Project 2 - Uber Mech Online

[Froofy-D]

Mechwarrior still has the best gameplay of any mech game. Not sure what the problem with ChromeHounds was. It was cool looking but something about just wasn't that fun. Armored Core seems more like a shooter than a mech game.

[Linbog]

Originally Posted by Froofy-D

Mechwarrior still has the best gameplay of any mech game. Not sure what the problem with ChromeHounds was. It was cool looking but something about just wasn't that fun. Armored Core seems more like a shooter than a mech game.

Chromehounds problem was obvious to me, it was too slow... granted Armored Cores problem is the reverse in that its too fast.

[Camerous]

Aye way too slow. Spending 20 mins just walking across a board in some of the missions is just retarded to me. But I love the design aspect of the game.

[Linbog]

Originally Posted by Camerous

Aye way too slow. Spending 20 mins just walking across a board in some of the missions is just retarded to me. But I love the design aspect of the game.

I thought some of the Armored Core games had better mech design than Chromehounds though I never played it online.

[Tuco]

[Bralkan]

nice fatty. I remember you talking about wanting to make a mech game for awhile.

[Fattyfat]

I'm a huge supporter for a mech game, this is very true. I've got a lot of ideas sitting around that I believe could create a real fun Mech MMO experience. I'm not sure if those will be incorporated or not in this project though.

Flying mechs can always be added later, we don't want to overcomplicate our first major milestone with extra things like flight. We have talked about jump-jets which can be used to boost you in a direction (including vertically) and I think that may give players a lot of options in movement and gameplay.

[Overgauss]

Since the game will have a variety of ranges for combat, what about reeeeaally close fire weapons/ammo that has a high power rating but is heavy/noisy/etc and only allows 5 or less shots ?

Hrrm or a tactical overload ability that has a specific detonation range dependent upon mech type. Which also hints towards a possible pilot death versus mech death issue.

This overload ability(or several others) could be an 'unintended emergent gameplay' issue that players could 'discover' and spread the secret leet knowledge of such discovery via in clan gc or via message board.
[Edit: The Explosion Skill Type from Phantom Dust comes to mind.
]

Initially I was just going to pop in and ask about hyper short range ballistics, c'mon it's obvious, but then I got carried away. Surely there's going to be a shotgun'ish loadout or something even more mech'y and brutal.

[fucker]

im not part of the project. i would like to join you since i know 3ds max well, but my RL doesnt allow me right now

the only thing i can say is, an EVE-like mech based game would be fantastic

just imagine 50vs50 mech battle to comquest a planet. pure videogame orgasm

yeah yeah, dreamland i know. let me dream

[Elidroth Renato]

Be very careful calling things Mechs. Microsoft can be real dicks about protecting their IP's (they own Battletech/Mechwarrior). Granted you're not selling anything yet, but still..

[Faille]

Originally Posted by Elidroth Renato

Be very careful calling things Mechs. Microsoft can be real dicks about protecting their IP's (they own Battletech/Mechwarrior). Granted you're not selling anything yet, but still..

Nod, we were toying with just 'borrowing' the mechwarrior idea but decided that going with something original would be better in the long run. Need to work out the wording of it to see what terms they own. Seems that mech is generic enough not to apply, unlike say BattleMech, or MechWarrior.

[Khorum]

Just call them mecha. Unless Carl Macek calls for a royalty check, then tell him to go fuck himself and call them mecha anyway.

[Ghiest]

Or just call em warmachines, machines, mecha or Battlerobots ...

I doubt many companies would worry about a private non-commericial product containing images/names of copywrited material, or how would fan fiction still survive

[redjunkopera]

I know that flying was excluded but I'm just going to put out my ideas and you guys can take or leave w/e.


There should be flying. Speed of flying is dependent on the weight of the mech, power of it's propulsion. Agility of the mech is part propulsion system, part computer system... more computers and propulsion = more weight and power drain = slower & shorter flight duration. Also have to consider weaponry, sheild systems, armoring, maybe powerfailure emergency systems (giant airbag, mech-parachute, pilot parachute). Air combat would be dangerous: Get your propulsion knocked out and then you crash. But the advantage of flight would be speed and vantage point.

