Pixelation

General => General Discussion => Topic started by: Q.K. on October 21, 2005, 04:49:36 pm

Title: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 21, 2005, 04:49:36 pm
That's right, I'm looking for someone who would have enough time to sprite tiles, characters, and enemies for an RPG I'm working on. I can't promise any pay, but once this game's completed, I'll see about selling it, and I'll get in contact with the pixeller to pay him/her a share of the profits. Of course, I can't get this game started without graphics. I have a great coder, and I will be co-coding, as well. Anyways, I suppose you'd like to know what this RPG's about. I can't, and won't post the entire design document here, but I'll post snippets that don't reveal too much. If you're interested in spriting, I will PM you with the whole design document which has the full storyline with plot twists, and the ending, etc. For now...

In this game, you start off as a simple villager kid, around the age of 7. When you follow your brother into the forest for a game of hide and seek, your life takes a drastic turn. After a frantic search takes you deep into the forest, you witness your brother being stabbed to death. You withdraw from people around you, and concentrate on avenging your brother. You train with the sword, day in and day out, so that when the day comes for you to find your brother’s killers, you’ll be ready. But when a villager turns on you for no apparent reason, you are forced to kill him. You try explaining his irrationality, but your pleas fall on deaf ears; you are exiled. With nowhere to go, you turn towards the nearest city, Nastrond. As you enter the city, it's inhabitants seem uneasy. As you reach the inner gate, you are attacked by 3 cloaked figures. Caught by surprise, you're overpowered, and close to death, when from behind shines a calming light...and you blank out.

That doesn't even cover the first level, really. I'll have to explain some things for you about this...
The Risi are dark creatures, they look humanoid, but they're a lot taller, and they seem to be made of liquid. They're one of the primary enemies in the game.
Your brother Ryan, the one that gets stabbed? Well, I'll just say that his role doesn't end when he... "dies".
This game is not just about getting revenge. That's what starts your quest, but once you reach Nastrond, it takes a roundabout way to avenge your brother, and save the world at the same time. The main quest is to retrieve the 5 shards of Crystalis, a jewel that resides in Saphiria, the land of the Seraph. It's twin, Necralis, is in Niflheim.
I won't explain why Crystalis shattered here, it might give too much away, but it shatters, and the balance between Niflheim and Saphiria is tipped, and it starts afecting your world, of Mircrea. You seek to retrieve all 5 shards and restore Crystalis.

Here's some items...

Item Groups:
List: Healing Items
List: Swords
List: Armor
List: Staff
List: Spirits
List: Special
List: Trinkets
List: Important

Healing Items:
List: Apple (+200 HP) "A good tasting apple."
List: Orange (+200 MP) "A juicy orange."
List: Herb (+500 HP) "It might taste bitter, but it's good for you."
List: Ki leaf (+200 SP) "Hmm...a leaf?"
List: Bandages (+400 HP) "Good for cuts and scrapes."
List: Potion (+500 HP, +500 SP) "Mmm...tastes good."
List: Life Bottle (Revive fallen comrade) "The essence of life..."
List: Seraph Cloak (+50 HP per second, for 10 seconds) "This fabric is hard to come by..."
List: Bread (+200 HP) "A tasty homebaked loaf."
List: Cake (+200 SP) "Mmm, it tastes great!"
List: Soul Jar (+1500 SP) "Fills you with energy."
List: Elixir (+2000 HP) "It tastes like water..."
List: Green Tea (Cures Poison) "Careful, it's hot!"
List: Mountain Water (Cures Poison, Stun and Burn) "Mmm, refreshing!"
List: Wisp (Cures Freeze) "A gentle summer's breeze..."
List: Dwarven Ale (Cures all status, +1000 HP, +2000 SP) "The dwarves finest ale!"
List: Acacia Sap (Cures Poison, Burn, +2000 HP, +1000 SP) "It's sticky, but it tastes really sweet!"
List: Willow Drought (Cures all status, +2500 HP, +2500 SP) "A revitalizing drought..."
List: Yggdrasil Leaf (Revives, Cures all status, +3000 HP, +3000 SP) "A leaf from the Yggdrasil tree itself!"
List: Seraph Mist (Revives, Cures all status, All HP, All SP) "A soothing mist from Saphiria."

Swords: (Chaz)
List: Wooden Sword (+25 Attack) "You made this sword yourself, and you practice with it a lot."
List: Iron Sword (+50 Attack) "A stronger sword, made of iron."
List: Dagger (+60 Attack) "Small weapon, good for speed."
List: Steel Sword (+75 Attack) "A sturdy steel sword."
List: Cutlass (+100 Attack) "Curved sword."
List: Desert Saber (+130 "Attack, Possible Stun) It's just a cheap desert import."
List: Crystal Sword (+150 "Attack) A fierce crystal sword."
List: Diamond Sword (+250 "Attack, Possible Freeze) Cold hard diamond."
List: Estoc (+300 Attack) "A slim sword, excellent speed."
List: Rapier (+330 Attack, Purification) "Holy sabre."
List: Excalibur (+350 Attack) "Ancient, yet still immensely powerful."
List: Katana (+400 Attack) "Oriental sword. Very lethal."
List: Osafune (+420 Attack) "Tough desert sword."
List: Masamune (+430 Attack, Possible Confuse) "A prickly desert sword."
List: Falchion (+450 Attack, Possible Poison) "Poison tipped sword."
List: Damascus (+480 Attack) "Great Defense and Offense."
List: Shamsir (+500 Attack, Possible Poison) "A long, curving, poison tipped sword."
List: Flamberge (+520 Attack, Possible Burn) "The mythical everflame sword."
List: Kopis (+550 Attack) "Razor sharp dagger."
List: Seraph Sword (+600 Attack, Possible Stun, Purification) "Divine sword of the Seraphim."

