of the Elements", 2019)

("Broken Sword 2: The Smoking Mirror", 1997)

 

And as for "what would it be about"... Think, for example, about the sub-genre of adventure-RPGs: created with the Sierra On-Line "Quest for Glory" series, and later continued with a few other games such as "Heroine's Quest", "Quest for Infamy", "Mage's Initiation", "Hero-U"... I liked how the realities of the game were, at least in some of the games, fantasy-styled and yet culturally defined. In "Quest for Glory" the subsequent worlds were set in fantasy worlds resembling, in turns, the following cultures: Germanic, Arabic, African, Old Russian and Ancient Greek. "Heroine's Quest" is set in a world of Nordic mythology. And in the end the protagonist leaves with a flying ship to, as professional heroes and heroines do, travel to another land where people are in need of a heroine like herself. I'd really love this game to be continued, for example for the heroine to travel to an ancient Chinese world...

[ElloryJaye]

I've got at least a half-dozen different ideas floating around in my head, although they all fall into the RPG or roguelike genres.  Goblin Lord (roguelike—you're a goblin shaman's apprentice whose underground village is about to be destroyed by rising lava and who has to find a path through the caverns to the surface in order to evacuate everyone.  If only those undead weren't in the way . . .) seems like the one most likely to actually be made at the moment, as it has the lowest resource requirements.  I just have to settle down and tackle it semi-seriously (although I've been saying that for years now 😅 ).

 

I'm another person who prefers 2D over 3D.  Not only do I find most 3D games less aesthetically pleasing than well-drawn 2D, that photorealism thing everyone seems so interested in chasing after is a major waste of time and money (see:  why AAA games are so bloody expensive).  And my 3D modeling skills are really limited, anyway.  2D pixel art, I can actually pull off well enough that you can tell what the graphics are supposed to be. 😅

[Alaska Native Manitou]

Tribal Shodown.  A fighting game based on history.  Choose from various heroes like Black Hawk, Tasunkowitco (Crazy Horse), Geronimo, Rolling Thunder (Chief Joseph) etc. with different fighting styles to protect your people from invaders in 1-on-1 battles.  The 1st invader will be Custer (he was so easy to beat) followed by increasingly difficult American military figures.  The final boss is an evil genius who committed genocide against Native people 3 times:  Abraham Lincoln.

[LadyWallflower]

21 hours ago, daveb said:

Non-combat, turn-based, exploration (but maybe not first person - got dizzy trying to play one of those)

(but not horror or dystopian or dark - something lighter in mood)

I never thought of a turn-based game with no combat. I find the idea really intriguing! 

 

19 hours ago, Mackenzie Halloween said:

I thought it would be cool to make a fantasy RPG that takes place in more of a fairytale setting (as opposed to a more typical high fantasy setting). Similar to Child of Light but less combat oriented, more story driven, and a bit more open-world. The tone would shift a lot, so places like a dark forest or an evil sorcerer’s castle might take on more of a horror atmosphere while the friendly towns might be much more bright and lighthearted than they would be in most games. Random quests might end up feeling a lot like self-contained fairytales on their own, so if you randomly come across an old lady’s shack in the forest on your way somewhere, you may not know whether you’ve run into some good fortune along your journey or if you’ve found yourself in a story where the kind old lady turns out to be an evil witch who wants to cook and eat you. There will be some combat to the game, but you would mostly be relying on your wits and problem solving to get yourself out of peril, like protagonists in fairytales tend to do, but perhaps some of that can depend on the type of character you choose to play.

I like the idea of a fairytale setting that is open-world! And focused on problem-solving is interesting. 

 

Everyone has such interesting ideas!

[Anthracite_Impreza]

I have long since wished for some type of real-time, realistic dog breeding/showing game. One of my lesser known aspie SIs is actually dog coat genetics and breed standards (I know the Borzoi one off by heart :x), but they're all either text based or aren't realistic/interactive enough etc. I'd love something like a zoo/farming sim but with realistic dog breeding (including crossing!) instead. One can dream...

