Fonzie!!

stalepie · Post by **stalepie** » Sat Dec 12, 2009 3:53 am

Okay, this is what I just typed in my text editor:

DEATH ADVENTURE (just a working title!)

outline of game:

similar to Wonder Boy III: Monster Lair in gameplay

Sidescrolling. Left to right. Automatically scrolling for half of the levels. The other levels (every other level) will be sidescrolling shooting.

Sidescrolling shooting does not need to scroll up or down at all (that is, when your player/ship approaches upper or lower areas, the screen does not go further up or down.

Able to handle large characters (many sprites put together).

Simple HUD at top for displaying score and lifebar, how many lives left. Like Wonderboy III's (Genesis, not the Master System game).

The regular sidescrolling levels feature platforming (or jumping). You can fall down pits and die, and you can land on spikes and get hurt, and you can land on enemies and get hurt, and you can't swim, and you sometimes have to jump to get items that appear or jump over an enemy, jump on a moving platform. Sometimes platforms move up and down. Sometimes they drop really fast when you stand on them, while others act like elevators.

Typical platformer stuff.

Buttons: B shoots (attacks with sword also, if your character doesn't have projectile weapon)
C jumps
A is special

Special attacks... not sure. Mainly I would like to see some kind of SUPER DRAGON -type monster appear across the screen, destroying a ton of enemies in a big fiery blaze, like the aforementioned Amazon warrior's special in Golden Axe 1.

Should support high quality sound effects. This was the Genesis' weak point, in my opinion. Some games DID have good sound effects (like the Streets of Rage series and Sonic) but most didn't. They sounded "farty" and stupid. Hopefully this game can have some good digital sounds. Maybe they all have to be recorded (DAC?) I don't know.

Parallax scrolling would be nice, but isn't mandatory. Still though, that was one of the coolest features of games back then.

(You know, layers of clouds or sunsets in the background, that kind of thing, changing as you move... although since this will always be automatically-scrolling, in both types of stages, any parallax effects will not adjust according to where you are on screen).

Basically, that's it. It will need to support a lot of enemies on screen at once, and of course bosses. I don't want to take the Treasure route of making really elaborate bosses that take forever to kill (I don't find that fun), but just the normal big-enemy that you shoot at a lot until it changes colors until it dies kind of thing. You know, first it's green, then it turns blue (or parts of it do) as you keep shooting at it, and then it starts to turn purple and then finally it explodes or fades to black and sinks downwards off the screen and the music changes to "victory" and then the computer automatically moves your sprite off the screen to the right and cuts to a score table that tallies up your score for that page.

So we'll need one of those: a score table at the end of every stage. Not sure how to work out the score just yet, but how about every 10,000 points you get an extra man, and every 25,000 you go to a very short bonus level (I don't like long bonus levels). The bonus levels will just be crazy shooting stages where you can't die and you mainly collect fruit.

This game will need to have good music. I'm thinking of making a fairly DARK game (that's why I called it "Death Adventure") but maybe something kiddie would be better instead. I really don't know. Personally any graphics I draw will probably not succeed at being very kiddie. I dunno. But they'll still be colorful, I think. Even if the color is, you know, a lot of RED, or something.

I do want the game to be fairly hard, but since I can't afford to pay anyone who works on this project much money, and you'll basically be working for free, and that already pretty much damns this project from the start, I will say that we should just do one difficulty setting and make it hard.

I *would* like to have this game programmed and designed so that it actually works on real Sega hardware, that it can actually be put on a flash cart and played in a real machine, but if that's too difficult, and no one's going to do that anyway (sans the Super Fighter Team guys who might be interested in such a project -- who knows), then I guess we should design it so that it plays well in Gens, Fusion, etc.

Yeah, yeah, I know, Fusion is the best. But I like Gens. Sentimental reasons, perhaps. I don't know.

Anyway, what other information is needed? Is this enough?

How about how high can you jump? Not very high. I say copy Wonderboy III: ML, like I've suggested, for the "physics" of this game (how high you jump, how fast you fall, how fast you run, how fast you move around the screen in the shooting stages, how fast items appear that you can collect, how fast your projectiles shoot, how fast enemies and enemy waves come at 'cha... etc Just kind of, at least for the moment, if anyone is actually going to work on this, just follow that game as an example, as the rubric.)

