dRxL
Administrator
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Written 21-12-2002 18:07:51
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I'm open for suggestions for improvements of the current gameplay. Hit me with what you think could be made better.
It's time to set the SH4 and CLX2 hearts on fire!
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RJK
Administrator
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Written 22-12-2002 13:37:54
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This is not really about the core gameplay and we have discussed most of it before, but here goes...
1. Settings
Lots of variable settings for differences. More on this later - I'll make a topic about it.
2. Modules
Basically a "script" of preset settings. Having lots of settings can be disorientating for unexperienced players, so this could be a great way of introducing the different things.
A great thing could be the possibility of adding modules into modules. It may be a little hard to explain, but think Death Tank Zwei and the Blitz Round. Blitz could be a module in itself (in dRxLaX that would be something like all the players have maximum offensive power all the time). Then there should be a main module to call the Blitz module like 1 in 25 rounds (or by random).
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Core 238
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Written 26-12-2002 07:44:34
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One day, a single player mode would be nice, even though I am sure that is a ways away.
Some sort of random power-up system would be nice and would add variety to the game. It could be something where the power-ups only affect one ship or something similer to Chu Chu Rocket, where the power-ups affect everyone on screen . . . or maybe even a combination of both. I had one idea called a mine magnet. Where all the mines gravitate to one players ship for a limited time, and he has to stay on the defensive (or find more creative ways to remain on the offensive like allowing the mines to trail behind him, while he he manuvers around other ships in an attempt to destroy them with a mines) for a while by a combination of staying on the run, and/or destroying incoming mines.
Right now, the game seems to be "last man standing" in its approach. You may wanna try for a more death match approach (or at least a co-existing mode for death match play). Where there is a timer for each round, and the ship to rack up the most kills, is the winner (of course self-kills will subtract from a players score). And of course, the timer will help to add some tension to the gameplay.
You could also make the shield-energy bars double or even triple in size and put a limit on the amount of mines a person can deploy at a time. This'll help give each round a bit more longevity, as mines tend to be fatal on the first hit.
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Core 238
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Written 27-12-2002 06:52:10
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I just had a great idea while at work today. You could make the shield energy and the attack energy into one bar/source (like on Star Trek or something). So in order to attack, you have to give up energy to do so, but if you give up too much energy planning an all out offensive, then you can become an easy target for your enemies. So now a player must strategically plan offensive and defensive patterns of play.
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dRxL
Administrator
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Written 27-12-2002 12:00:46
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Yeah that might work. But rather than implementing all sorts of nice gameplay modes for people, I'm going to write an engine so versatile and open to customizations that people can do practically anything with it.
I'll achieve this lofty goal by basing the code on the scripting engine LUA.
www.lua.org
It's time to set the SH4 and CLX2 hearts on fire!
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nitebycandlelite
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Written 30-12-2002 15:45:32
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Hmm... My suggestion is to change the font on the scores page. I haven't had chance to play the game yet (no cd-burner, won't be long though!) but the score page is the only thing that stands out.
I know this game is homebrew (figuratively speaking) but professional-looking would be better, yes...?
Anyway. Looking good, I shall be downloading and testing as soon as possible!
The whole thing reminds me of "Death Tank Zwei" on the Saturn. Hopefully it's as good :D
Squee!
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dRxL
Administrator
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Written 31-12-2002 03:13:38
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->-
Hmm... My suggestion is to change the font on the scores page. I haven't had chance to play the game yet (no cd-burner, won't be long though!) but the score page is the only thing that stands out.
I know this game is homebrew (figuratively speaking) but professional-looking would be better, yes...?
-<-
Which font would you suggest?
->-
The whole thing reminds me of "Death Tank Zwei" on the Saturn. Hopefully it's as good :D
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I'm glad ou mention that. Death Tank Zwei is the biggest single inspiration for my game. Only I wanted to make it less unfair.
It's time to set the SH4 and CLX2 hearts on fire!
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nitebycandlelite
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Written 18-01-2003 19:57:36
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Which font would you suggest?
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Depends what you're looking for really. You could have a mental font such as neopangaia, or something simpler as in Verdana.
An idea (after reading about the ships design doodad) would be to have each ship style have it's own font for the score page...?
Squee!
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DawnWolf
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Written 26-01-2003 22:29:53
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Nifty game!
Game balance could use tweaking. After about 100 rounds :), the current consensus in this family seems to be:
- Powering up should slow you down, but not quite _that_ badly. It's nigh impossible to recover from a heavy hit.
- Mines are too cheap :)
Of course, if you make settings selectable, balance can be adjusted to taste.
Two additional game modes to choose from came to mind:
- Add gravity wells ... maximum two, probably; small/medium/big sun, small/medium/big black hole, and add code for shots, mines and ships to follow gravity realistically. Shots would be deflected little (light), mines more (small mass) and ships yet more (medium mass).
There was a game a little like that on the Amiga, and it was oodles of fun.