[LadyWallflower]

1 hour ago, Anthracite_Impreza said:

I have long since wished for some type of real-time, realistic dog breeding/showing game. One of my lesser known aspie SIs is actually dog coat genetics and breed standards (I know the Borzoi one off by heart :x), but they're all either text based or aren't realistic/interactive enough etc. I'd love something like a zoo/farming sim but with realistic dog breeding (including crossing!) instead. One can dream...

I'm always here for more games about animals. 

[ElloryJaye]

9 hours ago, Anthracite_Impreza said:

I have long since wished for some type of real-time, realistic dog breeding/showing game. One of my lesser known aspie SIs is actually dog coat genetics and breed standards (I know the Borzoi one off by heart :x), but they're all either text based or aren't realistic/interactive enough etc. I'd love something like a zoo/farming sim but with realistic dog breeding (including crossing!) instead. One can dream...

Interesting.  I'd see two obstacles making it difficult to actually produce such a game.  One is the artwork—you'd have to be able to depict both the "perfect" dog and the not-quite-right dogs with both enough realism to pass and enough highlighting of their good/bad points that people who aren't obsessed with the breed standards can spot them.  The other is dealing with the gnarlier aspects of genetic inheritance in the code, things like incomplete dominance and genes modifying other genes.

 

On the gripping hand, if it did get made, much of the code could be reused for similar sims involving cats, horses, even fancy rats.  At that point, if there's a market at all, it would become a money-printing machine.

 

(I'm putting way too much thought into this.)

 

[Anthracite_Impreza]

14 minutes ago, ElloryJaye said:

One is the artwork—you'd have to be able to depict both the "perfect" dog and the not-quite-right dogs with both enough realism to pass and enough highlighting of their good/bad points that people who aren't obsessed with the breed standards can spot them.  The other is dealing with the gnarlier aspects of genetic inheritance in the code, things like incomplete dominance and genes modifying other genes.

It would be difficult, but Planet Zoo has gone down a similar road with its animals - all animals have their own genetics, layered coat colours, shades and patterns that are inherited and inheritable, their size in game varies depending on their stats, their lifespan, fertility and immunity have real in game impacts... I reckon it would be possible, but it would need a lot of technical, artistic and dorking skill. Sadly I am only capable of the dorking part.

[ElloryJaye]

13 minutes ago, Anthracite_Impreza said:

It would be difficult, but Planet Zoo has gone down a similar road with its animals - all animals have their own genetics, layered coat colours, shades and patterns that are inherited and inheritable, their size in game varies depending on their stats, their lifespan, fertility and immunity have real in game impacts... I reckon it would be possible, but it would need a lot of technical, artistic and dorking skill. Sadly I am only capable of the dorking part.

Eh, the problem is not simulating genetics (there are a lot of games that do that one way or another—you just pick one trait of each type randomly from each parent, check which element of each pair is "more dominant" if they're not the same, and you have a new critter), but doing it with realism.  In some cases, the genetics behind a trait are still not well understood. 

 

You would also need to account for developmental aspects not explained by genetics, like in Manx cats.  (The breed standard for Manxes requires a completely tailless cat, but the "tailless" gene just interferes with tail development to an unpredictable degree.  So you can breed the perfect cat to the perfect cat, and still have all the kittens in the litter end up with tails.  Except the dead ones, since taillessness is a lethal recessive.)

 

(Yup, putting way too much thought into this.)

[SorryNotSorry]

Ok, this probably belongs in the Hot Box, or better yet, on the mods' chopping block... but I'd create a video game poking fun at stereotypical nerdliness.

