Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Lap]

That's OK. All the important stuff get's reposted here anyways. Before too much coding gets figured out the core character stats need to be decided.

The two main contenders are

1. Standard D&D style str, dex, etc.

2. SPECIALesque (Fallout's system)

Though really, there's nothing limiting us to either if there are any better ideas.

Levels are a bit trickier. Should there be levels? If there are levels how do you get them? Do you get them by leveling up so many skills (Elder Scrolls) or by getting experience points?

How should skills improve? Through use or training? Through applying experience points?

[Tilla]

Skill based systems are always better to me than level based. But that's widely up to taste.

[cappstv]

We are taking a realistic approach to this game, correct?
If so there should be no levels. You don't level up in real life.

[dbfuru]

I want to wish you good luck with this project, I will keep an eye on this, I'm interested in seeing a crime based roguelike being made. I wish I could help, but all I could do is offer suggestions as I don't really have any programming experience outside Visual Basic.

Also, I would like it if you did a DF-esque body system, instead of HP. It could make the game more interesting, say you are running from a robbery and get shot in the leg, fall over and crawl away, and just barely escape. Or just roll over and shoot your pursuers in a last stand type thing.

[Yodamaster]

Another consideration to take into account with the realism is how proficient you can become at something.

No matter how skilled you are, you will always fail some of the time. With some more advanced forms of security, it's practically impossible for a single person to bypass directly.

You'll have to be able to manipulate people (like what was being discussed before) to be most effective. You won't really break into Mr.Richmansuperalarm's house in the middle of the night and murder him, or even UristMcPoorGuy who might have the common sense to dead-bolt his door.

It's much more practical for a killer to do something like pick up a girl (or guy) and take them behind some building to make out.

With knives and guns.

More than anything being proficient should come from better equipment. No matter how good you are with a pistol, you really can't beat 2 or more cops in a firefight. However, if they came in with pistol and you had, say, an assault rifle, that's another story.

What I would also suggest is that awesome Bourne-style hand to hand be added into the game. Just an option. To be totally badass. I've always wanted to be abl - play a game where you could beat people up like that.

[Kusgnos]

I kind of like D&D stats, but we could modify them a bit.

Muscle - determines physical damage, how much character could carry
Constitution - Resistance to illness, poison, fatigue
Coordination - determines accuracy, things like lockpicking
Intelligence - intelligence based skills, hiding your trails
Charisma - making people like you, all that
Willpower - whether your character could weather non-physical stress, especially if the game implements that status-type idea with concern/worry/fear
Perception - helps you notice things that you might normally miss (sounds and details)

I'd prefer no leveling. Using a skill to get better at it. For example, with sneaking, there has to be someone around before you'd gain practice with the skill.

[Cthulhu]

I agree, skills should go up by use but you shouldn't be able to reach any kind of superhuman levels with it.

[mikefictiti0us]

For the love of Armok, don't use numbers to represent your stats in the game. The hoax interface looked unique because it ignored the usual RL conventions of placing numbered stats all over the place. Maybe it's just me, but I've passed on many a roguelike because the developer used an interface that looked interchangeable from the hordes of dungeon crawling clones that are out there.

[x2yzh9]

I think we should have a daily/weekly dev/coding session, at to prevent inactivity, and to make it easier to collaborate. I'm pretty sure Piratepad would work for this. What about 6 P.M. Central Standard Time(UTC -06)?

[Cthulhu]

I would also like to avoid using a lot of numbers, at least in the actual interface.  Obviously the stats would be represented by numbers, but maybe abstract them out for the player.

[cappstv]

Also, we must be able to jump off roofs of buildings into a window of another building.
The randomly generated FBI agents would be all like "woah".
Which reminds me, is this just going to be the bad guys, or could we have the option of being law enforcement?
It be cool if you could play as a mole inside the mob.

[Yodamaster]

Which reminds me, is this just going to be the bad guys, or could we have the option of being law enforcement?
It be cool if you could play as a mole inside the mob.

Let's not get ahead of ourselves here xD

[cappstv]

Let's not get ahead of ourselves here xD

Not for the first version of course, just something to think about for later on.

[Ringmaster]

Alright, I don't know code but I was seriously intrigued by the SK RL and am already intrigued by this Roguelike.

I'm posting just to say you have a fan in me, and to offer some creative advice that has worked for me with other things in the past:

1. Don't burn yourself out thinking about features that you'll implement 'later on', think about what you're gonna do right now, figure out what things you want in straight away (character creation, a couple of basic locations, very simple AI/NPCs). If you keep brainstorming about what you want in the game you won't actually get any work done.

