next »

[AwesomeATrain]

I hope I posted this in the right forum... because I am totally lost on where to post this.  Feel free to move this if it's not in the correct forum.

Hello Everyone. I'm A-Train and I've been a programmer, 3D Artist, game developer, and much more for the last 7 ish years. Some of you may or may not know of all the work I've accomplished over the last few years, all or most of it was done on EA and Dice's Battlefield series, going all the way from Battlefield 1942 to Battlefield 2142, spanning all those 4 games and their booster packs. Some of the work has been involved with working along side EA and assisting EA in converting a lot of their old software into the new engines and such. The last piece of work I've done was a simple modification to Battlefield 2142 called Zombie Community, where I took the existing engine and added new lighting and special effects that the 2142 engine hasn't seen before.

Since the Battlefield series is a dying series and no longer profitable, I've decided to move onward, to other engines and companies that have proven track records.

I'm looking to put together a team of various individuals with diverse backgrounds to great a new game to be sold or later profited to a producer with 2 original ideas that I have. I'm looking for individuals with open minds, wild imaginations, and wicked skills to make this new project a reality. This new game will be created in private and most of all, in secret from the outside world, until that time when it's ready to be revealed to the world.

Any individuals who are also seeking to share their own ideas are also encouraged to join. Right now, we are in the pre-planning stages, getting teams together to come up with ideas, features, and game play before any of the actual IP is created. This is the prime time for gamers around the world to share their ideas in creating a game worth sharing to the world.

If any of this applies to you, then I encourage you to come on board. Because of the economy and finances, all work will have to be on a volunteer, spare-time basis until after the work is completed and thus then commercialized where any profits are appropriately split among those involved based upon the amount of work. All persons wishing to participate in this group are encouraged to copy write their work on an on-going basis to prevent fraud.

++Legal Junk++

Because we are aiming to eventually commercialize this project, ONLY ORIGINAL IP (Intellectual Property) is allowed into this project. We WILL NOT promote, sell, buy, advertise, or use any stolen or illegal IP that is not of the original author on the team. Any persons caught in doing this act will be immediately removed from the team and all their work will be destroyed and reported to the appropriate authorities. We, I, Us are not a company nor are we affiliated with any other company. We, I, Us are a private organization creating new IP and modifying existing engines (physics, game, etc engines) and do so under no grantee that our work will become commercialized, although that is our ultimate goal. Those joining the organization also acknowledge that they are not 'employed' or 'employees' of this private organization and therefore are guaranteed no compensation for their work or time. There are no 'benefits' since this is not a company nor is this organization employing any person or persons.

With the Legal junk out of the way, we can move onto organization. Over the next few weeks I will be settings up a website and a VoIP server (probably either ventrilo (www.ventrilo.com) or teamspeak (www.teamspeak)) to organize for those wishing to participate in this organization. Until then, I can be reached at EMS Gamers (www.EMSGamers.com). Those wishing to voice their interest should also post there, in the 1337 Games forum.

More information to know:

So I plan on creating a new game running off of a scalable engine (which I still have yet to decide) and I plan on doing most of the work myself. However, I do plan on needing help. So if anybody wants to help, please let me know. This will be a project that I will work on my free time or if I can get it, state funded (which I am in the process of doing), and it'll be a volunteer now - sell later project, to which I plan on selling to one of the major companies (will likely be more restricted to the company's engine that provides it). This will be a great way for me to finally set up the real game which I will launch in the future (which will not be related to this game). In the mean time, I have 2 ideas which are original and have not been done in the gaming world.

To keep everything organized, I need to know everybody who wants to participate in the game development to go here and register:

http://www.1337games.us

This is the official link for now but currently it simply redirects to ]www.emsgamers.com] so have patience while we organize and set everything up.

So those wishing to apply to participate in the game development needs to register. Some things to note, not everybody who registers will be accepted. I can't have this large group backing the game while most of the people do nothing or I struggle to find you guys something to do. So once you register goto "Register To Apply to 1337 games" create a new thread. Please state your age. That's the minimum requirement for this stage. There will be a ton of other limitations that will eliminate a good number of you. Until then please register and create a thread with your age.

P.S If anybody knows any websites or forums to post this, it would be most appreciated if you would let me know. Thanks.

[JamesGecko]

You need to introduce yourself here.

I don't think EA has realized that Battlefield is dying. Y'know, what with the thousands of players and new games they keep releasing.

