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[iPope]

The Adventures of Life

This game started a few days ago as a challenge to myself to see if I could create a system where it gives a selection of options rather than a selection of pre-defined actions. Roguelikes and games like LCS were what inspired me, how so little is given but how much people imagine when playing them. The Adventures of Life is a text based game designed to somewhat simulate the life of a person.

The game, is still a game so ageing has been cut and you can play for ever, unless you come to a brutal end. The game will come with roguelike level of difficulty so expect a steep learning curve and regular death until you understand most of the game. Obviously, if you are a boring law abiding citizen then you will rarely die, but where is the fun in that?

Adventures of Life will be a large game, there will be tons of things to do in game. Jobs will range from brainless to jobs that will require you to have knowledge of the game and experience playing (such as politician). You start homeless and broke and what you do is in your hands. You can stay as a homeless person and mug people on the streets, or lead your country. It's really up to the player.

Note: This game will be developed Monday to Friday. At weekends unless I have something important to do concerning this I work on other games, of the graphical variety.

Technical Stuff
Written in Python 2.6

Done
Working On
Not Done

Milestone 1

• Base Engine
• Food System
• Player Creation
• Player Inventory
• Player Stats System

Milestone 2

• Job System - Just jobs, will need to implement careers.
• Basic Economy System
• Basic Education System
• Player Skill System
• Skills - Education, Bartering
• Jobs - Janitor, Shop Assistant
• Locations - Supermarket, Pub, Job Centre, School

Milestone 3 - Combat

• Option to Fight
• Combat AI
• Combat System
• Player Equipment System
• Skills - Boxing, Melee Weapons

Example Logs

Code:

9:0:0
Location:  Home
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Stats:
thirst : [----------] 0
hunger : [----------] 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Options:
0  -  Eat
1  -  Drink
> _

Yay, the basic system is up and running, some things still need doing like time passing and resting (you will get tired). Fun fact, the only food you can eat currently is Delicious Test Pancakes.

[iPope]

Got some more work into today, still working on the food system. Now it will produce a list of options for food at that location and allow you to choose one. In the future you will proceed to eat this food but for now it just removes it and prints the name. Here is a game log:

Code:

9:0:0
Location:  Home
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Stats:
thirst : [----------] 0
hunger : [----------] 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Options:
0  -  Eat
1  -  Drink
> 0
Options:
0  -  Delicous Test Pancake
1  -  Delicous Test Pancake
2  -  Delicous Test Pancake
3  -  Delicous Test Pancake
4  -  Delicous Test Pancake
5  -  Delicous Test Pancake
6  -  Delicous Test Pancake
7  -  Delicous Test Pancake
8  -  Delicous Test Pancake
9  -  Delicous Test Pancake
> 9
Delicous Test Pancake

That was real fun to code and this system is real easy to use. Soon I will have to add content and lots of food but for now this is awesome. Can't do any more today! I have tests tomorrow.

[iPope]

I decided to deviate a small amount from Milestone 1 as they require some more thinking. However, as you can see I started work on the job system. You can set your job to anything. I haven't had a lot of time so actually working is still coming and the education system does not play a role.

In the future it will be more advanced and you will have to go to interview and stuff like that. For now the final implementation will require skills and education. Look at this:

Code:

9:0:0
Location:  Home
Job: Janitor
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Stats:
thirst : [----------] 0
hunger : [----------] 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Options:
0  -  Drink
1  -  Eat
2  -  Get a job
>

I'm a janitor, yay! I still need to get the whole time passing thing down and also set up a time based event thing, so when it comes to a time an Action/Event will happen. This will be need for the education system as we wont want you getting those degrees instantly.

[iPope]

I'm back to work on this but unfortunately I am ill! I have done some work and have some ideas for jobs. My first was science, well paying and with lots of goodies like making theories, research projects, writing papers and all sorts of nice little experiments. I have given military some thought as well so you can work as a soldier and can be sent to war ect.

I also had this awesome idea for when I get around to NPC interaction, where I can define the NPC's language. So say they were a gangster they would be "gangsta.lang" and the file would contain words to replace. Like, "friend" with "homie". I know it's not the best example...

[Gagege]

Sounds fun! An indie Peter Molyneux game. So, considering the gangsta example you gave, is this going to have a modern day theme?

[iPope]

Sounds fun! An indie Peter Molyneux game. So, considering the gangsta example you gave, is this going to have a modern day theme?

Thanks for the comment! I appreciate it. Yeh, this game will have a modern day theme though maybe I'll throw in a few slightly futuristic things just to mix stuff up.

[iPope]

Code:

13 of November, 1906  |  9:0:0
Location:  Home
Job: Unemployed
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Stats:
thirst : [----------] 0
hunger : [----------] 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Options:
0  -  Drink
1  -  Eat
2  -  Get a job
>

Look at the top! I have redone the clock and now there is dates and years, randomly generated on start of game. The year is random between 1900 and 2050 to make it seem real. I know it's nothing exciting but you have to get the bring stuff out of the way before you can do the interesting stuff. I will edit this post later with a now log of me getting jobs to pay you and a maybe even the starts of the event calender.

