--- 11.17.2016 ToDo: update to our current vision ---
The game starts in the big system of the catacombs bellow the earth surface – “The Frontier”.
World of Fallen is world of steampunk version of old England hidden in Huge Underground catacombs.
People struggle here for survival against all horrible odds, monstrosities and ancient blind powers.
As a player you will emerge in this world; travel, hunt, trade and explore.
Build a fortune or fame, or both. Fall somewhere, killed by traps or horrible creatures.
Travel through huge mushroom forests; find small hut of a procedurally generated person; steal, trade, rob or share; be blessing, woe or bystander;
Read the story game will play for you by its own or with your help.
Uncover mystery of Ancients that differs from game to game.
Find small towns, buy or take quests. Craft your own weapons, survive or conquer.
The Story
Nobody knows why it has happened.
Someone blames ‘Magi trust’, someone thinks that demons did it or humanity lost their faith in Pantheon.
Maybe humans just overused mana winds and they were not ‘that’ endless and predictable as we thought? Who knows…
The truth is – ‘Mana Catastrophe’ has happened and life would never be the same.
But let’s tell the story from the very beginning.
The world, which is known now as ‘Fallen’, whenever its old name was lost and forgotten. This world was highly dependent on magic and powerful spells. Due to joke of some playful demiurge, the world of Fallen has plenty of metallic ores, but nearly no resource, that can be used as fuel. Even mushroom-like trees catch fire rather reluctantly and produce laughable quantity of energy while burning.
It wasn’t a problem after all, because even the apprentice of Magi trust, a ‘student of the Art’, as they named themselves can enchant mana crystal.
‘Mana crystal’ is amusing piece of magic technology that constantly accumulates mana flows from surrounding areas and turn into heat or even clouds of steam. It makes burning chambers and boilers of the steam engine completely useless. Steam engines were powerful, small, elegant and consumes no fuel, except for overflowing mana of any sort.
Of course the weakest crystals, enchanted by amateurs could make a cup of your morning tea barely warm in an hour or two.
But true masters can enchant real masterpiece, such crystal can be set to change the heat level or even accumulate it and release in one or few powerful surges, hot enough to power up the iron works or steam turbines of heavy assault automaton ‘Eradicator’ class.
Magic was the source of prosperity for the world, now known as ‘Fallen’. Nearly every person was using magic in the life or doubtlessly buying enchanted scrolls and potions from ‘Magi trust’.
Sprawling city states covered the face of the world and then covered all of the surface. People live in this conglomerate for years, factories have been producing loads of goods, wars had been starting and ending on their streets etc.
This life and death were powered by magic, until the ‘Mana Catastrophe’ had happened.
It didn’t come as one big tidal wave. It is agreed, that if it would fell sweepingly, humanity wouldn’t survive.
There were just small and not really disturbing news, one or two amateur mages were turned into frogs trying to waive some spells, couple of automaton gone rogue.
Nothing dangerous, poor fellows were saved, rogue automatons put down, but.
It has started to happen more often. Even the senior magi got drastic miscast effects for no reason and when the whole platoon of ‘Peacemaker’ class automatons gone rogue.
Well. That’s was disturbing.
The High colleague of Magi begun the research.
Results were terrifying. Slowly, but steadily mana was going wild. There are no more clean and easily distinguishable flows of mana. It was turning in to raving and boiling hurricane of uncontrollable magic. You wanted to weave the powers of life to heal the bruise? Then be ready, that this old and trusted spell will turn your kidney into cherry jam and your cat into rotting snail. Bruise is to be remain unhealed, by the way.
Magic can be no longer trusted, but it wasn’t the only disaster.
‘The Blight’ has come.
Crops, animals, humans began changing slowly, corrupted by uncontrollable waves of wild mana.
Dead begun to rise.
Situation became disastrous, but it has been found out, that the deeper you hide in the caves and catacombs, the safer it would be.
Government and people themselves started hiding, moving to the caves, building underground outposts.
