I played a game a couple months before the end of 2017. The game was nothing special because it was a port from a phone game and has some issues on PC. But, two aspects of the game made me think that I could use them to make a second 2D game. What were these two things?
- You were confined to an area and would zoom in to get close enough to manage an area.
- You would drag and drop people onto an area which would send them outside of the game world.
An additional aspect the game was that you could build something in it. But this idea was not taken from the game since my 3D and first 2D game were already going to have a way to build in them. I love designing and building things inside of games so this idea did not come from the other game, but was in fact the reason I was trying it out.
So I thought these two ideas would make for a good medieval game but even better it would be nice if you didn't have to zoom. Instead of zooming perhaps you could scroll the screen a bit to the left and a bit to the right in order to see everything if there was a need for that. And instead of dragging people around it would be nicer if there was a better way of controlling them because that part of the game is pretty poor on PC and has a fair number of issues.
This concept means that I wouldn't need dynamic images to drive the whole game. The scenery and ui could be static images which would make things much easier. It would allow me to try my dynamic image code for the construction area of the game which would be a good proving ground for it. Since the game is simpler than my other 2D game it allows me to spend less time developing a way to view the world and write and test the systems I want to use in my games instead. So this game is going to become my prototype, faster to develop and I will be able to try out things and spend time perfecting them before I go back to something more complex.
This will be a very different style game from the other 2D game. You will start playing by selecting a century you want to start in and must unlock higher centuries. I'm thinking you will start in the 13th century as a Baron/Baroness and must unlock higher ranks to play as a Earl/Countess or King/Queen. In the 14th century you will also be able to play as a Duke/Duchess and Marquess/Marchioness. In the 15th century you will also be able to play as a Viscount/Viscountess.
The goal of the game is to gather resources, hire workers, and construct a new home and defend it. Once finished you will need to do something (I'll figure out what as I get the game made) to unlock the next rank.
Features
- Realistic day/night cycle, seasons, and weather.
- Construct a home and defend it.
- Search for resources.
- Trade with travelling merchants or nearby locations.
Concept
You father has just passed away and you have inherited his peerage. With your home in ruins after some tragedy you must hire workers to construct a new one. So you design your new home which will have specific resource requirements. You won't have enough resources lying around so you need to send servents into the surrounding regions to find and gather resources. Collect taxes from the peasants in your land. Provide food for your workers by farming, fishing, hunting, or trapping what you need. Trade the resources or food you have with nearby villages and castles for the resources or food you need. Protect yourself and your resources from thieves and brigands. You need to be prepared in case someone you are at war with tries to attack you. You can encounter travelling merchants and other individuals or groups while you play.
You will have 3 regions (West, North, and East) surrounding your home. South is assumed to contain a road to a nearby village. Select what you want for each of these regions from 9 biomes or select some and have the system randomly choose the others. Each biome will have some default resources with varying amounts from scarse to abundant and while exploring you may find additional resources. As an example the ocean will be a resource for food and oil and the food will be abundant.