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Making the Greatest Game Ever
#1
This is something interesting I started thinking about. I thought about the endless, but well-justified hunger for good games, better games, ever better games, funner, more engaging, good to share with friends, good for core gamers and casual gamers. Good for people who have never played any games to have the best possible first experience with video games, games that capture the imagination, where innovation multiplies gameplay, games that are always new, and never stale. Games that we can come back to any time and have just as much fun as the first time we played it. Ones that transcend culture and age and race and time. And ultimately, the ultimate, coup-de-gras, cream of the crop, games to end all games.

So, I thought about those games. The ones we envision. The ones we see in the previews but are always disappointed to play. Satisfied, but still longing for more, for better, for the best.

So if one game would come along, and blow all of them away, from the legends that defined the industry to the cheapo little handheld/cellphone games we try on a whim, what would that game be?

What I'm building up to is the big question:

What does the greatest game ever look like?

Now I think we're on the precipice of a revolution that has never in history occured before. An art form that no other art could so physically draw the viewer in.

I didn't answer the question. But this is why the strive to attain the perfect game is so important, so much more vital to human society than any other art form.

My answer is purely by opinion, of course. But here I go:

The greatest game ever is simple. Simpler than you could ever imagine. At the same time, it is infinitely complicated. The perfect game is one where the player makes a game. A game so simply designed that it could be tinkered with by anyone, but can become complicated enough to become infinitely immersed into it. How odd. The ultimate game is a game maker. But not just any, you choose the genre, or make a new one, you design as much or as little as you want. You make the parts of the game you care about, and the game fills in the rest.

Think about it, you couldn't get better! People around the WORLD, sharing their one-level games, their 40 hour games, their life's work 300 hour games. You make the games YOU want, and you get good ones in turn, so many new games coming out so constantly that you won't be waiting for good games to come out. There won't be "seasons" for games, there won't be trends for games, 2D, 3D, Racing, Puzzle, RPG, Platformer, Brand-New Genre, ANY type you want. You give it story, you give it life. Everyone has imagination, everyone is capable of making the game THEY are happy with.

But wait? What if the game sucks? So what! The process of making the game itself, ANY way you wanted, was a good enough experience. Didn't like that game enough? Make a new one? Too tired or mentally-drained from life to think up innovative things, just go to the world database and find a new one!

Would ALL the games be fun for everyone? No! In fact, its very possible all of them would suck. But again, the process itself, and the social sharing aspect is the key to a strong bond or relationship with the perfect game.

What this really is is an idea catcher. If you make it, you upload it. If you capture the ideas of every single person who's made something, you're bound to get even more extremely-good, fun games than you get today.
You'd go to sleep, wake up in the morning, and find 12000 Would-Be-A-Bigger-Hit-Than-Super Mario Bros. made overnight. Just there, you have a lifetime of solid games. All in one day, and an endless stream just coming in constantly. There is no other way to satisfy the endless hunger of a gamer than an endless game.

This is a serious possibility. But you have to look at it from a serious manner. What, psychologically, would draw someone to a particular game. Well in all truth a game the emulates life but surpassed that by creating something new within that setting. Life itself is the most entertaining/engaging activity. But could it be put into a game? Yes! But, you have to keep the fundamentals of gaming there. You HAVE to acknowledge that you are creating a video game meant to be played for entertainment. It is not made to replace another artform, it is, in fact, its own unique art form. A real game, succesful through emulating life, does so by doing the fundamental rule of life: It is what it is. What you want to make, is what you get. What you think it is, is what it is. What you want to play, is what you play, If someone turns the mastery of these principles into a game creator, than you are not really creating a game, you are creating a blank canvas with all the tools life supplies and allows.

A good example is the internet! The internet can be considered a game. You control what is on it, but you in turn, have no control over what anyone else can put on it. The internet is so succesful because it emulates life. And it's those open options, the key to the perfect game, that make the internet so succesful.

All we need to do is envision it. It doesn't just take programmers or casual people, it takes ALL of them to acheive it.

A game that is simply what you want it to be. It's that simple.
Got one. Smile
***Read-Team Yoshi-***
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#2
this already exists
it's called Game Maker
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#3
Ah, but put a 5 year old or an adult who's never seen a videogame in his life in front of Game Maker and tell him to create something, and not only will they not create anything worth showing to anyone else, they won't have fun making it. My idea is a game maker thats fun even if you don't succeed in making anything worth playing, as long as you had fun creating it.
Got one. Smile
***Read-Team Yoshi-***
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#4
you can easily do that with game maker

the problem is though
for the level of complexity you want, a keyboard and mouse is pretty much required

no console controller is complex enough to cover all of the required actions, and you'd need A LOT of menus

now that I look at it again, that wasn't your point
but an even more GUI based Game Maker clone wouldn't be complex enough
GM's D&D system is about as dumbed-down as you can get while still retaining some level of customization

which also leads to the coding part, where you can basically do whatever you want and also adding on new dlls and stuff to expand your possible functions
edit- while this is obviouslt for more advanced users, I think it'd be easy enough to teach someone to make an incredibly simple game using D&D

have you tried the catch the clown tutorial? anyone could do that, and it's done in D&D. Probably the only thing that would need dumbing down is some of the names of the code functions so that var_*** becomes variable_*** and is generally easier to understand, etc
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#5
well

there's RPG Maker for the PSX and the Fighter Maker games for the PSX and PS2

:F
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#6
and SHMUP Maker lost somewhere on the net.

and you can always use toy soldiers and lego blocks. THATS the best game ever.
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#7
the best game ever is called imagination

if somebody were to create a machine that could allow imagination-al things to be created physically, they'd be rolling in money
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#8
Give people the power to create things and all you'll see is penis levels...
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#9
(04-29-2009, 02:27 AM)Goemar Wrote: Give people the power to create things and all you'll see is penis levels...

we all made carnivore mutant penises on Spore.
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#10
And on LBP... and on everything else with some form of a creation tool on it.
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#11
I made ace's ventura car on LEgo Racers back in the N64.

and suffered the lack of a memory card.
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#12
it already exists
its called Duper SMash bors BRAWL!!!11!111















not
the greatest game ever will be Duke Nukem Forever.
what other reason are they delaying so much to finish it other than developing an engine that emulates all games that exists and that will exist?
Duke Nukem forever is going to be so powerful that will make all of the other games obsolete, it will make you feel good, bad, happy, sad and angry all of the same time
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#13
It's impossible to have a best game, since the term best game is an opinion.
;D
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#14
i bet you think you sounded smart by saying that.
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#15
This idea is

ridiculous
this is a sig


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