Time was short. It wasn’t published to population, but barely 1/8 of the current population could be saved.
Even this hasn’t happened.
Artificial brains of automatons (guided by mana flows) gone malfunction one by one. Raving mad homicide lunatic was safe and sound person, comparing to automatons.
You should know that automatons were everywhere. Transport, mining, factories, military even your favorite coffee brewing machine ‘Coffee Brand Chef 9500M’ was automaton too!
Automatons were main ‘muscle’ power of humans’ exodus and they were turning rogue in geometrical progression.
Also, how do you think – what did humanity usually used to put down rogue automatons?
It was magic and normal military automatons.
Human army was unable to suppress the ‘uprising’ of the automatons. It was hit by The Blight and lost all heavy weapons, mounted on heavy military platforms. Automatons as you can understand.
It wasn’t the real uprising or war against the machines, automatons just gone rogue and crazy, attacking everything on sight. Cool comfort for people, used to easy life, when everything was done by automated servants.
Countless number of huge caravans has been lost and abandoned at the upper levels of the catacombs.
Just few managed to survive and escape irradiating hurricanes on wild mana on the planet surface.
Humanity fled the face of the "Fallen" planet. Its surface became the domain of crazed machines and unspeakable raving mutated monstrosities.
We came close to nowadays, hundreds of years from the ‘Mana Catastrophe’ and the Fall of the old world.
The new society has been formed.
The best living space – the deepest levels of the planet. It is known as the DeepHeaven. The living place of the high classes and true citizens of the Fallen.
Wild mana flow is so calm there, you even need a light source. Mana doesn’t irradiate everything with bright glowing as at the upper levels. Darkness became a privilege nowadays.
Children always born human, dead never raise back, life calm, prosperous and safe.
Then goes the servitors’ layers. Factories, farms, slaves quarters etc.
People live hard life there. They toil and toil to support their life, to get enough coins to feed their families.
It doesn’t mean, they don’t have a chance for better live somewhere at the deeper levels.
No, The Chance is the fundamental idea that glues the core of Fallen society.
The Chance for better life. Work hard and you get your Chance, said the brochure.
Pay off your birth debt, pay off your survival debt, contribute to the society and be worthy of your new status of true citizen, then make your life deposit and, ta da, welcome to DeepHeaven.
Let’s be bold. It is impossible for simple factory worker to become a True Citizen in couple of life times.
First of all, every baby that born outside of the DeepHeaven has ‘deprived slave’ of the ‘Corporate trust’ status, until he or she would pay of the Birth Debt. You can’t have family or select your job, until you do it.
It isn’t huge, by the way. Usually, parents pay this debt off their children as a gift, but then.
‘Free slave’ status isn’t a great promotion. You have to eat, pay rent and so on.
The only work you have is a worker at the servitors’ layers. The Chance exists, but it is mere illusions at these layers.
Then, we come to the Upper Frontier. The upper frontier is last outpost of the civilization, and then goes ‘no man’s land’ levels and the surface.
This is it, new level of frontier, new level of the possibilities.
If you really want to go deeper to the core Heavens of the ‘Corporate Trust’, at first you have to travel upwards.
This is the only place, where The Chance come true.
Why is it so?
First of all, it is mana crystals. They are still working for all this hundreds of years, but there is one great flaw. As you know, magic became just the original and painful way to commit a suicide and consider yourself lucky, if you will not hurt anyone around in process.
So, magic was banned, but also, it wasn’t functional.
If it was just torturing or killing caster, but works, ‘Corporate Trust’ wouldn’t afraid to sacrifice people to get new crystals.
But no, new crystals can’t be created.
It means that there is finite quantity of crystals in the world and vast majority of them are installed inside abandoned machinery or crazed rogue automatons.
Scraping machinery, which was abandoned at the Upper level during the Exodus, defeating rogue automatons that often come to the tunnels from the surface and so on.
Donating crystals and other loot to society would give you the score you need to get the citizenship.
The game starts, when player arrive from DeepHeaven workers quarters to the Frontire.
