New Ideas For Action/Adventure Games: post yours here - Page 2

scabb · 03-17-2004, 10:48 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Royal Fool

I would like an adventure game that was presented somehow like the show 24. Detective mystery with the plot unfolding all around you and the screen showing FMV scenes here and there on the screen. The concept of real-time would be extremely hard to implement and I wouldn't expect it to work properly either so I'd rather leave that bit out.

There is actually a "24" videogame in the pipeline, according to this BBC article. If they use the license well and implemement real-time madness, it could be interesting.

Intrepid Homoludens · 03-17-2004, 12:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ragnar

Hmm, yes, I see what you mean. And actually I think I overrreacted a little yesterday (I was tired or something). What I reacted on was that you wrote "using the Havok engine" instead of "using a (good) physics engine (for example Havok). I have a tendency to nitpick on such things, I know.

Which is why you'd make a very good critic. Not just computer games, but films, cultural events, concerts, etc. I think good critics are naturally nitpicky, they have to be. They also tend to self-edit themselves rather well.

Quote:

Heh, you aspiring to be a new Jeeves or something (I mean the psychology of the individual stuff

)? I agree to some extent that much can be gathered from studying the appearance of people and their style. On the other hand you can very often draw completely wrong conclusions of people just because of that.

I don't often scrutinize people's way of dressing. That would be forced and as you say, projective, that is, you'd read too much into it based on perhaps what you want to see. This is why I simply let my eyes wander and zoom in on unusual details. You could say I do it intuitively. I need to read some more of that Jeeves. Maybe some kind of career could come out of this.

Anyway, I like doing short essays.

Intrepid Homoludens · 03-17-2004, 12:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tabbu

But what do you think? Give some succestions.

This is EXACTLY what we need to see more of in adventure games, Tabbu. Not so much a sub-genre of survival horror or suspense, but a new and exciting way of presenting narrative and developing characters, and puzzle concepts that have never been explored before. I'd elaborate, but I'm at work right now and I'll explain a bit more when I get home.

ragnar · 03-17-2004, 01:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Intrepid Homoludens

Which is why you'd make a very good critic. Not just computer games, but films, cultural events, concerts, etc. I think good critics are naturally nitpicky, they have to be. They also tend to self-edit themselves rather well.

On the other hand I tend to be rather nitpicky on the things I write (whether it comes to computer programs, reviews or music or anything else) too, which isn't always a benefit. I might do book reviews sometime too. The next review I'm going to do though is the Syberia 2 one, hopefully sometime in April.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Intrepid

I don't often scrutinize people's way of dressing. That would be forced and as you say, projective, that is, you'd read too much into it based on perhaps what you want to see. This is why I simply let my eyes wander and zoom in on unusual details. You could say I do it intuitively. I need to read some more of that Jeeves. Maybe some kind of career could come out of this.

Anyway, I like doing short essays.

I like reading your short essays.

Oh, and the Jeeves & Wooster stories isn't that good in studying the way of Jeeves, since they are written in Woosters perspective (much like the Sherlock Holmes stories are written in Dr. Watson's perspective) and Jeeves always seems to be a big mystery master brain to Wooster. You don't learn much from that. There is one story though that is written from Jeeves perspective (another similarity with Holmes) which is one of the best stories imo.

Enough of that and now back to topic. Your game suggestion that began this thread got me to think that the TV-series of the sixties The Fugitive could get a rather good game-adaption, much in the way you describe your game. In The Fugitive a doctor is falsely convicted for being the murderer of his own wife and then he escapes and goes on a hunt for the real murderer and at the same time tries to avoid the police as they want to put him back to prison. I think that would be a real hit.

Tabbu · 03-22-2004, 01:59 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Intrepid Homoludens

This is EXACTLY what we need to see more of in adventure games, Tabbu. Not so much a sub-genre of survival horror or suspense, but a new and exciting way of presenting narrative and developing characters, and puzzle concepts that have never been explored before. I'd elaborate, but I'm at work right now and I'll explain a bit more when I get home.

