43
votes
Avoid player getting stuck with underpowered character
I think you should embrace the choice to deliberately underpower themselves as another expression of player autonomy. This is a play pattern you'll often see in speedrunning communities, or players ...
- 130k
22
votes
Accepted
Should I make my "big idea" first?
There's a saying among game developers, "your first ten games will be bad, so get them out of the way as fast as possible".
By this reasoning, you should not make your big idea first. In ...
- 130k
17
votes
Avoid player getting stuck with underpowered character
One of my favourite games from childhood, Zeliard, solved this particularly well I think. The player could always go back to previous worlds, re-visit old shops, look for missed treasure, etc. The ...
- 271
9
votes
Should I make my "big idea" first?
Are you doing this as a hobby or a business?
If it is a hobby, go ahead and do whatever you are enthused and motivated to do. If that's your big idea then do that. Realistically, you're unlikely to ...
- 2,106
7
votes
Avoid player getting stuck with underpowered character
There are many solutions:
Allow backtracking. Two approaches:
Allow grinding. Many games allow you to replay old stages to grind for money or experience to get strong enough to clear the next stage. ...
- 401
5
votes
Why should a game include a range of possible damage values per hit?
One thing that randomness of damage does is to make it so that the benefit of additional health behaves more linearly.
Consider the case where an attack always does 100 damage. In that case a health ...
- 7,111
5
votes
Avoid player getting stuck with underpowered character
Offer the shop also at the beginning of each level but with a caveat. You have to complete a short bonus level at (current difficulty - 1) to access it. It could be about rescuing the shop keeper or ...
- 191
4
votes
Should I make my "big idea" first?
Does the grand vision require a huge game (eg a MMO) and wouldn't work otherwise?
If yes, you are doomed in any case. It does not matter whether you start with the big game or the many small ones, you ...
- 289
3
votes
How should I organize the type advantages and disadvantages for my monster-catching RPG?
A cute trick I like to use to investigate this kind of type advantage system to simulate how players might use those types when competing with each other.
Even if your game is purely PvE or doesn't ...
- 130k
2
votes
Why should a game include a range of possible damage values per hit?
This all comes down to your goals for your game. You need to ask yourself: "why am I considering adding variable damage? What problem does it help fix, or what player experience does it help ...
- 130k
2
votes
How should I organize the type advantages and disadvantages for my monster-catching RPG?
First of all, are you sure you need that many different types? Just because they are thematically appropriate does not necessarily mean they are useful from a game design perspective. When you are ...
- 118k
1
vote
Avoid player getting stuck with underpowered character
Here's a slightly different suggestion. If you're worried about players getting stuck, how about offering a special "repair shop" when they've failed? This way, if they struggle, they've ...
- 111
1
vote
Avoid player getting stuck with underpowered character
As @DMGregory said, I think you should allow players to have the option of going through the game without buying any upgrades, as a sort of self-imposed challenge. I released a scrolling shooter of my ...
- 113
1
vote
Avoid player getting stuck with underpowered character
If:
you are ok with giving players access to the shop more often than once per world, and
you have some kind of overworld map or mission-select menu,
you could allow players to access the shop at ...
- 185
1
vote
Avoid player getting stuck with underpowered character
Maybe you could make the player choose between 3 upgrades at the end of each world. The upgrades should be free and it should be mandatory to pick one.
This way the player gets rewarded for finishing ...
- 111
1
vote
Would slo mo work for multiplayer?
As others have stated it's not possible to have different timeframes for different players, because at some point you need to be able able to send information back in time. That said you may be able ...
- 111
1
vote
Would slo mo work for multiplayer?
As per your description, you want a player to see the other moving faster than normal. You can do that, that is an speed boost. But the other player won't see everything going slower. That won't work.
...
- 24.4k
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