[falsion]

You never mentioned exactly what you're making. I see a lot of stuff about you and your group and some pseudo-legalese, but nothing about games.

This post is essentially a long introduction that's heavy on talk and low on actual substance. Hate to say this, but you honestly need to get to the point.

Give a short idea of what you're working on. You don't have to reveal the game to the public by doing so, just give a description of the type of game you are working on. Is it an FPS, an RTS, what?

Another thing you need to do is state what you need. Are you looking for programmers, artists, or what?

And please, try to keep it short and to the point. People are more likely to read something if they don't have to read it several times over to understand it.

[Snakey]

Just a warning while reading all of this, this is yet again a deferred payment job. They're just wanting you to share the burden of creating the initial game.

[Alex May]

No surprise he's taken the EA mentality along with him after he left

[AwesomeATrain]

Just a warning while reading all of this, this is yet again a deferred payment job. They're just wanting you to share the burden of creating the initial game.

You are correct.  I make everything explicitly clear in my statements.  I do not want to mislead any people into thinking false hopes or false claims, which is why I have the legal junk section.

As far as the game itself, I purposely left out because of the NDA.  It will be a new idea that will (if done correctly), be utilizing FPS, RPG, and RTS (if we can make it work) in that order.  Unfortunately I can't give any more information on it, like "Oh it's going to be a space game or it's going to be a modern game" because any information I give will basically reveal the entire game idea (it's just that, an idea), creating a new genre of games and in short, I don't want anybody beating it to us.  So with that said, it remains locked down until all applicants/members have signed the NDA.  It's well worth the secrecy I hate to say.

In regards to what kind of help I'm looking for -- I am humble enough to realize I will be doing most of the work if not all of the work.  So I'm not purposely going out saying, "HELP!  I NEED A MODELER!" or any specific.  If people want to help, they can jump in, if not, so be it.  I realize that makes me look very vage and makes me sound like I don't know what I'm doing.  If that is the result, so be it I can live with it.  So far the turn out has been wonderful.  I have just about every field filled with applicants who want to help, which is amazing and a blessing.  One thing I know we will no longer need is music and audio engineers.  That's the one area that got hit hard with applicants.

I have a nice smirk on my face because of the massive challenge they have ahead of them.  They will end up doing a ton of research and I suspect they will be doing the most work as this new game idea relies heavily on Audio creation.

So with that said, I'm always open to help, but it's not required but definately appreciated.  If you want to help, sweet, I love to have you.

[falsion]

As far as the game itself, I purposely left out because of the NDA.  It will be a new idea that will (if done correctly), be utilizing FPS, RPG, and RTS (if we can make it work) in that order.  Unfortunately I can't give any more information on it, like "Oh it's going to be a space game or it's going to be a modern game" because any information I give will basically reveal the entire game idea (it's just that, an idea), creating a new genre of games and in short, I don't want anybody beating it to us.  So with that said, it remains locked down until all applicants/members have signed the NDA.  It's well worth the secrecy I hate to say.

If your entire idea can be revealed by saying something simple like it's a "space game" or a "modern game," then you don't have much of an original or fleshed out idea.

You don't have to give away the gameplay mechanics of the game. Those are what should be kept secret at all times, obviously.

But saying something as simple as (say, for example) it's a war game wouldn't reveal anything, and also give people a glimpse of what they're signing up for.

Also don't worry about people stealing your ideas, it never happens this early on. People only steal ideas from games that are successful and have been proven to actually sell and be popular. Look at all the ripoffs of Gears of War (and its cover system) or Cave Story (in the indie scene).

Hell, take Doom for example. The first person shooter genre didn't exist until Doom came out and became hugely successful. Games began ripping off of it, stealing its ideas, and thus the FPS genre was born. Nobody would have gave a damn, nor would there be an FPS genre, if Doom never made it past the planning stage and never became a hit.

But again, if you're that worried, saying something like it's a game that takes place on Earth won't do a thing to reveal anything, unless that was your whole idea all along (which then you'd need to come up with something better).

In regards to what kind of help I'm looking for -- I am humble enough to realize I will be doing most of the work if not all of the work.  So I'm not purposely going out saying, "HELP!  I NEED A MODELER!" or any specific.  If people want to help, they can jump in, if not, so be it.  I realize that makes me look very vage and makes me sound like I don't know what I'm doing.  If that is the result, so be it I can live with it.  So far the turn out has been wonderful.  I have just about every field filled with applicants who want to help, which is amazing and a blessing.  One thing I know we will no longer need is music and audio engineers.  That's the one area that got hit hard with applicants.

