Castle Paradox

[RPGrealm5]

What is your secret to sucess in your games? Is it minigames, battles, graphics, or environment design?
What do you use to capture the player, something that wouldn't make a good game unless it was there?
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Gyu, Doh!

[Mortem Monkey]

In my games its the story. a good story will make any and every one forgive bad graphics and music. I mean just look at all the people with nes roms and emulators. Their sure not playing those roms for the graphics.

[jabbercat]

It is definitly gameplay . Every time I do a game well most times I make a custom battle engine . At the moment Im working on a command and conquer style
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Moogle no longer owes prizes.

[madhatter]

I have never made any games, and so I'm not as qualified as other to comment on this, but I basically believe that there is not a one and only thing that will make your game great. You need to have a combination of good things. It also depends on the game. Doom's storyline wasn't what made it a great game, it was being able to shoot up all those demons that made it great. But storyline is what made other games, such as the FF series (Well they focused a lot on everything. Bad example. But you get my gist.) not being able to shoot up demons. So it depends, I think.

[Sephyroth]

I'll have to agree with jabber there. One of the things that I focused most on in my games was gameplay. In Terra, the general map stuff were intended to simulate Zelda levels (In the demo, you were able to push blocks, and break some walls) In my 48 hours entry, there was the schizophrenia gimmick and the puzzles. Basically, I try to do something with all of my games that enhances the gameplay...
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im realy ded

[RPGrealm5]

I agree. In my games I try to combine all the things that have made RPGs of the past great, but in my own way. In my Project: Virus remake that I'll be working on soon gameplay is a huge factor. Graphics aren't important to me as long as others can tell what I'm trying to illustrate. Minigames, I guess, are in popular demand, and I like to include them in my games. But yes I do agree, gameplay does forgive all the other faults.
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Gyu, Doh!

[JSH357]

Which of your games have been successful?

[RPGrealm5]

The two I have uploaded so far have both failed (Blackened, Deadly Illusion)
But before I joined Castle Paradox I was making games just to entertain myself, and now that I think about it, those games weren't bad! I am currently planning a remake of my favorite game by myself, Project: Virus, which got erased when I got a virus...
For my remake I am planning to incorporate all of the things I mentioned
(This thread may also help)
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Gyu, Doh!

[Uncommon]

And you would consider that successful? By what standards? If I'm not mistaken, you said in another thread that you consider Blackened a failure. How is this a success, then?

There is really no formula to making a successful game. Different people prefer different aspects, and different games are stronger (or weaker) in different aspects. It's really up to individuals which games they consider successful.

[Minnek]

I'm with Uncommon on this one. ...I can't really think of anything else to say at the moment, so I'll edit this as soon as I do. (I hate headaches.)
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[RPGrealm5]

I'm asking for the secret to sucess to improve previous faliures! Doesn't anyone understand that?
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Gyu, Doh!

[Uncommon]

All I can say is wing it and hope for the best.

[Minnek]

Hmm...to improve? Is this what I am hearing? Hmm... how did I improve...

... Go experience the world, I guess. Plenty of ideas there... and practice...and... forgive me if I'm walking down the wrong alley, but I have a headache and I'm giving it my best shot. ...ouch my head.
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[*Worthy*]

One aspect of a game that really can set it apart from the rest are the game's battles. Think about it. In most games, a huge majority of the game is spent fighting battles. In many cases, that's what RPGs are about. Building a party of heroes up so they can become stronger and ultimately defeat the antagonist.

Jabbercat mentioned the idea of a custom battle engine. I couldn't agree more with that. For my game that I am working on I have designed my own battle system (posted on this site) that I will use. This allows me to put something else into the battles rather than simply attacking or using the most powerful spells. I can now put in enemy AI, bring the storyline into the battles, and more.

Back on topic, you wanted to know the secret to success to improve your failures. As I said in my review for your game, you had a good idea for your storyline "Blackened." Your problem (at least the way I saw it) was in the gameplay. Here are some expedient tips to help enhance your game:

First, the battles. Include something in the battles. Make unique characteristics and attacks for every enemy. Spend time developing each enemy and giving the enemy attacks that are intrinsic to the type of monster. If the battles are interesting and exciting, the gameplay of the game will definately go up.

