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[PompiPompi]

I started working on a single player level for Shoe String Shooter, but it kinds of bore me to play and create AI.
I think you need extremly well designed levels and AI and balance to make a single player FPS game, while it is really boring to work on yourself.
So I thought of going for multiplayer FPS.
Multiplayer probably also take a lot of work to balance, but I think you can do something relatively simple and fun and relatively short time.

Should I just throw stuff at the wall and see what sticks? Do you have any tips for desiging a minimal FPS level\weapons multiplayer game?

[jeffrobot]

What perspective are you using?

I designed a tiny multiplayer shooting game once. It was top-down 2d. Would love to program it sometime. My favorite parts about its design were that it was meant to be 2v2, so teamwork was important, and there was an objective that was constantly bouncing around the room you were fighting in, so you had to capture and defend it on the move.

So maybe just look for one or two really substantial mechanics that will add a lot to the gameplay, like the objective moving around the room would (imo).

[PompiPompi]

I had this idea that there would be only one gun in the room, and the guy with the gun would shoot everyone and all the rest would need to charge him and take his gun. And then the next guy with the gun shoots everyone.
Dunno, kind of stupid.
There is also the classic death match I can do, things like that.
Err, the perspective is first person, as FPS implies. It's 3D

[Player Ʒ]

Take anything you can grab and somehow turn it into a multiplayer FPS.

[eyeliner]

I had this idea that there would be only one gun in the room, and the guy with the gun would shoot everyone and all the rest would need to charge him and take his gun. And then the next guy with the gun shoots everyone.
Dunno, kind of stupid.
There is also the classic death match I can do, things like that.
Err, the perspective is first person, as FPS implies. It's 3D

So, why not this one? You have the idea already, go for it!

The thing that made me really enjoy Halo 3's multiplayer was a game type where you had to stand your ground in a marked area, constantly changing, making you run towards it and slug it out and defend it. I really liked that mode because it was random enough for luck to be a key factor, skill was a less important issue and seemed balanced. I even won a game, go figure.

[EdgeOfProphecy]

Just make the Thunderdome.

Big arena.  Walls are crazy weapons.  Some number of men enter, one man leaves, that whole thing.

[jeffrobot]

I had this idea that there would be only one gun in the room, and the guy with the gun would shoot everyone and all the rest would need to charge him and take his gun. And then the next guy with the gun shoots everyone.
Dunno, kind of stupid.
There is also the classic death match I can do, things like that.
Err, the perspective is first person, as FPS implies. It's 3D

That sounds like it could be fun. I'd say go for it.

I think the challenge would be figuring out how you could add enough depth to that to make people want to play it after the novelty wears off.

[alastair]

Quake Live is the best FPS multiplayer I've played so far, it just has bad graphics and runs in a browser though so I can't play it. So just improve upon that game, with stunning beautiful graphics and not the F2P junk pls.

[rivon]

Quake Live has good graphics and good gameplay as it is Quake but it's fucked up because half the players don't have premium and therefore can't play at least half of the maps AFAIK.

[Gimym TILBERT]

I had this idea that there would be only one gun in the room, and the guy with the gun would shoot everyone and all the rest would need to charge him and take his gun. And then the next guy with the gun shoots everyone.
Dunno, kind of stupid.
There is also the classic death match I can do, things like that.
Err, the perspective is first person, as FPS implies. It's 3D

Make aiming a trade off with moving: you are slow when you point the gun, if pointing you can run freely, it's harder to "parkour" the environment with a gun in the hand, make it so you can toss the gun anywhere, for example to trade weapon with movement and the player would strategize where he send the gun to move.

Make the gun free player mirror's edge parkour champion, make disarming a easy move to do, it will make pressure on the gunner to stay at distance (stop aiming to gain movement), make it possible to hold destructible shield that slow movement and impair parkour, have a punch movement that does not disarm the gunner but increasingly disturb his aim with each hit, make it so one player, if use disarm on the back of the gunner hold it in place and reduce his mobility so other player can punch/disarm. Make disarming a struggle between the gunner and the disarmer BUT the weapon can still be fired on any direction the gun happen to point (toward the gunner too). Make it so a weapon is jam just after a struggle.

Different weapon have different damage/mobility/aiming/rate property: hand gun have low rate but allow decent pakour mobility but an assault might seriously impair movement ability for increase fire rate...

etc...

[jeffrobot]

I had this idea that there would be only one gun in the room, and the guy with the gun would shoot everyone and all the rest would need to charge him and take his gun. And then the next guy with the gun shoots everyone.
Dunno, kind of stupid.
There is also the classic death match I can do, things like that.
Err, the perspective is first person, as FPS implies. It's 3D

Make aiming a trade off with moving: you are slow when you point the gun, if pointing you can run freely, it's harder to "parkour" the environment with a gun in the hand, make it so you can toss the gun anywhere, for example to trade weapon with movement and the player would strategize where he send the gun to move.

Make the gun free player mirror's edge parkour champion, make disarming a easy move to do, it will make pressure on the gunner to stay at distance (stop aiming to gain movement), make it possible to hold destructible shield that slow movement and impair parkour, have a punch movement that does not disarm the gunner but increasingly disturb his aim with each hit, make it so one player, if use disarm on the back of the gunner hold it in place and reduce his mobility so other player can punch/disarm. Make disarming a struggle between the gunner and the disarmer BUT the weapon can still be fired on any direction the gun happen to point (toward the gunner too). Make it so a weapon is jam just after a struggle.

Different weapon have different damage/mobility/aiming/rate property: hand gun have low rate but allow decent pakour mobility but an assault might seriously impair movement ability for increase fire rate...

etc...

sounds pretty suhweet.

[Azure Lazuline]

- Come up with one thing that will set your game apart from all the others. A grappling hook, a gravity gun, a focus on melee instead of ranged, running on walls, free 3D movement (no gravity), one hit kills for a focus on stealth, controlling giant monsters instead of humanoids, transforming, multiple characters with different abilities, combining weapons, wielding 8 at once, having a dashing lunge to cross gaps or get on ledges... just pick one!

- Brainstorm 5-10 weapons that most fit your idea. Not a single one should be just a boring handgun, be more creative.

- Stop right there and program what you have. Just one or two maps. Playtest the hell out of it, see what's fun.

- Small changes: more maps, more game modes, better graphics, maybe more weapons (be careful with that though).

- Have an awesome game.

[J-Snake]

Quake Live is the best FPS multiplayer I've played so far

Then you haven't played Unreal Tournament Classic (1999)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=X6bYa-to2GI

[rivon]

UT99 and Quake 3/QL are on the same level of quality. Both are the best MP FPS games. It just depends on which gameplay suits you better.

[J-Snake]

I think UT-Classic's weapons are more varied and complementatary. It has also a better style/aesthetics. Quake-aesthetics is just like they didn't know what to do with that and mixed half doom to it.