I created this topic for all the newcomers to get tips or tricks about the phisics, level making, what the game needs to be good.
I'll start myself:
- Don't make big open areas, they seem to decrease a lot the speed, fpsc cannot handle with it. But if you really want to do it, you can use invisible segments;
- Don't have too many dynamic objects in one room, it's decrease the speed;
- Use doors (especialy automatic doors);
- Have a good variety of objectives;
- READ THE MANUAL. All of it;
- Use custom objects;
- Use lights;
- Test everything, go to all corners, try finding bugs;
- Don't give up when you find a problem - try solving it;
- Have a large variety of enemies;
- Get some model packs, they are worth it;
- Make lots of levels and make each one different from each other.
- Use physics well: But breakable things, things that fall and/or you can push;
- Be careful when using the fire effects, it must be a non acessible area, because if you look from the upside, you'll see it's just a line;
Sugestions by Accel Leon:
- Draw your maps on paper first,define simple marks as lights, range, entity's.
- Make your story before starting anything.
- Cant find an answer?dont moan for it...just ask nicely with a normal topic title.
- Dont try to be a smart guy,take advices from people.Advices are your friends and help.
- People dont like your game?add some lightning,maybe the story CLEARLY in the game?
- Stock Media is OK,but level design must be OK to let Stock media look OK!
- Dont announce ANY game until you REALY think its worth posting it;
- Learn FPI Scripting,its VERY usefull to be a FPSC master
- Post screeny's in .jpg format when made a model,game or WHATEVER.
- Listen to the MOD's,most of them had the EA version.so they know it very well.
Sugestions by BULLSHOCK 2:
- Use the search option before posting. chances are your question has been posted before.
Sugestions by DJ Professor K:
- All player unseen segments parts should be deleted, this will speed up everything, ex: if the player isn't suppose to see the back of a building, you can delete it.
(use noclip on some random games to see how professionals made them: exemple games: hl2, ut2k4, css, cs1.6 hitman, max payne1/2, etc.)
- Really important thing: if you really want to move with creating games, just have this in mind, the game isn't for you to have fun, but to others, since it's you making the game, you'll know everything, you'll know the story, you'll know how the levels look like, you'll know where each enemy is going to be and how they act. Knowing all this will make it.
BUT when building a game, build it how YOU like it, and not others, forget others opinions until you've built your very own game (thres always someone who thinks 100% the same as you think), after that you see if it's ok to accept others opinions or not.
- Don't loose hope, if someone says tha you level sucks, it doesn't matter what 1 guy says, show it to more people, and eventually you'll see that they like it.
- After releasing a demo or beta, learn to accept both positive and negative comments, this will help you in many ways.
- Need help with textures or models (new ones), feel free to ask help here.
--- How to build a level:
1. Start by puting the walls up,
2. Now move to the ground, leave the ceiling for now,
3. Test it, see if you really like the basic layout,
4. Now add the ceiling
5. Furniture it.
6. Test it out again.
7. Add the lighting now.
8. Test it again, this is really important, lighting is really important on any type of game.
9. Add the weapons/items
10. Add the npc (enemies/allies).
11. Test it one last time.
12. Tweak anything that might look better.
- The more work from you, the more unic your ggame will be, it's ok to use others people work (with their proper permission) but the game looks much better if it has more work from you;
- Don't release betas after betas, the less the better, and the mroe work added in each beta, the more the players will like your game;
- FPSC isn't ment for you to make next HL or Quake or even next Halo, just a plain "simple" nowadays game.
Sugestions by xplosys:
- You can find a lot of information about detailed game planning by searching google, but there are a few basics you should have at a minimum. A basic plan should include the story line, maps of each level and an explanations of game progression, with diagrams of characters, objects, puzzles, etc. A game plan is basically a walk through or book of the game.
- Some people set out to build a game limited by what is available to them: the basic included themes and whatever else is available at the forum and elsewhere. Others set out to build a game they can imagine and then work to find or create the content they need to fill it. The second option is harder and takes longer, but makes for a great original game.
Sugestions by brummel:
- Get Photoshop, Paintshop Pro or Gimp and learn how to texture. Some custom textures on the walls can make all the difference in the world.
- Try to learn how to script. It very easy and is required to make an fpsc game that isnt just run n gun, or atleast a extraordinary run n gun game.
- Try to variate the tempo of your game.
- Make the environments feel non-linear eventhough they maybe are.
- Variate the situations the player are in. Using some puzzlesituations between the shooting keeps the player from not being wearied.
- Get Fruityloops or antother musicprogram to make some background music, ambience and sounds for your game.
Sugestions by Disturbing 13:
- To avoid framerate problems with large levels , try not to put too much on the same level building area. Use staircases and elevators to extend upwards and downwards to build on those levels.
