Old school Isometric RPG hardship

[gaussgunner]

I have to agree with Mustawd. If you can make an indie game that looks even that good, you're ahead of the game.

 

[Deleted Member 16721]

Ok so I am the ART stage. This is an isometric RPG made from tiles so...what style to go for and which artist to go with?

Am considering a style similar this...http://www.playwildterra.com/

Looks 3D rendered?

Mmm...that looks delicious! Really nice. That's all I really have to add.

As for other suggestions, check out the ancient ones. Arcanum, Konung, etc. High levels of detail as well as unique UI and menus that add to the atmosphere and fit the game are a huge plus as well.

 

[Davaris]

I have to agree with Mustawd. If you can make an indie game that looks even that good, you're ahead of the game.

If he's got lots of money to pay artists he's good.

 

[The_Sloth_Sleeps]

Ok so I am the ART stage. This is an isometric RPG made from tiles so...what style to go for and which artist to go with?

Am considering a style similar this...http://www.playwildterra.com/

Looks 3D rendered?

Mmm...that looks delicious! Really nice. That's all I really have to add.

As for other suggestions, check out the ancient ones. Arcanum, Konung, etc. High levels of detail as well as unique UI and menus that add to the atmosphere and fit the game are a huge plus as well.

Are those games actually tile based? They look more like art to me.

 

[gaussgunner]

Are those games actually tile based? They look more like art to me.

Definitely tile based. Otherwise road corners and stuff wouldn't be square. The trees and castles are just larger images than span multiple tiles.

 

[Mustawd]

Are those games actually tile based?

Yes, you can really tell in the screenshot below:

Spoiler

It's especially telling in the pattern of the dirt areas.

Many older 2D games did it. Commandos 1 & 2, Fallout 1 & 2, Arcanum, etc. There was still some set pieces so it wasn't always 100% tiles.

The only issue with the art above is that it's generic, as other games have reproduced the same general look.


Balrum

Eschalon Book 1

Eschalon book 2

But I wouldn't let that stop you. You can still make something unique with a few changes.

 

[The_Sloth_Sleeps]

Are those games actually tile based?

Yes, you can really tell in the screenshot below:

Spoiler

It's especially telling in the pattern of the dirt areas.

Many older 2D games did it. Commandos 1 & 2, Fallout 1 & 2, Arcanum, etc. There was still some set pieces so it wasn't always 100% tiles.

The only issue with the art above is that it's generic, as other games have reproduced the same general look.


Balrum

Eschalon Book 1

Eschalon book 2

But I wouldn't let that stop you. You can still make something unique with a few changes.

I know those above games are tiles based. I'm wondering about Arcanum and Konung.

 

[The_Sloth_Sleeps]

I think Balrum, Eschalon style are achievable. The more pretty ones almost certainly too expensive for my budget.

 

[Mustawd]

I'm wondering about Arcanum and Konung.

Arcanum is tile based with some set pieces that were custom made for some specific maps.

Not sure about Konung, but in the screenshot below you can see some tiling in the islands on the pond.

 

[Mustawd]

Some more relevant info:

http://opengameart.org/content/grassland-tileset
http://opengameart.org/users/clint-bellanger

http://flarerpg.org/

We've recently added many more styles of melee weapons in Flare's core game data. These were commissioned by the team at Exiled Kingdoms which makes great use of lots of Flare art.

Here are the basic models for these ten new weapons. The Blender models (CC-BY-SA) can be found in our game repo here.

http://opengameart.org/forumtopic/a-project-i-am-working-on-using-flare

 

[Mustawd]

Some more discussions on how he created assets for the game:

http://flarerpg.org/blog/20110801
http://flarerpg.org/blog/20110825
http://flarerpg.org/blog/20110912

 

[The_Sloth_Sleeps]

Some more discussions on how he created assets for the game:

http://flarerpg.org/blog/20110801
http://flarerpg.org/blog/20110825
http://flarerpg.org/blog/20110912

Not that I dislike Flare but...it just looks so pre-rendered 3D. Its a cheaper option I'm sure but...3D!? I don't know if I can compromise.

 

[Mustawd]

To be fair he's said that the art was created when he was inexperienced with blender.

I'm just linking to give you an idea of what the process can look like.

It can be improved with better/more appropriate textures or using GIMP for post processing.

 

[gaussgunner]

Those should look a lot better (brighter, less plasticy) rendered with the newer 'Cycles' renderer in Blender.

 

[The_Sloth_Sleeps]

Just hired a stunning artist for $15 an hour. He makes 0.75 tiles an hour. How many hours to finish a games? Will I go bankrupt or need a kickstarter?

 

[supervoid]

$15/ an hour is a lot, usually indie developers won't pay more than $5/h.
Link artist's portfolio pls.

