penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
Hello all! Please bear with my post because I am a hobby fiction writer! I am VERY MUCH Christian however  .Recently I was given a great opportunity to attend the GLS (Games , Learning and Society) conference in Madision, WI. It was very insightful yet equally spiritually dark. There were even some cracks made at "christian games" as if the phrase was an oxymoron. There was, however, an iteresting session from a company called GameLab in NY city. They were showing how the game style and the story of the game were in essence separate and they demonstrated this by taking some simple game rules (involving beads and cards) and applying it to themes from dungeons and dragons to shakespeare! When the crack about "christian games" was delivered, I though to myself, why not find some christian game creators and help them by developing deep, thought-provoking fiction stories based upon biblical principals and the notion of a single, yet loving God. I love developing stories! I am intrigued by the idea of game story writing. I loved playing RPG games as a teenager, my favorite was Chrono Trigger on the Super Nintendo. I remember my parents freaking out about all the "eastern influences" in these games. Its true. My genres are fantasy, cyberpunk, steamtech, apocolyptic(all on paper unfortunately) I think they are really cool and address deep spiritual topics. For instance as a snippet of one storyline... a genetically mutated girl "disposed of" as a mistake in a secret government project, rejected as a freak by society, hiding in the shadows of an overgrown urban area, finds a scrap from the book of John and struggles with her identity, if God loves her, and if she even has a soul. The story is one of a genetic technology revolution leading to brainjacking, replicants, VR drugs, corporate coverup. i.e. Down and dirty cyberpunk. It sounds like it could make a great game! Again, I'm sorry if I missed the mark posting in your forum, but what do you all think? Is anyone interested in this kind of thing? ------------------ |
jestermax Member Posts: 1064 From: Ontario, Canada Registered: 06-21-2006 |
hey there and welcome to CCN  (YES i love being the first to welcome others ) you've come to the right place for this sort of thing. It sounds like you've got some great ideas there. A good storyline is something that i find somewhat lacking in a lot of games these days so you've got your work cut out for you |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
Hey jestermax, Thanks for the greeting! steamtech is what I have always heard it called. It is in essence imagining a world where electricity never really developed and yet technology marches on in a world of brass pipes, boilers, gagues, and whistles. It often ties in pre-electrical ideas like luminiferous aether, and often paints a picture of 18th century neoclassical architecture. I think of modern wild-wild-west movie (with will smith), Chrono Trigger, I think final fantasy has some of these elements if you subtract out the.. whats that stuff called that they are mining in midgard. Anyways. You get the picture ------------------ |
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jestermax Member Posts: 1064 From: Ontario, Canada Registered: 06-21-2006 |
WOW, YES that is what i've been thinking of  . and yeah, i used the wild, wild west giant spider in my notes for imagery, lol. i think that genre is awesome. I've been semi-obsessed lately with the 18th and 19th centuries for that reason. The clothing, the weapons and just the way people acted are so interesting . I prefer flintlock-type weapons over cartridge ammunition weapons when i think of that era (as opposed to wild, wild west). Wow, great now i know that this genre actually has a name, lol. maybe i'll be able to find some resources for it now. |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
I like your idea about the flintlock guns. In fact its fun sometimes to make the technology progress in you story as a shock to the protagonist. You know, all of a sudden the enemy invents cartridge, or rail ammo and seems undefeatable. I think also this genre lends itself to secret societies, and I have used that idea in my story. I don't have the time to type it all in here, but a young adventurer and his equally young inventor sidekick stumble upon some hand-drawn blueprints in the back of a free-masonry book, which includes a strange scripted language. Curiousity sets them on an adventure into an interesting spin on the occult. A mysterious circuit-riding preacher assists them in finding what they are really looking for: the Truth. They also get to destroy a lot of stuff and "Save The World"(tm) What I would really like to do I get hooked up with some people with programming skills that can help me "render" these ideas into a game. I am happy to offer my ideas, scripts, writings for the cause of furthering God's kingdom. I would only ask for recognition as the story writer and some compensation to "feed the ox" if and ONLY IF the game goes commercial. Not much to ask I think. ------------------ |