Armor: (Everyone)
List: Boots (+10 Defense) "They're old, but they've got good traction."
List: Wooden Shield (+25 Defense) "A solid wooden shield."
List: Leather Guard (+50 Defense) "Slow, but tough."
List: Copper Shield (+75 Defense) "It dents pretty easy..."
List: Steel Guard (+100 Defense) "Armor made of steel."
List: Chain Mail (+130 Defense, Speed Increase +5) "Light, but good protection."
List: Flame Shield (+150 Defense, Resists fire damage) "Hot stuff! It's flame resistant too."
List: Ice Shield (+150 Defense, Resists ice damage) "Pretty cool. You won't get frozen with this!"
List: Spike Shield (+160 Defense, 5 Damage to attacker) "Great Defense, and Offense!"
List: Elven Cloak (+180 Defense) "You'd blend in pretty good in the forest..."
List: Mage Robe (+200 Defense) The robes of a true mage."
List: Greaves (+220 Defense, 5 Damage to attacker) "Better watch where you kick."
List: Iron Helmet (+240 Defense) "Good head gear."
List: Deflector (+250 Defense, Possibly deflect attacks) "Attacks just glance off it!"
List: Buckler (+260 Defense) "Large shield."
List: Etherium Mail (+300 Defense, Purifaction to all attackers) "Holy mail. It's light too."
List: Steel Breastplate (+320 Defense) "A good defense."
List: Warrior Shield (+350 Defense, Speed Decrease -5) "The stuff of warriors!"
List: Mythril Guard (+380 Defense) "Lighter than air, and tougher than diamond!"
List: Divine protection (+400 Defense) "Protection of the Gods."

Staff: (Lynn)
List: Wooden Staff (+20 Attack, +30 Spirit) "Use it to heal people, and cast spells."
List: Ash Staff (+30 Attack, +50 Spirit) "Magical wood, from Shima."
List: Smoke Staff (+40 Attack, +100 Spirit) "Good for summoning spells, not so good for attacking."
List: Ice Rod (+80 Attack, +200 Spirit, Possible Freeze) "That's cold! Freezes most enemies."
List: Flame Rod (+80 Attack, +200 Spirit, Possible Burn) "Burns most enemies."
List: Shadow Staff (+100 Attack, +250 Spirit, "Possibe Confuse) A mysterious staff..."
List: Mage Staff (+110 Attack, +280 Spirit) "A magical staff, great for spellcasting."
List: Healer's Staff (+120 Attack, +300 Spirit) "Great for healers."
List: Wizard Staff (+150 Attack, +320 Spirit) "Only for the strongest wizards."
List: Battle Rod (+180 Attack, +350 Spirit) "Finally, some good attack power!"
List: Rune Staff (+180 Attack, +420 Spirit) "Ancient staff, with runes embedded into the head."
List: Silver Staff (+200 Attack, +380 Spirit) "A sleek silver staff."
List: Spirit Staff (+220 Attack, +450 Spirit, Purification) "A staff given to you by the kind spirits."
List: Diamond Rod (+250 Attack, +400 Spirit) "A formidable weapon."
List: Skeleton Key (+270 Attack, +430 Spirit) "A dark key..."
List: Thorn Scepter (+300 Attack, +410 Spirit, Possible Poison) "Just like a rose, you're weapons have got thorns too!"
List: Spiked Staff (+320 Attack, +420 Spirit, Possible Stun) "Ow, that's pretty sharp."
List: Merlin's Staff (+350 Attack, +460 Spirit) "The ancient staff said to have been used by Merlin himself."
List: Mythril Staff (+370 Attack, +480 Spirit) "An incredibly light staff!"
List: Holy Scepter (+400 Attack, +500 Spirit, Purification) "Light of the Seraphim."

Aether: (Ilo)
List: Lily (+40 Attack, +50 Spirit, Purification) "A calming breeze..."
List: Wisp (+50 Attack, +70 Spirit, Possible Poison) "A feeble, yet venomous spirit."
List: Slow (+100 Attack, +100 Spirit, Possible Confuse) "A slow moving spirit."
List: Defense (+110 Attack, +140 Spirit, Defense Increase +10) "Well, it's a good defense."
List: Agression (+150 Attack, +150 Spirit) "Hyah! Let out all that rage."
List: Flame (+180 Attack, +200 Spirit, Possible Burn) "Purgatory flame."
List: Glacier (+180 Attack, +200 Spirit, Possible Freeze) "From the depths of Niflheim..."
List: Stealth (+200 Attack, +220 Spirit) "Invisible spirit."
List: Mage (+250 Attack, +260 Spirit) "The spirit of a mage."
List: Terror (+280 Attack, +300 Spirit, Possible Stun) "A terrifying spirit."
List: Mana (+320 Attack, +350 Spirit) "A spirit of the earth."
List: Embla (+350 Attack, +380 Spirit) "Emblem of the royal family."
List: Mjolnir (+400 Attack, +420 Spirit) "Thor's hammer."
List: Osiris (+430 Attack, +450 Spirit, Possible Poison) "Venomous serpent spirit."
List: Destruction (+480 Attack, +500 Spirit) "A devastating blow!"
List: Comet (+500 Attack, +550 Magic) "Astral spirit."
List: Yggdrasil (+540 Attack, +600 Spirit, +5 HP Per Attack) "Essence of the forest."
List: Apocalypse (+600 Attack, +650 Spirit) "Terror of the wraiths."
List: Ragnarok (+650 Attack, +700 Spirit, Possible Confuse) "Complete chaos!"
List: Divine Judgement (+700 Attack, +800 Spirit, Purification) "The power of a Seraph..."

