MisterPoppet

Though I like enthusiasm and I agree that we should not reinvent the wheel, I need to remind you that both Gamebryo and BigWorld are very commercial and VERY expensive. I have no problem spending money on this, but I have my limits. I'm just one man with a 9-5 job.

I've already looked into engines and what not. There are open source alternatives... very good ones too.

-Bryan-

Sman

Time is the answer to the problem here, how to get players to want to spend time with the game. If the players don't play, they won't pay, and then no one gets a pay check. To remedy this, different solutions have been tried, grinding seems the most employed time filler, and the most annoying, and boring to many. Designers have tried massive PvP models, or "non-computer" NPCs for so called "live events", that often include primary characters from the setting. These are good starts, but I personally can not see myself replaying the same PvP event, month after month. Nor could I see myself playing through all the grinding/escorting/etc just for a minute chance of encountering/working with/etc a main character I am familiar with. This is something of a slap in the face if you ask me, as for the past 22 years I have been playing AS that legendary hero, now I'm a sidekick? a fanboy? Nah. Changing/Updating these solutions can give a bit more replay to the game, but not much, in the end you become bored, and I believe that the players level of commitment to the game is equal to their overall interest in the genre/setting. The idea we have layed out here are a much better base design then the current model most games appear to employ.


I Agree 100%, there is no reason to pay for any engine. That's more for a corperation with deadlines, paid labor, expense accounts, etc.

VertigoEpidemic

I guess I'm just viewing the engine as a significant struggle because of my coding knowledge. I also see time as an issue.

Our annoyances with the leading MMORPG are shared, and there are people out there coming up with new ideas just like ourselves. The longer a game takes to be developed, the sooner another game can overcome it.

On a slightly different note, just because we don't have money doesn't mean it cannot be obtained. Though it may not be easy, funding can be found if there is a solid idea that can be presented to possible investors.

MisterPoppet

My idea involving the engines are such. We should use what we can, if there's an open source alternative, we should use. I've heard big things about Gamebryo and how wonderful it is and such, but I also heard that it's game tend to look very similar to one another. The open source stuff (Crystal Space) require you to release your source code. There are two alternatives I've found. Ogre and Irrlicht. Ogre, though under the LGPL like Crystal Space, is dynamically linked so that it isn't a part of the game (therefore no need to release source). And Irrlicht is under the zlib license, which doesn't require a source release either. These are just some options though, there are many out there.

Also, I looked into servers and such. About a $100-200/month for a basic dedicated server. However, I might be able to get it cheaper if I buy my own server get it into the local community colocation building in Chicago. I'll look into it more.

-Bryan-

Sman

Crystal Space can be used in a closed source commerical project.

MisterPoppet

Oopsy... My bad, I didn't notice their little notice thingy. Ohh.. They're making into a shared library and DLL.

-Bryan-

David.J

Hi iam a Concept Artist maybe i can join the team?
MSN: Djungel_fralla@hotmail.com

Simon F.

Si tu parle francais, je peux traduire pour les autres. Aussi, j'aimais tres bien vos examples.

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