Tough luck, but mana pumps stopped working (sabotage?) and wild mana stats to flow freely all over the dungeon level.
Bligh strikes and necromutanst start rising.
Can you survive?
All world in game simultaneously.
You travel through the huge catacombs, but it isn’t the global map and portions of small maps within.
It is big map that computer keeps in the memory.
Different things happen here and there.
Of course, player is Avatar, but he isn’t the only active person in the game.
You walk over the catacombs, find mutants fighting guards etc.
We don’t plan to create the real world simulator; It is absurd plan for one lifetime.
But, events driven world is great alternative, isn’t it?
Event driven, you ask? Rather simple, game would have few dozens of ‘blocks’, like move monster unit there, spawn creature here, activate traps in this region, increase/ decrease ‘heat’ in this place etc.
This events? would be announced to player, if it would be passing by and they would play collisions.
Simple example: Spawn Monster in region N, Move adventurers group from A to N.
We got the collision. Then, game increased ‘heat’ in region N. Poor adventurers or not poor.
Frankly, it is a bit more complicate and simpler in the same time, but, this description gives some understanding of the process.
The game starts in the big system of catacombs bellow the earth surface – “The Frontier”.
That’s right. Player starts in the underground settlement, connected to the catacombs network.
The map isn’t to be really huge for the first release, to keep all features close, instead of scattered all around the monstrous map. As long we expand the game, we would expand the map. Classic method.
Map has this list of features:
Settlement. 1-2 per map. You start at the one of them. It would serve as relatively safe place to rest, exchange artifact for fame and purchase equipment. Also, you can talk with NPC.
Catacombs main tunnels. This is wilderness of the Fallen.
'Dungeons' locations with tombs to explore and rob!
Custom locations. Place to some random stuff to occur.
You take a role of “free hunter” character that explores these catacombs, fighting necromutants and blight plants, collecting ancient artefacts and avoiding traps.
Player wouldn’t get classic quests during the game, instead of this you can zoom out using mouse wheel and check “popup” tasks nearby.
Possible tasks list:
Classic, defeat enemy group.
Explore location.
Defeat powerful enemy.
Need item.
Check great shop offer.
Protect creature.
Don’t disturb, I am on adventure ^_^.
Collect resources.
etc
Yes, this is representations of the event to the player.
Your goal is to collect and “sell” decent number of ancient artifacts to get the top rank and win the game.
This is your long-term goal. Fallen would be a winnable game, even being a sandbox.
I plan at least three ways to acquire artifacts. You can find them by yourself, rob other adventurers or purchase on the black market.
All of them has their own drawbacks. You can guess them for yourself. ^_^
And yes, achieve multiple major goals and win Fallen!
The development of the project, that eventually morphed into Fallen had begun in very late 2008. Maybe 28-30 of November, maybe December. Frankly, it would be better to say, that I have started it in early 2009. Also, it doesn't mean, that it was in development for all this years. At least one year, 2010, I didn't even touch it.
As I wrote for many time, without team, Fallen would be one of many “died in defunct” roguelikes.
Roguelikes look like really easy program, until you try to make one. There are lot of cross linked data and you have to keep it running smoothly.
It could be you, member of your team, you found, hired, enslaved or mesmerized. But you need this person!
Reading McConnnell's books when you already have bulk of smelly Cobol-style code, could be rather painful. I knew lot of projects, that died on this stage and, it is really pity, would die.
Fall From Heaven the Roguelike (old name of Fallen) gone the same way. Except I was stubborn enough to revive it for many times.
You can learn programming or make roguelike, but not simultaneous.
My philosophy of game design is that you can create the greatest algorithms -- but it's in vain if you don't have a REASON to have them.
For example, the Roguelike "Fall From Heaven" had a couple of relatively working versions. It had tons of features, lots of places to visit, monsters to fight, neat pixel art, and etc. There's one thing wrong with it, though -- it was unplayable. This overwhelming swamp of features ended up being boring and useless.