 

You use a joystick to walk Waldo around, taking care to avoid running into other characters who can give him a hard time, and avoid steering him into walls and poles (which would cost you points), because you know, Waldo is a nerd who wears soda-bottle glasses in an attempt to help him see better. The salient effect of the game which makes this difficult is that every 5 seconds, the entire screen turns fuzzy and out of focus, making it damn near impossible to see where you're steering Waldo.

 

Move Waldo from one end of a hallway to the other in the shortest elapsed time without bumping into anything or running into any bothersome characters, and he earns another hallway to walk through. Each hallway contains more obstacles than the last, but after a couple of hallways, nerdesses start appearing, which are big bonuses because if Waldo bumps into one, she'll guide him to the end of the hallway.

[Anthracite_Impreza]

2 hours ago, ElloryJaye said:

Eh, the problem is not simulating genetics (there are a lot of games that do that one way or another—you just pick one trait of each type randomly from each parent, check which element of each pair is "more dominant" if they're not the same, and you have a new critter), but doing it with realism.  In some cases, the genetics behind a trait are still not well understood. 

 

You would also need to account for developmental aspects not explained by genetics, like in Manx cats.  (The breed standard for Manxes requires a completely tailless cat, but the "tailless" gene just interferes with tail development to an unpredictable degree.  So you can breed the perfect cat to the perfect cat, and still have all the kittens in the litter end up with tails.  Except the dead ones, since taillessness is a lethal recessive.)

 

(Yup, putting way too much thought into this.)

Well it would obviously never be perfect, could never truly reflect real animals, but I certainly think it could be realistic enough to be engaging and accurate if enough thought went into it. Some artistic licence is inevitable, as are flaws, but game design nowadays is so interactive with its consumer base (in this case rl breeders) I reckon it could work very very well with enough passion and expertise.

 

For many reasons I can't have any particularly needy pets (I can manage snails, who breed whether I want them to or not :x ), so this would certainly fill a void for me.

 

(there is no such thing as too much dorking)

[Raindrops]

I really like those RPGMaker games, I'd make one of those. With lots and lots of monsters in it. 😍

[ElloryJaye]

16 minutes ago, Anthracite_Impreza said:

Well it would obviously never be perfect, could never truly reflect real animals, but I certainly think it could be realistic enough to be engaging and accurate if enough thought went into it. Some artistic licence is inevitable, as are flaws, but game design nowadays is so interactive with its consumer base (in this case rl breeders) I reckon it could work very very well with enough passion and expertise.

 

For many reasons I can't have any particularly needy pets (I can manage snails, who breed whether I want them to or not :x ), so this would certainly fill a void for me.

 

(there is no such thing as too much dorking)

I think the key would be (at least at first) to center on one specific breed of dog whose specific genetics are well-understood, and likewise those of its permitted outcrosses (I assume that's a thing with purebred dogs—I know more about how breed standards for cats and horses work).  Making the dogs really appealing would compensate to some extent for the lack of variety.  Then you slowly branch out and provide additional breeds as DLC.

 

(My problem is that I can dork about multiple things simultaneously—material I've read in the past twenty-four hours has covered subjects ranging from linguistics to video game level design to pixel art to variable scoping in PHP to laser cutters.)

[Anthracite_Impreza]

20 minutes ago, ElloryJaye said:

I think the key would be (at least at first) to center on one specific breed of dog whose specific genetics are well-understood, and likewise those of its permitted outcrosses (I assume that's a thing with purebred dogs—I know more about how breed standards for cats and horses work).  Making the dogs really appealing would compensate to some extent for the lack of variety.  Then you slowly branch out and provide additional breeds as DLC.

 

(My problem is that I can dork about multiple things simultaneously—material I've read in the past twenty-four hours has covered subjects ranging from linguistics to video game level design to pixel art to variable scoping in PHP to laser cutters.)

