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Anyone have similar advice for an ultra-nerd like me who has always wanted to make RPGs and only RPGs (the games, not the weapon)? I have always assumed the sk

Anyone have similar advice for an ultra-nerd like me who has always wanted to make RPGs and only RPGs (the games, not the weapon)? I have always assumed the skill set would be a little different.

nihilocrat 18y ago
There are toolsets out there (RPG Maker, Game Maker, Novashell) if you don't feel like investing the time to learn how to program everything yourself. Don't think of this as the "wussy" path: as repeated in the article, learning how to make even the simplest games on your own is a humongous time investment. If you are not seriously interested in making all sorts of games, getting into the industry, or learning every single technical detail, you will probably be much happier using a piece of software that targets a certain domain and run with that. In short: treat game development like a sport. If you want to be a pro, you have to constantly train until making a game is second nature. If you want to be an amateur, you still have to sink your weekends into it. In any case, you have to be so fanatically into it that even minor accomplishments, like making a character move on the screen or making a GUI respond to mouse clicks, give you motivation to keep going.
bk 18y ago
I'm not a game dev, but I'd say that besides the technical issues of development, (non-action) RPGs depend particularly on three things: 1. story line / script 2. character development (stats and items) 3. careful balancing of rules to keep the level of challenge in an engaging range To start out, I'd start with a graphically trivial game that manages to engage by the three factors mentioned above, and then think about "painting" the game (graphics) later. The rules engine, items, etc. will all all be the same.
icey 18y ago
Well, it won't look pretty, but have you thought about getting started in MUD programming? Text based RPGs have always held a certain charm for me personally; I can remember drawing out maps as I played Zork. Some quick googling found this: http://www.gignews.com/morrow1.htm http://www.gignews.com/morrow1.htm
- justindz 18y ago
  I have worked on a Ruby MUD. I think this is probably a good suggestion, along with bk's suggestion to get the hang of balancing and populating a game first. Thanks.

Anyone have similar advice for an ultra-nerd like me who has always wanted to make RPGs and only RPGs (the games, not the weapon)? I have always assumed the skill set would be a little different.

nihilocrat 18y ago

There are toolsets out there (RPG Maker, Game Maker, Novashell) if you don't feel like investing the time to learn how to program everything yourself. Don't think of this as the "wussy" path: as repeated in the article, learning how to make even the simplest games on your own is a humongous time investment. If you are not seriously interested in making all sorts of games, getting into the industry, or learning every single technical detail, you will probably be much happier using a piece of software that targets a certain domain and run with that. In short: treat game development like a sport. If you want to be a pro, you have to constantly train until making a game is second nature. If you want to be an amateur, you still have to sink your weekends into it. In any case, you have to be so fanatically into it that even minor accomplishments, like making a character move on the screen or making a GUI respond to mouse clicks, give you motivation to keep going.

bk 18y ago

I'm not a game dev, but I'd say that besides the technical issues of development, (non-action) RPGs depend particularly on three things: 1. story line / script 2. character development (stats and items) 3. careful balancing of rules to keep the level of challenge in an engaging range To start out, I'd start with a graphically trivial game that manages to engage by the three factors mentioned above, and then think about "painting" the game (graphics) later. The rules engine, items, etc. will all all be the same.

icey 18y ago

Well, it won't look pretty, but have you thought about getting started in MUD programming? Text based RPGs have always held a certain charm for me personally; I can remember drawing out maps as I played Zork. Some quick googling found this: http://www.gignews.com/morrow1.htm http://www.gignews.com/morrow1.htm

justindz 18y ago
I have worked on a Ruby MUD. I think this is probably a good suggestion, along with bk's suggestion to get the hang of balancing and populating a game first. Thanks.