Then wouldn't that mean you don't need anyone? You seem to have everything covered. I don't really get what you're asking here, or what you want exactly.

Also, I don't care if you are vague, just get to the point. I don't get why you're being so dramatic about it, it's not that big of a deal. No need for long winded speeches over something so trivial.

What exactly do you need applicants for if you have every field filled out?

[Snakey]

I suppose the main reason why I'm being rather openingly rude and public on my views on this sort of thing, is that I'm simply tired of this stuff going on. People who sign up to these types of projects are either naive and / or desparate. Before the hate posts come in, or the hate mail, let me explain by what I mean by naive and / or desparate.

By naive I mean for the game developers who simply haven't worked on a some what professional basis, and then getting royally screwed over for it. I'm pretty sure that most senior game developers have had at least one experience of this back when they started out. Some of those game developers simple gave up and never returned to game development (which is sad), while others pursued on with a new sense of cynicism for projects just like this. Basically, what I mean is, your projects speaks of grandiose sprinkled with lots of buzzwords that would confuse many young game developers (young as in experience, not age). You've already clouded the air by throwing up legal parameters and NDAs. These do nothing for them, but to protect yourself in the eventuality if anything was to go wrong. So, I write this for those who haven't been through this sort of experience before as a warning.

By desparate I mean for the game developers who are just breaking into doing this as their job. They're really desparate for a job, so they throw themselves at the mercy of people who are going to exploit them. No one ever tells a restaraunt to give them free food in the promise that if they enjoy it they will pay for the next meal. Unfortunately, it can also do the same thing to those have are naive, in that they may get so royally screwed that they never recover from it and wind up leaving their dream.

The least you can do is pay people for the work they are doing. Yes, I know you will tell me that you probably don't have much money. (If you tell me you have no money, then I'd worry that the legal provisions you've set up were probably not even looked at or written up by a lawyer). However, you don't have to pay people industry rates, consultancy rates or anything like that ... but if you at least talk to people about an acceptable wage / rate rather than gradiose visions of cash piles, I'd be more comfortable with that.

[falsion]

But what the hell is AwesomeATrain even asking for in the first place? I've seen a lot of people ask for help for free, but at least they describe what it's for.

This on the other hand completely confuses me.

All I see is nothing but "bafflegab" (for lack of a better term, my college English professor used to call it that) and sentence fillers.

Apparently, all the positions are filled so what do you need applicants for? You're really not making any sense.

Just tell us, in at least 4-5 sentences of less. What do you want?

You want people to fund your game? Is that it?

If not, I'm not sure why you'd go to a forum of programmers and designers/artists and say that you have no need for either.

[mewse]

Some of you may or may not know of all the work I've accomplished over the last few years, all or most of it was done on EA and Dice's Battlefield series

"All or most"?  Don't you know what you've done? 

Oo!  Dude, I think you've just woken up in the start of one of those RPGs where the hero wakes up with total amnesia and has to guess at his past based merely upon the contents of his desk drawers, and proceeds to gather a rag-tag group of followers (even though he believes that he could accomplish the quest entirely on his own) to help him in his quest to overthrow an evil oppressive agency which turns out to be inextricably linked with his past in an entirely unpredictable way!  I LOVE THOSE!

Don't forget to stock up on phoenix downs when you reach the next town!   

[falsion]

Some of you may or may not know of all the work I've accomplished over the last few years, all or most of it was done on EA and Dice's Battlefield series

"All or most"?  Don't you know what you've done?

This guy has done some BF mods on moddb. I looked up his username on Google.

Yeah, he simply could've stated that. But I guess he wanted to sound important, and confuse the shit out of us.

I still have no idea what this post is even about. It does indeed feel like I'm reading something from someone who hit their head too hard on something.

[Snakey]

Basically ...

I'm looking to put together a team of various individuals with diverse backgrounds to great a new game to be sold or later profited to a producer with 2 original ideas that I have. I'm looking for individuals with open minds, wild imaginations, and wicked skills to make this new project a reality. This new game will be created in private and most of all, in secret from the outside world, until that time when it's ready to be revealed to the world.

I want to create a team that will develop two ideas that I have. I will show these projects to producers or distributors and I will try to sell it. I am not going to release any information about this game.

