For this reflection post, our prompt is to investigate why people would want to play the game ideas that we've generated and iterated on thus far.
For the first of our three concepts, Hellracer, we really wanted to take a generally controversial genre of game and revamp it. Here at Champlain, we rarely ever see kart-style racing games, usually due to how similar they all are. We already have an established formula thanks to Mario Kart, which has been replicated by Sonic, Crash Bandicoot, and quite a few other kart games. We want to take a new look at the genre by doing away with the typical power-up system first, replacing it with a Skate-style trick system, thus combining karts with tricks that give bonuses and "power-ups" based on the difficulty and cleanliness of the trick. From an outside perspective, someone may think this worth pursuing because it provides players a few familiar experiences packaged into one. In the world of games, something like this does fill a niche that isn't currently covered by existing kart or skating games, also providing new ideas that could be used to further expand the genre, similar to how games like PUBG and H1Z1 first started revamping the FPS genre with battle royales. Gamers who have enjoyed Mario Kart since N64 would likely be attracted to this game for nostalgia, especially since that generation would have also been one of the first to play Tony Hawk's Pro Skater in the 90s, adding another dimension. Furthermore, with the re-release of THPS: 1+2, that community is growing again. Hellracer would give these communities a new outlet for their same interests, without getting too stale.
Our second concept doesn't yet have a name, but we've been really building out the world and core ideas. We call it "Zapgun" for now, but it is essentially a fast-paced arena shooter, revolving around a core mechanic that removes the most common action in shooters: reloading. In this game, you never really have to reload, instead relying on charging stations to replenish your weapon's charge. Theoretically, you don't even have to move, and could shoot forever (but you'll lose). We have actually already exposed people to this idea in order to see if it would actually get people hyped up, and so far is has been working really well. Zapgun targets FPS players, so we asked some of our outside FPS-playing friends what they thought of this game in a competitive sense, and the results were overwhelmingly exciting. The arena shooter area has been fairly dead for awhile, having been taken over by an alternative pattern in CSGO and Valorant, so we (and our friends) feel that this could be a refreshing change-of-pace in an otherwise stagnant genre. We really want players to play this game to scratch that competitive itch.
Our third and final concept is called Corpse Jockey (for now). This is a bit more of an abstract concept, where the player is actually the result of a government program: a sentient, powerful worm. This worm has the ability to control human corpses, but creating those corpses to control is a much harder task. Corpse Jockey is a stealth-puzzle game, requiring players to use their environment in order to complete certain goals. There will always be multiple ways of solving these puzzles, but all of them will revolve around this worm getting its revenge on the government for what they did. While the story and drive is dark, we want to take this game in a more humorous direction with the actual aesthetics and action. From the feedback we've gotten and the direction we're taking this idea, I think someone would want to see this continued because there isn't anything else like it yet. Sure, there are plenty of stealth/action/puzzle games like Dishonored, or Thief, but none of them focus on humor, and instead all focus on a dark, gritty plot line. Our game would be less intense, attempting to provide players a spot of relief with a ridiculous game. In the larger world of games, Corpse Jockey fits in with the general "indie" category, but the premise and target genre are so far off the "normal" that it still sits in a decent niche, as long as we pull it off right.
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