Doesn't have to be exactly the same as that game. Just a working model to start things off. I may want to do things like adjust sprite sizes later or something. Who knows.

Is this enough? I can go on...

stalepie · Post by **stalepie** » Sat Dec 12, 2009 3:59 am

If music is a problem, it's possible we could take our favorites from different Genesis games (hack the ROMs and copy the code?) and kind of make a medley of awesome stuff, like the way Quentin Tarantino rips tunes from films he likes and puts them all together for his great adventures...

stalepie · Post by **stalepie** » Sat Dec 12, 2009 4:04 am

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wonder_Boy ... nster_Lair

I like this:

"The player's life bar steadily diminishes as time passes. Health is gained through collection of fruit and projectile weapons. Some fruits, when shot, will expand and burst into multiple items."

I like especially that your health keeps diminishing as you play. It was one of the first things I noticed.

stalepie · Post by **stalepie** » Sat Dec 12, 2009 4:13 am

Oh, and I'm not sure if I want this to be one player or two. Apparently WB3: ML was 2 player. That might be fun. My nephew always wants to play 2-player games and it's kind of a lost art in a way in this day and age of internet connectivity. So yeah, let's make it two player. Is that too much work?

Well, I say shoot for the stars. I don't understand the fun in just making tech demos, etc., and shooting and platforming is what the Genesis did best, so this project really should be quite appropriate.

I think it should be a dark and scary world. I like, for instance, the hyena sections of Lion's King (the Disney movie) or the scary world of Alien 3 on the genesis, or that game The Immortal, or Mortal Kombat, DOOM, etc. I love Quake 1. I love dark and scary. I think it should be a kind of "Halloween" game, you know, like Splatterhouse. but sidescrolling action and shooting. And not sci-fi. I prefer fantasy. So more like Sexy Parodious meets Splatterhouse 2, or that first boss in Shinobi III. I guess I want something gory and evil. You know, Chakan and uhh what was that pinball game... devil something... or like Magician Lord. yeah, Magician Lord. love that shit. Something like that. But with the gameplay of Coryoon and Wonderboy III: Monster Lair.

But i know, that's the art and sound, not the programming. Just wanted to address it a little, though.

stalepie · Post by **stalepie** » Sat Dec 12, 2009 4:15 am

Devil's Crush. Couldn't think of that name.

LocalH · Post by **LocalH** » Sat Dec 12, 2009 6:46 pm

I don't think anyone's going to want to help you on this until you make an effort to try and learn the basics on your own. It's very rare that someone comes in, says "I have this idea", and people jump on board. Sometimes group projects do exist, but usually the ones who come up with such ideas already have some technical knowledge.

My advice is to just download any and all Genesis docs you can find, and read them over and over and over again until you do understand them. There are plenty of basic hex guides out there as well, if you have trouble wrapping your head around them.

All of us here are pretty much self-taught, noone had to hold our hands while we learned.

stalepie · Post by **stalepie** » Sat Dec 12, 2009 9:26 pm

No, I can't do programming. I have tried this. I have tried downloading these documents for more than three years.

Besides, in any traditional game programming project, especially of the mid 90s and onwards, roles are divvied up according to what one is best at: art, sound, programming, etc. John Carmack did not draw the graphics in DOOM, and Adrian Carmack did not program DOOM.

8bitwizard · Post by **8bitwizard** » Sun Dec 13, 2009 4:40 am

There's a big sticky thread about this on AtariAge, since it has happened so many times:

http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/82 ... -peddlers/

tl;dr summary: Those who have the skills to do the programming already have a long list of stuff they want to do, and (especially with 8-bit systems) don't need someone else to help with pixel art. And if you make no effort to understand the limitations of the system, they're even less likely to listen to you.

But I do think the name "Motor Hero" is cool.

stalepie · Post by **stalepie** » Sun Dec 13, 2009 7:39 am

Ehh, you guys just don't want to make any games. We could make a great game together! Especially me and Fonzie. He's the best here.

I wonder where he is?

