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[joe_eyemobi]

Hi All,

I've put together a basic proof-of-concept for a procedural game.









Here is a short youtube vid:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l_4e2d6ldCc&feature=youtu.be

The story is that you find yourself in a mysterious castle full of both great treasure and great danger.

Your goal is to simply survive, collect your rewards and escape.

www.eyemobi.com/games/unity/IC5.html

Updated!!! 17 Aug 2013
PC exe version

 

Currently in this demo, there is the castle which has levels randomly generated once you enter the gateways.  There are no creatures, traps or treasures yet, that's next on my list.
Currently all of the level assets are placeholders as well.  I will be aiming at creating more grimy, "horror-esque" and dilapidated levels.

I'm thinking in future to have limited or unconventional combat options - having the usual FPS guns may be a little overdone.

Anyway, it would be great to get your feedback on what I can do to improve the game and its direction.
Cheers!

EDIT 17 Aug 2013:  I expanded on the game a little and entered it into the 7DFPS:
http://7dfps.com/?action=games&id=236

Feel free to vote for me  

[SirNiko]

Wow, this is pretty lovely as-is. It was fun running through a couple of randomly generated castles and just looking at the scenery.

It seems like the levels are generated in a way that makes them vaguely linear? The first few levels seemed to only have one simple path to get to the goal. In the last castle before I quit the level seemed to make a great big loop with the exit right around the corner from the entrance, and two stair cases that led around the level in a circle.

I love how it generated balconies that overlook other rooms.

The controls felt a little heavy, like I was a knight in armor and there was a tiny bit of delay to running, and walking felt a tiny bit slower and more purposeful. That could be intentional. It never made me feel like getting around took too much time.

While a randomly generated castle can never stand up to one carefully and thoughtfully constructed, this comes really close. I enjoyed generating a new castle and seeing what I'd wind up with. This is really gorgeous! The broken pebbles in the hallways, the stained glass windows (even if they all seem to have the sun shining directly into them) the set tables, the furniture on the walls, all those little details hide the fact that I'm looking at something generated randomly by a computer.

Sometimes, though, the map generates a little deadend where I enter a door and am confronted by a tiny, featureless room. A broom closet, perhaps?

[Lokken]

I'd like to echo that it does look quite nice as it is now and the ambiance is nice.

The flashlight bothered me though as I got close to a wall the light effect starts clipping and does not point where the cursor is pointing.

I also noticed that Q messes with the timescale

[joe_eyemobi]

Thanks for the fantastic feedback @SirNiko - that is very helpful

That is a great point, I may have to tweak the parameters a bit further to get a less linear feel to the levels.  The challenge is if I create too many side corridors all the rooms meld into a big jumbled hall, so I'll try and get just the right balance.   

Wow, this is pretty lovely as-is. It was fun running through a couple of randomly generated castles and just looking at the scenery.

It seems like the levels are generated in a way that makes them vaguely linear? The first few levels seemed to only have one simple path to get to the goal. In the last castle before I quit the level seemed to make a great big loop with the exit right around the corner from the entrance, and two stair cases that led around the level in a circle.

I love how it generated balconies that overlook other rooms.

The controls felt a little heavy, like I was a knight in armor and there was a tiny bit of delay to running, and walking felt a tiny bit slower and more purposeful. That could be intentional. It never made me feel like getting around took too much time.

While a randomly generated castle can never stand up to one carefully and thoughtfully constructed, this comes really close. I enjoyed generating a new castle and seeing what I'd wind up with. This is really gorgeous! The broken pebbles in the hallways, the stained glass windows (even if they all seem to have the sun shining directly into them) the set tables, the furniture on the walls, all those little details hide the fact that I'm looking at something generated randomly by a computer.

Sometimes, though, the map generates a little deadend where I enter a door and am confronted by a tiny, featureless room. A broom closet, perhaps?

[joe_eyemobi]

Thanks @Lokken for the feedback and picking up the torch bug.  Oh haha, I was messing with a bullet time feature, thanks for reminding me to take that out

I'd like to echo that it does look quite nice as it is now and the ambiance is nice.

The flashlight bothered me though as I got close to a wall the light effect starts clipping and does not point where the cursor is pointing.

I also noticed that Q messes with the timescale

[EaglEye]

Ooh this really looks something I want to explore , love castles and the freedom to go where you want =)

[joe_eyemobi]

Thanks @EaglEye    I'm still trying to decide if I should make this more of a mysterious game rather than an outright horror (which was my original plan). My only worry there would be that that might bore mainstream gamers too much 

I'll probably still have some creatures in there, but they will be subtle (i.e. no zombies hehe!)

[Quicksand-S]

I didn't expect a web-based game to be so big. It looks great and I really want to try it, but it's taking forever to load and I don't think I'll want to go through this long loading period again if you release a newer version. Any chance of a stand-alone download in the near future?

[SirNiko]

Depending on how the game is built, linear levels were not a problem. My comment was meant to highlight that I think you hadn't intended for a level to be generated with the exit so close to the entrance.

[joe_eyemobi]

@Quicksand-S: I've uploaded a PC executable.  For some reason the export size is even bigger than the web version (200MB).  Having run winrar, it's now about 100MB.

It's on G: drive so hopefully it should download faster too.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9guYNctyOMsSEZwOG9HUFg3Z1E/edit?usp=sharing

[weem]

It's a great start, good job

I'm not gonna lie, when I came into a room with weapons around the walls, the dummy in the middle startled me, haha. I was not expecting anything having read your initial description, which I think made me jump - it was unexpected to see someone (or what I thought was someone) standing there.