Special (Depends on the user):
List: LongBow (Chaz, Lynn) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+10 "Good distance!"
List: Kunai (Chaz, Ilo) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+10 "Sharp little daggers."
List: Shurikan (Ilo) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+20 "Watch where you throw those!"
List: Hatchet (Chaz) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+20 "A sturdy axe."
List: Chakram (Lynn) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+30 "A sharp disc."
List: Slicer (Lynn) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+30 "Careful where you grab it..."
List: Bamboo Pole (Ilo) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+30 "A tough bamboo pole."
List: Spiked Greaves (Chaz) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+30 "Better watch where you step!"
List: Zap Staff (Ilo, Lynn) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+30 "Ah! How electrifying."
List: Spear (Chaz) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+30 "A long spike."
List: Arbalest (Lynn) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+40 "Great precision!"
List: War Hammer (Chaz) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+40 "A massive hammer."
List: Mace (Chaz) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+40 "WOOSH!"
List: Halberd (Chaz) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+40 "A spiked axe."
List: Sai (Ilo, Lynn) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+40 "Flashy little daggers!"
List: Spirit Jar (Ilo, Lynn) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+50 + Random Spirit Attack "I wonder what's in here..."
List: Shrapnel Bomb (Ilo) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+50 "Ah! It stings!"
List: Jack O' Lantern. (All) Does 50% current health damage to all enemies. "You got this from Baba Yaga."
List: Pharao's Dagger (Lynn) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+50 "Wow, this thing is...old?"
List: Crysta Bomb (Lynn) Strongest Weapon Strength + Strength+50 + Random Spirit Attack "KABOOM!"



Trinkets (Everyone):
List: Charm (Luck +10)
List: Rabbit's Foot (Luck +20)
List: Vampire Fang (Luck +/-50)
List: Emerald (Spirit +50)
List: Ruby (Health +50)
List: Sapphire (Speed +20)
List: Headband (Strength +20)
List: Diamond (Strength +50)
List: Obsidian (All + 50)
List: Bell (Luck + 10)
List: Silver Bracelet (Luck +5, Protection against Confuse)
List: Silver Anklet (Luck +5, Protection against Stun)
List: Locket (Defense +10)
List: Lucky Amulet (Luck + 100)
List: Khepri (Strength +/-50)
List: Health Rune (Health +100)
List: Skill Rune (Spirit +100)
List: Demon Claw (All +/- 100)
List: Spirit Ring (Random Spirit Attacks)
List: Seraph Jewel (Health & Spirit +100)

Aether is basically a condensed spirit (human or otherwise) set in an orb of Etherium,
which is a solid form of light. The powers of a Spirit can be unleashed by simply stating their name.
It is said that ancient civiliations used spirit orbs, and perfected their creation as sacrifices to the Gods.
Usually the spirit of a dove, or plant were used in these sacrifices.
There are no records today as to how the light was condensed to make Etherium, but it is rumoured that there is still the talent
to create this substance somewhere in the world. As for the creation of Aether, to condense a spirit usually took hours of silent
meditation, in which the monk, or summoner would draw the spirit from the object and into the orb.

Etherium: All the records of the construction are supposedly lost, making it difficult to create Aether.
However, rumour has it that this talent is not completely lost. (In game, you find the one man who can still make Etherium, and he makes you armour).

Status:
Poison: 2% damage every 2 seconds.
Stun: Randomly stops you from attacking.
Confuse: Controls are reversed, and randomly stops you from attacking.
Burn: 5% damage every 2 seconds, Speed +5
Freeze: 5% damage every 2 seconds, Speed -5
Purification: Makes Undead enemies (See List below of enemy groupings) unable to attack.
Fatigue: Gradually builds up if you do not frequent an inn (every hour, +1 "FP") If your
"FP" reaches 5, you will often miss, become confused, and speed -5.
Other minor side effects are strength-1, and health -10. Set Fatigue to 0 by resting at an inn.
Dead: Cannot do anything until revived, except for ally AI controlling (Getting an ally to revive you, or heal another ally)
Petrified: Cannot do anything until cured.
Overclocked: All attacks will do 1/2 damage to you, and your attack power raises by 50.