I asked myself a funny questions -- "Why is Fall From Heaven the Roguelike not fun? My previous games were hella fun, but they had 1/100 of Fall From Heaven's features!".
Answer beat me with ugly stick. Lot of features doesn't mean fun. Useless feature would take your work as any other, with one exception – it contributes nothing to aspect of gameplay.
It was the moment, when I armed with big rusty knife, started to cut feature, balancing and reworking the remaining one.
And the second, put yourself together and move on, step by step:
I put my best to refactor it, but.. well.. it didn't survived the operation. I took couple of units, nice algorithms and started Fallen Rebirth at autumn-winter of 2013.
It was Paradigm changing decision.
It is already ten times more playable, then old, full of features game.
The time will show the results, but GoodSir and I will do everything that we can to make Fallen to rise.
Current Team:
Jolly Roger- Game designer, programmer.
GoodSir (XVs) - Art designer, artist.
Jesus05 - Programmer, architect.
Guys who participated the development of old game, but then left the project:
PsiWeapon
Tails
Sokolix
The game starts in the big system of the catacombs bellow the earth surface – “The Frontier”.
World of Fallen is world of steampunk version of old England hidden in Huge Underground catacombs.
People struggle here for survival against all horrible odds, monstrosities and ancient blind powers.
As a player you will emerge in this world; travel, hunt, trade and explore.
Build a fortune or fame, or both. Fall somewhere, killed by traps or horrible creatures.
Travel through huge mushroom forests; find small hut of a procedurally generated person; steal, trade, rob or share; be blessing, woe or bystander;
Read the story game will play for you by its own or with your help.
Uncover mystery of Ancients that differs from game to game.
Find small towns, buy or take quests. Craft your own weapons, survive or conquer.
The Story
Nobody knows why it has happened.
Someone blames ‘Magi trust’, someone thinks that demons did it or humanity lost their faith in Pantheon.
Maybe humans just overused mana winds and they were not ‘that’ endless and predictable as we thought? Who knows…
The truth is – ‘Mana Catastrophe’ has happened and life would never be the same.
But let’s tell the story from the very beginning.
The world, which is known now as ‘Fallen’, whenever its old name was lost and forgotten. This world was highly dependent on magic and powerful spells. Due to joke of some playful demiurge, the world of Fallen has plenty of metallic ores, but nearly no resource, that can be used as fuel. Even mushroom-like trees catch fire rather reluctantly and produce laughable quantity of energy while burning.
It wasn’t a problem after all, because even the apprentice of Magi trust, a ‘student of the Art’, as they named themselves can enchant mana crystal.
‘Mana crystal’ is amusing piece of magic technology that constantly accumulates mana flows from surrounding areas and turn into heat or even clouds of steam. It makes burning chambers and boilers of the steam engine completely useless. Steam engines were powerful, small, elegant and consumes no fuel, except for overflowing mana of any sort.
Of course the weakest crystals, enchanted by amateurs could make a cup of your morning tea barely warm in an hour or two.
But true masters can enchant real masterpiece, such crystal can be set to change the heat level or even accumulate it and release in one or few powerful surges, hot enough to power up the iron works or steam turbines of heavy assault automaton ‘Eradicator’ class.
Magic was the source of prosperity for the world, now known as ‘Fallen’. Nearly every person was using magic in the life or doubtlessly buying enchanted scrolls and potions from ‘Magi trust’.
Sprawling city states covered the face of the world and then covered all of the surface. People live in this conglomerate for years, factories have been producing loads of goods, wars had been starting and ending on their streets etc.
This life and death were powered by magic, until the ‘Mana Catastrophe’ had happened.
It didn’t come as one big tidal wave. It is agreed, that if it would fell sweepingly, humanity wouldn’t survive.
There were just small and not really disturbing news, one or two amateur mages were turned into frogs trying to waive some spells, couple of automaton gone rogue.
Nothing dangerous, poor fellows were saved, rogue automatons put down, but.
It has started to happen more often. Even the senior magi got drastic miscast effects for no reason and when the whole platoon of ‘Peacemaker’ class automatons gone rogue.