I'm not a big fan (don't play) the horror games that seem to be very popular lately, so I'm not sure what's been done or overdone, and what is not being done, but I had some ideas - so with that in mind...

- I've always loved the idea of being stalked slowly by something that does not hide or jump out at you. Something that you can clearly see, and as long as you stay out of melee range you are good... but the idea is that it will get to you eventually if you are not constantly on the move. Obviously some may think "zombies" as they are slow, but I'm talking about a creature/person who is confident... doesn't need to rush, etc. I know nothing of the Silent Hill series, aside from one movie I saw, but the pyramid head guy... love that idea ( image here: http://static.giantbomb.com/uploads/original/6/62890/1493707-silent_hill_wallpaper_pyramid_head.jpg )

- One of the things I think a lot of horror games do is get you panicked about what could be behind you. I like to take things like that (not being able to see behind you) and thinking of ways to 1) actually give something to you that you never normally have (since thats unique) but 2) find ways to make that interesting. In that way, I think a horror game could be done that allows you a view (picture in picture) of what's behind you. Even though you can now see behind you, that could be even MORE scary because you can flash things across that "camera" that cause the player to spin in a panic, for example. So, something visual behind you making you spin, vs a sound for example.

Anyway, just a couple random thoughts on my way through - like I said, great start - good luck!

[Trane]

Thanks @Lokken for the feedback and picking up the torch bug.  Oh haha, I was messing with a bullet time feature, thanks for reminding me to take that out

I found the bullet time key too. I actually thought it was kind of cool, and sort of fit in with the horror atmosphere - it makes me think of a fairly common nightmare, where you're trying to run from a monster but you can't move fast enough.

I like the randomly generated environment from a horror perspective too - there's something eerie about a building that's laid out in a way that doesn't make practical sense - like "what kind of place is this? Who would build a place like this?"

The challenge, I guess, is in making randomly generated experience rewarding. In this version, I liked finding new rooms and objects, but got tired of going in circles and finding dead ends. But lacking clear direction could be tense if you're being chased or under a time limit, I suppose, and dead ends might not be so bad if they contain a treasure or a weapon. I could definitely see this shaping up to be a good experience.

[joe_eyemobi]

Ah I see - thanks for the clarification.  I guess it could be a luck based thing, where for some levels you can get to the end quickly.  I'm planning on having a time based mechanic for the player to find the exit.  Either the time will get less as the player progresses, or the levels get longer.

@Quicksand-S: I've uploaded a PC executable.  For some reason the export size is even bigger than the web version (200MB).  Having run winrar, it's now about 100MB.

It's on G: drive so hopefully it should download faster too.

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B9guYNctyOMsSEZwOG9HUFg3Z1E/edit?usp=sharing

[joe_eyemobi]

Thanks @weem for the encouragement and the excellent feedback! 

Actually you've given me an awesome idea.  I had some feedback elsewhere about the dummies startling a player.  I may actually randomly place some dummies that will animate and attack.. but you will never really know which ones  

Re: the pyramid head like creature, that is also a fantastic idea.  I'm planning on giving the player limited time each level.  At the end of it, the guardian will be unleashed on the player - inexorably getting closer and closer (some mechanic like Slendy).

Yeah I also like the stuff on the player's peripheral vision just to mess with them   As with some classic horror movies, some times you can see stuff happening in the background out of focus moving around.  Sometimes the hint of terror, or the anticipation is worse than the actual terror itself 

It's a great start, good job

I'm not gonna lie, when I came into a room with weapons around the walls, the dummy in the middle startled me, haha. I was not expecting anything having read your initial description, which I think made me jump - it was unexpected to see someone (or what I thought was someone) standing there.
...

[joe_eyemobi]

Many thanks @Trane for some great ideas and feedback! :D

I think I will go with the time limitations for the player for each level, which will get less and less as the player progresses.  Rather than having something obvious like a countdown clock I am thinking about more subtle cues that the player is running out of time.

I found the bullet time key too. I actually thought it was kind of cool, and sort of fit in with the horror atmosphere - it makes me think of a fairly common nightmare, where you're trying to run from a monster but you can't move fast enough.
...

[EaglEye]

To show of the game to the public a bit more, I've taken a look at the game in its current state. Very much looking forward to when it is full of hazards . Will have another look at it when it is out.

[joe_eyemobi]

Great many thanks for the coverage EaglEye!

Love the humor in your commentary!    Also it was great to see how you played the game - it's always very informative to watch player behaviour.

[PompiPompi]

It looks really nice and there are some really nice effects. Even when you start the game the sort of particle radial effect is neat.
My complaints are only that some places are just too dark. Is it possible to make a game scary without being so dark?
Also it seemed to have performance issue. I was experiencing slow downs and I have a GeForce 550 Ti which should be quite capable.
I was playing the unity version though.

[EaglEye]

It looks really nice and there are some really nice effects. Even when you start the game the sort of particle radial effect is neat.
My complaints are only that some places are just too dark. Is it possible to make a game scary without being so dark?
Also it seemed to have performance issue. I was experiencing slow downs and I have a GeForce 550 Ti which should be quite capable.
I was playing the unity version though.

This is probably due to the video, When I was playing the game it wasn't THAT dark like you see now. I tried editing it out, but it is still a little bit darker then the real game. The skeleton in the cage as an example was better viewable for me then the video makes it look like.

But in the end, it is a castle. So you can't expect lightning all over the place

[PompiPompi]

I played the game, I didn't watch the video.