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[JWK5]

So I've been working on a Pokemon/Monster Rancher/Harvest Moon -ish game for my kids, aside from the battling aspects of a Monster-battler and general RPG-exploration what are some good modes, features, etc. a Pokemon-like could benefit from to make a more interesting single player experience (already got the multiplayer tackled)?

[TitoOliveira]

Imo the best feature in a pokemon game is how you have to beat challenges and unlock habilities to be able to progress in a somewhat open world. It's kinda like a Zelda game, in this sense. The progression might be linear, but the places are setup so you might have to explore a bit. (Note that i'm refering to pokemon games until de GBA titles, haven't played any from DS or newer).
An example is in Pallet town when you start out and there is a patch of water to the south. You have to play a good portion of the game until you unlock Surf. Then you're able to surf the waters and discover all sorts of new places that were unreachable before. Metroidvanias have this sort of thing too.

[valrus]

It'd be neat, along similar lines as Tito said, if your actions could change the ecosystems and thus what monsters were available.  Like you open some floodgates and irrigate a desert, or close them and create one.  Plant some trees or cut some down. 

Or for something a little more involved, a bit of terrarium-like game (like Earthtongue) mixed with a Pokemon game would be pretty cool.  The biome supports (or doesn't) particular monsters, and in turn the monsters spread biomes.  You might do things like capture particular monsters and then let them free elsewhere, in order to support, spread, or contain a biome.

[battlerager]

More interesting use of monster abilities outside of combat.

[randomThrowAway]

Yeah, and more life for the monsters  outside of battle, in general. (Cross-) Breeding, friendship / animosity between them, morale/likes/dislikes, feeding, training, recreation etc.

Basically make the monsters interesting  pets which also fight, don't make them dumbed down jrpg heroes.

[JWK5]

It's a shit-tacular menu-layout draft (there is way too much empty space and the graphics are all mismatched and temporary) where I am working out a good arrangement, but the topic is leading somewhere (it's not just a random question for shits and giggles):



Initially I was going to have a turn-based approach based off of static initiative scores, but I've since opted for FF6/Grandia-style ATB guages to give the battles more of a dynamic pacing. Been looking at card battle games and games like Kongai, Darkest Dungeons, etc. for ideas to spice up the battles.

I let my kids come up with the creature ideas, so once the game gets rolling I will likely extend that opportunity to TIGS and let people make creature contributions (the game will be 100% free).

Anyways, I am making note of all the suggestions given here (some nice ideas, thank you all) and I will create a devlog when I got a prototype going.



Keep the ideas rolling! :D

[s0]

PROTIP: Stop designing anything further and get started on the prototype right now.

Anyways, cool project 

[JWK5]

Will do, and thanks!

[TitoOliveira]

It's a shit-tacular menu-layout draft (there is way too much empty space and the graphics are all mismatched and temporary) where I am working out a good arrangement, but the topic is leading somewhere (it's not just a random question for shits and giggles):

The best thing you can do with your UI is HAVE empty space.
It helps you categorize and hierarchize the information. Just think of empty space as a part of the composition, not as "a place where i could be putting stuff on", because that will lead to clutter and bad UX.