Ooh definitely not, no outcrossing ever once the studbook is closed (my biggest peeve with the "dog fancy" - sheer, unbridled, purity-virtue snobbery with no regard for science or ethics). Yeah you'd definitely have to start small, but still with enough variety everyone has something they're interested in, because a lot of breed genetics are very simple so wouldn't take much work in that respect. I'm awkward though, I'm not interested in most popular breeds, but if they at least got a whippet or greyhound in there I might be tempted from the start rather than having to wait for my faves.

 

(I don't see why that's a problem, I'm simultaneously dorking about dog genetics and pixar vehicles)

[Anarchist Kaos]

A tactics RPG with a high emphasis on verticallity and interacting with the environment, think of a Final Fantasy Tactics or Tactics Ogre style game but with elements of interaction similar to the Divinity: Original Sin games.

 

The setting would be less medieval and more industrial, I'm thinking something like the 1940s but with some elements of magic, I'd say more but I'm actually trying to write the setting as more of a Tabletop RPG.

 

The game itself would be all about guerilla tactics, in which you will constantly be outnumbered and outgunned and you're supposed to figure out how to clear the stages wirth a minimum amount of losses, I'd be interested in ot having all soldiers have unique personalities like in Fire Emblem and Permadeath, but making so many characters sounds really resource intensive, so probably more like Tactics Ogre in that regard, the story would be all about the corruption of the state and revolutionaries fighting against them, taking heavy inspirations from the Mexican Revolution of 1910, so you know a lot of betrayals twists and turns.

 

But yeah, something like that is the first thing that comes to mind.

[Alaska Native Manitou]

On 11/3/2020 at 1:09 AM, AsianChicken said:

so maybe a rpg of sorts that can be completed in like 10-20 hrs

The PS1 had a tactical RPG called Eternal Eyes; I think I got through it in 2-3 days the 1st time.  It also had new game+ so it went even faster after that.

[Captain Jay]

Oh, hey, it's this thread. I have to be honest...  it's been on my tab bar for a few days now. I really, really want to post in it because I have so many game ideas and a lot to say about them, but it's been beaten into my head that being just an "idea person" is strongly discouraged in the gaming industry, plus I don't feel all that confident sharing them besides.

 

(Okay, for what it's worth, I'm kind of stalling for time... and posting this message to remind myself to write a real one.)

[LadyWallflower]

@Captain Jay Please share your ideas! I have a feeling they are amazing! 

[Captain Jay]

Okay, I think I've put this off long enough. For now, I'll just pick one idea that's been on my mind a lot and hope for the best.

 

I've had an inexplicable fascination with the many '90s fighting games trying to be the next Street Fighter II, and I was thinking of creating something in that mold. The only specifics I have in mind are that it would have an all-female cast (and honestly, I don't quite know why), a simplified control scheme, and a decidedly less-than-serious tone. The characters would be a mix of martial artists and assorted oddballs, all centered around a "world tour" theme like in many of those games. The actual character designs have been changed and replaced pretty much constantly, but I just might toss one bunch of them up here if I'm prodded enough.

[LadyWallflower]

@Captain Jay I think that sounds like a wonderful idea! I would love to see your character designs. 

[Jusey1]

As a modder... I already kinda did something once. I essentially turn Morrowind into a dungeon crawler game once, which was neat. I like making maze-like corridors, decorating the place, installer traps, and balancing monster spawns to make an enjoyable dungeon crawl to fight through and enjoy. Always fun, if ye' ask me! Just a relax time of fighting through levels and levels of a dungeon, each one getting harder than the last...

Granted, that is something I have done. I've also dreamed of games I would love to make such as a game like EA's Sims but with furries and necessary stuff are in the base game, such as seasons and pets, so that it is a good deal... Mostly to give EA a run for their money for once in their lives. I've also had a dream of an open world RPG of my own which will be an interesting take as it have a massive twist in the middle of the main story that will completely change the gameplay and open up a lot of insanity to do but stuff like that requires big teams to do and not something I can do on my own, especially with how little experience I really have.

[Kimmie.]

Probably some kind of metroidvania.