Game Ideas Devlog

Whilst I do have a story idea for each of these, I have intentionally kept mentions of said narrative details to a minimum in order to not push away anyone from adding in their own ideas. 

 Game Idea 1: Ape Esape Homage

 The first game idea is the one I have elaborated on the most is an homage to the original Ape Escape albeit with a slightly violent tinge, featuring a mercenary who is hired to slay the undead and send them back to the underworld. Gameplay-wise, the player will be able to move around with one set of keys/joystick and move the camera with another set, whilst switching between weapons or gadgets that have different purposes. Some ideas I had in mind included a sword that is used to properly slay the undead, a pistol that can help stun them, and a hammer to destroy metal crates and armour. A level is complete when all of the stage’s enemies are slain with the sword. Regarding it’s connection to the theme… connections… I believe it would work strongest in the narrative, as the player might run into someone that serves as their opposite, or the player’s character has ties to the undead awakening that haunts the planet. Out of the three concepts I’ve come up with, this would be the most intermediary to create, as whilst the controls aren’t anything too difficult, the map would need to be expansive enough to explore, yet fun enough so it doesn’t seem dull. Modellers will also have to not only create models for the player, NPCs and different enemy types, but also models for the environment. That being said, the given timeframe is more than enough to code a large environment, the different tools, and possibly even cutscenes or a boss. The target audience for this game is slightly older thanks to the violence, however due to the simplistic controls and low-poly style, it will also appeal to people who grew up with the Dreamcast, Gamecube or PS1. The prototype will likely focus on gameplay and level design. 

 Game Idea 2: On Rails Shooter

Another idea that I had was inspired by Killer 7 – a cult classic on the GameCube, the player takes the role of a man possessed by 6 spirits, being able to switch between them and use their powers. The gameplay itself is a first person, on rails shooter where the player is damaged if an enemy touches them, but in order to prevent death they can switch to a different personality. Whilst also being a first-person shooter that is on rails, the concept of connections could tie into other game mechanics, such as gaining alternate attacks through contracts. Coding wise this is probably the most intensive, and as of such would be the game that I have the most doubts with; as the main mechanic for the game will have the player essentially switch between several different forms. Furthermore, on-rail movements is a fairly more difficult thing to code in than free-form movement, as it would have to factor in pathfinding and movement order. Regarding the target audience, it’ll focus on mainly appealing to both fans of the FPS genre as well as fans of Killer 7. The base product that I’ll aim to achieve is a level or two that implements the connection feature, as well as possibly some form of cutscene feature. The prototype will likely focus on gameplay and level design. 

 Game Idea 3: Dating Sim 

Taking the theme of connections to a literal conclusion, I figured that a dating sim would be a fairly good idea. However, I figured that a way to give it an interesting spin would be that rather than taking place from the perspective of the bachelor(ette), the player would instead work to help set people up with others, putting them in the shoes of the wingman. This would essentially set the player in the role of someone forming connections. In terms of coding, I wouldn’t expect it to be too intensive, and would instead focus on setting flags and mapping out paths. Furthermore, the artist/modeller for the game would likely have an easier job as well due to the game not requiring many, if not any, animations. I believe that the game is more than obtainable given the timeframe if amount of characters is kept to the bare minimum (about 4, so you can make two pairings) to reduce the amount of total pairings you can make. In terms of target audience, I’d say it has the widest appeal out of each of the ideas I have listed due to how romance can appeal to most people. The prototype will likely focus on the narrative and art.