A quick thought that I just had about combo attacks and the unlockable weapons.
When we were talking about content for the game, we talked about unlocking new weapons and being able to have different attacks for each weapon. We talked about having each combo represent a new attack and sound. We lightly discussed having each weapon have different sounds.
Each combo attack in the game is linked to notes and chords. So when the play does a combo, a riff or solo is played. When the player is using different weapons, a new instrument plays the combos. This makes the game sound different and play different as the players use different weapons. I think this will add replayability to the game.
To make things easy on ourselves, we were talking about using the same combo animations for each weapon but simply changing the colors to make them look different. If we produce the music in a midi production program such as a garage band and make our own midi files, we can simply change the instrument in the program and we have a new sounding combo. It will be the same notes, just with the bass or with the synthesizer.
This is an easy way to add variety and replayability to our game. I think it also adds a reward system by adding unlockable weapons and new abilities associated with those weapons. Players will want to see what it is like to play through with those other weapons.
Music console games are doing a surprising amount to encourage yound producers, particularly DJ Hero. You should have seen the increase in traffic at sites like DMS and R2-Wav2 when DJ Hero came out. Incredible.
ReplyDeleteThe whole music game genre experienced a crazy amount of success. Part of the pitch of Guitar Hero and DJ Hero were to reintroduce players to those types of music. The music game genre engaged players with nostalgia for old music and gave them excitement for new music.
ReplyDeleteWith our game, we have the benefit of coming along years after Guitar Hero. Players don't just feel nostalgia for the music but now they also feel nostalgia for the Guitar Hero type of game. There are 25 million guitars sitting in closets, selling at garage sales, or hiding under beds. People loved music games but have stopped playing them. We want people to re-live that rush and experience of music games but in a new setting.