5 ms·

Fundamental RPGology

41 points by networked 12y ago

cmdrfred 12y ago
With this and kivy (posted yesterday) I now have a new project to work on :)
thirdtruck 12y ago
Very intrigued. I want to draft some "one-hour RPGs" -- short stories instead of the usual epic -- and this research will help. And if you're a HN reader familiar with RPG Maker, give me a shout (rpg at thirdtruck dot org). I'm excited at the prospect of collaborating.
- swimfar 12y ago
  Short story equivalents of RPG's sound interesting. I still enjoy RPGs, but often can't make the time commitment to play them. Do you know of commercial or polished freeware examples of games like that? At the extreme end of the spectrum is Half-Minute Hero[1]. (As one of the reviews says, maybe more puzzle than RPG). If you haven't played it, you might want to check it out. [1] http://store.steampowered.com/app/214830/ http://store.steampowered.com/app/214830/
  - thirdtruck 12y ago
    Thanks for the recommendation! It's been on my radar for a while, and I find the analysis of it as more of a puzzle game than an RPG compelling. I'm in the same boat regarding time commitments, especially now that I commute in a car instead of on a subway again. The names escape me, but I know that plenty of 4-10 hour RPGs exist. The really-short RPG market seems very under-served, though. Here's an idea: RPGs with a "Skip this battle" option, for those more interested in the story.
  - tmountain 12y ago
    I really enjoy Desktop Dungeons. It's easy to pick up for a short play session and then put it down. The game mechanics are simple on the surface, but some deep thinking is required to master the more difficult dungeons. http://www.desktopdungeons.net/ http://www.desktopdungeons.net/ It's also available on Steam.
perlgeek 12y ago
An idea, stolen from the "The Dark Eye" (TDE) (pen&paper RPG) is that different weapons have different distance ranges, and you need successful actions to change the current distance. (Yes, I know, it introduces a second gauge) IIRC in TDE there are four distances, one for very long weapons (like Halberd), one in between for two-handed swords and the like, one for normal sword fights, and one for hand fights and knifes. And of course a Halberd is no use to use if the opponent is only half a meter away with a knife. So different weapons have different penalties based on the distance; changing weapons costs time, which your opponent can use against you; changing distance also costs time (for example with feints that keep the enemy at their current spot, and give you freedom to move away). Then you have different skills for different weapons, and general skills for actions like switching weapons, changing distance and the like. I'm now tempted to try making a battle system based on that, but I fear time constraints (two small children at home...) make it unlikely that something good comes out.
DanBC 12y ago
I think Button Men got short mêlée fighting just right. A handful of dice and a few minutes. http://www.cheapass.com/node/39 http://www.cheapass.com/node/39
thirdtruck 12y ago
I want to combine this with my idea of accidentally summoning elder gods with the forgotten Greek alphabet ASCII character set...
hellbanner 12y ago
So who is actually doing this?

41 points by networked 12y ago

With this and kivy (posted yesterday) I now have a new project to work on :)

Very intrigued. I want to draft some "one-hour RPGs" -- short stories instead of the usual epic -- and this research will help. And if you're a HN reader familiar with RPG Maker, give me a shout (rpg at thirdtruck dot org). I'm excited at the prospect of collaborating.

swimfar 12y ago
Short story equivalents of RPG's sound interesting. I still enjoy RPGs, but often can't make the time commitment to play them. Do you know of commercial or polished freeware examples of games like that? At the extreme end of the spectrum is Half-Minute Hero[1]. (As one of the reviews says, maybe more puzzle than RPG). If you haven't played it, you might want to check it out. [1] http://store.steampowered.com/app/214830/ http://store.steampowered.com/app/214830/
- thirdtruck 12y ago
  Thanks for the recommendation! It's been on my radar for a while, and I find the analysis of it as more of a puzzle game than an RPG compelling. I'm in the same boat regarding time commitments, especially now that I commute in a car instead of on a subway again. The names escape me, but I know that plenty of 4-10 hour RPGs exist. The really-short RPG market seems very under-served, though. Here's an idea: RPGs with a "Skip this battle" option, for those more interested in the story.
- tmountain 12y ago
  I really enjoy Desktop Dungeons. It's easy to pick up for a short play session and then put it down. The game mechanics are simple on the surface, but some deep thinking is required to master the more difficult dungeons. http://www.desktopdungeons.net/ http://www.desktopdungeons.net/ It's also available on Steam.

perlgeek 12y ago

An idea, stolen from the "The Dark Eye" (TDE) (pen&paper RPG) is that different weapons have different distance ranges, and you need successful actions to change the current distance. (Yes, I know, it introduces a second gauge) IIRC in TDE there are four distances, one for very long weapons (like Halberd), one in between for two-handed swords and the like, one for normal sword fights, and one for hand fights and knifes. And of course a Halberd is no use to use if the opponent is only half a meter away with a knife. So different weapons have different penalties based on the distance; changing weapons costs time, which your opponent can use against you; changing distance also costs time (for example with feints that keep the enemy at their current spot, and give you freedom to move away). Then you have different skills for different weapons, and general skills for actions like switching weapons, changing distance and the like. I'm now tempted to try making a battle system based on that, but I fear time constraints (two small children at home...) make it unlikely that something good comes out.

DanBC 12y ago

I think Button Men got short mêlée fighting just right. A handful of dice and a few minutes. http://www.cheapass.com/node/39 http://www.cheapass.com/node/39

thirdtruck 12y ago

I want to combine this with my idea of accidentally summoning elder gods with the forgotten Greek alphabet ASCII character set...

hellbanner 12y ago

So who is actually doing this?