Zombies, they're adorable cute and always fun to kill, however is making an ORPG with a constant player base possible? I've thought this over many times and have determined multiple things.
1.) If the game was a survival simulator holding a playerbase would be extremely difficult, or rival that of other survival games, such as archipelago.
2.) Could changing the time setting and adding zombie bosses be more entertaining? If set in the future new "magical" or super rewards for downing bosses simply wouldn't be possible. So this idea of killing gargantuan or mutated zombies only works in the past where possible magical items perverted the zombies into gigantic and horrific states.
3. Making this game into an action game is another idea, however how would I make the it into a quick survival game that's not too similar with resident evil online and it's sequel.
I really need a game idea, because i want a game to come out that can hold a player base, meaning now way to "win" and there's definite player improvement. As always, thanks for any and all input.
ID:265794
 Nov 22 2007, 5:36 pm
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To differentiate between survival horror and action horror (REO/2) you need to downplay the... well.. action. Whereas REO focuses on stocking up and slaughtering endless hoards of undead, a survival horror should focus on survival. I know it sounds silly to describe something using the word, but literally, analyze what survival actually is, and implement it. Focus less on combat, and more on skill. The game shouldn't be about the zombies, it should be about adjusting to life -with- zombies. They're the catalyst, but they aren't going to be what the gameplay focuses on.
Let's say you focus on skills/professions. Maintaining a player-base is easy enough, because each role will be crucial to survival. Maybe the player has a pool of points to spend amongst certain skills. One could focus on Speed and Stamina, and play the runner role for their group. Or maybe they focus entirely on strength and Construction, and they fortify their team's base. A lot of the strategy will be based on the map itself. Do we take the easily defended church, or the only market, which is across town. One offers protection, but at the cost of food, whereas the other offers food but little protection. Not to mention, other players/teams will probably be going after the food as well. A PvP system will keep things interesting. Two teams, one shelter. Do they band together, running out of food faster, or do they fight for their position? Again, the stat system comes into play. Maybe someone creates a player dedicated to combat, so as to protect the team. A lack of firepower or other insta-kill weapons poses fresh challenges to an old genre. Not to mention, this sort of system really implies teamwork. Also I'd suggest a limit on how many skill points one can earn in their career. You don't want maxed out players soloing after a month of play, right? | |
A very good post.
Also remember the four requirements of survival, in order of importance from most to least: water, fire, food, shelter. In a zombie-contaminated world, all of these resources will be in harsh undersupply -- particularly water, which is likely to be contaminated if the zombie disease is viral in origin (particularly if any zombie walks through the water or is killed and falls into the water). If the zombie plague occurs in a Romero "it just happened for no reason" fashion, water would still be difficult to obtain by merit of requiring people to travel through zombie-infested land to get to the few water sources there are. Given that zombies feed on the living, they would naturally migrate towards water sources as their living prey did, so the ability to get water would be a matter of being on the move constantly to prevent the zombies from being attracted to a single water source. Well water would likely be the safest in a zombie-infested world, but because wells are in short supply and the aforementioned problem with zombies following their prey, camping around a well would likely cause you to be subject to unending zombie attack. | |
1:
It can be hard depending on how long it takes to "win" and what your content is like.
2:
It can if it is done right. I personally won't do it but it would be great if implemented properly.
3:
When I played Resident Evil Online, I saw that it was not realistic on being...real. You never had to eat, drink, or even rest for a bit. Along with a possible mode where you and your friends could battle over an area (for something) and have zombies be in that area also is something that I have been thinking of for a while.
George Gough