Topic: A castlevania inspired game that takes place in modern times.

[Mikepjr]

First.. i hope this is an okay place for this.
I was going to just post this up in the spriting thread.. but figured a thread might be somewhat better.
This is a mokup of sorts for something i'd like to make at some point.
Not really a programmer so not sure where to start, but i want to make a game that looks kinda like this.

Small shot


Large shot


If you noticed, the screen is wide... i'm kinda sick of fan games being stuck at a non wide screen resolution, and this resolution could possibly stretch out in full screen and be less likely to leave a black border on each side of the screen.

The hearts in the upper corner would actually act as something of an EXP system.
The crystal would act as currency as well as ammo.
And LV would be level.
Health meeter would actually increase in size over time for the player.
As well as the Magic meeter.

Plus, i am reworking the sprite for John Morris slowly, to make him a bit different looking.
In all honesty, i want to make a CV game that takes place in modern times, and have it take place through a city.
Had this idea where you were some kinda descendent to a blood line of warriors  who fought evil over the years.
You fight through some suburbs all the way up through the city, until you reach like the largest building to fight some very evil being type person.
You find out more about your past, and dawn some sort of special weapon and have to set out to defeat this evil being (not dracula as it would probably not have the CV naming).

More or less it would be inspired by CV games but would not BE a CV game.
Been kinda pondering making this game for awhile now, i even been doing some music remixes, as well ass some spriting.
Recently got game maker off steam... sadly it's not as easy as i'd hoped it would be.
The easiest game maker tool i ever used was RPG maker... game maker seems less easy than i thought it would.

I kinda thought, start from a house in a suburb... travel through said suburb as it becomes slowly infested with evil creatures.. work though, maybe go through a city park.. through a mall... through some city streets.. maybe a museum.. all the way to the tall building i mentioned.. like a tower or something.

One thing i never wanted to do with a fan game is call it Castlevania anything.. as that kinda gets a bit silly after all cause i feel nothing fan made can ever be considered an ACTUAL CV game..

I was thinking maybe have the bad-guy be some kinda evil warlock slash necromancer..
He's been dead for years... his remains end up in a museum.. his remains come in contact with some kinda amulet.. he resurrects.. takes over the city in the midst of the night...
The main character has inherited a house that's been in his family for generations, he wakes up one night, notices a deep strange fog moving in, and screams from the city..
A voice calls out to him.. like an ancestor.. he finds some ancient weapon like.. in his attic, or maybe in something on the grounds of his home.

The spirit of an ancestor tells him said warlock has returned, and he sets out in the night.. but as mentioned before, goes through some locations.. city park then so on so forth.

Stopping in like chapels where it's the only place people feel safe throughout, maybe add some things similar to an MMO or an elder scrolls game.. where people ask you to do things for them.. fetch things.. check on family members.. so on and so forth.

Buy things while in each chapel..
It could work.

[kaonstantine]

I like the idea of CV based games taking place in modern times. My project has a similar premise; Maybe i'm old fashioned, but I prefer not-wide screen sizes for 2D games, specially for pixel art games. But this is your game and you do what you think is better.

Not really a programmer so not sure where to start, but i want to make a game that looks kinda like this.

Based on my own precarious experience, i'd encourage you to create a design document before trying to program any code. The more you specify in paper, the better. Give special attention to variables involved in STATS and LEVELING (hp, str, def, etc). Probably You will need to create a table for leveling (AMOUNT oF EXPERIENCE - LEVEL) and also define how the main character stats are changed per level. Think of every variable you need to define for collectible items (price, name, probability of being dropped, bonus, etc )

More or less it would be inspired by CV games but would not BE a CV game.

One thing i never wanted to do with a fan game is call it Castlevania anything.. as that kinda gets a bit silly after all cause i feel nothing fan made can ever be considered an ACTUAL CV game..

Are you planning to use CV sprites for enemies or creating new original sprites?

