New Platform game: input wanted

PhilRanger · Post by **PhilRanger** » Sat Nov 12, 2011 11:32 am

Hi,

I'd like my next Vis-20 project to be a platform game, in the "Super Mario" style, but with an original story, different chatracters, etc.. No gore stuff please.

I'm looking for ideas about:

- Scenario: While the objective is always typically to complete some kind of run with obstacles, some kind of "reason why" is needed. For example, Mario wanted to rescue the princess, and Bowser sent ennemies.
Reason to go there, and reason why obstacles/landscape looks like this
- Some adventure text or dialog elements: beginning context, mid-level dialog, end of level dialog/text, etc.
- Description of the characters: good, villain(s) obstracles, etc.
- Music, sound elements
- Graphics suggestions for the game itself but also for intro, end of level, dialogs, etc.
- Anything that could help!

It will be in assembly, with CBMStudio and hopefully SSS. There will be overlays, so don't worry about the memory for now.

Let the brain storm begin!

Boray · Post by **Boray** » Sat Nov 12, 2011 5:35 pm

How about calling them Giana Sisters instead of Mario Bros!

Boray · Post by **Boray** » Sat Nov 12, 2011 5:53 pm

How about this: A mad scientist is spreading dinosaur eggs all over the world. You have to get to all eggs before they hatch.

PhilRanger · Post by **PhilRanger** » Sat Nov 12, 2011 8:42 pm

Eggs like this?

My son says some cooperation like in "Lost Vikings" might be fun

Boray · Post by **Boray** » Sun Nov 13, 2011 6:04 pm

That looks nice.

Post by **Jeff-20** » Sun Nov 13, 2011 7:10 pm

I think the narrative is the fun part of the process. If you can't think of one, just design the mechanics of the game, and the story will form around it. It's not like Super Mario Bros. makes a whole lot of sense!

PhilRanger · Post by **PhilRanger** » Sun Nov 13, 2011 8:52 pm

Maybe the player could be the first dinausor to hatch and start looking around to find others. When they hatch, you could play as them, with different characteristics (jump, long tongue to toggle switches, fire resistance, swimming, etc)

TBCVIC · Post by **TBCVIC** » Mon Nov 14, 2011 7:35 am

What do you mean by overlays?

PhilRanger · Post by **PhilRanger** » Mon Nov 14, 2011 1:56 pm

That when new memory space is needed, I'll dump some memory and read from the floppy as needed, for example at level changes, etc.

PhilRanger · Post by **PhilRanger** » Mon Nov 14, 2011 1:57 pm

Jeff-20 wrote:I think the narrative is the fun part of the process. If you can't think of one, just design the mechanics of the game, and the story will form around it. It's not like Super Mario Bros. makes a whole lot of sense!

The narrative should drive the mechanics, not the opposite. That's a common problem in Hollywood movies: no content, but lots of explosions: work at first, but by now we've seen it all

Post by **Jeff-20** » Tue Nov 15, 2011 12:25 am

I really think they drive each other. I don't think the story of Super Mario Bros, Pac-man, or even Space Invaders came before the game design. They probably came together simultaneously.

TBCVIC · Post by **TBCVIC** » Tue Nov 15, 2011 2:54 am

When you say overlay, I just think of those plastic overlays you get with Vectrex games

rhurst · Post by **rhurst** » Tue Nov 15, 2011 7:24 pm

Eggs should hatch a spider, not a dinosaur, because it needs to crawl around the platform.

Hmmm, as far as story lines for these games written first:

Mario Bros: what is a donkey kong and what the hell is it doing with my girlfriend? And is that a barrel of Jameson Whiskey its got there? Let's party!

Pac-Man: wah-ka, wah-ka, wah-ka! You're a pizza picking up the crumbs left by four frat boys.

Space Invaders: Eat-a-quar-ter, Eat-a-quar-ter, Eat-a-quar-ter ... boom.

PhilRanger · Post by **PhilRanger** » Tue Nov 15, 2011 9:22 pm

Mr. Hurst, you definitely have good counter examples of poor scenario in long lived games.

Netherless, I'll be stubborn here and would like to try to have both nice mechanics AND some kind of scenario.

rhurst · Post by **rhurst** » Fri Nov 18, 2011 5:25 pm

That's not talent expressed here, that's ALCOHOL!!

I like having fun with this crowd. We can be a serious lot, eh?