Any individuals who are also seeking to share their own ideas are also encouraged to join. Right now, we are in the pre-planning stages, getting teams together to come up with ideas, features, and game play before any of the actual IP is created. This is the prime time for gamers around the world to share their ideas in creating a game worth sharing to the world.

I provide false sense of ownership and feel good.

If any of this applies to you, then I encourage you to come on board. Because of the economy and finances, all work will have to be on a volunteer, spare-time basis until after the work is completed and thus then commercialized where any profits are appropriately split among those involved based upon the amount of work. All persons wishing to participate in this group are encouraged to copy write their work on an on-going basis to prevent fraud.

If you want to join, you must offer your time, skill and experience for free. You must watch out for yourself by determining that all content you create is copy righted under your name.

Because we are aiming to eventually commercialize this project, ONLY ORIGINAL IP (Intellectual Property) is allowed into this project. We WILL NOT promote, sell, buy, advertise, or use any stolen or illegal IP that is not of the original author on the team. Any persons caught in doing this act will be immediately removed from the team and all their work will be destroyed and reported to the appropriate authorities. We, I, Us are not a company nor are we affiliated with any other company. We, I, Us are a private organization creating new IP and modifying existing engines (physics, game, etc engines) and do so under no grantee that our work will become commercialized, although that is our ultimate goal. Those joining the organization also acknowledge that they are not 'employed' or 'employees' of this private organization and therefore are guaranteed no compensation for their work or time. There are no 'benefits' since this is not a company nor is this organization employing any person or persons.

We are an informal group of people which has no legal entity status. If you submit work that is not yours, they will destroy it and will tell the legal owners of such work. Any work your create may or may not benefit the game. You will not be paid. If the whole things belly's up, you're up a creek without a paddle.

So I plan on creating a new game running off of a scalable engine (which I still have yet to decide) and I plan on doing most of the work myself. However, I do plan on needing help. So if anybody wants to help, please let me know. This will be a project that I will work on my free time or if I can get it, state funded (which I am in the process of doing), and it'll be a volunteer now - sell later project, to which I plan on selling to one of the major companies (will likely be more restricted to the company's engine that provides it). This will be a great way for me to finally set up the real game which I will launch in the future (which will not be related to this game). In the mean time, I have 2 ideas which are original and have not been done in the gaming world.

I am thinking of using Source, Unreal Engine or some other game engine that has a cool game on it. Please help me. I am looking for money from the government some how. I will attempt to sell the project to a top tier publisher. I want to create a game that isn't a mod. I am naive enough to think my ideas are sacred.

[Stegersaurus]

Can I try summarizing this for him instead? I really think too much was put in that post. The contract and instructions on tools to be used wasn't needed in a "call to attention" post, and should have been left to solo-contacts from interested parties. Also, if they are your ideas, the quote "As far as the game itself, I purposely left out because of the NDA." doesn't make much sense to me. It implies that you are under an NDA for the game as opposed to you imposing an NDA on others because you want to protect the concept (in my opinion, implementation is TONS more important than the concept itself and ideas are so plentiful that I wouldn't expect anyone to honestly steal it). Anyway, here's what I gleamed...

Hi, I'm making a hybrid style game and I need help. I've been working in the AAA industry for a while and am looking for volunteers to help me with this private project. We could do with most positions, though audio engineers are covered. This is a volunteer-based project, so there is no guaranteed compensation.

Doesn't that sound a lot nicer than that big wall of legalese and pomp? This is a casual community of developers and with the kind of people you seem to be looking for (the free kind) making yourself sound like a big-wig may not help. I'd save that kind of writing for pitching to other companies.

[falsion]

Okay, that makes sense for the most part. Except, he's not part of the AAA industry. This guy is a modder. I looked him up. He's made a few mods for various Battlefield games on modDB.

Anyway, you shouldn't write like this, ever. It doesn't matter whether you're addressing a professional company or a casual little community like ours.

I had an English professor who'd always tell stories of people getting fired for writing the way you do. The first thing he'd tell us is to always keep it simple and to the point. If something can be said in 4 words, do not say it in 10.

Also, I don't understand what's the point in asking us. Why not modDB forums instead? The people on this forum make indie games^*. We're not the type of people trying to make the next AAA online FPS shooter.

_{(*e.g. games like Cave Story or Braid, in case you've never played one before.)}