2. The idea about getting together at a certain time to work on the game is brilliant.

3. Ignore fan suggestions, you may end up making promises that you can't fulfill in the finished product.

4. Give yourself goals to work toward every month, like Toady makes a list of the features he's working on for the next update.

5. You've got a huge amount of support here, so maybe you should aim to release an alpha some time soon before the support starts to diminish?

(Alright, the last one was a thinly veiled 'I WANT TO TEST IT' request, but the rest were serious, honest)

[Itnetlolor]

Putting in my 2˘.

I'd like to see some of the things I mentioned in the old thread get applied to this, like the jumping features and such (especially applied to rooftop jumping and other methods of escape); along with buildings with fire escapes (only taller than 4z or something).

I had other good ideas I think. I'll have to sniff them out, but I'll link them (or edit my post) when I find them. Spoilered for your convenience.

Spoiler: Alternate Modes (click to show/hide)

It does look awesome however. I wonder if they'll be willing to add a mode where you play as the victim, and the attacker(s) could come from anywhere at any time without warning. Heck, start in a mansion, and maybe the serial killer spawns within the home, and you aren't aware of it?

It would probably have to start with the house loading up, and you're forced to wait about 10-25 turns before you can move around; as if you were watching a horror flick on TV or something. Make it a surprise. But that would probably apply better as a bonus mode or something.

Consider this:
You watched a horror movie, you feel uneasy, you go for a snack and then you notice shadows pass, in a panic, your character runs a few tiles in a random direction and then the round starts, and you're not sure where the killer may be. You now have to find a phone to call somebody, but you can't scream in terror unless you actually see the killer. Add the wait time for the police to arrive or the neighbors to help, this mode of the game becomes a survival horror within your own home.

FURTHER DETAIL:
Quote from: Josephus on August 24, 2010, 12:07:27 am

Like   I said, this seems more of a thriller/suspense type movie than a   slasher movie. Victim mode would be awesome. You would of course start   with a "party" of victims. I guess you'd be scored higher depending on   how many survive the slashing?

Regarding   having a party, there would have to be a mole within the group, so to   speak. Then again, the movie "Scream" comes to mind.

Spoiler: Character Flaws (click to show/hide)

Oddball idea:
OCD being a flaw of the character.

After   stabbing target, and you walk away from the victim, unwillingly, your   character returns to the victim and stabs again, and this repeats for a   random amount of times before you can actually get away. Running away   before the cops arrive will be a bit more challenging.

It   wouldn't help either if you're trying to be stealthy and come into the   victim's home, and you're opening and closing the door like mad too.

No offense to those who do have OCD; I just figured this could add a challenge to the game.

Disguises are a definite must (no need to fully quote). More charisma, better chances of working.

Spoiler: Patrols; smart NPCs (unless playing easy) (click to show/hide)

Quote from: kholhaus on August 24, 2010, 02:00:42 am

>Break in LIGHTLY into house, kill owner, and inflict wounds on self.

>cops arrive

>Pretend to be House Owner, claiming that he assaulted you.

What if the cops have BS detectors (intuition), or what if they know the dude you mauled?

What   if there's an off-duty cop as a neighbor? And what about nightly   patrols, or even people casually walking the streets (nighttime dog   walking or something; morning jogger, rambling bum, drunk stumbling   home)?

And we'll need clever ways of disposing the evidence;   even/especially body-wise. I say, if you have a butcher's background,   you can sell Soylent Green or head cheese. Or if you're in a rather fell   mood, convert the body into furniture or items, and call it an   artifact.

Racked up enough bones after wasting the town? Ship them over to a dwarven community and have them craft a chapel out of them.

Spoiler: Traps, real and fake ones. Deceptions, private organizations like GITS Section 9 (click to show/hide)

Yeah, making puzzles for investigators and police in general with a   series of traps rigged (false and real ones mixed within) can be rather   awesome.

For some reason, I'm thinking about the episode of Ghost   in the Shell: 2nd Gig where Aramaki and an old friend of his are   trapped in a hostage situation (at a wine bank, I think; and Major   Kusanagi is helpless to the situation as well), and even the criminals   are caught in a situation of their own, and he comes up with an awesome   plan to get everyone out of it alive (if you've watched GITS, you know   what episode I am talking about). The kind of things he came up with in   the episode were downright awesome, and I would love to try and pull   something similar to those off in this as an escape route.

Which reminds me, we need bomb squads in this to make this a possibility. Also shadow organizations like Section 9.