[darkmanx_429]

Good luck with your project. Did you see my post about the offers for free Game Maker Studio and Pro? If, not I would suggest you do!

[Mikepjr]

Good luck with your project. Did you see my post about the offers for free Game Maker Studio and Pro? If, not I would suggest you do!

Yeah... kinda late for that...
And so far game maker is not easy at all.
RPG Maker is what you call easy, you at least get a head start in what is needed, basics like building a map is easy, having it already set up for moving around and so forth, but when it comes to game maker, you have no start off point, you don't already have movement and jumping and, and control set up.
I can't even find an engine, i figured SOMEONE would have something already i could study and learn from, and alter and adjust and so forth, but so far i can't find anything.

I like the idea of CV based games taking place in modern times. My project has a similar premise; Maybe i'm old fashioned, but I prefer not-wide screen sizes for 2D games, specially for pixel art games. But this is your game and you do what you think is better.

Based on my own precarious experience, i'd encourage you to create a design document before trying to program any code. The more you specify in paper, the better. Give special attention to variables involved in STATS and LEVELING (hp, str, def, etc). Probably You will need to create a table for leveling (AMOUNT oF EXPERIENCE - LEVEL) and also define how the main character stats are changed per level. Think of every variable you need to define for collectible items (price, name, probability of being dropped, bonus, etc )

Are you planning to use CV sprites for enemies or creating new original sprites?

Going to try for some original stuff, or at least frankensprite a lot of things.

I already thought about a lot of things when it comes to stats..

I'm considering taking the Zelda approach, in where what you find increases stats, rather than the EXP system i was considering.

My brain can't take dealing with all the numbers and so forth that the EXP system would require of me.

Considering that i'm one person... i dunno how far i will get.

I envy folks who can make a game, graphics and all on there own.
But i can't.

I was throwing the ideas out there.. but knowing me it will never take off.

I started a LOT of RPGs before and never finished them.
Usually the reason would be me not being able to program jack squat.
My visions never can get met cause of my inability to program.
And before anyone says "anyone can program" you gotta take into account that i'm ADD as can be, art is easy because the tools are there already, you just point click and do, or if it's pencil and paper, you just put the led to paper and draw.
Programming, that requires a LOT more, and i suck so hard with numbers.
You're talking to a guy who failed BIG time with math in school.
But maybe i'm missing something..
I could have sworn that game maker does not really require that i sit and type out code?

As for the wide screen thing, i got a wide screen monitor.. i'm so SICK of the black areas left and right of my screen.
If the guys who made Shovel Knight can make it work, i don't see why no one else can.

-EDIT-
On a happier note.. i'm slowly figuring out the basics of Game Maker Studio.
Figured out how to edit sprites.
A little confused on music though.
I found a tutorial on music and sound, but none of the things that show in the tutorial show up for me.
For instance, set as background music is not present for me, so i'm not sure how that's done.
Already have a lot planned out... though i suppose i should just work on graphics first for now.. then deal with the rest later.

[X]

I envy folks who can make a game, graphics and all on there own.
But i can't.

I was throwing the ideas out there.. but knowing me it will never take off.

That's okay dude, I'm in the exact same boat as you. At least program-wise. I'm okay with spriting but creating an all-original sprite is something I've yet to undertake myself. I too want to create my own CV games but that is just not an option unless we have some sort of an already established game engine like RPGMaker to work with. Maybe someday...

[darkmanx_429]

I think maybe what you should do is to find a program that you are comfortable with and then see if it has a full tutorial for a project from beginning to end. Then instead of trying to make "your game" or what you want, do the tutorial completely first. Once you have completed the tutorial go back and work on your game with a more understanding of the engine that you want to use.

It would seem to me that ALOT of people that don't really have programming experience have problems because they have these grandiose ideas but don't really know what they are doing when they are using a particular program and then are basically trying to get a program to work like they want knowing nothing about it. People seem to be just doing it on the fly.