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jestermax Member Posts: 1064 From: Ontario, Canada Registered: 06-21-2006 |
yeah, secret societies are another good addition to that theme . Freemasons and illuminati are good examples. Also, if you're in the world war II era then Hitler's paranormal division leads to some interesting storylines. As to forming your ideas into a full game, i am a games programmer, however i lack the experience and skill for making full games that people actually play |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
Well, I appreciate the honesty. It does seem like you have a knack for connecting a story to a game, however. Like thinking of flintlock guns, and I'm sure you could cook up a list of armor, items, and other RPG necessities to fit most any storyscape. I realize that a story is just a piece of a game, there are a lot of other things to do (items, enemies, graphics, music, puzzles, battle system) I really enjoy doing the story part. I wonder if we can get people together in the areas they are strong in. I honestly don't have too much time to devote as well. Like I said, writing is a hobby for me, but I'm really interested in learning more about what it takes to make the game part of a video game. I'm going to do a bit of research and, of course, I'm all ears! ------------------ |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
Oh, btw jestermax, I stopped playing video games when 3D came. It makes my stomach sick. I prefer the old school 2D style too. ------------------ |
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jestermax Member Posts: 1064 From: Ontario, Canada Registered: 06-21-2006 |
haha, i still play 3D games (i've got an iron stomach ) but i just think that 2D games are an art. The game doesn't depend on killer graphics, but more on gameplay and storyline (sometimes, lol). Also, they're much easier to make as anyone can create pixel art |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
It seems like a lot of people in this forum post concepts and others critique them. Is that the way things mostly work here? ------------------ |
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jestermax Member Posts: 1064 From: Ontario, Canada Registered: 06-21-2006 |
Actually i have no idea, lol. I've only been here since maybe mid-June and i haven't really paid attention to how it seems . I think it just depends on the thread and who is involved in it. Usually HanClinto chimes in and fills in newcomers on all the workings and welcomes them, lol. *uses the force to call HanClinto* ps: hey wow!! [This message has been edited by jestermax (edited August 15, 2006).] |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
wow, a veteran after only two months you must post like crazy! hahaha. ------------------ |
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jestermax Member Posts: 1064 From: Ontario, Canada Registered: 06-21-2006 |
I do actually, lol. I'm on here all day at work Although, I am slowing down my posting lately. I think it's better to say less and mean more then say more and mean less. Also, i've been reading this book i got from the christian bookstore that's about being addicted to computers and never having enough time. Forums are a form of addiction and dependency in my opinion. Some people only post so that they can make sure that their opinions are heard by as many people as possible and they become attached to the "high" that it brings. I'm not saying that they're bad of course i'm just saying that it is possible to get roped into it without realizing it. (YES! 151 posts now |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
No kidding. Well, I've been using the net since '95 and honestly this is the first time I've posted to a forum. I've read a lot previously though. I'll be careful ------------------ |
D-SIPL Moderator Posts: 1345 From: Maesteg, Wales Registered: 07-21-2001 |
I love cyberpunk games... it's by far my favorite genre ------------------ |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
'Sup Sip! Sorry.. couldn't resist. I'm new here, are you a coder? I'm a writer and have been inspired to try my best to contribute via stories and music to christian games. So, Mr. Moderator, do you know of projects on the site that need assistance in these areas? Or, is it mostly, start designing and wait for people to jump in? Thanks! ------------------ |
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jestermax Member Posts: 1064 From: Ontario, Canada Registered: 06-21-2006 |
just a question, since you're really into storylines. have you ever been a GM (game master) for RPGs? |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
