Changes between Version 1 and Version 2 of 0AD_The_Vision
- Timestamp:
- Jun 27, 2009, 6:39:57 PM (15 years ago)
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0AD_The_Vision
v1 v2 39 39 Out of the 12 civilisations, which is the best? Well, we don't know! That decision is put in the hands of the player. It is up to them to either recreate or rewrite history. 40 40 41 __2000 YEARS AGO__ 41 ====2000 YEARS AGO==== 42 42 43 43 The game will draw people back 2000 years. This could be a bit difficult because nobody really knows for sure how things were exactly. Much information was lost during the dark ages. We are therefore basing most everything on what our historians have been able to dig up for us. We are taking a great effort to avoid stereotypical imagery and notions, in an effort to give our players a realistic world. … … 49 49 This game will make you (as a player) feel like you are in command of a civilisation. You make the decisions that will lead to their ultimate rise or demise. 50 50 51 __Heart and Soul of 0 A.D.__ 51 ====Heart and Soul of 0 A.D.==== 52 52 53 53 If you strip down the project to its very basic core we are left with a 'game'. It all boils down to a competitive activity, with a set of rules in which players are engaged in a challenge that provides entertainment and amusement. Players will also be rewarded by successfully surpassing the challenges set before them. … … 78 78 When a player is given an obstacle to overcome and they accomplish their goal, they should be rewarded. It will be the reward that encourages them to continue playing. The more they play, the more parts of the game they will 'unlock'. 79 79 80 __A Responsibility__ 80 ====A Responsibility==== 81 81 82 82 Because we are in a unique position of engaging the minds of young adults, I believe it is our responsibility to portray the game world as true to history as possible. There are going to be many names/places/events that many people are not familiar with from the general education they receive at their schools. … … 86 86 As the philosopher George Santayana said, “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.” 87 87 88 __Snares__ 88 ====Snares==== 89 89 90 90 It is very easy for a game to fall prey to many of the common mistakes that prove disastrous to the games in the RTS genre. We need to keep our guard up and avoid these pitfalls: … … 97 97 * '''Overly Ambitious''' - I think it is very important for us to always remember that this is the first project we have ever done. Much of the knowledge we have gained is based on trial and error. We will probably continue to forge forward in this fashion. We need to understand our limits and avoid getting fixed on them. We should aim high, but not so high that our goals are unattainable. 98 98 99 __Why?__ 99 ====Why?==== 100 100 101 101 What is in it for me? Why would someone play our game over another game? I think the largest factor in answering that question would be that the game is FREE. Perhaps not the best reason why people will play our game, but it should not be discredited. … … 116 116 * '''Real World Map Realism''' - Random Maps based upon geographical regions where the civilisations of the ancient world lived and 'died'. These will be generated with biome specific-to-location features that replicate (as best we have researched) the look and feel of the world as it existed 2,000 years ago. This provides for further player immersion into the game. 117 117 118 __RTS Genre__ 118 ====RTS Genre==== 119 119 120 120 You're probably thinking, "Why is someone creating another RTS game?" Since we converted the 0 A.D. project from an Age of Kings modification project to a complete stand-alone game, we have grappled with this same question. If it is just another clone, what is the point? Hasn't the RTS genre reached its pinnacle? Isn't it time to move on? … … 126 126 Developers do not seem to be content to further the traditional RTS in the same vein as Age of Empires, Command and Conquer, Red Alert, and Warcraft II. Though some are fleeing, we are going to stake a claim in the RTS genre. There is still much innovation to be made. This for us means: 127 127 128 A. Less tedious/mindless micro-management129 B. More strategic thinking130 C. Greater stress on planning, formations, and tactics131 D. Choices, Choices, and more Choices132 E. Enhancing the multiplayer experience128 A. Less tedious/mindless micro-management 129 B. More strategic thinking 130 C. Greater stress on planning, formations, and tactics 131 D. Choices, Choices, and more Choices 132 E. Enhancing the multiplayer experience 133 133 134 134 Innovation (nowadays) is not “amazing 3D graphics” or “hundreds of units”. Those are now merely the standard by which an RTS is measured; a rite of passage. If that is all we can hope to attain, then it won't do us any good that the game is free; we would probably have to pay people to play it. … … 136 136 So we set out to create our own game… It is a large task, but I am confident that our team is up to it. Are we worried that the game will not be original enough? Yes, we are. But, we are doing our best to ensure that it will be a product worthy of being called a 'game' and not just a clone. 137 137 138 __A Comparison__ 138 ====A Comparison==== 139 139 140 140 If you were to compare our game to other games, how would it stack up? What would be familiar? Here is a rundown of commonalities with other games. 141 141 142 Age of Empires - Historical era143 Age of Kings - Basic combat system144 Rise of Nations - Territories145 Generals - Ranks146 Warcraft III - Heroes147 Praetorians - Units in trees148 Knights of Honor - Units on structures149 Civilization - Technology 'tree'142 * Age of Empires - Historical era 143 * Age of Kings - Basic combat system 144 * Rise of Nations - Territories 145 * Generals - Ranks 146 * Warcraft III - Heroes 147 * Praetorians - Units in trees 148 * Knights of Honor - Units on structures 149 * Civilization - Technology 'tree' 150 150 151 Our Audience 151 152 ====Our Audience==== 152 153 153 154 The players we are targeting will likely have one of the following traits: 154 An interest in our time period and/or civilisations 155 Ancient warfare 156 “Age of” gamers 157 RTS buffs 158 Map Makers 159 Mod Makers 160 Single Player campaign players 161 Online Multiplayers 162 LAN Partiers 163 WFG Team 155 * An interest in our time period and/or civilisations 156 * Ancient warfare 157 * “Age of” gamers 158 * RTS buffs 159 * Map Makers 160 * Mod Makers 161 * Single Player campaign players 162 * Online Multiplayers 163 * LAN Partiers 164 165 166 ====WFG Team==== 164 167 165 168 The Wildfire Games team is an assembly of individuals with a large variance of location, experience, skills, and personalities. Together, as a team, we have united to partake in an experience that very few have successfully completed. 166 169 167 170 There are many obstacles we must overcome if this game is to be completed: 168 Virtual - We are a virtual team with no central office. All our communication is done via the internet. 169 Hobbyist - None of us are doing this as a fully time job. We are not paid. This project comes secondary to work, school, and family. 170 Inexperience - Very few of us have done this for a living. There are so many things we have to learn by trial and error. 171 Expansive - RTS games are complex. The sheer volume of art, music, scripts, and code that needs to be created is a huge task, even for a professional development studio. 172 Reward - The payoff for developing this game is not a salary. Many prospective staff members are turned off by the fact that we cannot offer monetary compensation. 171 * '''Virtual''' - We are a virtual team with no central office. All our communication is done via the internet. 172 * '''Hobbyist''' - None of us are doing this as a fully time job. We are not paid. This project comes secondary to work, school, and family. 173 * '''Inexperience''' - Very few of us have done this for a living. There are so many things we have to learn by trial and error. 174 * '''Expansive''' - RTS games are complex. The sheer volume of art, music, scripts, and code that needs to be created is a huge task, even for a professional development studio. 175 * '''Reward''' - The payoff for developing this game is not a salary. Many prospective staff members are turned off by the fact that we cannot offer monetary compensation. 176 173 177 For our team, it will be an uphill battle. Though it will be difficult I am sure our team can rise to the challenge. Talent attracts talent, and we certainly have a lot of it. If we continue to surround ourselves with the best and the brightest we will surely maintain our potential for quality and excellence.
