i want to write an adventure...

iamamightypirate · Mon 22/12/2003 21:01:23

hi -- i just read the journal by josh roberts on adventuregaming.com about how he's going to produce an adventure game, its really excellent and it has inspired me to start my own project, i think I have some good ideas, but I am not what you would consider a graphical whiz. or into programmingor scipting.

I was wondering how you go about looking for collaborators for a project, or indeed hand off your ideas or 'pitch' to a group already into designing adventure games.

any feedback would be greatfully appreciated, I hope I am posting to the correct place.

thanks

S

m0ds · Mon 22/12/2003 22:25:14

I think the best advice I could give is to get involved with other peoples projects first before taking on your own if you feel you have a lot to or need to learn. Also I reckon you should offer to help out with other projects instead of trying to bundle people up to help you with your own at first.

Don't just create a thread asking who needs help, take a look around the forums - see what games are being made, check the ACR thread to see if people need help and get to know people here, maybe on IRC or what not.

Good luck! Glad to see inspiration still exists

m0ds

TerranRich · Tue 23/12/2003 06:10:13

You know something? If you were truly inspired, you would do it all on your own. That's what I'm doing, save the music. I'm doing all my graphics (3D), dialog, scripting, and art. It's taking a damn long time, but I'm working at it. Too many new AGSers say "Ooh! I want to make a game! Will somebody do most of the work for me?" Honestly, I thought that way too at first. But then I realized I would have to do it on my own. Sure, I had a little help with the storyline, gameplay, and plot, but I was lucky. I also had something to work with.

Ginny · Tue 23/12/2003 11:31:26

I agree with terran partially, but I also disagree. Heh, what I mean is, having people do everything or most of everything for you isn't good, but when I'm inspired truly by an idea, I envision it one way and I cannot settel for worse (this is graphicwise, gameplaywise, and musicwise), and often I won't be able to find anyone to do that level of perfection for the game. But this causes me not to look for help, and instead have a very strong wish to be able to do what I wanted for the game myself. But noone is great at everything, so I keep putting off more advanced ideas, and trying to work on things that I'm not as attached to.
The best way is to try doing everything on your own though, or almost everything, and learning in the proccess.

When I finish my MAGS game I'm going to take a long practice time and if needed help with other projects (which I can only with the story).

As for pitching ideas (more common in real companies), I have no knowledge of this, but I'd reccomend reading some design documents, like the ones on http://www.allowe.com/

Captain Mostly · Tue 23/12/2003 12:10:34

I've only ever successfully colaborated once, very recently (having been milling around for coming to to quite a few years now...) But I used to get involved in projects all over the place!

What I think made this possible was that I didn't poke my head in around these parts (well... around the EZboard) until after I'd finished my first game (RL&BAT). I think it'll help you to get into teams when you've got at least SOMETHING to show people, so they can see what you're skills are, and thus where you'd fit into their teams. It's really VERY important that you have a crack at making something by yourself before you can reasonably expect people to let you join their projects. Let alone take a controlling creative role in a team!

These days of course, it's somewhat harder to just "have a go", as Graphical Scripts have been taken out of AGS, so people with no programming skills (like you, and like I was when I started) will have to work signifigantly harder to get their heads round a lot of the most asic concepts. But there is at least now a much broader support base for you, to help you et started.

As such: Have a go! You really REALLY will be able to make something! If your story's good, people will like it. And it's entirly possible to make a pretty good game without even TOUCHING the horrible faux C++ scripts.. if you try...

It might help to boost your confidence if you have a look at some of the games that other newbies have made. When I got started, Rob Blank had just come out (the first one) and everyone was saying "WOW!!! THIS IS AMAZING!!"
I played it and thought "Well, I can CERTAINLY do better htan THIS!" And was motivated to draw a blu-skinned transvestite. Then Rob Blanc 2 came out, and left my game looking somewhat less impressive, but shhhhhhh...

In the end, Yahtzee even comented to me that RL&BAT had inspired (to a degree) the events-not-happening-in-the-right-order buisness from Rob Blanc 3, and I was ever so proud!

YOU CAN DO IT!

santiago · Thu 25/12/2003 11:28:01

Quote from: iamamightypirate on Mon 22/12/2003 21:01:23

I was wondering how you go about looking for collaborators for a project, or indeed hand off your ideas or 'pitch' to a group already into designing adventure games.

Collaborators? We don't need no stinkin' collaborators!

I am working on a game that probably will be the best adventure game ever created and when it's released I'm going to shine in the glory of infinite success.

And I'm definitely not sharing it with any collaborators, they're just in the way of my Vision<tm>.

Pessi · Thu 25/12/2003 17:41:10

If you really want to put together a team you might need to get people interested by posting a bit of the story of the game, for example, if it's what you would be doing for the game. But it will be hard to get people to join your project if you don't know how to script or do any graphics. I think generally the graphics are what really get people interested and unfortunately there aren't so many of graphic artists around. And if your team is also lacking a programmer, it lowers the chance to get an artist.

The bigger the team, the harder it is for it to work when they aren't working in an office or anything. I have been in a couple of projects and all of them have had this problem. Everyone is inspired at first, then one gets uninspired and soon another. Then there will be a short break when no one works and if they come back after that, you have a good team. But when people don't get paid it's hard to keep everyone interested.

Anyway, my suggestion is to at least try learning AGS because it really isn't hard. It is good to make a small game and see how it all works. After you get it finished you'll know the process and after the initial enthusiasm you'll know whether you still are up for it. Because projects take time and at first it's hard to realize what it takes to get through.

Either way, good luck! It's really not as hard as I make it sound.

jannar85 · Sat 27/12/2003 09:41:15

Well, if I were you, I would start with the design document first.
Finish that, THEN come back to the finding-staff stuff

I get a feel that comment will be thrown back at me...

Anyways, that's what I'm doing now though

chapter11studios · Sat 27/12/2003 15:06:40

Quote from: terranRICH on Tue 23/12/2003 06:10:13
You know something? If you were truly inspired, you would do it all on your own. That's what I'm doing, save the music.

But there's absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to collaborate on a project, either. You can't measure someone's "inspiration" simply because he or she chooses a different approach than you. Many of the more successful AGS games have been team efforts. Now obviously, each team member needs to contribute a lot of work, and you can't just sit around and ask other people to do all the work for you--but there's absolutely nothing wrong in trying to build a team of like-minded people to bring a particular vision to life.

Ishmael · Sat 27/12/2003 15:31:08

Quote from: santiago on Thu 25/12/2003 11:28:01
I am working on a game that probably will be the best adventure game ever created and when it's released I'm going to shine in the glory of infinite success.

No mean to put you down, but my game has already been named the best game ever... See da thead if you don't believe me

santiago · Sat 27/12/2003 22:01:24

Quote from: TK on Sat 27/12/2003 15:31:08
No mean to put you down, but my game has already been named the best game ever... See da thead if you don't believe me

And I don't wanna rain on your parade but consider your game beaten.

iamamightypirate · Fri 02/01/2004 19:41:49

i would like to thank everyone thats posted here, I am surprised at all the feedback people have left

what I am going to do is write the design doc for the adventure and see where that takes me.

i will keep folks posted on progress

thanks everyone and have a great 2004