Controls:
List: Z - Parry
List: X - Thrust
List: C - Special
List: V - Slash/Select
List: Space - Pulls up in-battle menu
List: Enter - Pull up overworld menu/Pause
List: Up - Moves cursor/Player up
List: Down - Moves Cursor/Player down
List: Right - Moves Cursor/Player left
List: Left - Moves Cursor/Player right
List: Shift - Siphon attack

Special Attacks:

Chaz:
List: Spin
List: Rage
List: Blade rain
List: Blind Rage
List: Torrential Blades
List: Decapitate
List: Kamikaze
List: Guardian

Ilo:
List: Scorch
List: Mince
List: Hype
List: Blind
List: Plague
List: Tsunami
List: Judgement Strike
List: Ether Guard

Lynn:
List: First Aid
List: Protect
List: Cure
List: Heal
List: Blaze
List: Spirit Rain
List: Awakening
List: Crysta Guardian


Siphon attacks: Press Shift while the Siphon meter is full, to start a Siphon attack. It draws all the surrounding energy, then uses it
to produce a large attack, with the assigned attacks of the whole team together to produce one major attack. Siphon attacks are assigned beforehand,
with your chosen special attack. When you start the Siphon attack, a bar will appear with 4 buttons. Hit V as the buttons pass the marker to execute them.
This way, you may not always get all four persons attacks, and only Player 1, and 2's. If you get at least one timed correctly, you should summon a Siphon attack.

Siphon Combos:
List: Ultima Barrier (Guardian, Ether Guard, Crysta Guardian) - Large dome forms around players, protecting them for 10 seconds afterwards,
and dealing 100 damage to any enemy inside the circle every second
List: Acid Rain (Torrential Blades/Blade Rain, Tsunami, Spirit Rain) - Pelts enemies with Rain that deals 10 damage a hit.(gets about 10-20 hits)
List: Torment (Decapitate, Plague, Blaze) - Tortures enemies, giving them Confusion, Poison and Burn, and deals 400 damage.
List: Wrath of the Seraphim (Awakening, Judgement Strike, Kamikaze) - All HP, All SP, Status effect cured, Overclock, Purifaction, Confuse,
Stun, Poison, Burn, Freeze, 500 damage a hit (Hits around 10 times, in concentrated areas)

Well, I would post a list of the 85 enemies, but I tried and it said my topic was too big XD. There's also 7 bosses and an eighth optional boss.
So, thanks for your time, I know that's a HUGE post, if anyone is interested, it would be great to either post here, or PM me. Thanks.
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: NyanNyanKoneko on October 21, 2005, 05:30:36 pm
How far are you in programming the game?

Can we see some of your or your partner's previous projects?

What are you using to make the game?  (C / C++, or a game engine like VIRGE?)
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 21, 2005, 05:58:09 pm
Well, as of now, we have nothing programmed. We're still wating for some graphics. I could show you some of his work, but there's not a whole lot of it. It's mostly small things to help people out in their own games, but he's made a few fuller engines, with a character that can use swords, roll around, equip items, and a bunch of other stuff.
As for myself, I'm a bit less experienced in coding, but I can do the generic walking around, fighting, AI, battle sequencing and such. I'm more of the composer, since I make the music for this game.

As for the language, well it's nothing as fancy as C++ or anything like that unfortunately, but my coder is really talented with Gamemaker. I know it sounds lame, but it's a quick way, and it means less work with results that are just as good.
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: NyanNyanKoneko on October 21, 2005, 06:20:34 pm
Hey, anything that speeds up development means that the game will have a better chance at success in the end.   ;D
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 21, 2005, 06:25:11 pm
True. Now if only there was someone talented willing to sprite for us  ::)
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: NyanNyanKoneko on October 21, 2005, 08:42:23 pm
I've made my fair share of games in the past, so let me give you my opinion of your RPG so far.

It's a highly derivative work taking elements from many early RPGs.  The character motivations are odd and melodramatic.  I have the feeling you worked out an entire backstory and you are determined to put it into the game.

My first suggestion is keep it simple.  It's good you, as the author, know everything about the world.  The player doesn't need to know everything.  Keep some stuff to yourself.

My second suggestion would be to keep the melodrama and heavy character devices to a minimum until you reach a climax in your storyline.  (Many RPGs have several climaxes, as they are designed as epics with several chapters or sub-stories.)  Anyways, I would start the game out without the player knowing his brother died, and start the game at the start of the main character's journey.

My third suggestion would be to not get carried away.  You don't need to make a 20 hour RPG.  A 30 minute to 1 hour RPG is fine, and a good way to practice making games.  You'd be amazed at the amount of content you'll need to keep the player interested for even 30 minutes. 

Squaresoft took 3 years to make games like Final Fantasy 3.  It also took a team of dedicated artists.  You do not have 3 years, nor a team of artists.  Design your game around your abilities as well as limitations.  Don't try to fight the limitations, but use them to enhance the game. 

Also, your storyline seems pre-occupied with death.  I would play down death in favor of violence or conflict.  I think a falling out with the main character's brother would be much more beneficial to crerating a colorfull character as opposed to his death (which creates a gloomy, 1-dimentional character at best.)

EDIT: As a final piece of advice, if you're looking for a more original and deep game, take something you're interested in , and then make a game about that; choose the genre to fit the theme.  In other words, don't choose a genre first.  For example, the most recent game I'm working on is about dreams and the subconcious.  I'm making it a platformer because I want it to have action, and I want there to be a focus on the enviroment, which you don't get from a top-down view from an RPG.

