Elements of the perfect action game.

Pixel_Outlaw · Post by **Pixel_Outlaw** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 5:15 am

In a world of video"game" desolation please provide some blueprints on how to make a good action game. Lets keep it 80's to early 90's style. What would you tell a video game developer seeking to capture the elements of "classic" action arcade games? This is for my own benefit.

Stormwatch · Post by **Stormwatch** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 5:40 am

Must be fast-paced and challenging, but not exceedingly hard.

Fluid animation is cool, but the characters must respond to your command immediately.

If it uses one-hit death, instant respawn is obligatory.

Instant respawn is usually a good idea. One-hit death, not so much.

Switching from instant to non-instant respawn after a point in the game is very stupid.

A way to save the progress is nice. Or at least a way to unlock extra credits.

Rob · Post by **Rob** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 5:53 am

Dust Dragon

Zebra Airforce · Post by **Zebra Airforce** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 5:56 am

designed for competition

Specineff · Post by **Specineff** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 6:43 am

Bosses that are vulnerable to some serious pwnage after missing you with a move.

Ed Oscuro · Post by **Ed Oscuro** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 7:18 am

Depends on your audience...if you're aiming for score / Achievement fanatics or casual gamers the "right" way of doing things will change

ED-057 · Post by **ED-057** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 9:32 am

In-game turorials and story sequences should be brief and/or skippable. Difficulty should start somewhere around newb level and smoothly ramp up to kungfu-master level.

MX7 · Post by **MX7** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 11:40 am

-Sharp collision detection.
-Perceived challenge somewhat outweighs actual challenge.
-Dynamic scoring system ensures that an experienced player will always score higher.
-Soundtrack that abuses arpeggios to the logical extreme.
-Difficulty curve should be gentle. Game should start off hard and progress to being very hard, as opposed to having to sit through three levels before the game actually gets fun.
-Waterfall level.

UnscathedFlyingObject · Sat Aug 30, 2008 2:32 pm

MX7 wrote:-Sharp collision detection.
-Perceived challenge somewhat outweighs actual challenge.
-Dynamic scoring system ensures that an experienced player will always score higher.
-Difficulty curve should be gentle. Game should start off hard and progress to being very hard, as opposed to having to sit through three levels before the game actually gets fun.

Amen, bro. However, I'll point out that it's also acceptable to have a curve from easy to kung-fu master if the game's harder difficulty start you in hell. Some more additions:

- Keep "RPG" elements down to the minimum. No collecting shit, no leveling up, no backtracking. RPG elements should be in RPGs only.

- Keep it short for one-sittings. Ideally around 40-45 minutes.

- Keep things moving forward. The player should always be moving from one environment to the next. Levels shouldn't take 10 minutes to finish.

- Make the bosses dynamic. It gets tiresome when you play a game and the bosses always perform attacks in the same pattern. Make it slightly random to keep people on their toes.

- Do not make the bosses take forever to kill and especially avoid giving them quadruple energy in harder difficulties. Something like 1.5X more energy is fine, but definitely add more attacks and make the bosses more aggressive.

- Give me balanced weaponry. Not so strong I mow down everything before they even get to attack (TFV free range) but not so weak that it takes half a day to kill anything.

Nuke · Post by **Nuke** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 2:57 pm

-Keep tutorials and main gameplay separate! It's irritating and off-putting to have to go through the same demonstration again and again If you decide to replay the game.

-Better yet, skip tutorials all together! All the best arcade games of yesteryear just threw you into the action, with simple enough controls that made instructions unnecessary. Here's a wild idea for the more complex action games: Put the control mapping on the back of the game box and/or as an option in the pause menu. Don't put it on the loading screen, because then you get a longer loading screen. In fact, skip the loading screen altogether! (Take note EA!)

-Less story, more awesome! Things don't have to make sense to be fun, and there are better genres to work with in that area such as RPG's and Adventure games.
Keep cutscenes sparse, short and in-game to make room for more explosions an crazy shit such as cyborg-werewolf bosses the size of buildings!

The Coop · Post by **The Coop** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 5:06 pm

- Earth, Wind, Fire, and Water. Heart can go fuck itself.

- A real ending. You know, something beyond "Congraulation!" with a picture. You just fought through level after level of insane amounts of stuff. You should be rewarded with an ending that's more than something that feels tacked on as an afterthought.

Frederik · Post by **Frederik** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 5:48 pm

-Having a way to kill bosses really quick while being pretty hard to do is awesome. See: Many bosses in Alien Soldier. That first boss can be killed almost instantly but it requires perfect timing.

-Kick small enemies into other enemies for chain reactions. See: Astro Boy Omega Factor and Bangai-O Spirits.

-Multiple ways of attacking. See: All of the above.

-Keep track of the stage timer for easy speedrunning awesomenes.

-Have a tutorial that actually lets you play. See: Astro Boy OF.

-Make your weapons seem powerful. Make it a constant stream of bullets for rapid fire weapons. See: Dodonpachi, Ikaruga, Alien Soldier. DON´T see: Metal Slug´s pea shooter.

-Practice mode.

Stormwatch · Post by **Stormwatch** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 6:07 pm

DON'T make me wait while my attack recharges. (a la Alisia Dragoon)

320x240 · Post by **320x240** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 6:10 pm

Design the control interface first and build the rest of the game around that.

moozooh · Post by **moozooh** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 6:19 pm

This.

320x240 · Post by **320x240** » Sat Aug 30, 2008 6:38 pm

moozooh wrote:This is what happens when 13 year olds get hold of a copy of Gamemaker[/url].

When starting on a new game I think it can be a good thing to stop thinking about it in game terms and instead picture it as something more 'real'. This picture can at first be as simple as a bee pollinating a flower and then grow from that until you have a whole 'scene'. This way the game will more easily end up with more of an organic feel. The basics of a control interface will often present itself as part of this picture too. I have a feeling (and remember reading as much in old interviews) that a lot of the really old classics came about in this way - at least the Japanese developed ones.

UnscathedFlyingObject · Sat Aug 30, 2008 8:54 pm

Watch

chempop · Post by **chempop** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 12:11 am

Special Attacks
Weapons
Bosses
platforms
jumping
soundtrack
more bosses

i recommend shinobi series, alien vs predator arcade (and others of the like), megaman series, streets of rage series... sure some are platform/side scroller action, some are beat-em-up action but those are my faves.

Maybe I missed the question, if so I'm sorry.

neorichieb1971 · Post by **neorichieb1971** » Mon Sep 01, 2008 12:52 am

I think something like God of War gets closest to me. It might not be perfect but what is. It makes you think, you can get away with button bashing from time to time and it doesn't make you use every single button on the pad.

DMC would come a close 2nd, but I hate respawning enemies.

In the classic sense, Shinobi did it for me in the arcades.