Post by Erwin on Mar 20, 2015 13:33:22 GMT -8
I'm not sure exactly if this qualifies as "art," so I might be in the wrong section here, but whatever.
One of my childhood dreams was to create an online game. Like an MMORPG, except not "massively" because even when I was like 12 I realized that there was no chance of me really making an RPG as popular as Maple or the like. I even got pretty far during my first year in high school and had a few people playing on an RPG I was developing. It had about 300 maps, but for some reason or another I lost interest. Here's a screenshot of what I had complete on the world map; there was also a tutorial island which was an additional 60 maps, plus a few party quests.
But that's in the past. And as The Governor from Walking Dead says, "I say, we should leave the past in the past." Recently, around last summer, I had the idea the rekindle my childhood dream of creating an RPG. My pragmatic 19 year-old self realized that the best way to do this would be to create a single player RPG, rather than an online one, so I utilized the help of RPG Maker 2000, a program in which I had dabbled in my childhood. So I buckled down and spent around 6-7 hours of work a day on developing this RPG; this includes arranging some of the music by ear (including a few Iron Maiden and Blue Oyster Cult songs which I felt were fitting for the atmosphere of this game), editing some of the pre-provided sprites (with what limited MS Paint skills I have), doing all the mapping, conceptualizing the storyline and everything else.
So behold, the fruit of my labors. I can say that I've now accomplished one of my childhood dreams!
If you decide to play, then have fun!
Some final words for those interested in playing:
And lastly, if I were to rate my own game...
One of my childhood dreams was to create an online game. Like an MMORPG, except not "massively" because even when I was like 12 I realized that there was no chance of me really making an RPG as popular as Maple or the like. I even got pretty far during my first year in high school and had a few people playing on an RPG I was developing. It had about 300 maps, but for some reason or another I lost interest. Here's a screenshot of what I had complete on the world map; there was also a tutorial island which was an additional 60 maps, plus a few party quests.
But that's in the past. And as The Governor from Walking Dead says, "I say, we should leave the past in the past." Recently, around last summer, I had the idea the rekindle my childhood dream of creating an RPG. My pragmatic 19 year-old self realized that the best way to do this would be to create a single player RPG, rather than an online one, so I utilized the help of RPG Maker 2000, a program in which I had dabbled in my childhood. So I buckled down and spent around 6-7 hours of work a day on developing this RPG; this includes arranging some of the music by ear (including a few Iron Maiden and Blue Oyster Cult songs which I felt were fitting for the atmosphere of this game), editing some of the pre-provided sprites (with what limited MS Paint skills I have), doing all the mapping, conceptualizing the storyline and everything else.
So behold, the fruit of my labors. I can say that I've now accomplished one of my childhood dreams!
If you decide to play, then have fun!Some final words for those interested in playing:
- To play the game, download the file from dropbox, extract it to somewhere, and then run the "RPG_RT.exe" file. Once in the game, you can press F4 to toggle full screen, and F5 to toggle the size of the window if you are in windowed mode.
- Controls: Z, X, C, Arrow Keys, and Enter. You can pretty much figure out what they do.
- This took me roughly 600-700 hours of work (I would estimate), so it's nowhere near the quality of the classics, such as Final Fantasy X or Skies of Arcadia, which took full teams of professional, paid developers tens of thousands of man hours to create. That being said, I still think it's playable. I hope you do too.
- It should be almost completely bug-free; I've played through the game three times fully and have eradicated any that I have found. That being said, there may still be some lingering ones, and if you find any, report 'em to me.
- Have fun finding these. There's a plethora of easter eggs hidden within the game, not the least of which is the male party members' names, which are {Spoiler}
names of the band members of Iron Maiden - The "instruction manual" is included in the .rar file. It's titled "All About Expedition.docx." It contains... well, exactly what it states on the tin. Character information, including personality descriptions/skill sets, the entire plotline, and a "works cited" with every resource I used in creating the game.
And lastly, if I were to rate my own game...
{Spoiler}
Storyline: 5/10. It works, but it's nothing special and it's quite obviously a rehashing of Skies of Arcadia, on a lesser scale. I do like the overall message which I was intending to convey, though, which relates to religious hypocrisy and how in the end, your deeds rather than your beliefs speak for themselves.
Map design: 9/10. One of the stronger points of the game. The atmospheres are varied, link together well, and generally have a good deal of thought put into them. Many of the areas strike me as being "beautiful," even if I was the one who created them.
Sound: 9/10. Being that I was the one who masterminded the music selection, of course I'm going to be a little biased. But I think that the music in the game suits the mood perfectly, and it contributes to the enjoyment of the game, rather than simply being there (as is the case with some games) or being a detriment (like in Crazy Bus).
Gameplay: 6.5/10. It's a vanilla RPG Maker 2000 RPG. Not much to say here. I do like what I did with the party system, though, and I find that there's some replay value to be had, what with the customizable parties.
Overall: 6.5-7/10. Enjoyable, and it has its moments, but it's nothing special. Gameplay feels slow and repetitive at times, although this is somewhat alleviated by the varied aesthetic design and the character who can be lively at times.
Storyline: 5/10. It works, but it's nothing special and it's quite obviously a rehashing of Skies of Arcadia, on a lesser scale. I do like the overall message which I was intending to convey, though, which relates to religious hypocrisy and how in the end, your deeds rather than your beliefs speak for themselves.
Map design: 9/10. One of the stronger points of the game. The atmospheres are varied, link together well, and generally have a good deal of thought put into them. Many of the areas strike me as being "beautiful," even if I was the one who created them.
Sound: 9/10. Being that I was the one who masterminded the music selection, of course I'm going to be a little biased. But I think that the music in the game suits the mood perfectly, and it contributes to the enjoyment of the game, rather than simply being there (as is the case with some games) or being a detriment (like in Crazy Bus).
Gameplay: 6.5/10. It's a vanilla RPG Maker 2000 RPG. Not much to say here. I do like what I did with the party system, though, and I find that there's some replay value to be had, what with the customizable parties.
Overall: 6.5-7/10. Enjoyable, and it has its moments, but it's nothing special. Gameplay feels slow and repetitive at times, although this is somewhat alleviated by the varied aesthetic design and the character who can be lively at times.
