With alacrity needed in my predicament an immediate search of my mind's data banks was required. I had played many popular and great games. God of War Series, Fallout, Minecraft, Call of Duty, Baldurs Gate Series, Divinity Original Sin, Dota 2, Starcraft III, World of Warcraft, Star wars Battlefront, League of Legends, Path of Exile 1 and 2 and many, many more.
But, from what I could gather, my points wouldn't allow for overly complex games to be made. There were hundreds of sections for games and many were way out of my budget. As it was, creating a something like Minecraft alpha version would cost all the points at my fingertips. So it came down to some more simplistic choices... Potentially expanding the concepts of this games to a more first-person-like experience. I liked those types of games.
First that came to mind was something akin to Arma 1 where you could play basic missions as soldiers or military personnel of some kind. There were missions that I could add and it would be enjoyable to all the men and women who liked shit blowing up and the military industrial complex.
The next was Fallout 1, a top down controlled turn-based game that was based around an apocalyptic world sourced from World War 3. Making a top down wasn't in my plans but this game would allow some massive extensions if I wanted to go down this route...
The last idea I had was Minecraft, my last resort. Since it would cost me all of my points it would leave very little margin of error for me. Given the fact I didn't understand who I am selling to or where I was selling it, this was a gamble that was too far out of odds. But, in a pinch it could work, with luck.
It was the same for the rest, but Minecraft was the most difficult to sell in its Alpha form.
|Hint 122- All games made by the user will be turned into a Virtual reality experience. Mobas or Top Down RPGs will change to embrace this aspect.|
Shocked at this hint I had just seen whilst scrolling down the page, I began taking a look down the game-style list within the creator app.
-First Person Shooter (Cutting Edge of Earth): 13,000,000 Points
-MMO RPG (Cutting Edge of Earth): 12,000,000 Points
-MMO TTRPG (Cutting Edge of Earth): 11,000,000 Points
'Too expensive.'
-Sandbox (Basic): 1,000 Points
-Open World RPG (Basic): 800 Points
- Moba (Primitive): 400 Points
"Hmm! Open World RPG would be the best... I get the basic layout for a game like fallout and can then invest 100 points into enhancing it to be unique!"
I didn't hesitate to buy the Open World RPG game system for my new game. Immediately the screen filled with hundreds if not thousands of assets and voice lines. As if the system had pulled the ideas and memories from my mind, each and every aspect of the basic game had been implemented in a basic form. Styled after Fallout completely and what i perceived of them, I saw assets for Mr.Handy robots and multiple different figures. They were all pixelated to a certain extent but were good enough to serve their purpose.
I loved the Fallout series and its grim but funny nature. Exploring the grittiness whilst meeting unique characters that had drama or storyline to every interaction was awesome. Not to mention the importance of every choice you make impacting the endgame result... It was a masterful way of making your work feel real. Meeting certain character from Shady Sands or wandering the wastes for different Vaults from Vault tech, it was really awesome. I was kinda pumped that i was going to be the one shaping this game, since it kicked off Fallout 2, 3 and 4.
Checking the dialogues and ending options I checked the basic mechanical systems: movement, equipment, status sheet, Stats, Conditions, Damage, Healing, Crafting and Scavenging/Looting. They were well-done if a bit dated, but given the fact that this was a VR experience I was hoping it would offset some of the dated elements. Luckily there was an expansive map though, a unique aspect that made the game awesome for when it was released. It was a touch and travel type style map, sadly a bit bland for adventure, but that would quickly be filled by the unique locations and storyline. Fallout 4 was a good example of the fun one could have whilst exploring, but this game was more an establishment of the lore, the setting, the characters all whilst being a fun choose your story type game.
'Bethesda may have turned to shit over time, but I swear I'll bring this game justice! No money exploitation or shitty loot boxes or gambling. Everything will be earned with gameplay, which still earns me points!'
Enthralled by the prospect of being a moral game maker and with 100 points left in my budget; the extra 100 being kept aside, I decided to upgrade the visuals. They would become more coherent and appealing, allowing people to actually see the faces of the characters. Although this cost around 50 points, as all of the assets were modified to match what i wanted in my mind, it was worth every penny as they looked much more akin to Humans than glorified colour splotches now.
Left with 50 points though, I decided to expand upon the details of the terrain and maps. Considering people were going to be in Virtual Reality, it figures that a more detailed environment would be better for the senses. Plus, given my new goal to be an ethical game-maker, it could also aid the reputation of the game since people spoke a lot about graphics in the gaming community.
After these major decisions came the slog. I was deep down in the details with the system for several hours, my stomach groaning away as coding errors and small incoherencies were hatefully fixed, only to make way for bugs that also needed to be cleansed. Unfortunately my extra 100 points was drained also, the problems potentially killing the game, leading me to make that decision...
Slumping back in my chair I looked outside the window, watching people live their lives contently. Helicopters flew in the skies as hundreds or thousands of cars drove around the grid-like streets of this city. The scape itself was unfamiliar to me, but that was charming as the mystery of it sent butterflies up my stomach at the prospect of discovering its identity... Once I was allowed out of here and I survived.
"Alright... Enough procrastination Freya, you got this!"
Rubbing my eyes and leaning forwards I stared at the screen, moused my way down until I noted a large throbbing red button at the bottom of the screen. This would determine my fate. No doubt I would kill myself before I starved so this was my only chance. Gurgling from my stomach harassed me until my index finger slammed down on the [Launch] button.
Across the entire world, in but a millisecond of hitting that button, a game seemingly appeared from nowhere, on every online game store. Steam, Epic Games, Amazon... all of them suddenly had a game appear on their sales list, towards the top of the 'New Games' category.
...
And in an unclean den somewhere in the world, a sloppily dressed and slightly moody teenager was scrolling through one of the most popular online game stores in the world... Steam...
'All these games are boring... Its' just more and more war games and historical games.'
His scrolling continued for minutes as his face grew more and more pathetic. He was succumbing to boredom and his own limited attention span. Endless lists of scams and very bad family games weren't itching that scratch that gnawed at the back of his mind.
Over pay to win games and terrible reimaginings of history, he was delving for something new, something unique... Anything to break his day's monotony and his dad's constant grumbling and broodiness.
This cycle of thinly veiled boredom was close to coming to an end as he looked at the 'For Him' menu, noticing nothing even remotely intriguing. And just as he was close to giving up all hope, something drew him to the shining button of the New Games tab. Tiredness almost got to him, but he deigned to hang around for a few seconds more, all in the hopes of finding something to do apart from speaking with his dad.
Scrolling down for a single second, seeing the sheer amount of WW2 games and varying small fighting games, he stopped. There was one game there that made him stop...
Damian was utterly intrigued by this game. It had an armoured man with a draconian red background, presumably, gazing into the distance as a nuclear blast exploded in the background, the simple title of 'Fallout' given to it. Mildly interested in this little game, he clicked on it.
No images or footage was taken, there was no text... Just a simple purchase button. It was $15, but that was pennies in comparison to his family's fortune, or the one he could easily get himself. Mystery was exuding from this game in droves, an aspect that he liked being as intelligent as he was.
"Okay, i see your ploy... Let's see how your game is."
He clicked and bought the game, using his dad's credit card. Then, after a quick install, he started it up...
Everything went blank for Damian as he heard the squeaking of rats and the smells of rot and decay. Darkness covered his vision for the most part, but what most threw him off was the clinging clothes he now wore and the thick pixelated device that rested on his arm snuggly.
"What the fuck?"
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