Idea 1 –
This idea is going to be a Free-roaming game made in UE4 that will be called “Sinners“. The player would be placed into a city block where they will be given multiple options throughout the game that will change how the game plays out and what the player has to do. At each choice the player will be given a choice to Sin or to Help, for example, random events may occur like a robbery at this point the player would be able to choose to help the police and stop the robbery or help the robbers. Each choice that the player makes will impact there virtue meter. With a high virtue, the player will be attacked by gang members and will be able to help the public whereas is the player has a low virtue meter they will be considered a sinner and will be attacked by the police and able to kill the public.
What I will need to make –
- Character controller (Attacking & Moving)
- Virtue meter & Choices
- Health
- AI
- Multiple Guns
- City environment
If I was to make this idea I would have to create a base movement script and weaponry script so that the player can attack and move around the map, I would also have to make a choice system where the player will gain points in places depending on their choices, I would also have to make an AI system that would allow the AI to roam the streets, React to the player, and possibly attack the player. I would also have to create a health system for the player and all of the AI so that they are all able to die or be healed depending on the situation. I would also have to add multiple guns and types of ammunition to the game so that the player and AI can switch between them for different situations and reload them.
Here is a moodboard I have made that I based on the topic of the game idea “Sinners” that I have for my final product. This moodboard consists of different pictures that relate to the ideas that I have for the Game “Sinners” that I may be creating, these photos include different designs of modern weapons, health bars, city layouts, and a summary of the seven deadly sins and the seven heavenly virtues. I have made this moodboard to help me remember some of the things I want to add to my game and to give me some ideas on how to style various things and weapons.
Idea 2 –
My second idea is a Hidden object crime scene game that I will make in UE4 this game will be called “Catch The Killer“. For this game, the player will be placed into a 3D crime scene environment where the player is tasked with solving the crime and catching the killer. The player will do this by finding all of the clues that are around the scene and then connecting all of the information together and having to make a decision on who they believe the killer is, After deciding the player will be rated on how many clues they find and if they get the right person, the player will then be able to reset the map or try another level, the levels will also be randomly generated to some extent with the chance for different clues to spawn each time the game is played.
What I will need to make –
- 3D Crime scene environment
- Player controller
- Random clue generator
- Clue system
- Choice system
- Character Designs
If I am to make this idea I will have to create a 3D crime scene environment that the clues will be scattered across so that player can move around and collect them, I will also need to create a player controller so that the player can walk around the crime scene and pick up all of the clues, Another thing that I am going to need to create is a random generation system for all of the clues so that the game is not the same each time you play it, A clue system will also need to be made so that all of the clues have a meaning and have an outcome when the player finds them, At the end of the game a choice will have to be made so I will also have to create different outcomes depending on whether the player chooses correctly this will also need some character designs for the player to pick between.
Here is a moodboard that I have made for the game idea “Catch the killer” that I might make for my FMP. This moodboard consists of different pictures of crime scenes to give me some ideas about what I should add to my crime scene what I am creating my game, I have also included some mugshots of prisoners that I found on Pinterest so that I know what sort of things to include in the character profiles, I have also included some screenshots from hidden object games that I found. This moodboard is going to help me when I design the game in UE4 and begin to add all of the characters and clues to my scene.
Idea 3 –
My third idea is going to be a 3D heisting game that I will be creating in UE4 this games will be called “This is a robbery“. In the game, the player will start outside of a bank and will be tasked with breaking into the bank and stealing as much loot as they can before they get caught or die. The player will have the option of going loud and guns blazing or being stealthy and trying to get about the job as quiet as possible not alerting the guards If the player gets caught the police will send waves of officers that will get progressively harder each wave to try to catch and/or kill the player depending on how many innocents they have killed or have held hostage. I will be creating multiple designs for banks for this game so that the player gets a slightly different experience each time they play.
What I will need to make –
- Character controller
- Loot system
- Police & Civ AI
- Weaponry
- Stealth Mechanic
- Threat meter
If I am going to make this game I am going to need to create character controller so that the player can move around the map and go into the bank to rob it and get the money and so they are also able to shoot at the police or at the civilians if they want or need to. I will also need to create a loot system so that they can pick up all the loot and so that all of the loot have values so the money earned after each game can be seen. I will also need to create an AI for the Civilians and the Police to make sure they all react accordingly to the player and so that the player can kill them or take them hostage. I will also have to create a large set of weaponry and have all the weapons function according to what they are and how they fire and handle. Another thing that I will need to create is a stealth mechanic so that the player can be quiet about their heist if they want to. One of the final things I will need to create is a threat meter that will scale depending on how many hostages the player has killed and are currently holding, the more hostages the player has the more the police will hold off to protect them.