Second, allow the storyline to be somewhat capricious. The last thing you want is a very monolithic storyline. Make sure the game is constantly filled with a building plot that contains twists here and there. Actually develop a plot. Make the player get feelings towards the heroes and villians. Stay in the story throughout the game. By this I mean don't make the game so there is one conflict then that is solved then there is another conflict that has nothing to do with the original. Before the player finishes the second conflict, another conflict arrises that is completely fortuitous without ever giving the player a chance to resolve the second. Like those past two sentences, the game will be too confusing if you throw too many ideas into one game. The game will have no direction.

Third, although this is not as major of in issue, try to have some rhetoric in your game. Make your sentences flow and have a meaning. I'm sure this is probably only an issue to a select few, but I can't stand it when I'm playing a game and there are constantly spelling errors left and right or an NPC will start talking about one thing then complete switch subjects and the game just doesn't flow, kind of like this sentence.

If you want to make the quintessential game, it will take a lot of work. It really depends on how far you want to go.

Hope this helps,

~Worthy
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You can do whatever you want...but prison is full of people who make bad decisions.

[Shadowiii]

There is no clear cut way to make a successful game. Think about something like Final Fantasy 7. It is one of the most popular RPG's of all time, but even though it has cults attached to it, there are still people who dislike it. No matter what you do, no matter how hard you try, you can't please everyone. Success is determined in two ways:

1. If you achieved your goal that you had before creating the game. After you finished the game, played it over, and looked at the fruits of your labors, if you feel that you did a decent job and accomplished what you had in mind, it is a success. This is the most important of the two success determinants.

2. If people like it. Everyone doesn't have to like your game for it to be successful. Look at FFH. Tons of people like it, some poeple hate it, and others simply are neutral. Basically, this definition is influenced by WHO and HOW MANY people you want to enjoy it. Personally, it only takes a few pristigious ("veterans") members to like or even not hate my game for me to be pleased with its results. This second part is second in importance to you yourself enjoying it. If you don't like what you made, then you'll probably never like it, no mater what anyone else says.

Back to designing a game to suit the masses. First of all making a game requires three elements. The order I list them is my opinion of importance, but others will probably have their own opinions.

1. Gameplay
2. Story
3. Graphics
(4. Music)

First of all, gameplay. Gameplay is the single most imporant part of a game. If a game is fun to play, regardless of how crappy the graphics are, even if the storyline sucks, people will play it. Think of a game such as the original mario brothers. There is no story. The graphics are old and outdated. But it is still fun to play simply because it is enjoyable. In RPG terms, think of Ends of the Earth. New standards have been set in OHR making that make there graphics no longer excellent but only average. The storyline is cookie-cuttered and poorly done. But the game is EXTREMELY fun to play. I've beaten it more then I've beaten any other OHR game. Another example is &And. Simple, pointless story. Decent graphics. But a fun challenge to play makes it a fun game, and one of my personal OHR favorites. If a game is fun to play, people will play it. Like Tetris. That is why people play games.

Second is story and character development. If a game lacks on gameplay, you'd better make it up by haveing some really interesting characters. Each character has to have a personality and an actual life. They can't just be some dude who fights for you because he wants too, and no one finds out why (think Yuffie from FF7, GoGo and Umaru from FF6, or Edge from FF4). They have to have:
1. A personality. They have to be interesting to listen too. I loved playing Xenogears because each character has a unique personality. Depending on the story, the personality doesn't have to be too grounded to work. Think of Xenogears. The characters are uniquely different, but non are very extreme; they are all human. Then think of FF8. They are all eccentric loonys. But if it is interesting to see what the person is going to do next, the player will keep playing. I used to play FF8 just to see what Zell or Irvine would say next.
2. A defined past/present/future. These people can't just be bums off the street that do nothing except fight. They can have all the personality in the world, but if they dont' have a past...they are useless. Its important to develop the character as time goes on, and have them change like a normal human will. A big transformation in a game is Terra from Final Fantasy 6. Starting off as a frightened girl, she transforms into someone who desires to feel love and to feel loved, but still holds her fear. By the end of the game she feels like she is complete. She no longer fears her past or her powers, and he loves and is loved. Its a defined and well done transformation.
3. They MUST BE INTERESTING. AT least the main character. No one wants to follow a boring person around the world to fight (unless the battle music is REALLY cool like FF9's or Golden Sun's). The more extreme the personallity tends to be a better one. Think of Naruto from...Naruto (if you've seen it). He's an arrogent wise-as s. IT is very easy to like Sauske better, in his cool, intelligent perfection. But in truth, everyone like Naruto better because he is a more interesting character. Though he can get annoying at times...