By choosing the genre first, you're basicly saying that you want to make a clone.  By making a game about a subject you're interested in, you're making something that's going to be more original and meaningfull. 
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 21, 2005, 10:07:39 pm
"Also, your storyline seems pre-occupied with death.  I would play down death in favor of violence or conflict.  I think a falling out with the main character's brother would be much more beneficial to crerating a colorfull character as opposed to his death (which creates a gloomy, 1-dimentional character at best.)"

It's not actually all that...by the time you wake up, right after that story clip I posted, you change your ideas as to why you're going out on this "quest". Also, your brother never really dies. It just looks like that, to give your guy some motivation to learn how to use a sword. He comes back later on in the game.

"My third suggestion would be to not get carried away.  You don't need to make a 20 hour RPG.  A 30 minute to 1 hour RPG is fine, and a good way to practice making games.  You'd be amazed at the amount of content you'll need to keep the player interested for even 30 minutes. "

I'm planning for maybe 4-5 hours max, and that's with sidequests and all that. And besides, I've already made a few smaller games.

Look, I'll post some more to make more sense. If you don't want the game to be spoiled, don't read this section.






Alright, when you find your brother, there's a sword sticking through his stomach. You're of course freaked out so you run back, alert the village, whatever. You learn to use the sword, but you're a lot quieter now. You don't completely go emo and everything, he just isn't as easily excited, etc anymore. After you blank out, you find out it was some guy that helped you. You ask him what those things were, and he explains all this stuff to you about Crystalis, etc. He never does explain how he knows all of this stuff, and your guy questions him sometimes, but, Ilo, the one who saved you is actually from Saphiria. Anyways, you go to the Gamla Catacombs to find a shard. After that, you go to Reia, the Main city in the game. It's under seige, and it's your brother, the one you thought was dead, in charge of the attack. He's being possessed though. Later on in the game you knock him to his senses (sort of literrally... :p) anyways, there's some other stuff, I won't go on though.


"It's a highly derivative work taking elements from many early RPGs.  The character motivations are odd and melodramatic.  I have the feeling you worked out an entire backstory and you are determined to put it into the game."

Would you mind naming these early RPGs? Also, I don't know if that was a complement or not. :p
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: NyanNyanKoneko on October 21, 2005, 10:33:03 pm
Quote
In this game, you start off as a simple villager kid, around the age of 7

Secret of Mana, Chrono Trigger, Lunar...

Quote
You train with the sword, day in and day out

The newest Arc the Lad.

Quote
find your brother’s killers

Avenging the death of a loved one is a common theme in so many RPGs.  The most famous example of a loved one dieing and motivating the main character, is, of course, FF7.

Quote
when a villager turns on you for no apparent reason

Secret of Mana, Final Fantasy IV, etc...

Quote
you are exiled
Secret of Mana.

Quote
you are attacked by 3 cloaked figures.
Sounds like something straight out of the Ultima series.

Quote
Caught by surprise, you're overpowered, and close to death, when from behind shines a calming light...and you blank out.
Final Fantasy 3 (VI) did this a lot.  Blinding light near death, black out, wake up later. 

Quote
save the world at the same time.
Almost every RPG ever made.

Quote
Well, I'll just say that his role doesn't end when he... "dies".
Someone dies, causes grief, and comes back later!  Sounds like every character from FF2 (IV).

Quote
5 shards of Crystalis.
This, in no way, mimics Final Fantasy in any way.   ::)

Anyways, your game, so far, is filled with cliches.  That's all.

This isn't a bad thing, but you should be aware of it, obviously.   ;D

Quote
I'm planning for maybe 4-5 hours max

That's a lot of RPG.  How long do you think it will take you to finish making the game?  That's a lot of content, especially if you're going for so many different enviroments and details.

EDIT: I'm assuming you're wanting to do something similar to Final Fantasy V or Final Fantasy VI in terms of level design, gameplay elements, and cut-scenes.  So correct me if you're planning on making something like zelda 1, which could take 4-5 hours to beat, but seems much more reasonable for a small team to do.
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 22, 2005, 03:18:27 am
"Secret of Mana, Chrono Trigger, Lunar..."

So you're around  7 years old in those games? Somehow I can't see that happening. And besides, that's just for the beginning. For the actual game, you're 16, close to turning 17.

"You train with the sword, day in and day out

The newest Arc the Lad."

I've never heard of Arc the Lad. And so what, I'm sure RPG characters have to practice to use the sword :P

"find your brother’s killers"

That's the motive for like...15 minutes. By the time you reach Nastrond, you basically forget about your brother, except to figure out who might be possessing him.

"you are attacked by 3 cloaked figures.
Sounds like something straight out of the Ultima series."

Well. I should make a correction. They're not exactly cloaked. They're liquid. Black semi-solid liquid. And I have no clue what the plot for the Ultima series was.


"save the world at the same time.
Almost every RPG ever made."

Of course this is true. XD Technically, it's all perspective. The world would stay perfectly intact if you did nothing, BUT if would become eviler, people's attitudes would change, nature would change, etc. Basically, it's the same world, tinged with Hell. I can't really explain this well. Think of it as a Dark World, yet people would be brainwashed into thinking all the evil was fine. Of course your guys would rather it stays the same.

"5 shards of Crystalis.
This, in no way, mimics Final Fantasy in any way. "

I honestly don't know the storyline for Final fantasy. Could you tell me how much it resembles it?