What happened to that reply you were talking about :eek:

Bastich · 03-22-2004, 03:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Intrepid Homoludens

NO WEAPONS INVOLVED. Your only means of survival are your wits and resourcefulness.

Let's not be too limiting. Weapons can be used in non-action oriented ways.

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*More plot twists than your intestines could ever dream of.

You have to be careful here. Too many plot twists in a story will alienate the reader/viewer/player. It is best if they are used sparingly, but for greater effect.

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*Motion capture for naturalistic character animations. Full facial expressions to gauge characters.

Personally, I think this is the most important thing missing from AGs. In some respects, I think it would almost be better to make crappier settings and invest more in the character modeling and animation.

Quote:

*Mutiple endings based your decisions.

No comment.

Intrepid Homoludens · 03-22-2004, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tabbu

What happened to that reply you were talking about :eek:

It took the weekend off, heh. But now that it's back:

I think the game's challenges could emerge from the plot and characterizations themselves. For example, the mysterious dead girl could be a knowing yet restless spirit, who needs you to find her long lost doll. In return she could reveal clues about your homicide case as she may have been a witness, i.e. known the killers, when she was alive. But, was she a real person or a figment of the heroine's imagination, a projection from her past? It's here that you can use your skills to research her files, maybe finding out that she lived a few blocks away and that she died of unknown causes, that a police investigation turned up nothing on her. The doll quest is optional, but you may or may not gain valuable knowledge for your case if you choose to take it.

The narrative itself seems to suggest gameplay based on extensive research, interviews with NPCs, and some exploration with a keen sense of environmental observation. Sound itself could be used in a few challenging moments. I really think that standard adventure puzzles - find the key, inventory based, that stupid slider crap, that moronic 'figure out the sequence' crap - shouldn't apply here, it would destroy the cinematic immersion because it's simply unnatural, as if you shoved them in after everything. I already have had a few fits over the Silent Hill series puzzles, they were mostly well designed, but many of them were screaming "Hi! It's me! Puzzle. Solve me!"

Intrepid Homoludens · 03-22-2004, 06:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bastich

Let's not be too limiting. Weapons can be used in non-action oriented ways.

Not in MY game, you don't. The main character is a geek, not a police officer or a special agent. He's never used a gun before, he's terrible shot. No guns, only environmental means of self defense and elusiveness. Of course, that doesn't mean he can't grab a gun and use the gunpowder in the bullets to make some kind of trap or diversion later.

Quote:

You have to be careful here. Too many plot twists in a story will alienate the reader/viewer/player. It is best if they are used sparingly, but for greater effect.

As if I didn't already know, bud. Don't you worry.

Quote:

Personally, I think this is the most important thing missing from AGs. In some respects, I think it would almost be better to make crappier settings and invest more in the character modeling and animation.

Personally, I'd like to make almost all adventure game devs sit down in a room and have them watch cutscenes from such titles as No One Lives Forever 2, where character can be established through physical movements and minute facial movements. Body language can even be a critical part of a challenge (puzzle), but they've never explored this possibility.

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No comment.

I didn't ask. You didn't tell.

I still won't ask.

Bastich · 03-22-2004, 06:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Intrepid Homoludens

Not in MY game, you don't. The main character is a geek, not a police officer or a special agent. He's never used a gun before, he's terrible shot. No guns, only environmental means of self defense and elusiveness. Of course, that doesn't mean he can't grab a gun and use the gunpowder in the bullets to make some kind of trap or diversion later.

You stumbled upon what I was getting at in my original comment with your bullet scenario. I was actually thinking more upon the lines of dismantling a gun and using a part or parts (barrel, pin, extractor spring, etc) to do some other thing that has nothing to do with violence in any way. Any geek can figure out how to take a gun apart even if he can't use it.

