HAKK3R and Fallout Anarchy are projects that I have been working years on, and that I hold dearly. Though, I don’t feel like either are truly a good game right now. Does anyone have any good suggestions on how to create a good game?
https://flowlab.io/game/play/1273550
https://flowlab.io/game/play/1296249
Simple intuitive controls. An engaging theme or story. Attractive sounds, sprites and music. A fair challenge and a goal that makes sense. Consistent game rules that dont troll the player and tight code that doesnt bug out. Plus lots of pre-planning, note taking, editing, effort, talent and time.
Thanks!
Hey @browngr - this is a fantastic question, and something I wish was discussed a lot more often!
I think @todorrobot has a good overview of the parts that make up a loveable game, and I think that they can be expanded even further.
It’s worth thinking about what a “game” even is. It’s simple enough to stick some sprites together with some basic game-like logic and make something that looks like a game, but isn’t really a game at all.
It’s kind of tricky to define, but a game needs to have:
- A goal
- A series of interesting problems to solve
- A series of interesting decisions that can be made to solve those problems
Everyone defines “fun” a different way, and enjoys different facets more (exploration, combat, collecting, etc), but pretty much any game can be boiled down to these basic elements.
Super Mario:
- Goals: Save the princess, get to the end of the level
- Problems: Goombas blocking your path, tricky platforms
- Decisions: Whether to attack or avoid enemies, which routes to navigate, when to try for powerups
Hearthstone:
- Goals: Reduce the opponent’s health to 0 before yours
- Problems: Your opponent is spawning minions and casting spells you have to deal with
- Decisions: How to strategically manage your resources (minions, health, spells, cards) to outlast your opponent
If you take any one of those three elements away, what you have is an activity instead of a game.
Now, to make your game fun and lovable, you do need to pay special attention to the other aspects that @todorrobot called out, like:
-
Controls - I don’t think they have to be simple (see Dwarf Fortress), but they do have to be non-frustrating. Controls are a crucial detail that often don’t get enough attention. This is how the player interacts with your world, so they should be finely tuned.
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An engaging theme or story
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Attractive art and sounds - This will definitely help draw people in and make them want to try your game. Related is the concept of “Juice”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fy0aCDmgnxg
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Fair - if the game doesn’t feel fair, then the player will get frustrated quickly and quit playing. Examples of “unfairness” are hazards that have no obvious warnings, things that behave inconsistently, or anything that sets the player back without giving them an opportunity to understand the rules beforehand.
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Play testing! - Get your friends to play it, and watch them (no hints!). See where they get stuck and what choices they make (and ask them why). This has to happen a lot to really make a polished experience: https://www.wired.com/2007/08/ff-halo-2/
Good Luck!
Wow, thank you so much for the advice! I’m gonna write this down. I feel like with this info in mind, HAKK3R and Fallout Anarchy could both be great games! And with my small team that I’ve spent so much time painstakingly building, I believe we can get this done! Thank you so much, @grazer!
Wow, this is a lot of good information, and overall very achievable, Thanks for the advice! I hope this helps loads of other flowlabers on here!