Dream Games?

[FlashCat]

Hi All,
I would like to encourage people to push their games further, to achieve that “Dream Game”. So that is the idea of this post. How can one go about polishing their Dream in to a grate game? What makes a grate game? Why do people want to play your games? what is a good way to go about making that game of your's?

Tack this as a discussion idea and have fun. And if you are reading this and don’t have a profile here at Flash Kit get one now, share your typed word with us!

[FlashGuru]

People like games that are multiplayer i know that foe certain!!it is much moe fun!!!They like action games too!!rather than puzzle games, adn RPG's and role players are great too!!!

[Mad-Sci]

Hi allow me to be the first to reply:

1. What makes a game grate game ? Have you seen the movie Matrix.

A) Good scenario ( script )
B) Good tools
C) Nice screen play ( graphs )
D) Stunning effects
E) Original. inventing new ways of presentation.
F) Easy to whatch
G) Cast and Crue

This is whats make a game the Game.

2.Why do people want to play your games ? I dont know the world is big all kinds of people. he hehe

3.what is a good way to go about making that game of your's?

You have to sit down and do it, trow it and do it again.


Mad_sci

[Mad-Sci]

FlashGuru again a nanosecond if fron of me he he he
how are you doin man?
Mad_sci

[FlashCat]

He he he, that’s it let us all help each other to get those create gears turning.

Coming from a strong creative background I often forget to plan! Over the years I learned that; failing to plan, then you are planning to fail.

Hay this is, for all you people out there, that don’t know the answers… “Ask the Questions!” Meow!

[illumin8d1]

I think a game is truly great when people stop trying to figure out how you have programmed the code, and just play the game. The game does not have to be amazingly complex, it just has to be fun. The closest I have found to this point is "save them goldfish"- love that game.
Considering the strengths and limitations of the medium in which we are working, I believe that the truly great games will be story-driven, with lush graphics. However, I believe these lush graphics should not be used in gameplay, but rather in cut scenes.
Flash games are coming out of their infancy. I believe that we are leaving the Atari 2600 generation of gaming, and heading into the NES era. All of the puzzle pieces are out there- it's only a matter of who assembles them the fastest and the most appealingly.
Finally, the big piece of the Dream Game equation: MONEY. Until we can make good money doing this, progress will be slow. Everyone is talking about working together on a largescale flash game, but nobody's talking about the loot! I am all for a collaborative effort- we all know the income potential this new generation of flash games will posess- so let's figure out how to turn a profit with our collective bag of tricks. Super Mario Bros. was not made by a bunch of programmers in their spare time- it was a full time job.

[ChriSell]

You all rembemer back to your first game, right....
That one that you think is so easy to make know but when you were working on it then went to play it, it just wouldn't work!! Everything you did made it worse... But once someone told you how to fix it or some how you did it yourself... It was your first game!! You were so happy!! The game you thought was the best game ever!! Your Own Dream Game!! But now you look at that game and thing it the worst game any one could make.... So the point of this is that there is no such thing as a dream game.... You either like a game or hate a game.....

But this is only my opinion.......

[FlashCat]

Wow such extreme opinions, the truth is that any thing is possible. I believe that flash has even more potential then DHTML, and Java Games, or I would not be here now. There is a grate demand for web gaming and the demand will grow with every game we make. Some people get hung up on the small problems that constantly present them selves during development of any thing grate. And it is their inability to perceive other was of achieving their goals that limits them, not flash, not the web, not other people. The decision to give up because some thing is too difficult is one that YOU MAKE!

On another note I am doing my best to find the limits of flash and posh them even further, and I believe that flash is even more power full then the Super Nintendo, and definitely more flexible. I am working on something that will make you all a believer, but I am unwilling to post the game until it is near compellation, to ovoid code theft!

I have also offered up my support of a collaborative project, but I do not have the time to lead it. That will have to be the task of some one!

[CNO]

Fun is definately the key here. Every game should strive to be innovative, but most of the best games were created by people who loved gaming themselves, and created a game they would like to play, I'm sure much like all the people who post here on Flashkit. Conversely, most of the worst games have come out of marketing departments who make unrealistic demands, enforce unrealistic deadlines, and want a game that will sell (not necessarily be good).

Witness the proliferation of emulators on home personal computers nowadays. It's a testament to the classic games that someone would rather play Zelda for the NES then the newest crop of Playstation or Dreamcast games.

Flash does have great potential, and it will become even greater with the release of Flash 5. illumin8d1 makes a good point, money makes the world go 'round, I'm afraid. I'm not about to quit my day job to make the World's Greatest Flash Game. But in the same respect, I have to give many thanks to people like Flashcat, who are not only inspiring through action, but are also out there to answer questions and make offers like working on a collaborative project (even though I'm sure the kitty's got lots on its plate already).

I, too, am willing to offer my services for a collaborative project, whether it be conceptual, design, animation, or even keeping a forum discussion like this open.

[Xentor]

Sorry, but I have to completely disagree with all of you.

For the past few weeks I've been populating a flash arcade with my creations, and here's what I learned:

1) The majority of internet people seem to prefer action games over puzzle games.

2) The graphics aren't nearly as important as the gameplay.

3) If the concept and/or premise of the game is funny or entertaining, even a "click the aliens" game can be popular.

4) You can get a great audience just by adding a twist to a classic...

5) And finally, to stress #2, my most popular game has no graphic more complicated than a gradient on a circle or square.

I tried making complicated games... I reinvented Minesweeper with some extra graphics... Boring. I made a flash version of Black Box. Too complicated, lost the audience. But then I started hitting into more simple games...