I've played a few times(robotech) and have been intrigued by it, but never been a game master. Maybe it was my parents cursing DnD. Until recently my writings have been strictly linear, but I am currently experimenting with "interactive" stories. Still on paper though. ------------------ |
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jestermax Member Posts: 1064 From: Ontario, Canada Registered: 06-21-2006 |
I GM'd Mechwarrior RPG. My parents (and grandparents) cursed D&D as well. IT was mostly because of the kids who commited suicide because of it (those kids were messed up in the first place, lol). I went through an RPG phase during highschool but it didn't get anywhere as serious as some people take it. I just think its neat to be able to act outside of the box as opposed to videogames where you're limited in your actions. |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
I know what you mean. I played video games before trying board rpg. I was constantly asking "Can I do that?" They just rolled their eyes at the newbie. My interactive writing experiment is not quite that interactive, but is a bit more like zork. I'm trying to catch the underlying flow of the game story and how it works (as I remember it from the 2D games I played in HS). ------------------ [This message has been edited by penny (edited August 15, 2006).] |
HanClinto Administrator Posts: 1828 From: Indiana Registered: 10-11-2004 |
*...feels a strange disturbance in the force...* Oh hey Penny! Welcome to CCN! That's really neat to hear about the GLS conference -- that would have been a fun one to go to. It's not so far away that I couldn't have driven there (normally I live in northern Indiana, though currently my wife and I are in Africa for the month of August). For the past two years, we have attended the Christian Game Developer's Conference out in Portland Oregon, and it's an absolute *blast*. I give it my highest recommendation to anyone who's seriously interested in Christian-based game development. As far as more info on Bible Dave, you can read the whole original thread that spawned it. It's been going on for about a year now, and is now reaching the point where it's able to be publicly released. It recently was submitted to the Linux Game Tome, and even though the anti-Christians gave it some unfairly harsh criticism, some of the other comments were really helpful in pointing out some of the shortcomings of thigs game and what can help make it better (incidentally, one of which was music, and another was storyline Glad you liked the link to the Doukutsu Remix project -- Kwix did some excellent work with that one. I'm not posting as much as I usually do because I'm so busy here in Africa -- but I still try to check it here at least every other day. Cheers! --clint P.S. BTW, just so you're aware, you're right on topic with what this forum is all about. It's primarily a Christian coder's network, but it doesn't try to stay exclusively that -- it centers around programming, sure -- but it broadens out to all aspects of game development -- art, writing, publishing, marketing, music, foley, etc. So even though you're not a programmer, you really don't have to be to fit in here. It's really a very diverse group -- it's not all about game development, and it's not even all Christian. There are people who browse this forum from a whole host of different religious schools of thought. Most are mainstream Protestant Christianity, but there are also Orthodox, Catholic and Atheist active members here. So don't be surprised if a Mormon or a Buddhist posts on here -- it happens. We don't moderate them out, and we've had some really excellent discussions here because of it. Generally, discussion is moderated with a pretty light hand here. We ask that people be kind and respectful, try to keep posts meaningful, don't spam, flame or abuse the boards in other ways. It's an easy-going place. We really like it here, and we hope you feel welcome. [This message has been edited by HanClinto (edited August 15, 2006).] |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
Thanks clint, I've pm'd cpu and hopefully I can find a place to plug in. Africa, interesting! ------------------ |
CoolJ Member Posts: 354 From: ny Registered: 07-11-2004 |
quote: hi penny! I like your story idea! |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
Thanks coolj, I'm not a coder and I'm trying to maybe find some people to help with stories and music. Are you a coder? What kind of stuff are you into? ------------------ |
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CoolJ Member Posts: 354 From: ny Registered: 07-11-2004 |
quote: I code some but lately I'm busy studying up on my calculus for fall semester. I like to read this forum because there are so many smart people on here with good ideas and a good sense of humor, besides not every other word is the f-word, which is nice too! |
CPUFreak91 Member Posts: 2337 From: Registered: 02-01-2005 |
Hi welcome to CCN.