Combat should be a combination of ranged energy weapon, projectile, close range energy weapon, and physical combat. Ranged energy weapons are weaker, more likely to be blocked by sheilds or miss completely and consume power. Projectile weapons have the same limitations as ranged energy, are limited quantity based on weight but can pierce energy shields. Close range energy weapons are lower power usage, higher damage, but you have to be close to use them and can be blocked by shields. Physical combat is high damage and can only be mitigated by armoring; however you have to be close and run the risk of damaging your own mech in the process unless your mech is built specifically to endure it. Keep the process simple in the beginning, bring it to EVE-esque complexity later on.

Ground combat allows the use of structures/terrain for protection but has limited mobility. Air combat has no protection, but has a lot of mobility.


A SWG crafting system. Instead of resources changing once a week have a set amount of material spawn randomly. When it gets depleted it's gone. Crafters build everything: Mechs, parts, weapons, structures, ships. Have the same random-resource characteristics as seen in SWG. You find awesome steel and harvest it people will still be paying you top dollar 12 months later. No running on foot to the middle of some barren planet and then whipping 90 heavy harvesters out of your back pocket... you can scout on foot, small vehicle to find the spot then call in the ships to bring the harvesters out. Fuel is a commodity just like everything else... no magically refilling gas tanks... you decide to wander off further than you have fuel for you are SOL... but if you have buddy around with some extra fuel he can you spot you enough to get somewhere to get more.

In the spirit of EVE/SWG you can experiment and develop new technologies as well. Maybe have a method for art submission so that people can create their own weapons/vehicles/mechs.

PvP is based around holding territory, taking territory for the sake of getting materials, positioning for PvE.

PvE is against computer generated armies. A force takes over just as another player would, builds it self up develops technology that you can steal... the more powerful the enemy the better the technology. Enemies are never in the same place at once, and maybe they even advance themselves by attacking the strongest weaker enemy they can defeat. So you have a small base, an AI mech force slightly more powerful than you takes your base and then uses your resources to advance itself, then maybe moves onto the next closest weaker enemy... continuing to build it's power.

Progression is through the aquisition of better equipment, powerful alliances, holding/taking territory... also should probably have something for the pilot, maybe in the vein of implants and an EVE like skill system however I wouldn't go with a timed skill-up... grind it out... if their aren't any PvE resources, PvP.

[Mist]

This was my idea for a mech game that I posted a while back:

An isometric (top down 3/4ths perspective, like UO, Diablo, etc) mech/vehicular shooter, rendered with relatively low poly 3D models, but essentially 2D mechanically. The mechs are resonably agile and the game plays similar to again Diablo, with PvE focused on killing masses of robotic and/or biomechanical drones and huge bosses, similar to oldschool shooters like Gradius/Raptor/etc. Emphasis on action, cool weapon types (both ranged and melee) and massive firepower, and not particularly on accuracy. But the important catch is that there is also a strong emphasis on deep economy based on resource control, salvaging (from huge fields of PvE wreckage) and manufacturing. Also RPG-style skill systems/trees.

The game would revolve around a hub world that consists of launching points to various other worlds. Once PvP is implemented, 2-3 functionally identical hub worlds would be necessary, for each of the NPC controlled superfactions (think realms ala DAoC.) Other worlds can be either:

1) Mission worlds, with various adventure locales where small groups of places face NPC enemies in structured, dungeon-esque settings, like caverns, facilities, etc. These worlds would be mostly faction specific and non-PvP.

2) PvE Battleground worlds, where players (solo or in small or even large groups) can engage in less structured PvE against moving fronts/patrols of enemies and random elite minibosses. Spawns are dynamic, and the NPCs reinforce areas where they are losing ground hard. Think Dynasty Warriors, with mechs. PvP can happen on these worlds, and these worlds offer the best/most salvage rewards.

3) PvP Battleground worlds, where players face off against other players from the opposing superfactions, fighting for large resource nodes scattered across vast battlefields, with staging areas for each of the superfactions. Players with proper can establish semi-permanent field bases to control resource nodes and use as rallying points in the large three-way battles. These worlds offer the best natural resource rewards.

4) Out-Worlds, with the least defined gameplay modes. These act as sandbox worlds, where players can own property, construct manufacturing facilities and other more permanent player owned structures. Far Out-World colonization charters could be purchased by large guilds to have their own worlds, and wars can be declared between player controlled factions (guilds, corporations, whatever you want to call them) on these psuedo-private worlds. Wars would be declared formally and take place at scheduled times.

The idea of the development of the different world types is that they could be developed modularly by inviduals or small groups, once the basic art assets and mechanics were in place for the whole game.