People don't want to LEARN how to play a game. They want to immediately understand it just by looking at it. Keep in mind I'm not talking about programmers and hardcore gamers... I'm talking about your average internet user, the kind of people who still think the web is the entire net

You have to give them what they want... I'm doing it, and I get anywhere from 500 to 5,000 hits a day on just my games page on the company site.

[jydnas]

So let's see some of your games...
post a URL

As far as this discussion goes i would like to add that
every game you make there will allways be someone that don't like it.

I made "Find Dan The Cow" just for a laugh, just to be goofy
i though people would get a kick out of it
but all i have heard was a bunch of " well it ain't this and it ain't that"
and blah blah blah this and blah blah that.
i did get get some compliments


One of the most popular games in the Arcade is 3D Crates
so
Graphics do matter and people like puzzel games

What makes a great game is

Graphics
Levels and puzzels
Replay-ability
Concept or story
Game play


See at first when people started making games in Flash
people were like "wow" and allmost all games got a warm welcome
now it's like a critics convention...
people don't realize that it is hard and time consuming to make a game with Flash.


I thought it was for fun and we all could share ideas and tips but i guess i was wrong it's a shark tank.

[Xentor]

You might be right... Maybe I'm just developing for a different kind of audience... Check out:

http://www.joke-of-the-day.com/games

Most of our subscribers seem to like little arcade games, and it doesn't take much to keep them occupied for hours on end... I think most of them just play while wasting time at work

[jydnas]

now that my kind of audience...just having fun


Xantor thanks for posting your URL.

[Mad-Sci]

For me does not matter how the game looks like cos I appreciate the work which has been done. Its not easy to do a game we all know this. I DO NOT APPRECIATE CRUEL GAMES. The games shoud be fun and only for fun even if it has bugs.

Xentor----realy good games you have out there. I realy enjoyed the 3d pong it is original and well done. A question can you make player's pad alpha about 80 so you can look through it ? Well the graphs are important that is for sure you have to see some of my things even I cant watch them he he he he. I dont have the gift but Jydnas has it so we teemed up I do the script, if I can, he does the graphs.

Jydnas---- find the cow ( cattle i love that word he he he) is a cool game. yea

ChriSell--- I alwais wanted to do a game and my passion was a maze game. I never made it though. I never pass beyond the walls. he he he. And im still doing it keep pushing the thing till I get it.

illumin8d1 --- allow me to disagree with you the money is important issue but we realy cant compete with Duke Nukkam or Quake or Descent. When put on the shelf, for someone is far more likely to pick Dukam 3D than Alien Invadrs. for example. Flash has a great potential but its not a game engine and its not designed for that. People always will try to figure out the code. This is the way it goes. Always. This is because you started doing programing, me as well right? Especialy games. he he he. I was pulling my hear off to fugure out your way of making the maze.he he he man Im sorry.he he he.
Mad_sci

[Xentor]

Thanks... Nice to get compliments from peers instead of computer-illiterates

And yeah, I've had requests to make the player paddle transparent, but I think it would confuse some people... Don't forget, most of my audience is made up of people who can barely find the left mouse button

[DamnGzM]

Eey!

The 3D-pong is indeed a really nice concept. Cool! But could you consider to add a shadow to the ball (projected on the ground), that would make the depth-approximation a bit easier for the player. Sometimes the ball hit my nerves even before I had the slightest idea the ball was already so near. Just a comment. But kewl concept, damn, why havent I thought about it?!

LTrZ!
DamnGzM.

[Xentor]

Honestly? I'm too lazy... The way I set up the fake 3D, it would be a lot of coding to get a realistically-positioned shadow...

Unfortunately, I really can't spend more than a week or so on each game... I'll probably be putting up the next one today, and the one after that is waiting for our cartoonist to have some free time (I'm not too good with graphics)... The next game (Next next game, that is) will be the first with more than circles and squares, thanks to her

People seem to care more about variety than quality, so my goal is to pump out as many as possible as fast as possible.

[CNO]

J.D.
I voted for your game in the games section, but just realized that I never vocalized my appreciation for your work.
I love Dan the Cow.
This is my dream game.

Seriously, though, I think we should celebrate some sort of "Dan the Cow" day here on Flashkit.

[FlashCat]

To often when we strive it achieve quantity we must sacrifice quality. Just a warning, there are a lot of flash games out there. If all you do is add to the bottom of the barrel, you will be less likely to be seen.

The shock of the NEW, tarnishes at an alarming rate and your potential players soon find a newer more shiny game.

I hate to be the “Grim Reaper” of flash games but if people aren’t telling there friends to come and play, or coming back to play themselves, your game will soon breath its last breath and be forgotten!

[Xentor]

FlashCat, I agree completely...

But what I'm trying to say is, you don't have to add millions of little enhancements to every game just to make them look the slightest bit better... Giving the ball a shadow would look nice, but the effect it gives isn't worth the amount of coding and speed-loss (More calculations per second) that would go along with it, in my opinion. Right now I have 7 games (I just put up the newest one a couple minutes ago), and that's not much...
People want choices, so I'm doing my best to give them choices. The games are fun enough that I've gotten only one complaint (Besides WebTV users who don't understand why their television can't run flash... Heheh), so I know I'm hitting my mark so far. Trust me, I have enough addicts to last a LONG time... Look at the high scores on some of those games!

Ok, now I'm just rambling... My basic point is... Quality is a must, but there's a limit. You have to strike a balance between speed and quality, and you have to understand that a flash game, no matter how well done, is just a flash game. We have to face the fact that the majority of people will play our games once or twice, then move on. Sad but true.