The story itself actually comes second to character development in my mind. If a player LOVES the characters, they will keep playing just to see what they do, and if the hero gets the heroine at the end (Even though everyone knows they will), and because they think the character is cool. Everyone stuck with boring old Cloud simply because his sword was so bad-as s. However, I'm not saying you should sacrafice a story. If you make a story
1. Unlike other RPG stories
2. Interesting
3. INTERTWINED WITH THE CHARACTERS (important!)
4. Have a point

You should have a good game.

Now for graphics. Graphics DONT EVER EVERY MAKE THE GAME. I can assure you this. However, Graphics ARE very important. You don't want the person's first impression when they boot up yoru game to be "Ugh. What an ugly game. DELETED!" You want the graphics to be good enough so the person will keep on playing and LOOKING and the main character without flinching. This is especially important in an OHR game. Most OHR games suffer from overused storylines, bad/ripped music, and poorly thought-out characters with blunt or no personalities (*coughFFHcough*). So they rely on the best alternitive: Graphics. Think of Time Flies. Why did I stick that game out? I rarely play OHR games all the way through, simply because the alternitive is better (commercial games). But when I first saw the beautiful hero graphics in it, I was like "wow! I wanna see that again!" So I fought more battles. And more. And more. And pretty soon I was interested in the story. And the music ROCKED. And I had beaten the demo in a day. Graphics are a lasso. Pull in the person, then force feed them your story and let them enjoy the gameplay. Graphics are the first thing people see, and first impressions always count.

Now for my little "sublime" note beneith: Music. Music is VERY VERY important (in my opinion) in commercial games. OHR games tend to use ripped music, and since the quality is BAM that also puts it down a notch. But that doesn't mean we can't make OHR games with good music. Play Time Flies. That music is:
1. Placed well.
2. Sounds fantastic.
3. Original
If Time Flies had had sucky graphics, I probably still would have played it because the music was so well done. Anyone here play Golden Sun? Whats the story? "uhh..." Is it interesting? "Well..." What about character development? "What character development?" What about that battle theme? "AWESOME!!!" Yes, I played Golden Sun mostly for the battle theme, which remains a favorite for me until this day. Thats also why I never finished The Lost Age; I disliked the battle music and after a while the game ran out of story and gameplay for me to enjoy it anymore. Music is important. Very important. Some music is always better than none at all, so be sure to put music in even if you plan on writing some later.

Overall, to make a successful game you should impliment those 3 (or 4) things into your game. Here are some extra OHR tips I that usually make a game more successful:

1. A Unique Battle System
2. A Unique Items System
3. Totally Unique Gameplay
4. BASICALLY ANYTHING OUT OF THE MOLD.

Take for example my soon-to-come Halloween Contest entree. The is one battle in the entire game, and it can be won in one hit. There is one set of tilemaps. There are about 30 bazillion imported screens, but we won't go thre. The point is, I added some stuff to it that has never been seen in the OHR before. Without revealing too much, I can say that I'm using imported images in ways you have never seen. I'm also manipulating lighting in a darkened house, as well as in a black maze. The game is like a Silent Hill 3 + Myst. It isn't an OHR game, its a totally different thing in the OHR engine. I'm not saying it will be successful, but I am saying people will probably play it simply because it is unique.

Anyway, thats about all. For re-doing old games, I can only say to make sure your game has all the points mentioned above (the unique gameplay part is optional but it gets you entra points in many OHRer's books). Good luck...you are going to need it.
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But enough talk, have at you!