[iPope]

Yay! It's not the weekend, and you know what that means... More development!!

Here is the log of working that I promised:

Code:

31 of June, 1908  |  10:43:0
Location:  Home
Job: Janitor
Money:  $10.00
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Stats:
thirst : [----------] 0
hunger : [----------] 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Options:
0  -  Drink
1  -  Eat
2  -  Work
3  -  Get a job
> 2
Hours: 12
You earn $120

You earn to much as a janitor so that needs tweaking. I also have had an idea where all the items in the game are defined in text files, much like dwarf fortress's raw files. This means mods! Today I am going to work on the education system.

I have thought of a new way of doing the education system. Instead of implementing the calender what happens is that you will go to school and there you can clock up education points in a variety of topics. After a certain amount of points you will be awarded a GCSE/DIPLOMA or what ever in that topic. To study some topics you will be required to have education in other topics.

I have a few things that need sorting as well. First I need to make the stats like hunger and tiredness actually increase over time. Then I need to start adding locations and giving your job a location to work at. There is a bunch of other stuff I'm forgetting but I'm sure as I code I will remember it. The education system will also require you to go to school. Later I will split it into school, college, university.

[rje]

This sounds like a lot of interesting systems work, kudos on really focusing on them and not getting bogged down in starting with extensive graphics or anything.  Looking forward to see where you take this one! 

[iPope]

This sounds like a lot of interesting systems work, kudos on really focusing on them and not getting bogged down in starting with extensive graphics or anything.  Looking forward to see where you take this one! 

Thanks for the comment! When I thought of doing this I thought of doing a graphical approach. The amount of assets I would need was scary.

I just finished off the preliminary system for education, look at me:

Code:

Education:
     science First Degree
     science A Level
     science GCSE
     science Master's Degree
     science Doctorate Degree
     math First Degree
     math A Level
     math Doctorate Degree
     math GCSE
     math Master's Degree
     english First Degree
     english A Level
     english Doctorate Degree
     english GCSE
     english Master's Degree

Getting this involved alot of  , alot of and too little  .

[iPope]

I am slightly re-writing the education system to be a little easier to use and allow for some cool stuff. The new system makes you apply for a course and then you study for that course. This makes it easier for me to make courses that require you to have qualifications.

I've been thinking about the whole raw type files and I have decided to ditch it, the work required is way too much. The parser would be pretty simple but I don't feel like a rewrite right now.

[iPope]

Okay so the education system is sort of done, just needs fleshing out. I'm taking a day off today but more work tomorrow!

Here's a list of ideas I had for stuff to study:

Code:

    * Architecture
    * Classics
    * Economics
    * Education
    * English
    * Geography
    * History
    * History of Art
    * Land Economy
    * Law
    * Linguistics
    * Management Studies
    * Music
    * Politics
    * Theology & Religious Studies
    * Chemical Engineering
    * Computer Science
    * Engineering
    * Manufacturing Engineering
    * Mathematics
    * Medicine
          o Astrophysics
          o Biochemistry
          o Biological and Biomedical Sciences
          o Chemistry
          o Genetics
          o Geological Sciences
          o Materials Science
          o Neuroscience
          o Physical Sciences
          o Physics
          o Systems Biology

Okay I lied, it's an edited list of the courses Cambridge offers but still there good ideas!

[iPope]

Okay, I worked on this Saturday because I need to make more progress. In return for my hard work I got awesome results. Here is the finished course system:

Code:

16 of October, 2045  |  9:0:0
Location:  Home
Job: Unemployed
Money:  $10.00
Education:
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Stats:
thirst : [----------] 0
hunger : [----------] 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Options:
0  -  StudY
1  -  Drink
2  -  Eat
3  -  Work
4  -  Get a job
> 0
{'Science Degree': <education.Course instance at 0x020E6E68>, 'Science GCSE': <e
ducation.Course instance at 0x020E6DA0>, 'English GCSE': <education.Course insta
nce at 0x020E6C60>, 'Maths Degree': <education.Course instance at 0x020E6F80>, '
Maths GCSE': <education.Course instance at 0x020E6EB8>, 'English Degree': <educa
tion.Course instance at 0x020E6D50>}
Options:
0  -  Start a Course
1  -  Study for a Course
> 0
Options:
0  -  Science Degree
1  -  Science GCSE
2  -  English GCSE
3  -  Maths Degree
4  -  Maths GCSE
5  -  English Degree
> 0
You require:
    - Science GCSE
to start this course.

I'm not intelligent enough for a Degree! Excuse the order of the list, I need to look at my list code as something is mixing up the order.

