Top Secret
First time out of the vault
Fallout is dead. The series has been taken down a path which no longer suits me. Fallout was never about awesome graphics (and still isn't, apparently, haha.) or Matrix style combat.
It is now apparent to me that a game that suits me (and possibly you) is now only a dream.
I propose a new game, forged by this community and other Fallout fans alike. Not a cheap mod, or a high production "mass appealing" game. But a freeware title. A spiritual successor. I propose:
No Mutants Allowed
Mission Statement: To create an open source spiritual successor to Fallout 1 and 2 featuring a 1950's stylized post-apocalyptic setting. An open-ended adventure with or without a linear main storyline featuring many non-linear side quests that can have direct or indirect affects on the game world.
About the proposed game:
Art Style: The art will be similar to the Fallout series. Dirty rags and burnt rubber. The art style will not be exaggerated like so many games of today have chosen to do. (ie, have characters wearing hugely disproportional armor, or swords that are nine feet long and a foot thick.) For example; an artist designing a mechanical suit that a character might dawn will design it considering function as well as form. That line of spikes going down the back of the suit might look cool, but its purpose is nill. Please note however, that a raider wearing his own home-grown armor might decorate it accordingly.
Core Gameplay Mechanics: NMA will be a combat turn based game, with a real time adventure mode. When a combat round starts, the game will transfer to turn-based hex mode where the characters options and abilities will be decided upon how that character was designed. ie, stats, traits, feats, what have you. Dialogue will be purely text, with no voice acting. Taking the "budget" into consideration, this will allow for a far more detailed conversation tree that will include more options. NMA will consist of various "zones" interconnected by an over-arching land map.
Graphics: NMA will be an isometric game, but with a 3D engine. Much like the fabled Van Buren. The targeted level of graphics quality would also be similar to Van Buren. The camera would be fixed. In my humble opinion, having a camera that can swing around, zoom in and out, etc is not required, and also means that everything must be more detailed than originally necessary. If a fixed camera height and angle is used, quality control will not only be much easier, but more consistent as well.
Open Source: If you notice in the mission statement, I proposed an open source game. I also previously mentioned "units" of work. This would almost certainly have to be volunteer based and will be very tough to coordinate. The Game Creation Tools would be available to everyone, where people would be able to create a side quest, and then submit it to be implemented. As an example: NMA Fan 1 really digs the idea of a NMA game and has a cool idea for a fun little quest. NMA Fan 1 downloads the Game Creation tools, and creates a small desert town using the given tools along with a quest to fix a generator that provides the town with electricity. This is submitted to the lead designer(s) who then tie it into the rest of the game. The side quest does not have to be important to the main plot in any way. Once the unit is implemented, a lead designer will go back through it and add detail, NPCs, or possibly other quests. This idea in this system is it takes the grunt work of extra area design off of the lead designers, who only now need to tie the strings together, so to speak. Main areas of the game would still be designed by the lead designers, however. Side quests, random encounter areas, or just minor areas to wonder the wasteland in would be generated by contribution.
Game Creation Tools: This will be the most difficult. The tools will be very demanding to make because they must be powerful, and easy to use. The map editor, would work much like the starcraft or Sims 2 editor. In that, you don't make models, design walls, or create cliffs. You just shape them. For example, you want to make a square room with a door: You click on the "wall" button, and draw out a square. The map making tool snaps this to the grid and automatically generates the walls, and roof once the square is complete and assign's it the default shiny metallic wall texture with a tile roof. (Think The Sims 2) But say you wanted rustic walls, and a tin roof. You select the rusty walls, and paint over the old texture. (Again, The Sims 2) Doors, windows, tires, barrels, old automobiles would all just be drag and drop. To make a tree, you select the tree model, and click on the map where it snaps to the closest hex.
Game Plan:
Step one is the engine. It would be wise to go with an open source engine, such as OGRE instead of making one from scratch. Requirements would be: Free, Open Source, 3D.
Step two is the game creation tools. ie, Map Editor, Script Editor, Item editor.
Step three is models and textures to complete the tools. A comprehensive list of misc objects, weapons, character models would have to be created. Please note that the objectives of this project dictate that extremes are not required. ie, one Male Human model and one Female Human model will suffice due to the isometric and graphical requirements of this game. Although each model could have different skins. (White, brown, black persons, etc.)
Once the base is done, core game production begins in terms of gameplay, AI, engine adaptation, story, scripts, animation, etc.
Other: The game may not "ship" with a main storyline. The main objective is to get a open-world wasteland with a working quest system that can be built upon. The game would be freeware.
Staff:
Project leader (Lead Designers): I think this should be a board of directors, and not a single person. I am thinking 2-4 people who decide what is in, what is out. What is do-able, and what isn't. What is fun, and what is dumb.
Modelers: At least two people to create models. Nothing amazing, just barrels, tires, doors, tables, guns, characters, mutants, creatures. This does not to be high-detail stuff, but it does need to be proportionate. No Dragon Ball Z stuff here.
Texture Artists: Again, at least two. Anyone who can make metallic textures is going to be a plus.
Animator: Straight to the point. Nothing fancy, we don't need a reload animation for every gun, in every circumstance. As a good example of effective animation, the "use" animation in Fallout 2 is great. The character leans forwards, manipulates his hands, and the task, whatever it might be, is attempted. Simple, broad, effective.
Lead Programmer: The hardest job, we are going to need someone to make the tools. Most likely one person, possibly two.
Game Programmers: These people are going to need to do the stats, AI, interfaces, essentially everything that the lead isn't doing. Also, support the lead programmer when/if needed.