Here is a moodboard that I have based on the idea “This is a robbery” that I might be making for my unit 13 final product. This moodboard is made up of different types of pictures that I believe relate to the idea, For example, some of the photos from this moodboard are screenshots and covers from the Payday game series as this game is very similar to the idea, There are also some pictures of banks, bank vaults, money and floor plans of banks. This moodboard is going to help me if I decide to create this game as it has a lot of pictures that will relate to the game that I would be making and would help with the designing process of the maps, characters, and loot system.
Idea Evaluation –
Idea 1 –
For this idea, I really like the concept of the player being able to choose the outcome of the game and that they can be the good guy or the bad guy in a sense, I also like the idea of having the player be able to roam around the map freely and not having to go from place to place completing set tasks if that is not what they want to do. I also think that creating the Ai would be a fun and interesting task as I will be able to choose how they react to each situation depending on what the player may do.
Some of the things that I do not like about this idea are the fact that I have yet to do a working moving and shooting Ai so although it will be fun and interesting it may also be difficult due to me not attempting this before, Anther thing I am not too sure about in this idea are the multiple guns that I am going to create as this may become a problem in the designing process if I am unable to find the gun meshes that I need and want which may lead to me having to make them and I am not a very good 3D modeller.
Idea 2 –
Some of the thing that I like about this game is the fact that I have made a similar game in the past for my 1st year FMP so I would feel a little bit more comfortable in creating this as have had previous experience in this. Another thing that I like about this idea is that if it goes to plan each attempt will be different and the player will be able to have a slightly different experience each time the play.
The things that I do not like about this idea are the simplicity of the game I feel this may become a problem because I would not be able to show a multitude of different skills in this game as it is fairly straight forward, I also do not think that creating a character bio for each of the criminals would be easy as I lack the skills to design the characters looks and do not feel as though I could create a compelling story.
Idea 3 –
Some of the things that I liked about this idea are the option of going loud or have a more stealthy approach and quietly rob the bank without raising any police attention or you can alternatively go in guns blazing and take as many hostages as possible so that the police cant come rushing in and kill you, Another thing that I like about this idea is the Police and civilian AI that I am going to create as I believe that this is going to be fun to create and an interesting process.
Some of the things that I do not like about this idea are the amount of weaponry that I am going to have to create as if I am not able to find the weapons that I want it may become a problem because I might have to personally model them and I am not a good modeller.
Conclusion –
In conclusion, the idea that I like the most and would like to do is my first idea “Sinners” I like this idea more than the others because I believe that it has the most potential for a game and that I could show off a great range of skill if I can complete it in the time slot I have been given, I also believe this will be the most interesting game out of the three and will give me the opportunity to test out new techniques and skills that I have yet to attempt. However, I am also worried that I may not be able to complete the full task.
Final idea –
The idea that I am choosing to go through with and create is the first idea on the list and is titled “Sinners” In this game the player will be placed in a city block with various stores and houses that will be primitively modeled with some base textures applied to them, The player will be able to freely roam around this block of buildings and will be able to do some basic missions like robbing some small stores to earn money so they can buy different kinds of guns and ammo, Alternatively the player will also be able to look for and kill gang members and protect civilians, Each of these possibility’s will have different outcomes, for example, killing civilians and police will lower their virtue meter and will increase there sinner meter, After reaching a cretin point in each meter the opposing side of AI will start to hunt the player and attempt to kill them, The players mission is to survive and gain as much money as possible to escape the city or to help the police drive the gang members out of the city to restore order when either of these objectives are completed the player will win the game and be given a debrief on their score and standings with each side.
The games colour style will vary depending on the players standing, for example, the player will be seeing a lot darker reds and blacks if they choose to go down the sinner path to represent blood and chaos, Whereas if the player decides to go down the path of virtue they will see a lot more light blues and greens representing law and order. The art style the game will be made it will be a semi-realistic semi-cartoonish style with the camera being placed over the shoulder of the player with the possibility of an alternative first-person camera option. The gameplay style of this game will be aimed at teenagers and adults and would most likely not be suitable for children due to the violent nature of the game.
- Character controller (Attacking & Moving)
- Virtue meter & Choices
- Health
- AI
- Multiple Guns
Some of the mechanics that I will need to complete this are the basic movement and shooting so that the player can walk around the environment and use their gun to complete their mission. Another one of the mechanics that I am going to need to add to the game are the virtue and sin meters so that the player can change their standings depending on what they do in the game, For example the sin level will rise if the player kills people and the virtue meter will rise if the player helps people. Another mechanic I will need to add to the game is the health for both the player and all of the types of AI, each of the AI will have a different amount of health depending on what they are for example, the police are going to have more health than civilians because they will have body Armour on and the civilians will not. one of the most impotent mechanic i am going t need to add to this game is the AI, I am going to need a few different kinds of AI for this game as there are going to be two factions fighting and civilians that have been caught in the middle, each of these AI will respond to different scenarios in different ways. Another of the main mechanics that I am going to make is the multiple weapons behaviors, I am going to need to create multiple different designs of weapons, for example some will have low power and a high fire rate etc.
Level 3 Games Development 2nd Year 