Wouldn't you want to play a new Sega Genesis game? OKay, so you guys don't play games (I know for a fact you don't, because I once asked Fonzie in AIM what his favorite game was, and he said "Golden Axe III.") HA! Golden Axe III... that's insane.

http://www.stripcreator.com/comics/Dark_Pulse/371544

I think that a new Sega game would be great. I don't mean Sega Naomi, I mean Sega Genesis!!! REAL Sega!! When they were at their prime!! it'll be fun! Plus, I might even pay a little money in the end...

stalepie · Post by **stalepie** » Sun Dec 13, 2009 8:15 am

Basically the situation is like this video, except I'm more of a "looks"/brawn kind of guy, I guess, and you guys, or at least one of you, could be the brains.

"I'm looking for a partner, someone who gets things fixed." I really empathize with that line. That really feels me right now. I'm looking for a partner, someone here to make this Sega game with me, and I'm pleading.

I'm much more persistant than the usual bozo on the internet, on this forum, or on other forums (like Atari Age), who just come and go, their drive-by postings. This ain't a drive-by!

matthewdickinson@fastmail.fm <-- Just hit me up if you're interested. This means you too, SigFLUP, if you're reading this. (I emailed her).

I don't know that we can make "lots of money," (Pet Shop Boys lyrics), but this project should look GOOD on your resume! A lot better than some dweeby tech demo no employer will understand or appreciate. I can help you get a job! We can make a successful game: one of the first full-fledged homebrew retro projects, for an actual retro system, that doesn't suck. And that isn't just some one-level half-assed demo thing that people only really experience in a YouTube clip. It could be something people actually enjoy to play. Maybe they'd even hear about its name and go looking for it on Emuasylum.com and, you know, download it from there and have a new game to play.

"There are lots of opportunities, if you know where to take them, you know."

Plus, why are you even studying an old game machine in the first place if you have no interest in making actual games for it?

Why wouldn't you just study the PDP-12 or whatever, some old computer that no one uses anymore too, but which would be just as interesting to learn about?

"Think about it seriously. You know it makes sense."

TmEE co.(TM) · Post by **TmEE co.(TM)** » Sun Dec 13, 2009 3:54 pm

Fonzie is busy with Pier Solar... and if you read the link 8btiwizard gave, you can be pretty sure that every one of us has a game idea, or many of them... just no time/will to complete any of them.

King Of Chaos · Post by **King Of Chaos** » Sun Dec 13, 2009 5:25 pm

stalepie wrote:No, I can't do programming.

It's exactly that kind of attitude that sets you up for failure.

15 years or so ago, somebody probably would of cared... today, they're busy with other things. Do you have any idea how much time a programmer would have to commit to a project from scratch?

Honestly, I think you're wasting your time. Oh, and the manic attitude about it is a major turn off to any interested parties.

stalepie · Post by **stalepie** » Sun Dec 13, 2009 9:34 pm

I am manic? It is just the way I write. Actually I write quite calmly.

stalepie · Post by **stalepie** » Sun Dec 13, 2009 10:51 pm

OK, so I'm manic. I like excitement. And I want to make an exciting game! I want to make something intense. Something manic. You know, it's just... what I consider fun in video games. Manic fun. Excitement. Takes a MANIC guy to come up with manic ideas for a manic video game. Yeah?

Well, I can see you guys are not interested. I will take my business venture elsewhere and bug you guys no more. Of course, I am still interested in this project, if anyone wants to email me. But I don't wish to hear any more discouraging words from people who are not interested anyway, like King of Chaos, and these other jerks, who keep trying to discourage me. You don't speak for everyone! There may be someone here reading (now or in the future) who is indeed interested in my project and in working with me!

stalepie · Post by **stalepie** » Sun Dec 13, 2009 10:53 pm

And I don't need any advice. I don't need anyone telling me their g-ddamn words of wisdom! I am already plenty wise. You don't need to teach me anything, about how I should or shouldn't be going about setting up this project and recruiting members. I will do this howevr I want!

And part of the pleasure of this whole idea is that it IS an old system, 15 years old. That is kind of the whole point.

I don't want to support modern operating systems and modern hardware.