Any questions?
Oh, nice forums you guys have here by the way.
It is now apparent to me that a game that suits me (and possibly you) is now only a dream.
I propose a new game, forged by this community and other Fallout fans alike. Not a cheap mod, or a high production "mass appealing" game. But a freeware title. A spiritual successor. I propose:
No Mutants Allowed
Mission Statement: To create an open source spiritual successor to Fallout 1 and 2 featuring a 1950's stylized post-apocalyptic setting. An open-ended adventure with or without a linear main storyline featuring many non-linear side quests that can have direct or indirect affects on the game world.
About the proposed game:
Art Style: The art will be similar to the Fallout series. Dirty rags and burnt rubber. The art style will not be exaggerated like so many games of today have chosen to do. (ie, have characters wearing hugely disproportional armor, or swords that are nine feet long and a foot thick.) For example; an artist designing a mechanical suit that a character might dawn will design it considering function as well as form. That line of spikes going down the back of the suit might look cool, but its purpose is nill. Please note however, that a raider wearing his own home-grown armor might decorate it accordingly.
Core Gameplay Mechanics: NMA will be a combat turn based game, with a real time adventure mode. When a combat round starts, the game will transfer to turn-based hex mode where the characters options and abilities will be decided upon how that character was designed. ie, stats, traits, feats, what have you. Dialogue will be purely text, with no voice acting. Taking the "budget" into consideration, this will allow for a far more detailed conversation tree that will include more options. NMA will consist of various "zones" interconnected by an over-arching land map.
Graphics: NMA will be an isometric game, but with a 3D engine. Much like the fabled Van Buren. The targeted level of graphics quality would also be similar to Van Buren. The camera would be fixed. In my humble opinion, having a camera that can swing around, zoom in and out, etc is not required, and also means that everything must be more detailed than originally necessary. If a fixed camera height and angle is used, quality control will not only be much easier, but more consistent as well.
Open Source: If you notice in the mission statement, I proposed an open source game. I also previously mentioned "units" of work. This would almost certainly have to be volunteer based and will be very tough to coordinate. The Game Creation Tools would be available to everyone, where people would be able to create a side quest, and then submit it to be implemented. As an example: NMA Fan 1 really digs the idea of a NMA game and has a cool idea for a fun little quest. NMA Fan 1 downloads the Game Creation tools, and creates a small desert town using the given tools along with a quest to fix a generator that provides the town with electricity. This is submitted to the lead designer(s) who then tie it into the rest of the game. The side quest does not have to be important to the main plot in any way. Once the unit is implemented, a lead designer will go back through it and add detail, NPCs, or possibly other quests. This idea in this system is it takes the grunt work of extra area design off of the lead designers, who only now need to tie the strings together, so to speak. Main areas of the game would still be designed by the lead designers, however. Side quests, random encounter areas, or just minor areas to wonder the wasteland in would be generated by contribution.
Game Creation Tools: This will be the most difficult. The tools will be very demanding to make because they must be powerful, and easy to use. The map editor, would work much like the starcraft or Sims 2 editor. In that, you don't make models, design walls, or create cliffs. You just shape them. For example, you want to make a square room with a door: You click on the "wall" button, and draw out a square. The map making tool snaps this to the grid and automatically generates the walls, and roof once the square is complete and assign's it the default shiny metallic wall texture with a tile roof. (Think The Sims 2) But say you wanted rustic walls, and a tin roof. You select the rusty walls, and paint over the old texture. (Again, The Sims 2) Doors, windows, tires, barrels, old automobiles would all just be drag and drop. To make a tree, you select the tree model, and click on the map where it snaps to the closest hex.
Game Plan:
Step one is the engine. It would be wise to go with an open source engine, such as OGRE instead of making one from scratch. Requirements would be: Free, Open Source, 3D.
Step two is the game creation tools. ie, Map Editor, Script Editor, Item editor.
Step three is models and textures to complete the tools. A comprehensive list of misc objects, weapons, character models would have to be created. Please note that the objectives of this project dictate that extremes are not required. ie, one Male Human model and one Female Human model will suffice due to the isometric and graphical requirements of this game. Although each model could have different skins. (White, brown, black persons, etc.)
Once the base is done, core game production begins in terms of gameplay, AI, engine adaptation, story, scripts, animation, etc.
Other: The game may not "ship" with a main storyline. The main objective is to get a open-world wasteland with a working quest system that can be built upon. The game would be freeware.
Staff:
Project leader (Lead Designers): I think this should be a board of directors, and not a single person. I am thinking 2-4 people who decide what is in, what is out. What is do-able, and what isn't. What is fun, and what is dumb.
Modelers: At least two people to create models. Nothing amazing, just barrels, tires, doors, tables, guns, characters, mutants, creatures. This does not to be high-detail stuff, but it does need to be proportionate. No Dragon Ball Z stuff here.
Texture Artists: Again, at least two. Anyone who can make metallic textures is going to be a plus.
Animator: Straight to the point. Nothing fancy, we don't need a reload animation for every gun, in every circumstance. As a good example of effective animation, the "use" animation in Fallout 2 is great. The character leans forwards, manipulates his hands, and the task, whatever it might be, is attempted. Simple, broad, effective.
Lead Programmer: The hardest job, we are going to need someone to make the tools. Most likely one person, possibly two.
Game Programmers: These people are going to need to do the stats, AI, interfaces, essentially everything that the lead isn't doing. Also, support the lead programmer when/if needed.
Any questions?
Oh, nice forums you guys have here by the way.
.
.