Wyrdwad
|
Hey all, remember me? I'm the guy who started, then abandoned, DreamSeekers... and the guy who used to argue with Feywood all the time, usually resulting in me losing the argument but being too stubborn to admit it... and the guy who made VERGE V1+... and the guy who keeps popping his head in here babbling about a new game called Forgotten Kings, then disappearing again...
Well, guess what? I've become utterly OBSESSED with my game idea, Forgotten Kings, as of late (probably because I'm in Japan now, teaching English to junior high students on the JET program in a little town called Shichigahama near Sendai, and I need something to do in my spare time, which I have far too much of). (: And, as a result, I've now actually written a FULL PLOT SUMMARY, which I've meticulously checked and double-checked for inconsistancies, and I've also come up with some really unique ideas for the gameplay and some mini-games...
...and the result is, basically, my ideal RPG -- a game that would absolutely be MY FAVORITE game OF ALL TIME if it were to have been made by someone else and I were playing it right now. (:
I seriously feel like I've come up with one of the most original, innovative RPG ideas that I've ever heard of, and I'm very proud of myself. So proud, in fact, that I plan to work quite hard on actually MAKING this one, unlike the tenuous grip I had on DreamSeekers. (:
The problem is, I can't possibly do it alone. I'm pretty competent with programming, and will be able to actually make the game EVENTS on my own... and the maps should be fun to design... and if I really put my all into it, I can write some pretty good dialogue, I think... and I have SOME skill with S3M composition, though someone with MORE skill would be preferrable... but the thing I lack most is ARTISTIC TALENT. I couldn't draw a good tile if it bit me (uhh, wait a minute, that doesn't really work). (:
Now, I have someone helping me with CHRs (in fact, he's a good friend of mine, and I owe a lot of the original character designs to him, since most of the game originated as CHRs which then evolved into full-blown characters)... and there are a few guys here (other JETs) who expressed some interest in doing character sketches and the like... but I have NO ONE to help me with tile art, and LESS than no one to help me with FMVs (which I'd really like to include, though these are gonna be REALLY hard FMVs to make!).
So here's the deal: if anyone out there has some skill with tiles or 3D modelling or animation, or if there are any musicians out there who would be willing to lend me their services -- basically, if you're good and you have a strong desire to start working on a new project -- please email me (wyrdwad@shinra.org) and I will send you a FULL COPY of the Forgotten Kings plot summary (around 178k). If you like what you read, and would be willing to help out with the project, you will be given MAJOR MAJOR credit for it (I can't exactly offer money, since I'm not getting any myself, but hey, recognition is always good -- fame over fortune, I always say!). (:
The plot of FK is nonlinear... or, to be more specific, perhaps you could call it "episodic". There's one fairly boring underlying linear plot guiding you through the game (a get-the-crystals sort of thing, intentionally uninteresting and cliched BUT thoroughly explained), but along the way, you might run into any of 24 or so playable characters, each of whom has his or her (or its) own sob story (and it would appear that most of these stories are, in one way or another, RELATED...). If you agree to help these characters, you will be sent on an interlocking series of subquests, many of which vary depending upon who's ALREADY in your party, and all of which help to develop the game's MAMMOTH cast of characters.
The game's battle system is FF-style, but with a bit more strategy to it: among your party, you only get one attack per turn before the enemy strikes back, and you have your whole party to choose from for this one attack. Each character in the game has two unique battle commands and NOTHING ELSE -- meaning that a party of five characters is the rough equivalent of a battle menu with 10 unique commands. But the key is, not every character can attack every turn -- some characters can only attack every other turn, or every third turn, meaning that you have to really plan your party well, and pick people who work well with one another.
Perhaps the most original concept in the FK battles, though, is the "couple" system. With 24+ playable characters, there are quite a few romantic subplots that can come about -- and these are pretty much all up to you to follow through with. If you manage to get two characters to fall in love, a new "couple" command will be unlocked between them, resulting in a very powerful attack performed by both characters. Gives new meaning to "the power of love", huh. (:
Death is also something which will be treated a bit more realistically in this game -- if a character dies, you have to basically drop everything and revive them -- because if they stay dead for too long, there's no bringing 'em back!!
And I also came up with some pretty unique minigame ideas to implement, including:
* An entirely separate and far more stereotypical RPG that can be played by finding certain treasure chests...
* A game where you have to basically torture yourself to get money...
* A side-scrolling puzzler labyrinth which will inevitably result in a boss battle with a flock of angry chickens...
And much, much more! (: Heheheheh... basically, I like to think of this as "a game which takes itself as seriously as possible, in spite of itself". (:
Here's a brief rundown of some of the major characters:
* A scholar who's lived through the last 5 years of his life twice, and screwed things up the second time around...
* A circus clown who enjoys tinkering with maniacal inventions, one of which cost him his wife, his son, and ended up causing various other problems that relate to some of the other characters in the game...
* Said clown's clown car, which appears to have a consciousness of its own...
* A dwarf who was in the middle of building a house for his crippled wife when the aforementioned clown's invention accidentally destroyed it...
* A nudist born and raised in the wild, but taken in by a certain village... until they accuse her of stealing food, anyway...
* An apothecary woman whose unrequited love for a dead man causes her to seek a cure for death, possibly at the cost of her own life...
* A merman whom I lovingly refer to as "the first RPG man-whore" because of his suave attitude and ability to somehow end up getting laid by two of the main female characters within a span of two nights (:
* A man whose quest to right the wrongs of his childhood days takes him to a local dump, in search of a broken clock...
* A sentient jail cell with arms and legs -- 'nuff said. (:
* A wide variety of aliens. (:
* And many, MANY more!
Anyway, I've probably said too much. (: If you're interesting in lending a hand in the creation of this unique game, please email me -- but, of course, email me only if you SERIOUSLY think you might want to work on this... because the file I'll send you is a COMPLETE PLOT SUMMARY, meaning that the WHOLE GAME will be spoiled for you if you're to read it. And if you're going to have the whole game spoiled... well, don't waste it: have it spoiled because you want to be a part of it, not just because you're curious, 'k? (:
Thanks in advance to anyone who emails me!
-Tom
Posted on 2001-11-26 06:59:19
|