quote: I never thought too much about it but that sounds about right. Hi, I'm CPUFreak91/Joe. I'm working to become a professional writer, a coder and a musician (all though I've gotten a bit rusty). I'm not much of a composer, and I don't have the proper equipment to record quality music on a computer or some other form of digital media. I like your ideas, they're fresh, intriguing and thought provoking and I like the way you presented your ideas. ------------------ |
briandra3 Junior Member Posts: 4 From: WI, USA Registered: 01-09-2006 |
Hey penny, Just wanted to say I completely agree with you. I think, specifically for a game that wants to pose Christian ideas, the story is a great way to introduce such ideas! |
Ereon Member Posts: 1018 From: Ohio, United States Registered: 04-12-2005 |
Hey Penny. If you're looking for a partner to start experimented in writing for video games with I might be interested. I specilaize in story based game design, especially text based games, so if you have some ideas you'd like to take a crack and putting into story form I'd be more than happy to help take your ideas from concept to code. If you're interested please don't hestitate to shoot me a PM, and we can set up communications and work on some stuff perhaps. ------------------ Of course God knew what would happen if they used their freedom the wrong way: apparently He thought it worth the risk. Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: What! You too? I thought I was the only one. |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
Thanks to all for the ideas and encouragement! I will be working on pulling my story ideas together into a more digital form. I am also striving to understand how to break a story into pieces to make it interactive. Feel free to use any of the ideas for your game! Or, if anyone needs help with developing a different storyline, just let me know! I really want to dedicate this time to the Lord's service. For this reason, I offer the following terms and conditions (For those who haven't read my other thread): P.S. Allogories do not have to be blatently labelled Christian. ------------------ [This message has been edited by penny (edited August 16, 2006).] |
Max Member Posts: 523 From: IA Registered: 09-19-2004 |
Bonjour, Penny! Bienvenue! Hope you enjoy your time here. I also, am not a coder. I've dabled in some C++, but don't know much. I might try to learn one of these decades, but oh well. I mainly do story, and other stuff like that, game design. I'm currently working on a project with Archangel, Cheesestorm, Goop, and some others. It's really neat. It's going down on the Tribunal Forum. If you ever get anything typed, I've love to read it. You can post it or PM them to me. I'm also pretty active in the spiritual talk around here, I just can't keep my 2 cents to myself. Oh well. P.S. That stuff in FF7, is called Mako (Mawk O) ------------------ Blind belief is dangerous. - Kenyan Proverb Computers are useless. They can only give you answers. - Pablo Picasso |
Lazarus Member Posts: 1668 From: USA Registered: 06-06-2006 |
Where's the Tribunal Forum? |
ArchAngel Member Posts: 3450 From: SV, CA, USA Registered: 01-29-2002 |
on my website. it's down right now; I had the bad fortune of having my computer mess up while in the middle of fixing it. EDIT: it's up again... [This message has been edited by ArchAngel (edited August 20, 2006).] [This message has been edited by ArchAngel (edited August 21, 2006).] |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
Thanks max for the greet! Currently clint and cpu have me making tunes for the Bible Dave project, but I'll be happy to let you read my stories when I get them up. ------------------ |
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riflefire Member Posts: 57 From: Registered: 08-25-2003 |
Welcome to CCN Penny. If your trying to put storylines into interactive fiction or Infocom Text like games, I suggest you try your hand at learning the INFORM system. It has its roots apparently in the infocom games system and is great for making english based text adventure games. I found out about it some time ago and am looking at it again in my spare time. They just came out with Inform version 7 and its really nice looking. Its got a learning curve but if you learn it, you can make nice infocom type games with your storylines in them and share them with everyone or even go commerical with them i think. The URL is http://www.inform-fiction.org/I7/Welcome.html There is also a link on that site to the version 6 edition of inform but it wasn't done nearly as well as I7 is. I downloaded I7 a bit ago and am playing with it some. Additionally I am still working on my multiplayer text, Christian Sci-Fi game (TheWayMUD) and I still need anyone that knows C# to help me out. So if you know anyone who loves scifi and wants to contribute ideas or code, send them my way. Thanks and God bless you, RifleFire |
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penny Member Posts: 101 From: Registered: 08-15-2006 |
Funny you should mention Inform7. I just found it the other day. Apparently you can "program" in plain english! You still have to use their sentence structure. I think I am going to approach my game design ideas from this direction. Interactive Fiction, 2D, then 3D. But I am also working on a system(in excel) to organize game idea information: timelines, storyboards, scenes, scripts, things like that. I spent some time breaking down key game elements and now I want to make them mesh with the 36 Basic Plots. I'm hoping to find a system. I think that to make a Christian game, the story is key. I am really excited about working toward this end. I pray the Lord will bless. ------------------ |
I've been working on a 2D game engine (i prefer 2D over 3D) but recently i had to stop working on it (only temporarily 