Well. That’s was disturbing.
The High colleague of Magi begun the research.
Results were terrifying. Slowly, but steadily mana was going wild. There are no more clean and easily distinguishable flows of mana. It was turning in to raving and boiling hurricane of uncontrollable magic. You wanted to weave the powers of life to heal the bruise? Then be ready, that this old and trusted spell will turn your kidney into cherry jam and your cat into rotting snail. Bruise is to be remain unhealed, by the way.
Magic can be no longer trusted, but it wasn’t the only disaster.
‘The Blight’ has come.
Crops, animals, humans began changing slowly, corrupted by uncontrollable waves of wild mana.
Dead begun to rise.
Situation became disastrous, but it has been found out, that the deeper you hide in the caves and catacombs, the safer it would be.
Government and people themselves started hiding, moving to the caves, building underground outposts.
Time was short. It wasn’t published to population, but barely 1/8 of the current population could be saved.
Even this hasn’t happened.
Artificial brains of automatons (guided by mana flows) gone malfunction one by one. Raving mad homicide lunatic was safe and sound person, comparing to automatons.
You should know that automatons were everywhere. Transport, mining, factories, military even your favorite coffee brewing machine ‘Coffee Brand Chef 9500M’ was automaton too!
Automatons were main ‘muscle’ power of humans’ exodus and they were turning rogue in geometrical progression.
Also, how do you think – what did humanity usually used to put down rogue automatons?
It was magic and normal military automatons.
Human army was unable to suppress the ‘uprising’ of the automatons. It was hit by The Blight and lost all heavy weapons, mounted on heavy military platforms. Automatons as you can understand.
It wasn’t the real uprising or war against the machines, automatons just gone rogue and crazy, attacking everything on sight. Cool comfort for people, used to easy life, when everything was done by automated servants.
Countless number of huge caravans has been lost and abandoned at the upper levels of the catacombs.
Just few managed to survive and escape irradiating hurricanes on wild mana on the planet surface.
Humanity fled the face of the "Fallen" planet. Its surface became the domain of crazed machines and unspeakable raving mutated monstrosities.
We came close to nowadays, hundreds of years from the ‘Mana Catastrophe’ and the Fall of the old world.
The new society has been formed.
The best living space – the deepest levels of the planet. It is known as the DeepHeaven. The living place of the high classes and true citizens of the Fallen.
Wild mana flow is so calm there, you even need a light source. Mana doesn’t irradiate everything with bright glowing as at the upper levels. Darkness became a privilege nowadays.
Children always born human, dead never raise back, life calm, prosperous and safe.
Then goes the servitors’ layers. Factories, farms, slaves quarters etc.
People live hard life there. They toil and toil to support their life, to get enough coins to feed their families.
It doesn’t mean, they don’t have a chance for better live somewhere at the deeper levels.
No, The Chance is the fundamental idea that glues the core of Fallen society.
The Chance for better life. Work hard and you get your Chance, said the brochure.
Pay off your birth debt, pay off your survival debt, contribute to the society and be worthy of your new status of true citizen, then make your life deposit and, ta da, welcome to DeepHeaven.
Let’s be bold. It is impossible for simple factory worker to become a True Citizen in couple of life times.
First of all, every baby that born outside of the DeepHeaven has ‘deprived slave’ of the ‘Corporate trust’ status, until he or she would pay of the Birth Debt. You can’t have family or select your job, until you do it.
It isn’t huge, by the way. Usually, parents pay this debt off their children as a gift, but then.
‘Free slave’ status isn’t a great promotion. You have to eat, pay rent and so on.
The only work you have is a worker at the servitors’ layers. The Chance exists, but it is mere illusions at these layers.
Then, we come to the Upper Frontier. The upper frontier is last outpost of the civilization, and then goes ‘no man’s land’ levels and the surface.
This is it, new level of frontier, new level of the possibilities.
If you really want to go deeper to the core Heavens of the ‘Corporate Trust’, at first you have to travel upwards.