I am not a programmer, but I can follow directions pretty well. When are started with MMF2, I basically tracked down the Intro to Multimedia Fusion 2 pdf., and followed the 100 page space shooter tutorial from beginning to end even though I wanted to do a Castlevania game. I picked a time and did the whole tutorial in a day. Once I finished it I had a better idea of what I could accomplish with the engine, I also quickly found out that there were far more easier ways to do things than what was written in the pdf. Now, my game has taken off and I am satisfied what I can accomplish. I am not an expert but I think I am definitely above average now.

The other part to my advice is to find like-minded people that share your passion for your project online or otherwise. MMF2 has the Clickteam Forums and no matter how many noob questions I asked, someone always eventually responded to them and helped me get to the next problem!
People also don't really know, but BMC_Warmachine and myself have never met in person.

He was interested in my project and asked if he could contribute so I took him up on his offer. He started doing music first and then eventually I trusted him to give him own part in our project. So now I am doing a character story arch and he is doing a character story arch. At the time I was using the Beats-Of-Rage mod to start my game, but he sold me on MMF2. We both started using the free version of MMF2 for our projects and then about the same time we purchased the full product together.

Now my project, "Vamprotector" is really far along, and his project "Castlevania Chronicles: Dracula's Curse" looks fantastic. We both have been helping each other with our projects ever since.

Lastly, start small first dude. Just do a simple demo for your game. Maybe only one stage from beginning to end but make it look like the final product you want. That way, you won't get overwhelmed and you can invest time in only one thing instead of trying to do a whole game and getting frustrated. If you have one stage, completely done like you want you will be motivated to do the rest on your own without having to depend on anyone else. You may never get anyone to help you on your project dude, keep that in mind!

Just don't quit dude, if you are persistent enough your project will come to light, even if it's not as fast as you want it to be.

[Mikepjr]

I get the feeling lately that game maker is not all it's cracked up to be, considering others are using software from clickteam instead.

[darkmanx_429]

Check out the link I posted for Clickteam Fusion 2.5. It's a great time to get into the program, it has had  a pretty much engine overhaul!

In the end though, it all comes up to what you end up feeling comfortable with. Find that out and then just roll with that!

[Mikepjr]

I took a look at it, and it's a little more confusing, which i think has to do with the fact that it's set up for making more than games.
It's sad that the only software for making anything i have ever been able to wrap my head around, has been the RPG Maker series.

-edit-
Something of an update.
Still using Game Maker Studio, and i figured out how to make backgrounds and tiles and set up rooms, and add views(which are basically resolution and so forth), so i figured out how to get that wide screen view i want, and it looks good when i test it.. Sadly i still don't fully understand adding control and so forth, setting up the object for the hero and having him do all the things i want him to do... so when i test it.. he just stands there doing his idle animation.. which is animating way too fast, and i don't know yet how to control the speed in which animations cycle through.

But i am making progress, so that's good.

Gave Fusion a shot.. and.. bleh.. it made less sense than game maker is making.

[Inccubus]

You control an object's animation speed by setting it's image_speed variable.
The best place to do that is in the creation event.

Values less than 1 will display the current image for multiple steps slowing down the animation. Ex- 0.25 will make each frame last 4 steps.
Values greater than 1 will skip animation frames per step. EX- 3 will display every third frame each step.
Negative values have the same effect, but they run the animation backwards which can be useful as well.

I advise that you use the help file a lot. Everything you can do is in there and it has a robust index and search feature. And the sooner you learn GML the better. The drag and drop features are good for beginners, but not nearly as powerful as writing your own code. Plus it's based on pascal so the syntax is easy to learn.

[Mikepjr]

*sighs* if i can't use the drag and drop for everything i need to do.. it's not worth my time.
I honestly just can't do the coding crap... i can't.
Tried it... got so damn confused.. and lost.. and nothing got done.
So unless the drag and drop can be used for anything i need done.. it's pointless to go on.
I'm not a coder.. i'm not a programmer.. i'm an artist and a simple designer.. THAT'S IT... that's it..
So now i know for sure i'm wasting my time. Great..