Quote:

Personally, I'd like to make almost all adventure game devs sit down in a room and have them watch cutscenes from such titles as No One Lives Forever 2, where character can be established through physical movements and minute facial movements. Body language can even be a critical part of a challenge (puzzle), but they've never explored this possibility.

I agree completely.

Quote:

I didn't ask. You didn't tell.

I still won't ask.

LOL!

jjacob · 03-22-2004, 06:31 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Intrepid Homoludens

If you want to sample the Havok engine's efficacy as an important gameplay element, play the Max Payne 2 demo.

Or play the Half-Life 2 beta! It's widely available (huge download though, 3GB), and it's their own fault it got released (meaning: they leaked it on purpose). (Disclaimer: I was drunk when I said this)

But it's easier to just check the Half-Life 2 movie preview at fileplanet or something, it's again huge, like 650MB, but you get a very clear picture of what you can do with this engine. Untill I watched that video I didn't even know how to play the beta levels correctly (the fysics puzzle elements were totally new to me). My absolute favorite part is where you get to shove a table in front of a door to block it. I mean, it's SO SIMPLE, yet only now we get to do this in a game

And when you kill 3 enemies using one well-aimed shot (at a support beam), followed by a hilarious display of cruel, yet funny events, you feel strangely satisfied

Yeah NOLF 1&2 really felt like adventure games, even though I know they're primarily shooters. The weird thing is though, I remember it like as if it were an adventure game, like I walked through the storyline as I would with TLJ or any other AG, except more violent ofcourse. The cutscenes (which were full 3d! no fancy pre-rendered crap) were extremely vivid and I distinctly remember disliking that fellow with the mustache at UNITY (which, as it turns out, was exactly what they had in mind with this character), and feeling sympathetic for Bruno. They really somehow managed to capture all the right elements of an adventure game and put it a FPS jacket.

Intrepid Homoludens · 03-22-2004, 06:44 PM

Call of Cthulhu will pretty much be the other game coming out where physics plays a very vital part in gameplay. Have you seen some of the in-game footage? There's also an object-to-door blocking sequence where a Deep One is after you. You get inside a room, push a dresser to block it, and get your shotgun ready. It tries to shove the door open and once the entrance is wide enough for it to squeeze through, you blast its face off with your shotgun. Very nice.

There's yet another scene where you find a man swinging from the gallows with his flashlight sticking out of his chest pocket - you need it. You try to get it but he begins twitching violently, not letting you. You look down at the ground and find a stick, grab it, and begin hitting him. He kicks you in the face, you grab his leg and pull! The noose breaks his neck as you use his body against him. He's dead, and the flashlight's yours.

jjacob · 03-22-2004, 07:39 PM

Wow! Intrepid where did you get that? that's an amazing level of interaction.
Looks to be very promising (from the website):

-Diverse array of levels from quaint towns to alien locations, including Deep One City
-Dynamic Sanity system resulting in hallucinations, panic attacks, vertigo, paranoia, and more! what the ?! .. funky
-Incredibly detailed real-time graphics with atmospheric lighting and dynamic shadows
-Intelligent gameplay involving puzzle solving as well as combat and exploration
-1920s weaponry (weaponry!

) and vehicles as well as evil artifacts and alien technology
- Lovecraft's famous monsters and locations

Intrepid Homoludens · 03-22-2004, 07:47 PM

- No HUD. Period. Absolutely no aiming reticle, use your gun's ironsights to focus. To keep track of your ammo you must open your pistol barrel and count the bullets, as well when you fire the gun. To gauge your health you need to find a mirror or look behind you to see if you're trailing blood.

- Invisible RPG system - no stats to track, you simply do as much as possible of what you choose to be good at and you'll get better at it.

- Health is handled manually. If you do not treat your wounds promptly you could bleed to death. First aid kits are found in logical places. Morphine helps dull the pain, but if you use too much you can become addicted. A bad fall could damage your arm, which can affect your aiming; a nasty trip could injure your leg, preventing you from running any faster.