This is the only place, where The Chance come true.
Why is it so?
First of all, it is mana crystals. They are still working for all this hundreds of years, but there is one great flaw. As you know, magic became just the original and painful way to commit a suicide and consider yourself lucky, if you will not hurt anyone around in process.
So, magic was banned, but also, it wasn’t functional.
If it was just torturing or killing caster, but works, ‘Corporate Trust’ wouldn’t afraid to sacrifice people to get new crystals.
But no, new crystals can’t be created.
It means that there is finite quantity of crystals in the world and vast majority of them are installed inside abandoned machinery or crazed rogue automatons.
Scraping machinery, which was abandoned at the Upper level during the Exodus, defeating rogue automatons that often come to the tunnels from the surface and so on.
Donating crystals and other loot to society would give you the score you need to get the citizenship.
The game starts, when player arrive from DeepHeaven workers quarters to the Frontire.
Tough luck, but mana pumps stopped working (sabotage?) and wild mana stats to flow freely all over the dungeon level.
Bligh strikes and necromutanst start rising.
Can you survive?
All world in game simultaneously.
You travel through the huge catacombs, but it isn’t the global map and portions of small maps within.
It is big map that computer keeps in the memory.
Different things happen here and there.
Of course, player is Avatar, but he isn’t the only active person in the game.
You walk over the catacombs, find mutants fighting guards etc.
We don’t plan to create the real world simulator; It is absurd plan for one lifetime.
But, events driven world is great alternative, isn’t it?
Event driven, you ask? Rather simple, game would have few dozens of ‘blocks’, like move monster unit there, spawn creature here, activate traps in this region, increase/ decrease ‘heat’ in this place etc.
This events? would be announced to player, if it would be passing by and they would play collisions.
Simple example: Spawn Monster in region N, Move adventurers group from A to N.
We got the collision. Then, game increased ‘heat’ in region N. Poor adventurers or not poor.
Frankly, it is a bit more complicate and simpler in the same time, but, this description gives some understanding of the process.
The game starts in the big system of catacombs bellow the earth surface – “The Frontier”.
That’s right. Player starts in the underground settlement, connected to the catacombs network.
The map isn’t to be really huge for the first release, to keep all features close, instead of scattered all around the monstrous map. As long we expand the game, we would expand the map. Classic method.
Map has this list of features:
Settlement. 1-2 per map. You start at the one of them. It would serve as relatively safe place to rest, exchange artifact for fame and purchase equipment. Also, you can talk with NPC.
Catacombs main tunnels. This is wilderness of the Fallen.
'Dungeons' locations with tombs to explore and rob!
Custom locations. Place to some random stuff to occur.
You take a role of “free hunter” character that explores these catacombs, fighting necromutants and blight plants, collecting ancient artefacts and avoiding traps.
Player wouldn’t get classic quests during the game, instead of this you can zoom out using mouse wheel and check “popup” tasks nearby.
Possible tasks list:
Classic, defeat enemy group.
Explore location.
Defeat powerful enemy.
Need item.
Check great shop offer.
Protect creature.
Don’t disturb, I am on adventure ^_^.
Collect resources.
etc
Yes, this is representations of the event to the player.
Your goal is to collect and “sell” decent number of ancient artifacts to get the top rank and win the game.
This is your long-term goal. Fallen would be a winnable game, even being a sandbox.
I plan at least three ways to acquire artifacts. You can find them by yourself, rob other adventurers or purchase on the black market.
All of them has their own drawbacks. You can guess them for yourself. ^_^
And yes, achieve multiple major goals and win Fallen!
History of Fallen the
Roguelike
Fallen was completely
different game or better say games during its development.
The development of the project, that eventually morphed into Fallen had begun in very late 2008. Maybe 28-30 of November, maybe December. Frankly, it would be better to say, that I have started it in early 2009. Also, it doesn't mean, that it was in development for all this years. At least one year, 2010, I didn't even touch it.