- "Tag". We were playing with our kids, and a game of tag developed. No shooting each other, but "bumping". If the status areas had a dot or something that would show who is "it" at any given time, it'd make keeping track easier. :)
Shawn
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dRxL
Administrator
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Written 30-01-2003 01:19:03
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->-
Depends what you're looking for really. You could have a mental font such as neopangaia, or something simpler as in Verdana.
-<-
I had to go to a fonts page to look your suggestions up, and I found several nice "typewriter" fonts there, I think I might make something out of them to resemble the title fonts in the movie Seven.
It's time to set the SH4 and CLX2 hearts on fire!
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dRxL
Administrator
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Written 30-01-2003 01:29:40
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Nifty game!
Game balance could use tweaking. After about 100 rounds :), the current consensus in this family seems to be:
- Powering up should slow you down, but not quite _that_ badly. It's nigh impossible to recover from a heavy hit.
- Mines are too cheap :)
Of course, if you make settings selectable, balance can be adjusted to taste.
Two additional game modes to choose from came to mind:
- Add gravity wells ... maximum two, probably; small/medium/big sun, small/medium/big black hole, and add code for shots, mines and ships to follow gravity realistically. Shots would be deflected little (light), mines more (small mass) and ships yet more (medium mass).
There was a game a little like that on the Amiga, and it was oodles of fun.
- "Tag". We were playing with our kids, and a game of tag developed. No shooting each other, but "bumping". If the status areas had a dot or something that would show who is "it" at any given time, it'd make keeping track easier. :)
Shawn
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Thank you Shawn those are great suggestions and constructive criticism.
I've got some things I want to do with the game that I think will be right up your alley ;-)
Glad to hear that you and your family have been enjoying my game so far. Things like that encourage me to spend more time coding.
It's time to set the SH4 and CLX2 hearts on fire!
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matt
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Written 04-02-2003 15:46:20, edited 05-02-2003 19:59:39
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I'd love to see a single player mode, although I can imagine how difficult that could be....
Although on second thoughts maybe not. Some sort of zombie behaviour with simple firing logic could do the trick. Email me if you'd like some ideas from me.
I'd also like to see perhaps one or two more weapons in the form off collectible power-ups. Some more graphical effects, and sounds would be nice.
The most important thing for me is a screen alignment function, as the screen is definitely too tall to fit on my TV - so when I fly from top to bottom I am hidden/invisible for a short amount of time. Which hurts!
matt
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dRxL
Administrator
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Written 18-02-2003 12:11:13
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I've noted the thing about screen adjustment. I think what you'll get to adjust is where the screen boundaries are.
It's time to set the SH4 and CLX2 hearts on fire!
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Darksaviour69
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Written 20-02-2003 18:00:39
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i was thinking that a 8 player mode would be cool!
the idea being 2 people to one Joypad (like micro machines 2 on the megadrive)
1 person uses the dpad and the left trigger 4 shoot and the other uses the a,b,x,y for movement and right trigger 4 shoot
i understand that u could not use the shield system that way, but it would b cool as a game mode!
Boob ! Cover Cental
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Dark-Light
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Written 24-02-2003 19:43:37, edited 24-02-2003 19:45:05
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To be able to pick a 2 player game, even tough there are 4 joypads in the console.
Simply make the game count from the left to the right, and the controler on which start is pressed, is the number of players.
EDIT: A number example. 2 player with 3 controllers connected allso work..or 3-4 :D
Make the triangle shoot....
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dRxL
Administrator
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Written 25-02-2003 08:23:27
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i was thinking that a 8 player mode would be cool!
the idea being 2 people to one Joypad (like micro machines 2 on the megadrive)
-<-
Well the source is out there, so you could implement this if you really wanted to.
What I'm probably going to do in later revisions of the code is include the option for using an extra dreamcast as a multi-tab connected either through the serial or the ethernet port. Considering that few people have 2 ethernet port equiped dreamcasts, having the option for using an xbox as ethernet multitab instead of another dreamcast would probably be appreciated.
All of this is still something that might or might not happen.
->-
To be able to pick a 2 player game, even tough there are 4 joypads in the console.-<-
Don't worry about it. A better userinterface is very high on my todo list. I'll be damned if the next big release doesn't do what you suggest, and then some ;-)
It's time to set the SH4 and CLX2 hearts on fire!
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nitebycandlelite
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Written 19-03-2003 20:09:18
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Finally played dRxLaX at Retrovision (http://www.retrovision.org.uk) and I have to say: OoooO! That's nice.
A few things that got me, however, were:
Bombs: WTF? Sometimes I can lay one, sometimes loads. Are they related to the power bar alongside the shots?
Beginning a new round: WTF? (again :D) sometimes I just didn't know what the hell I was doing, and the computer would start to play, hence confusing me.
But on the whole, good stuff! I really enjoyed it, must've played thirty rounds before getting chucked out of the pub we were in...
Top. I got me a CD burner too, so I might do a copy for myself too, when I get a moment :D
Squee!
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