With every good video game that I've seen, they all began with an idea about what the game is going to be about. If you have an idea, great! If you don't, start thinking. When creating ideas, what I sometimes do is think about what I like and what I already know. You need to make an idea that you will like. So, find out what you like. If you like to play games, go and play your favorite games. Or if reading is your thing, go read those special books. As you play or read, notice what is it that you like about it. Is it the action? Is it the suspense? Is it the obstacles in the character's path? Is it making a headshot on an opponent far away? Is it the fact you can compete against people across the globe? Is it more than one thing? All of these ideas help you draw inspiration for ideas about a genre. Let's say that you like action and passing obstacles. Then you realise that an action-platformer is right for you. Or maybe you like shooting and competition. Than you would like a multiplayer shoot-em-up. You need to know what you like in order to create an idea that you like. For these tutorials, I'm going to say that I like action-platforming. You don't need to use my ideas, as I am simply showing you by example.
Next, think about the setting. The time and place. Again look to other creations and notice what you like. Maybe you like castle-filled fantasy games that take place in medeival times. Or maybe you like realistic games that take place in cities of the present. It's your decision, which makes it that much better. I'm going to say that I like science-fiction games that take place on another world sometime in the future. But I also like exotic settings, like deserts and canyons. Could there be a desert on some far-off world? I can make it so, which is why I like making my own games. Because I can make what I want, and it doesn't have to be realistic.
Now, think about the main character, one of the hardest aspects of gaming to design, in my opinion. Ask yourself: What is it? Is it human, or superterrestrial, or machanical, or beast-like? Who is it? Does it have a name? What does it look like? What is its personality like? Is there more than one main character? All of these factors come together to form a basic image of this character in your mind. Can you see it now? I can see my character. I see a machine, a robot. It has a basic humanoid shape, with two legs and two arms, and it is somewhat hunched over. It is strong, with broad shoulders and massive arms. It has a single, blue, glowing eye, and an empty cavity where the other is supposed to be. Its metal parts are somewhat rusted and the paint bleached and faded after years in the sand and sun. Its name is Chau'ud. You need to have a basic idea of what the character looks like, even if that idea is not yet complete.
In the next post, I will be focusing on the finer details of the game. Until next time.
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