Looking to start an RPG game

[Mehok]

Hi,

I am looking to start an online RPG game on www.mehokahrimanovic.com but i am not sure how to do it. If anyone can provide me with info on how to go about it I dont know what i would do in return


Please and thank you

[BLiZZaRD]

Well my friend, welcome to the epitome of gaming. There are plenty of seats here in the 9th circle of hell, pull one up.

Going on a first bit of clues from your post, I would say.. don't do it. an RPG (MMO or otherwise) is a HUGE undertaking that takes more patience and love than anything else in this world. More than raising a child, more than a marriage, more than faith in God above.

If you do jump in, you need to decide on some things.

1) What type of RPG will this be? Text only? Text and static pictures? or an actual, honest to God move the little guy around and interact with everything RPG?

2) what medium will you be building this in? What style? You can build RPGs in a multitude of ways, including Flash, WME, and plain old good computer coding with photoshop images. Is it going to be 1st person, 3r person? 2D, 3D isometric?

3) What is the story? An RPG that has a weak story line will not be well played, likewise one that plays out in 20 minutes is boring as well. RPGers want at a MINIMUM 40 game play hours to consider it decent. Your story line has to reach that far.

4) Bring it new or being it better. With the console wars, PC included, and software developers with teams of graphics experts to battle against, you need to be spot on with graphics. OR you need something so new and fresh that it could be played with stickmen drawn in paint (hardly). If you copy a RPG design (like say Final Fantasy) then it better be way better. If you are compared to a genre icon and don't meet expectations... well, let's not let that happen.

5) how is it played? point and click? keyboard only? keyboard and mouse?

You need to sit down with a pen and a notebook and decide every single facet of an RPG and how/what you are going to do to your about each and every one of those things. I listed 5 out of about 50 million. Some more important than others, but all needed.

Allow me to put it in perspective for a guys/gals like you, me and the other RPG game makers out there:

I have been working on an RPG in Flash for over 2 years. I have three 5-subject notebooks full of notes about the who's why's what's how' if's etc. I have nothing in code on my computer. My RPG will have a game play time of just around 80 to 90 hours. It should be released by 2012.

I know of a guy that is building an equally amazing (graphics wise) RPG and has foregone all code, all story lines all everything and did his backwards. He did all the graphics for the game first (knowing he will be adding to them later as he writes his story). He has some of the most amazing graphics I have ever seen. He has a little character that can walk around, and treasure chests that open and close. He has no code. No interaction, no ideas. He will, and it will be great, his is due to release in 2011. He has been working on it for 5 years.

If an RPG is your dream, go for it, but it won't happen tomorrow. My advice is to get out before you get sucked in. OR, find a team and hire them on and get it done in 2 or 3 years.

Of course you could always go the wimpy text only way out, write a good story line, make some links a level up math formula and be done with it. That should only take about 6 months.

Enjoy

[Mehok]

thanks for the info but i dont want to sound untankfull but i already know most of what you have sed in your post

I plan to make it a multy player 3d ish game where if you play one way one outcome is placed ast you and if you play the game another way a different outcome

sort of like good vs. evil or something along those lines

by the way thanks for the heads up i have notes written and i have a vague idea of what it will turn out to be but what i really ment is. is there starter packs online so i do not have to start from the begining

with websites i like to start with a clean slait but with games i am a bit lazy on that side

[BLiZZaRD]

Well, again that goes along with the first point. My apologies if I sounded harsh, but I have seen lots of people want this and get horribly frustrated after a couple days. It is painful to watch. Your post was fairly ... err.. bland, for lack of better words, and to me it had seemed this was more a spur of the moment thing for you.

There are a multitude of game engines out there. Depending on your needs. You will have to learn the program inside and out, which may or may not be hard for you.

Some of the best for RPGs are (in my opinion):

Flash. Of course you are doing everything by hand
Winter Minute Engine(WME) a pretty nice set up of text and scripts and sprites
RPG Maker full set of everything you need to make a Final Fantasy II or III type game
and of course Blender for graphics in 3D.

[Mehok]

I appologise for my bland explination and this is not a spur of the moment thing i am studying interactive media and this would fall under the title interactive so it would be a grate plus if i where to make such a thing and i whish to make it. its not becuase i have to its because I want to

and thank for your help if you would like to visit my site www.mehokahrimanovic.com you will see that i am inthusiastic with design and an online rpg called Secon Life

[BLiZZaRD]

Well... if Second Life is what you are after then stick to Blender and WME. Those would be your best bet.