 

[Deleted Member 16721]

I'll be keeping my eye on this. If you need any help with the other RPG stuff, feel free to ask! Not that I know much about design, though, but may have an idea or two here and there.

I will also share a few quick and random thoughts. I think, if you can, going the route of Baldur's Gate/Arcanum/Konung in art-style is best. It is a forgotten art now, as we all know, and modern isometric RPGs look a certain way. They don't look "bad" or anything, but you can tell they are modern isometric RPGs, if that makes sense. So, if you are somehow able to distinguish your game's looks to be more like the older stuff, like a high-res Arcanum or Konung, that would certainly be attractive to potential players. IMO.

Second, the most important part of an RPG like this is having quality gameplay, a sound and complex ruleset, and IMO, tons of room for creativity in builds and tactics, both in combat and character development. I would perhaps stay away from skill trees as they seem to feel a bit casual, look into old Dungeons & Dragons video game RPGs and things like this. I would also consider making loot more hand-placed and rarer in general, using small numbers in your stat, damage, HP and overall systems, consider adding Kits to the classes, with strong restrictions that have you approaching the game in a slightly different and unique way and more. These techniques make the systems in the game more meaningful, IMO.

I would also take a serious look at an old RPG called Realmz. Specifically, the character creation, some of the restrictions in character building and ruleset, the classes, races, spells, etc.. Tons to see here that would benefit a new RPG. Here, I'll link you to a quick video I made years back for the game. Please be aware that the video is not the best quality and was made in the days where I didn't know how to properly mix my vocals over the game sounds!



I know this is far off for you, but I'm just sharing what I think modern isometric RPGs can really use, and I and I think others who enjoy isometric RPGs would be very thrilled if more RPGs did stuff like this!

Lastly, try not to make working on this too much of a misery (if you can!) You'll get more accomplished if you try to have fun with it.

Good luck! Keep us updated.

 

[The_Sloth_Sleeps]

$15/ an hour is a lot, usually indie developers won't pay more than $5/h.
Link artist's portfolio pls.

https://erwin12santiago.carbonmade.com/

Well, I was impressed at least.

 

[The_Sloth_Sleeps]

So lets get analytical about tileset tiles count. I am pulling these number out my bum but its somewhere to start.

8 trees
8 bushes
4 grass
4 river
4 cliff
4 sand
4 rock
4 road
2 signpost
8 stone wall
8 brick wall
8 wood wall

4 door
2 gate
2 window

2 barrel
2 crate
2 bookshelf
2 table
2 chair

= 80 tiles for a starting set.
Cost $1200 at 1tile=1hr assuming I can get bulk discount.

A full game tileset would probably be 3-4 times as many tiles. Not including animated characters of course.

 

[gaussgunner]

You'll need a bunch of edge pieces too... road/grass, grass/sand, sand/river...

 

[Davaris]

Max: The two cardinal rules of producing are one: Never put your own money in the show.
Leo: And two?
Max: [yelling] Never put your own money in the show!

 

[The_Sloth_Sleeps]

Max: The two cardinal rules of producing are one: Never put your own money in the show.
Leo: And two?
Max: [yelling] Never put your own money in the show!

This is a hobby/obsession not a show. My expectations are zero, and my aim is to achieve a little more than bitter disappointment. Therefore this project at the very least is guaranteed to succeed.

 

[The_Sloth_Sleeps]

Playing around with multi-tiles I am now facing two tough questions. Interiors, do I show them as a separate screen or as a new screen?
And how to manage multiple tiles to create larger structures, cliffs, houses, etc.
http://imgur.com/a/97lV4 (link, still don't know how to insert pictures).

As you can see this is quite tricky so I am introducing a prefab builder where chunks can be assembled and placed down as a single unit.

 

[Deleted Member 16721]

Loading screens when entering interiors (short ones, hopefully) and then a new map. You can likely add more details that way.

 

[shihonage]

Playing around with multi-tiles I am now facing two tough questions. Interiors, do I show them as a separate screen or as a new screen?
And how to manage multiple tiles to create larger structures, cliffs, houses, etc.
http://imgur.com/a/97lV4 (link, still don't know how to insert pictures).

As you can see this is quite tricky so I am introducing a prefab builder where chunks can be assembled and placed down as a single unit.

Interiors should be part of the map like they were in Fallout. There should be continuity of movement between inside and outside, otherwise you ruin combat. Houses should not be big objects, but made of multiple tiles (walls, floors, etc)

Multi-tile-single-bitmap objects, as I said before, are a sorting algorithm issue. As it's not vital to gameplay, and some projects seem to avoid them entirely, you may want to avoid them for now.

I would also suggest not bothering with true multiple floors.