- Your character's phobia could affect gameplay. Fear of heights may force you to remain near the ground or not look down when crossing a high bridge lest you experience vertigo. Not good when Deep Ones are chasing you.

- If your sanity meters go bonkers you could experience bad visions. Your companion could morph into a Deep One - is he really one of them or are you going crazy?

- Gameplay footage to download and view. Particularly good are "Tentacle" , "Freakout", "Nooseroom", "Jailhouse", and "Bridge".

- Screenshots.

Bastich · 03-22-2004, 09:01 PM

Have I mentioned that Call of Cthulhu is by far the game I am anticipating most? Well, actually I have, but it needed to be stated again.

doppelganger rex · 03-22-2004, 09:06 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Intrepid Homoludens

Call of Cthulhu...

Sounds like it will kick some ass, but why go witht at unpronouncable name, what is up with that? No one will get it and the game will flop, they bettre just call it C'tulah or whatever, hell, people can read that, bad marketing move, rivals some recent cancelation following some careful evaluation of market conditions

Tabbu · 03-23-2004, 02:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Intrepid Homoludens

It took the weekend off, heh. But now that it's back:

That's ok, I was quite busy my self

Quote:

I think the game's challenges could emerge from the plot and characterizations themselves. For example, the mysterious dead girl could be a knowing yet restless spirit, who needs you to find her long lost doll. In return she could reveal clues about your homicide case as she may have been a witness, i.e. known the killers, when she was alive. But, was she a real person or a figment of the heroine's imagination, a projection from her past? It's here that you can use your skills to research her files, maybe finding out that she lived a few blocks away and that she died of unknown causes, that a police investigation turned up nothing on her. The doll quest is optional, but you may or may not gain valuable knowledge for your case if you choose to take it.

The narrative itself seems to suggest gameplay based on extensive research, interviews with NPCs, and some exploration with a keen sense of environmental observation. Sound itself could be used in a few challenging moments. I really think that standard adventure puzzles - find the key, inventory based, that stupid slider crap, that moronic 'figure out the sequence' crap - shouldn't apply here, it would destroy the cinematic immersion because it's simply unnatural, as if you shoved them in after everything. I already have had a few fits over the Silent Hill series puzzles, they were mostly well designed, but many of them were screaming "Hi! It's me! Puzzle. Solve me!"

Yeah I agree. This game would be strongly based on dialog and story telling, not much "old school puzzles". About that girl and doll thing, I also thought something like that. Also one puzzle could be that you hear whispers in a dark room. You can't get nothing out of it. Player could otherhand record it in to the tape machine. And with reverse button you could finally have a clue.

I think that there should be numerous of ways to solve murder. If player hasn't saw one important item and because of that he's stuck, one has to have number of solutions. The same information can be given by a person etc.

I just love thinking about these things. Good hobby

Ps. Have you guys seen the Forbidden Siren game? Seems to be quite cool...

James · 03-23-2004, 04:30 AM

suffice to say you all shall see my idea in the future - after the Curves of Danger - for instance - i dream of a game for those who, in Deus Ex, asked why they couldn't stay with Majestic 12, for those who asked why they couldn't join Hector in Grim Fandango.

03-22-2004, 06:44 PM	#31
Intrepid Homoludens merely human Last Online: 05-17-2012 02:26 AM Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Chicago Posts: 22,309	Call of Cthulhu will pretty much be the other game coming out where physics plays a very vital part in gameplay. Have you seen some of the in-game footage? There's also an object-to-door blocking sequence where a Deep One is after you. You get inside a room, push a dresser to block it, and get your shotgun ready. It tries to shove the door open and once the entrance is wide enough for it to squeeze through, you blast its face off with your shotgun. Very nice. There's yet another scene where you find a man swinging from the gallows with his flashlight sticking out of his chest pocket - you need it. You try to get it but he begins twitching violently, not letting you. You look down at the ground and find a stick, grab it, and begin hitting him. He kicks you in the face, you grab his leg and pull! The noose breaks his neck as you use his body against him. He's dead, and the flashlight's yours. __________________ platform: laptop, iPhone 3Gs \| gaming: x360, PS3, psp, iPhone, wii \| blog: a space alien \| book: the moral landscape: how science can determine human values by sam harris \| games: l.a.noire, portal 2, brink, dragon age 2, heavy rain \| sites: NPR, skeptoid, gaygamer \| music: ray lamontagne, adele, washed out, james blake \| twitter: a_space_alien