I've also separated out course definitions into a text file, heres the current education file:

Code:

#English
English_GCSE 		100
English_Degree 		500 English_GCSE

#Science
Science_GCSE		100
Science_Degree		500 Science_GCSE

#Maths
Maths_GCSE		100 
Maths_Degree		500 Maths_GCSE

Empty lines and lines starting with "#" are ignored. All "_" are replaced with " ". The syntax is [name] [hours] [requirements]

Edit:

I have too much time, finished adding GCSE's to the education file

Code:

#Education File - Last Updated: 21/03/2010
#Current Courses
#	* GCSE: 33

#GCSE - Core Subjects
English_Language_GCSE				600
English_Litreture_GCSE				600
English_Media_GCSE				600	English_Language_GCSE

Mathematics_GCSE                                600

Core_Science_GCSE				600
Additional_Science_GCSE				600	Core_Science_GCSE
Biology_GCSE					600	Core_Science_GCSE Addition_Science_GCSE
Physics_GCSE					600	Core_Science_GCSE Addition_Science_GCSE
Chemistry_GCSE					600	Core_Science_GCSE Addition_Science_GCSE

#GCSE - Modern Languages
French_GCSE					600
German_GCSE					600
Russian_GCSE					600
Spanish_GCSE					600

#GCSE - Classic Languages
Latin_GCSE					600

#GCSE - Technology				
Design_and_Technology_GCSE			600
CAD/CAM_GCSE					600
Electronics_GCSE				600
Engineering_and_Manufacturing_GCSE		600
Food_Technology_GCSE				600
Graphic_Products_GCSE				600

ICT_GCSE					600
Applied_ICT_GCSE				600	ICT_GCSE

#GCSE - Product Design
Electronics_-_Product_Design_GCSE		600
Resistant_Materials_-_Product_Design_GCSE	600
Systems_and_Control_-_Product_Design_GCSE	600
Textiles_-_Product_Design_GCSE			600

#GCSE - Humanities
Geography_GCSE					600
History_GCSE					600
Religous_Studies_GCSE				600

#GCSE - The Arts
Art_and_Design_GCSE				600
Drama_GCSE					600
Music_GCSE					600

#GCSE - Other
Physical_Education_GCSE				600

And here's what it looks like in game:

Code:

0  -  English Language GCSE
1  -  Additional Science GCSE
2  -  Drama GCSE
3  -  Food Technology GCSE
4  -  Russian GCSE
5  -  Graphic Products GCSE
6  -  ICT GCSE
7  -  Biology GCSE
8  -  Latin GCSE
9  -  Engineering and Manufacturing GCSE
10  -  Art and Design GCSE
11  -  Chemistry GCSE
12  -  History GCSE
13  -  Electronics - Product Design GCSE
14  -  Physical Education GCSE
15  -  Spanish GCSE
16  -  Design and Technology GCSE
17  -  Physics GCSE
18  -  French GCSE
19  -  Resistant Materials - Product Design GCSE
20  -  Textiles - Product Design GCSE
21  -  CAD/CAM GCSE
22  -  German GCSE
23  -  English Media GCSE
24  -  Systems and Control - Product Design GCSE
25  -  Core Science GCSE
26  -  Music GCSE
27  -  English Litreture GCSE
28  -  Mathematics GCSE
29  -  Geography GCSE
30  -  Applied ICT GCSE
31  -  Religous Studies GCSE
32  -  Electronics GCSE

Some spelling mistakes! I will need to split this into sub-menus it's getting too complicated.

I liked this method so much I'm going ahead and re-writing everything to be like this! Nearly finished food!

[Tycho Brahe]

This looks brilliant!

how about a job satisfaction/income system as well? that way you have to balance your characters happiness with his money, like an accountant would get no satisfaction (and lots of income), whereas a charity worker would get complete satisfaction and no money.

[iPope]

This looks brilliant!

how about a job satisfaction/income system as well? that way you have to balance your characters happiness with his money, like an accountant would get no satisfaction (and lots of income), whereas a charity worker would get complete satisfaction and no money.

I have something like that planned for the future. You will need to keep your character happy or he will go insane and your options will become limited to various ways of killing yourself. Working and other actions will play apart in this. Thanks for the comment!

[iPope]

Code:

8 of July, 1951  |  9:0:0
Location:  Test Room
Job: Unemployed
Money:  $10.00
Education:
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Stats:
thirst : [----------] 0
hunger : [----------] 0
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Options:
0  -  Drink
1  -  Get a job
2  -  Work
3  -  Study
4  -  Move
5  -  Eat
> 4
Options:
0  -  Food Room
> 0
You travel to Food Room

Update! I finished the room loader and added travelling. Using the system presents the problem for area specific actions, like a school. To make area specific actions possible it will be possible to interact with an object. These objects can't be defined in a text file so a special keyword will be used, something like "special" and it will then load the code from a python file. This game takes a lot of thinking  


Edit:




Testing out cam studio, relevant.

[iPope]

Finished coding the special item system and interaction, here is a cinema object I made that can play movies (not really but sorta).





With this modding potential this game could really go two ways. I could carry on my real life modern situation or I could change it into a fantasy/medieval/RPG type thing. I am not sure yet.

[deathtotheweird]

This is pretty cool, I like the videos. Seems like a pretty hardcore game, especially the bit where you go insane.

[iPope]

Hopefully should be a frequent event for new players!

[iPope]

I've finished the economy system and I am going to start shops, shops will be places where you interact with an object and it will show all buy able items in that shop. To add something buy able to a location I will implement a new keyword, buy.