[Zuljaras]

*sighs* if i can't use the drag and drop for everything i need to do.. it's not worth my time.
I honestly just can't do the coding crap... i can't.
Tried it... got so damn confused.. and lost.. and nothing got done.
So unless the drag and drop can be used for anything i need done.. it's pointless to go on.
I'm not a coder.. i'm not a programmer.. i'm an artist and a simple designer.. THAT'S IT... that's it..
So now i know for sure i'm wasting my time. Great..

I am not a coder or programmer too At first I was the same ... A CAN'T CODE!!! However if you take your time like 10-20 mins 3-4 days a week in the game maker forums in the tutorial sections you will find so many awesome and easy stuff to code.

I've never even opened a book about coding but somehow I managed to make leveling system, inventory, simple array for remembering stuff enemies with AI and much much more. I am still a noob but I think that I have made a nice progress.

Just choose your weapon (game development software) and start learning little by little and you will succeed 100%!

First learn the basics like making an object that moves left and right and collides with solid objects with gravity.
Then you learn about sprites and animations. The next thing you know is that you have a hero in all his glory ready to fight Dracula's army

[Claimh Solais]

*sighs* if i can't use the drag and drop for everything i need to do.. it's not worth my time.
I honestly just can't do the coding crap... i can't.
Tried it... got so damn confused.. and lost.. and nothing got done.
So unless the drag and drop can be used for anything i need done.. it's pointless to go on.
I'm not a coder.. i'm not a programmer.. i'm an artist and a simple designer.. THAT'S IT... that's it..
So now i know for sure i'm wasting my time. Great..

Yeah, dude, I see where you're coming from with the coding problems. I have so many great ideas, but the only newb-friendly game engine is RPG Maker. I've heard, though, basic coding is actually pretty easy to learn. I'm sure if you gave it some time, you could get the hang of things, and somewhat make your idea come to fruition.

Unfortunately, it's a time issue when it comes to learning it. Between school, my writing, and game time, I don't really have a lot of time to study code. And I'm sure you've got a lot on your hands, too. Once I'm done with school, though, I intend to spend some of that extra time I'll have on learning to code.

If you've got any time at all on your hands, I'd suggest checking out some of the tutorials. It couldn't hurt at all. If that doesn't work, though, we'll just have to chillax and wait until the day somebody makes a scrub-friendly game maker.

[Mikepjr]

My issue is just being ADD, i can't focus enough to do coding.
It's less stressful to use the drag and drop features.
And i been using RPG Maker for years, but even RPG Maker VX Ace has a basis to start from (beating a dead horse with that line).
For instance, everything is pre scripted, so it's pretty easy to come up with new things, and even tweek existing scripts(coding) to get what you want.
But Game Maker has no such basis really.
It would be awesome if there were makers specific to other types of games.

They kinda advertise game maker being rather easy, when really it's not unless you're making some winky dink little casual type game.

[kaonstantine]

You just can't expect to create a game after one or two days of installing a new software. Making a (decent) game is not an easy task. It requires sacrifice, patience, willingness and time, of course. Want to make a game? Be prepared to fail (A LOT).

I can't even find an engine, i figured SOMEONE would have something already i could study and learn from, and alter and adjust and so forth, but so far i can't find anything.

People could disagree, but being new to GameMaker, trying to adapt/modify an engine to 'learn' is one of the worst things you can do. I know my words may sound discouraging. What I'm trying to say is that feeling disappointed is normal, but if you want to succeed, you must try again and again.

Game Maker Studio comes with a nice selection of Tutorials. That's really a good point to start because you don't even need to waste time searching the web for tutorials. If you follow all the beginner and intermediate tutorials, you will have a good understanding of how GM works.