03-22-2004, 07:47 PM	#33
Intrepid Homoludens merely human Last Online: 05-17-2012 02:26 AM Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Chicago Posts: 22,309	- No HUD. Period. Absolutely no aiming reticle, use your gun's ironsights to focus. To keep track of your ammo you must open your pistol barrel and count the bullets, as well when you fire the gun. To gauge your health you need to find a mirror or look behind you to see if you're trailing blood. - Invisible RPG system - no stats to track, you simply do as much as possible of what you choose to be good at and you'll get better at it. - Health is handled manually. If you do not treat your wounds promptly you could bleed to death. First aid kits are found in logical places. Morphine helps dull the pain, but if you use too much you can become addicted. A bad fall could damage your arm, which can affect your aiming; a nasty trip could injure your leg, preventing you from running any faster. - Your character's phobia could affect gameplay. Fear of heights may force you to remain near the ground or not look down when crossing a high bridge lest you experience vertigo. Not good when Deep Ones are chasing you. - If your sanity meters go bonkers you could experience bad visions. Your companion could morph into a Deep One - is he really one of them or are you going crazy? - Gameplay footage to download and view. Particularly good are "Tentacle" , "Freakout", "Nooseroom", "Jailhouse", and "Bridge". - Screenshots. __________________ platform: laptop, iPhone 3Gs \| gaming: x360, PS3, psp, iPhone, wii \| blog: a space alien \| book: the moral landscape: how science can determine human values by sam harris \| games: l.a.noire, portal 2, brink, dragon age 2, heavy rain \| sites: NPR, skeptoid, gaygamer \| music: ray lamontagne, adele, washed out, james blake \| twitter: a_space_alien Last edited by Intrepid Homoludens; 03-22-2004 at 08:14 PM..

03-23-2004, 04:30 AM	#37
James Prove it all night Last Online: 01-02-2007 08:38 AM Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Dublin, Ireland Posts: 730	suffice to say you all shall see my idea in the future - after the Curves of Danger - for instance - i dream of a game for those who, in Deus Ex, asked why they couldn't stay with Majestic 12, for those who asked why they couldn't join Hector in Grim Fandango. __________________ "All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity: but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible." - Thomas Edward Lawrence

03-22-2004, 07:39 PM	#32
jjacob Senior Member Last Online: 04-21-2010 01:44 PM Join Date: Mar 2004 Posts: 2,771	Wow! Intrepid where did you get that? that's an amazing level of interaction. Looks to be very promising (from the website): -Diverse array of levels from quaint towns to alien locations, including Deep One City -Dynamic Sanity system resulting in hallucinations, panic attacks, vertigo, paranoia, and more! what the ?! .. funky -Incredibly detailed real-time graphics with atmospheric lighting and dynamic shadows -Intelligent gameplay involving puzzle solving as well as combat and exploration -1920s weaponry (weaponry! ) and vehicles as well as evil artifacts and alien technology - Lovecraft's famous monsters and locations

03-22-2004, 09:01 PM	#34
Bastich Iconoclast Last Online: 04-20-2014 08:51 PM Join Date: Oct 2003 Location: USA Posts: 1,169	Have I mentioned that Call of Cthulhu is by far the game I am anticipating most? Well, actually I have, but it needed to be stated again.