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New rpg idea question
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RPGDot Forums > CRPGs General

Author Thread
Ammon777
Warrior for Heaven
Warrior for Heaven




Joined: 20 Apr 2002
Posts: 2011
Location: United States
   

I dont know when NOTR is coming out, but as a Gothic1 player, i absolutely refuse to buy Gothic2 until NOTR comes out in English too. That way i will have double the game! Also, i play a LOT of different games, and i only play through CRPGs once, so i probably should just wait until NOTR comes out to make the complete Gothic2 experience.
Post Tue Feb 17, 2004 10:00 pm
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piln
High Emperor
High Emperor




Joined: 22 May 2003
Posts: 906
Location: Leeds, UK
   

The main reason there are so many derivative/unoriginal games around at the moment is because western publishers are currently going through a very conservative phase - for the most part, they are only willing to take on projects they can liken to existing games or types of games that have already been seen to sell well. Nothing wrong with doing that, but they are doing it to the exclusion of any new ideas, original IP, whatever (unlike Japanese publishers, and other media industries like movies & tv). They see it as risk reduction, and since most developers are unable to function without a publisher's backing, the publishers are calling the shots. There's no lack of innovation, it's just that right now publishers aren't interested in it, which means that we (gamers) don't get to see it. They want (what they see as) reliable selling power, and a new idea cannot prove that it has any. There are very few developers with enough clout to make publishers do things on their terms (Lionhead can do it to some extent, can't think of any others right now). Other alternatives are to self-publish, or at least fund development on their own (like Valve with HL2), but again few developers are in a position to do either, unless they stick to small teams & low-budget games (like Spiderweb, PomPom, Introversion) - this is obviously not a fast track to fame & fortune, but it is proving to be a source of some very good games, and it might bring about some changes in the industry.

I say it's a phase because this isn't the first time it's happened, it's a repeating cycle that starts when something in the gaming world captures public attention (Lara Croft, GTA3) and makes a lot of sales, and much bandwagon-jumping occurs as publishers see a sure-fire way to make mainstream sales; then, over time mainstream gamers get wise and decide not to waste any more money on samey garbage, sales slump, publishers panic and become even more conservative in an effort to reduce their risks, but this doesn't fix the problem; finally publishers really panic and begin green-lighting more "risky" projects when they realise original IP/new ideas/whatever are needed, and hallelujah! we finally get some decent innovative games again, and of course one or two of these will capture public attention and the whole cycle will start again.

Japan's games industry is more mature than in the west, and they employ similar practices to America's huge movie studios - they allocate part of their resources to development of original projects that don't have an established franchise/famous licence/whatever to rely on, even if it is likely that the final game will not be profitable for them, in order to keep fresh ideas (tomorrow's potential money-spinners) coming in. When our (US & Europe's) industry grows up a little and looks at the long-term game, these occasional droughts of innovative material may stop or at least become less severe.

As for not knowing any game- or mod-making skills, learn! Even Shigeru Miyamoto and John Carmack had to start somwhere! . Identify where your talents lie (design, programming, art... ), look for the software you need, books, tutorials, etc. and get something done. If you have something to show that indicates the potential of your idea, you should have little trouble recruiting help.
Post Wed Feb 18, 2004 2:05 am
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NidPuterGuy
Fearless Paladin
Fearless Paladin




Joined: 08 Jan 2003
Posts: 237
Don't listen to the nay sayers....
   

If you have a great game idea. Document and copyright it then send it off to some game houses to check out. If they make the same game sue them. They know the copyright routine alright. No mercy and good luck!
Post Sun Mar 28, 2004 7:48 am
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Madigan
Village Dweller
Village Dweller




Joined: 13 Sep 2003
Posts: 22
   

Namirrha Wrote:
quote:
You might have your plot structure diagrammed out, planning to give the player 100 different choices at each critical story juncture to take the story on a different route, but, due to limitations, you have to trim those down to maybe two or three choices, because the constant branching leads to infinite work hours,


Believe it
_________________
Madigan, World Designer
The Road to Allysium
Post Fri Apr 09, 2004 6:14 am
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