"I'm planning for maybe 4-5 hours max

That's a lot of RPG.  How long do you think it will take you to finish making the game?"

Over a year, possible 2. Don't worry, I'm dedicated. I've been planning for over 3-4 months, don't think I haven't looked into all the details, :P. And the areas are all on one large overworld that you travel around. There's I think, 8-10 towns or so, maybe 8 dungeons, then like, 6 places that are important, like caves, or lakes, etc.


As for style, I'll tell you this... The battle system is not your regular turn-based crap that you would get in a Final Fantasy game, or generic RPG. It's real-time, with terrain, weather, and the like to effect battles. It's all thought out though, I just need someone to do graphics  ::)
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: NyanNyanKoneko on October 22, 2005, 04:05:40 am
I guess your RPG is completely original then.   ;D
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 22, 2005, 04:06:43 am
Not really. Just debating :P Technically, it's nearly impossible to not have cliches.
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: NyanNyanKoneko on October 22, 2005, 04:09:44 am
Is that a challenge?   ;)
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 22, 2005, 04:21:57 am
No. Actually I'm tired of debating  ;D I'm not really good at it. Anyways, it's both sort of original, and cliched. at the same time? :p
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: NyanNyanKoneko on October 22, 2005, 04:32:07 am
That got me thinking anyways...   :P

Fraggle Rock RPG.  No specific main character.  An exploration of the benefit of communism.

Dickie Roberts: Private Eye.  A gritty detective RPG set in the 1940s in downtown Manhattan. 

American Beauty: Based after the movie of the same title, you play Lester Burnham, a man on the brink of a mid-life crisis.  This dark-comedy / drama RPG explores the fluid thoughts of Lester as he discovers what love really means to him.
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 22, 2005, 04:35:31 am
This has forced me to come up with a very creative idea for an RPG. A very creative idea I won't be using at all, for quite a while, anyways. It has to do with being a fish. It's like an adventure/RPG, but it's underwater. So there's new sorts of puzzles and stuff :p.
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: NyanNyanKoneko on October 22, 2005, 04:37:21 am
Honestly, your fish idea sounds a lot more fun and enjoyable than what you posted above...  to me anyways.   ;D
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Ari on October 22, 2005, 05:10:19 am
Well let me start off by saying my thoughts on the conversation in this thread so far.

When it comes to "originality" Having a very original game is great but you can easily go overboard on it like my older brother always dose. He hasn't stuck to an RPG for over a few minuets with the exception of lufia 2 and final fantasy 9. So he hasn't been pre exposed to all the other great epic RPG's out there. Yet even so he manages to pull out ideas from countless games i have played in my time. Such as "a spirit boy, who is a mage, very young, and lost, doesn't know of any family, or purpose, and has no reason or motive for life. He is nothing but a shadow with eyes that only wants to fill that void in his life. - I could think of a few personalaties that might relate too, Vivi from FF9 to point out a more closer match. (this was before he played FF9)

All sorts of character personalaties can be pulled from his ideas that Ive encountered in my RPGing over the years. It is like writing music. Today there is so many songs, and lyrics out there. It's hard to come up with original melodies, because it will allways sound like somebody else. The fact is. So many ideas have been layed out in all the epic RPG's over the years. Regardless of weather you have played them or not. Your going to find similar characters and story plots everywhere. Could square-enix propose an idea like this and be accepted? Or would people try and point out every thing in the game that is similar to another?

maybe he hasn't had as much experience as some of the big names in gaming. But everybody has to start somewhere. Dose anyone truly believe the final fantasy series popped out of the makers heads. Before that they were struggling to create a name for square with a great game. Like all great companies they all have to start somewhere and i bet you their first  ideas were nothing but a replica of all the other early games "save the princess" "restore order to the kingdom" "live happy ever after"

I like how your using your knowledge of RPG's to try and give constructave criticism to his plot, That's always helpfull, And i think maybe Q.K should take some of your thoughts to heart, as they are not all ment to be insults to the plot or the writer.
One thing is to always keep an open mind, Always leave room for change. Cause while you may have a big idea now of how the entire story will unfold, as you create it new ideas will always emerge, and with little blurps and opinions from your team you can make a great game.

Alot of movie directors make changes while filming based on actor suggestions. Which in the end benefits the movie 100%. You could look at almost all of the big companies games like square and enix, and capcom, Nintendo, etc. and I'm sure you could find just as many relations to other games in them as you did here. These things happen when writing a story. It's just alot easier to say to a new game developer who has no huge experience that he is ripping ideas off of other games, and writers.