Spoiler: Manipulation and crime bossery (click to show/hide)

Quote from: Tilla on August 26, 2010, 07:04:06 pm>Quote from: Hugna on August 26, 2010, 06:55:24 pm>Quote from: Acanthus117 on August 26, 2010, 06:46:08 pm

I   just want to be able to scare the shit out of police by leaving   messages and riddles on the wall, and tapings of the victim's last few   hours.

That'd be fun.

Of course, I'd cheat by playing a really smart guy to prevent any damning evidence being found...

Or what if I wanted my temporary hideout to be found, and the cops'll find a little... pyrotechnic present waiting for 'em?

That'd be cool.

Didn't Death Note do stuff like that already?

Death   Note was more about psychological manipulation, no actual traps were   set. Social engineering rather than actual literal engineering
However,   there were some decent tricks done with tele-manipulation (the Death   Note did manipulate people before their demise after all; Light tested   the limits and possibilities with a few experiment kills). Now if you   can use your charisma to pull that kind of stuff off in a more plausible   manner like in Monster; we can get more interesting results. Geass be   damned. This is how you get people to do your bidding.

EDIT:
A   Johan character would be awesome to play in this. Ridiculous to mimic   his methods, but awesome nonetheless. Heck, that could also be another   flaw. Overcome by a greater evil that isn't nor is within you. IE- A   (human) Monster in the flesh that you are doing deeds for either out of   admiration or fear (Criminals doing the deed for a greater force (IE-   Johan)). Then you have Johan himself; indirectly killing all sorts of   people a majority of the time by inspiring other criminals to do his   bidding and/or using his charisma to get close, and strike, then killing   those same criminals a good time later when he's done with them.

Yeah,   Monster would be awesome to use as a template. But we'll need a doctor   that is on a constant chase to hunt you down if you're playing the Johan   type. As for adding kids as murderers/murdered; well if you want to   replicate 511 Kinderheim, go ahead.

Spoiler: Special weapon idea/Easter Egg (click to show/hide)

Quote from: Dwarf mc dwarf on August 27, 2010, 01:37:12 am>Quote from: rawr359 on August 27, 2010, 01:35:26 am

Swear to God, if you guys start bitching again...

You'll throw explosive double downs at us?
That must be a weapon we can craft.

Spoiler: Jump system and allergies and such (click to show/hide)

With multi-story and possibly apartment buildings; you can attempt   window-drop kills, landing in dumpsters, filled or not (as previously   suggested (depending on what's in the dumpster can improve odds of   survival; like a dumpster full of soft garbage or mattresses could give   you +50% to survival, whereas hard garbage, glass, or scrap metals (like   fencing or furniture) is -75% to survival, added on top of damage done   by a fall of whatever height; intelligence affects fall accuracy)), or   fence kills (nothing like skewering your target with a wrought-iron   fence; stair-dropping, or even restraining your target onto a lightning   rod and waiting for a storm to fry him.

If allergies are an   eventual feature; we can get a beehive, toss it into a victim's house   whose allergic to bees, and watch as they get stung apart. You can also   try to unleash some black mold or asbestos if you can get a hold of them   onto your sleeping target. Heck, got a pet tarantula or scorpion or   snake, let those loose and poison your target with venom as well. If you   also have pet doberman or rottweiler (police can also sic these guys on   you as well), send them to chase or ambush your victim and bite off   limbs.

EDIT:
Also with apartment buildings or multi-story   buildings, we need fire escapes as a method of entry/exit, as well as a   jump system to hop from balcony to balcony (or building to building if   they are close enough to each other) at least jumping 1-2 tiles, up to   3-4 if particularly strong or nimble, with maybe a running start. Also   inherent with being smart enough, your character can automatically tuck   and roll upon landing, especially if the jump is from 2 different   heights (particularly -1z) to minimize damage upon landing. It would   also help in evading police. Heck, it could double as a parkour   challenge.

EDIT EDIT:
I guess if you also want silly ways of   offing someone, have the ability to drop stuff on people from 1 to many   stories above them. Even go as silly as throwing water (or blood)   balloons at your targets; then when they least expect it, a rock.

For   additional fun, act suspicious enough for your neighbor to snoop around   your house, and go morbid Home Alone on them, dropping limbs from   above, and having the victim slip and fall on their back because the   floor is riddled with eyeballs and other random stuff; place random   flamethrowers and heated doorknobs, tar and feather them, and drop a   tarantula on them. Oh, and don't forget broken glass next to the   windows, and slippery ice next to the doorways. When the police start   chasing you down, continue the assault and use the zipline from the top   of your home to a nearby treehouse.

Spoiler: And a source of inspiration (click to show/hide)

I wonder if CK has visited Tropes for reference material at all?

EDIT:
So many pages to thumb through. This could take awhile. Done.