From the very beginning I
was the only developer of the game, full of plans and rather
inexperienced for the project of that size. Both in programming and
game design. I thought, that my previous vast experience of
“hand-made” ^_^ board and small
computer games would be more then enough.
Of course, I was wrong.
First of all, the design
document wasn't a design document at all, it was mere “cool stuff”
feature list. Like, we would have golems, labyrinths, robots, lot of items,
materials, global map, realistic combat, poisons, factions,
bodyparts, wounds, pain, craft, wood, demons, nuclear war, fruit
trees and cookies.
Doubtlessly, it was
a death march project.
The waves of understanding.
Wave of team
I think, it the most important one. That help me to endure others. I was doubtlessly lucky that GoodSir joined team. Feel of friend's shoulder, brainstorming, support, art, teamwork etc.As I wrote for many time, without team, Fallen would be one of many “died in defunct” roguelikes.
Wave of code
Programmist. You need at least one skilled programmer for your roguelike, no exceptions. Sounds rather obvious, isn't it?Roguelikes look like really easy program, until you try to make one. There are lot of cross linked data and you have to keep it running smoothly.
It could be you, member of your team, you found, hired, enslaved or mesmerized. But you need this person!
Reading McConnnell's books when you already have bulk of smelly Cobol-style code, could be rather painful. I knew lot of projects, that died on this stage and, it is really pity, would die.
Fall From Heaven the Roguelike (old name of Fallen) gone the same way. Except I was stubborn enough to revive it for many times.
You can learn programming or make roguelike, but not simultaneous.
Wave of game design
Writing a design document
after a couple of years of active development is cool tradition of
Russian gamedev (c).
My philosophy of game design is that you can create the greatest algorithms -- but it's in vain if you don't have a REASON to have them.
For example, the Roguelike "Fall From Heaven" had a couple of relatively working versions. It had tons of features, lots of places to visit, monsters to fight, neat pixel art, and etc. There's one thing wrong with it, though -- it was unplayable. This overwhelming swamp of features ended up being boring and useless.
I asked myself a funny questions -- "Why is Fall From Heaven the Roguelike not fun? My previous games were hella fun, but they had 1/100 of Fall From Heaven's features!".
Answer beat me with ugly stick. Lot of features doesn't mean fun. Useless feature would take your work as any other, with one exception – it contributes nothing to aspect of gameplay.
It was the moment, when I armed with big rusty knife, started to cut feature, balancing and reworking the remaining one.
But. Poor project
architecture stroke on this stage. It was so fragile and overburden,
so 80% of my efforts was put to keep program running with new
changes.
This can lead the project
to couple of ends.
First, the grave one –
the very end of the project. We have seen hundreds of them. To tell
the truth, I was close to it.
And the second, put yourself together and move on, step by step:
The King has died, Hail to the King
Old project collapsed at the summer-autumn of 2013, under burden of its unsupportable code. Yes, it was mostly technical fail.I put my best to refactor it, but.. well.. it didn't survived the operation. I took couple of units, nice algorithms and started Fallen Rebirth at autumn-winter of 2013.
It was Paradigm changing decision.
I was always saying:
Don't rewrite your project from scratch and did it myself one day.
Frankly, is there any
other way to progress? Learn rules and ideas your workspace has, form
the paradigms and them move them on!
Want to be creative
game-designer and invent something new? Learn existing rules at
first, play great games, write down cool ideas, analyse them, don't
hesitate to copy, study, be openminded and then be ready to move
forward.
Fallen Rebirth.
It is young, but looks
promising. It's design document has, maybe 1/50 of “wannabe
features” of demised project, but it isn't an overweight monster on
a death row.It is already ten times more playable, then old, full of features game.
The time will show the results, but GoodSir and I will do everything that we can to make Fallen to rise.
Current Team:
Jolly Roger- Game designer, programmer.
GoodSir (XVs) - Art designer, artist.
Jesus05 - Programmer, architect.
Guys who participated the development of old game, but then left the project:
PsiWeapon
Tails
Sokolix
