computer games forum

Franka wrote:I guess what I'm really saying is that "post-apocalyptic setting, dangerous zombies and mutants, but man is really the greatest enemy" just isn't something that interests me unless it has a very unique twist. While generic fantasy has a lot of story leeway outside of its setting (see how Loren is actually more of a romance game), post-apo blah blah tells you everything from tone to theme.

Well, post-apocalyptic is actually a quite interesting setting. At least could be, if done right. Just look at Fallout 1+2+Tactics. However, when it comes to Zombies, I am completely with you: There is nothing interesting which can be done there. The Zombie Tropes define one story, which has been told already. Yeah, man is mans greatest enemy... so what? The encounters are basically random, there is no way the game can have a story beyond that without violating the genre conventions.

If you want to do interesting things in a post-apocalyptic world, best leave out the Zombies. Or ban them to some optional dungeons (like in Loren), but do not make them significant story elements. In this case, the possibilities for interesting stories open up. This is where dating (as in dating sim) starts to make sense again. You can do some kind of building, like what is planned for PS2. Politics beyond "do I need to rescue the guy, or not?" appear, like how do I treat this village: Trade, destroy, avoid, conquer for my empire?

In any case, I'm talking about my own preferences. Obviously there's a big market [...]

There are any number of Zombie-fans, but is there a significant intersection between Zombie-fans and potential Winterwolf buyers?

jack1974 wrote:For the other slice of life yuri dating sim instead there are no problems... but I am not saying anything official until I'm more advanced into the project, a bit like I did with C14 dating

I can understand you don't want to announce too much too soon, but anyway: A yuri-dating sim has my keen interest.

I think that a post-apocalyptic game with zombies can be very fun, HOWEVER, not working well as dating sim. If you played telltale's Walking Dead, you can't say that story is bad (is one of the games with the best story I've played). The zombies are like the "impending doom" which keeps the interest/adrenaline up. But in all the good stories with that setting there's a big problem... people die
I don't think you can have a good story like that without many people dying. In our small brainstorming we had the idea of the "main party members" that couldn't die randomly (but only with specific choices) and then some "cannon (zombie) fodder", that is NPC that would join you, fight with you, but that could die/be sacrificed randomly.

Anyway, I'm not doing this anytime soon, so... besides, there might be another game in a similar setting starting next year, written by a previous writer. But I'm already saying too much

As for the yuri I will tell only one thing - the setting is in a tropical island. Perfect excuse to show girls in bikini in several point during the story without being accused of fanservice by the media mouhaha!

Lonestar51 wrote:Well, post-apocalyptic is actually a quite interesting setting. At least could be, if done right. Just look at Fallout 1+2+Tactics.

In my defense of enjoying Fallout 1, I originally played it back when I wasn't fed up with post-apocalypse (97/98?). I was never able to get into Fallout 2 though, too much of the same thing. Never even tried Tactics, as I heard the game was completely combat focused.

jack1974 wrote:I think that a post-apocalyptic game with zombies can be very fun, HOWEVER, not working well as dating sim.

See, this is why you end up with something unoriginal and beaten to death. You've already let the genre restrain what you believe can or can't be done. Look at something like Hatoful Boyfriend, the pigeon dating sim that turns out to be everything you thought it couldn't (wouldn't?) be, and an incredible success.

Yeah some games with really strange/original/weird topics or starting ideas have a good PR advantage for sure

Personally my favorite was Fallout 3, despite being in 3d, was really good

Franka wrote:

jack1974 wrote:I think that a post-apocalyptic game with zombies can be very fun, HOWEVER, not working well as dating sim.

See, this is why you end up with something unoriginal and beaten to death. :P

haha, told you so (but you can ignore all my comments in the dating sims subforum - I tried your games and cannot stand them, I'm a hopeless case for this genre ;))

jack1974 wrote: As for the yuri I will tell only one thing - the setting is in a tropical island. Perfect excuse to show girls in bikini in several point during the story without being accused of fanservice by the media mouhaha!

This is great! Eagerly anticipating this one. Don't let the media get you down.