- Print your manual out. It's not that many pages, especially if you print front and back. I find it's always easier to read and comprehend something when its right in fronmt of me in black and white;
Sugestions by Natflash Games:
- Stick to one project, no one likes to see 100 different threads about all your different projects, also you'll be able to concentrate more on the one project you have to make that the best you possibly can, as opposed to doing a little on each at a time and losing concentration.
Sugestions by The Dude:
- Just to modify a suggestion by accell. What I have done is created a 'grid' on photoshop ( 40x40 squares ) and I use markers to define what kind of walls I use in a level, filled with x's and o's to define where certain entities and lights are, numbers where waypoints for enemies are, and letters where winzones, story zones, start zones, etc. are.
The grid also kind of looks like a 'battlefship' map ( the board game where you try and sink the others ship by saying something like 'a1' or 'b12' or something along those lines ) so I have some kind of coordinate system to help me.
Sugestions by The Silent Killer:
- Better A.I. without new scripts:
Sniper:
Main = Snipe.fpi
Shoot = Snipe.fpi
Gunner:
Main = Snipe.fpi
Shoot = Shoot.fpi or Shootclose.fpi
Suggestions by Merranvo:
- Personally, I have found that rebuilding an entire level from scratch can seriously improve frame rates, it is my theory that FPSC sometimes compiles areas that are deleted (as notable by the 0 fps bug) or places the same segment multiple times in the same location.
- I also recommend NOT using room segments, simply building a corridor for your room has a slight change in FPS, but it also allows mass customization that a room segment does not offer. Yes, it is harder, but the endrun might help.
- Additionally, do not be AFRAID of physics objects. Physics may slow down your game slightly, but it is OFF most of the time, an object only interacts with they physics system if a force is appyled (or it is spawned, or the game starts)
- Also, do not be afraid of wide open rooms, yes, I am counterdicting what you are saying because I have noted that large open rooms CAN render propperly without a large slowdown, what causes the slowdown is polyleaks.
- Double Side Tiles, A very interesting fact I noticed, double sided tiles are less likely to produce a poly leak then single sided ones, further more, single sided tiles might become 'invisible' on the opposing side.
- Use few weapons, one thing I hate is when I play a game and pick up dozens of weapons, you really only use 4 different weapons... Pistol, Heavy Gun (SMG, Shotgun, RL), Sniper Rifle, Grendades. No reason to have guns that replace others.
- Do not be afraid of Dynamic Objects.
- Emphasis on non-linar maps... FORCE the player to retrace his steps, to move all OVER the map before proceeding to the next level, even making the next level be the same map as the first one works wonders.
- Constantly remind the player of his objectives, simply throwing a guy into a shoot-em-up does little to make a game, making the story unravel around him through head set communications, over heard conversations or notes left on the floor does wonders to emerse the player in the game. DO NOT have a guy nag the player to complete his objectives.
- DO NOT force the player to stack boxes WITHOUT changing the friction level on the boxes. By standards it is WAY too low, turn it up or else you will have a very frustrated player.
- Change the health pack scripts to heal small amounts instead of the full 500 heal they currently do.
- NEVER hold a random boss fight. Nothing is worse then when a game has a boss fight thrown in without reason (IE. Your on the way to kill the 'big guy' when he sends his aprentice to kill you...). It may seem cool first few times, but pretty soon the player will recognise it as filler.
In a game I have been playing there has been 3 boss fights over 2 hours, and that does not include the objective based fights (basically throw x number of people into y object).
- Have a large amount of acrobatics in the game, simply put, walking is boring... it is much more fun to climb walls or run accross unstable platforms to get to the other side. The thing is a person can easily beat a shooting game, and once a puzzle is discovered it isn't the same anymore... But accrobatics are something that takes time and can be fun a few times over.
- Do not, under any cercumstances, force the player to walk a great distance over a locked door. I mean take a look at halflife, you have this guy with all these explosives, but he can't blow apart a single door...
- Darkness is bad. What is scarier... a zombie covered in blood eyes rolling, foam gushing from its mouth... its skin yellow, wrinkled, and falling off, its clothes tattered and torn or a dark room?
- Light is bad. What is scarier, a bloody knife in the middle of a well lit foyar or a knife clearly seen, blood still dripping from its tip, but you can not see (clearly) where the source is... or if the wielder is still around.
Suggestions by wickedly kick it:
- If you just bought the software, don't jump into making an official game, you should play around an learn how it works!
- Skim through the manual
- Don't leave open rooms empty, add some boxes and furniture or better yet people!
- Don't Subsitude quality for quanity
- Don't be afraid to ask questions!
I'll compile all the sugestions on one post.
Project FPS - 71%