I like a lot of your plans for the game, some aren't "spectacular" necessarily  but they can still work. I like the idea of him finding his bother only to realize he is evil and possessed. I think it should elaborate alot with that. So that you don't know it is your brother at the beginning. Let him be a happy good easy going great personality, fun main character, with friends, and a great life in his town. And  he has long gotten over his brothers death, but it still comes back to him now and then. Make him enjoy life. And then some tragedy happen, or an attack on something close to him, and he forces himself not to loose whats dear to him again. And he seeks out the trouble Which is a powerfull enemy throughout the game. He threatens your entire happiness and all you have left with his evil, and you grow to despise him in every way, he has destroyed everything you love, and you want to kill him, you and your party or whatever, go through the game, trying to stop him and his army or what not, and only in the climax, and important parts of the story, closer to the finish, do you get really involved, where you realize the creature you hate so much is the brother you loved with everything you thought you lost. He has no knowledge of you, and thinks your a stupid rat getting in the way of his master, and fights you many times, and you fight his monsters. You learn the true evil behind him, the main enemy, and you hate him with everything in you, for the loss of your brother not once, but twice. you learn about a plot greater than the one which you have been fighting to prevent the whole game. and you learn why your brother was taken, what is special about him, and what is special about you that makes you every bit if not more precious to the enemy, when you defeat your brother and he comes back to you, and tells you what you are suppose to know before he dies happy. you go after the main enemy, and then some melo drama and crap can set in, that way its not from the beginning, but it goes from being cheerful and witty, that attracts players to being a large plot. and deep into the story you reach the players on a different level with your "drama" and serious things happen there, with all sorts of emotions.

I'm not necessarily suggesting that or anything, I'm just speaking off of the top of my head. I personally like that melo-dramatic feel in games near the climax, or 3/4 through the game, where you really get involved as a gamer, and you feel the emotions as well. But its only good when your well into the story, and know the characters. Once you see them begin to change. but the beginning has to start off happy and not full of drama or emotions, but has to have lots of fun things that attract the players.

Having dynamic cast is also good. Characters who change as the story unfolds. for example, cloud strife from FF7, starts off, not really giving a damn about what happens to anyone else or the planet, he just wants his money, and he wants out of there. By the end of the game, hes not this stuck up guy anymore with no feelings. Hes expressing himself more, and taking on the role of a leader, and stepping up, treating his companions as family and not acquaintances. Or you got Steiner of FF9, hes a workaholic, who's only concern is his duty as the commander of the knights of Pluto, he has no feelings of his own. He lives and breaths souly to protect the princess and be the queens servant. Hes stuck on the idea that zidane and his friends are scoundrels who should be hung. But by the end, he is proud to even know him. And states he would go to the end of the world for him. His mannerisms change, and his speach changes. He learns to love his friends, and develops emotions and feelings of his own. The list could go on an on but i would get carried away.

But in the end, you don't need to be 100% totally off the chart original to attract people to a game. Sometimes i find it kind of weird playing one of those type of games, where they try so hard just to be different from the rest its just to obvious they are trying to hard. I like a game with some of the RPG roots, where its got some originality, in the battles, and menus, and characters, but still has many of the aspects that make the rpg, the things that make me love the type of game that they are.

My brother always tried to be so different from anything created when he makes game plots, that its almost stupid. He comes up with character names which consist of many unused letters, and silent ones, that have no purpose except to make the name difficult to read, and you wont pronounce it with out voice acting. for example "johanahsain" which supposedly means "yo-hansen" and he writes like 50 page layouts for battle or menu ideas that you need a degree to understand.

You don't have to stray away from what RPG's are to much to make a good game. Use the ideas that you think will make a good game, never make a game thinking "is this already in a game? damn! i gotta think of something new" Make a game with whatever it takes to make it the best it can be. Don't even stop to think if its already used somewhere. If it makes your game better, do it. You don't have to be different, you just have to be better. With final fantasy, they created the "active time battle system" where monsters and players attack based on a time bar, rather then in an exact specific order. Which revolutionized RPG battling. For all their games to come after that, did they completely remove that idea because it had already been used? no, they elaborated on it to make it better, adding aspects like "slow" and "haste" and with FF10 they made a meter which shows the order of turns.

Anyways my wrists are getting sore, and I'm blahbing on to much. Do i think your story can improve 100% during the making? most definitely. Do i think some parts need improvement? of course. Do i think it has even a remote possibility of becoming great? of course.
But you should never have to sit and think of the main characters age, and change it repeatadly because it might be the same as somebodys age in another game.
At the same time though, dont get me wrong, i dont think you shold go and copy a game completely and just change a few things  :P
When i write a story, i never write it all the way out first, write it as you go, it gives you more time to think about whats going to happen and what your building up to, rather than just writeing it all out from start to finish without any idea of how it feels. Your idea of how the plot should feel could change dramaticaly and you may need to go back to the baseics to adjust it to fit your new senario even. But always  keep an open mind.

Anyways i just thought id say that.
and yes this is tj :D
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: NyanNyanKoneko on October 22, 2005, 05:33:20 am
I agree with you, 100% Ari.

I think I might have come off as saying that I think everyone should strive to only do something original, I just thought the game he posted above sounded a little too cliche though.

Personally, I have never strived to do anything completely original because before I do anything, I have to think of my audience first.  Most of the players who play my games have played previous games.  I want them to use that previous knowlege to dive right into the game and feel comfortable.  I really want people to "get it" right away because I really only intend on interesting people for a few minutes.  Simply because something has been used before doesn't mean you can't use it again or improve upon it.

EDIT: Actually, more than ever, I think retro is becoming an awesome style of game design.  I mean, I love Alex the Alligator, and that was 4 colors.  Cave Story is a VGA retro game, but brilliant.   ;D
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 22, 2005, 06:18:16 am
Ello' thar tj... Some good tips there. I like that one paragraph with the whole "elaborate on your evil brother" thing. I'll definately work on that. And it's not really all that off-the-chart, as you put it :p It's different though, I suppose. Oh, and X freaking D at the "for example "johanahsain" which supposedly means "yo-hansen" and he writes like 50 page layouts for battle or menu ideas that you need a degree to understand." BTW, My characters names are Chaz, Ilo, and Lynn. Chaz's (Main character) brother is Ryan.

