So we were put into our groups this week and handed a list of briefs to work on. Naturally, these were crap so we emailed the lecturer and proposed a 2D platformer made with Unity.
They said yes and we got underway with planning out our game. Well, those of us who attended the first meeting did.
Anyway.
At this stage in development we simply had the broad overview of what we intended to do, a 2D platformer, a decision that was easily reached as we had two designers, a programmer and an animator who hasn’t done much 3D modelling.
Then we discussed what languages we knew, c# and Javascript, which are both supported by Unity. Which also supports 2D graphics design.
With this in mind, we began discussing ideas for a 2D game and things we would like to see in a game like this. This is called The High Concept. We decided upon a stealth focus where the player is young, we also wanted to do a Sci-Fi theme as a friend of mine had some ambient Sci-Fi tracks and we had discussed making a Sci-Fi game with his music as the soundtrack.
This is actually how games are made, a bunch of people sit around and say “It’d be cool if you played as an alien.” So don’t be afraid that you don’t have training or qualifications. Get some friends together, discuss what you want to make and make it. (Though you may want to aim small and simple at first)
Tips
For those just starting in a team with little to no knowledge of programming, use programs like Gamemaker Studio and RPG Maker. These will give you a good grasp of how to make games without requiring too much prior knowledge.
Game Maker Studio
RPG Maker
Construct 2
Don’t be afraid to fail/suck, your first games will be terrible but you will learn a lot from these early attempts.
Keep everything, have multiple backups and never throw anything away.
Next week
Gantt Charts and Project Planning
dannynat20 