Uh I can't think of a whole lot else to say, except technically I'm still looking for someone to sprite :p. And actually, my coder has been suggesting things that are making the game even better.  Oh, and a little tidbit, it won't really mentioned in-game, just hinted at in various cutscenes, and someone in Saphiria knowing Ilo, but Ilo comes from Saphiria, which is why he can use magic. If anyone has any suggestions on how to make his character more detailed, such as actually being an angel/seraph, or whatever, let me know. Mainly though, I'm looking for a spriter. :p
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Ari on October 22, 2005, 06:41:09 am
Maybe if you propose some ideas of what kind of things could  be sprited right now? characters aren't always the easiest thing for a spriter to start on, though its probably the best idea, that way they can make tiles and what not to suite the character pallet and feel. But if you listed off some things, and gave some detailed descriptions of how you want the grass tiles and such to look. Why not give some graphic requirements, such as the tile size. Will they be 16x16 tiles? or 32x32? etc. What kind of things would be nice to start off with, like signs, ground tiles, item sprites etc.

What kind of style (most important, how will somebody have an idea if they are capeable of this job if they don't know what style your looking for? and by style i don't mean "gbc" or "snes" i mean like "chrono trigger" or "terranigma" if you give some suggestions on how you see the graphics possibly looking by referring to another game, it gives the spriters a more detailed idea of what kind of look your trying to capture. How much depth in color your looking at. Its a lot more complex than just asking for somebody to sprite it. Not everybody is good at all styles. It might feel a bit overwellming having to think of what kind of pallet/color depth your looking at, and size, but it would help alot for spriters possibly considering this project. Best advice i can come up with there, is look through some screenshots of different 2D games, and try and find one with a style and feel that best suits what you have pictured in your head.

Then post of up some screenshots of it, along with the basic necessity info. such as tile size and whatnot, and what kind of feel your looking for.
Cause to be honest, what you've got right now, is like giving a blind man a map and planting him in the middle of no where and telling him to get from point A to point B :P
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 22, 2005, 06:44:17 am
(http://www.megaworm.com/images/data/media/2/044.png)
(http://www.megaworm.com/images/data/media/2/026.png)
Ok, as you can see, I'm really looking for a Terranigma style here, for sprites and tiles. I'll also show you Illusion of Gaia...It's the "prequel" to Terranigma. I could only find this crappy most likely JPG'd picture though.
(http://www.megaworm.com/images/data/media/2/ecstatue.jpg)

I hope that tells you what kind of style I want? :p Oh, and if someone wants, I need forest tiles. It's a dark, mysterious forest, with branching paths, and old roads. Some streams, and other densely wooded areas. Stones, statues, random debris maybe? Water, rivers, logs (on their sides) maybe some hills, if you want, etc. Thanks...
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Helm on October 22, 2005, 07:37:54 am
Might I suggest you backtrack on that 'obviously I can't start without graphics' bit? Of course you can. It's called programmer art. Stickmen in 1bit, whatever. Make the whole game like that or at least part of it before recruiting people with no pay, no contract, and for what seems like a whole lot of work.
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Gil on October 22, 2005, 01:47:33 pm
Agreed. Start programming, after finishing compose an art team and give them exact data on what to make. The only time you'll ever see art development first would be on handheld, cause the specs are known beforehand there...
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 22, 2005, 04:02:59 pm
Well, alright :p I'll make this game with stickmen I guess and get people to sprite for it later...
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Mercury Rising on October 23, 2005, 02:32:34 am
Quote
I'm planning for maybe 4-5 hours max

That's a lot of RPG. How long do you think it will take you to finish making the game? That's a lot of content, especially if you're going for so many different enviroments and details.


This quote comes from one of the animators from Bungie,
“The best thing to do when making game is to get 30 seconds of fun and just keep doing it over and over again, if you don’t have that 30 seconds it wont be as good as it could be...” 
Now I love RPGs like Morrowind ect, yet I hate turn based I feel it ruins the game.  I don’t have the time atm to sift through all the posts here to find out if you said its turn based or not but if it is ^^^ if not ignore that.

Someone probably said all of this so far; don’t start off the game with the player knowing too much try and get them to learn about the character subliminally, by interactions with other people or sneak in into cut scenes.   Like someone else probably said code first then let the artists come to you.

(Ps I've played 300hr rpgs... yet a 5hr rpg is a large task for one man)





"...you're 16, close to turning 17."  *Sings* I am 16 going on 17! *Sings*
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: Q.K. on October 23, 2005, 05:14:34 am
Indeed. :p Oh, and no, it's not turn-based. I don't really like turn-based. Sort of boring. It's real time. And I'm talking with some people on how to enhance the story, and characters, etc.
Title: Re: Requesting a talented pixel artist for an RPG.
Post by: NyanNyanKoneko on October 23, 2005, 07:33:08 am
Q.K., everyone is a critic.  Listen to others, but be strong in what you believe is best for your game.   ;D 

Someone will always think your game is lame no matter how awesome you think it is.  Don't let it get you down!

I believe in you!   ;D