Challenge
by Matt Fairfax · in Game Design and Creative Issues · 04/03/2001 (11:15 am) · 177 replies
I have heard more and more people complaining about the stagnating state of games, yet I see very few people trying to do anything about it. GG is making a good start =) but 3 people can't change the industry. However, there are several thousand GG members, all of whom are creative people. Therefore I put forth this challenge:
What if everyone who visits GG would post just one original game idea? You would have several thousand original game ideas! So, just make something up! Look around the room! Look around as you drive/ride around! Think about what you like to do, what you like to read, what tv shows and movies you like to watch. Think back to when you were a young kid and try to remember those games you used to make up. Think about your fondest memories and dreams. Go crazy, go wild, be silly!
Here are some things to think about while you think up your ideas:
-You don't have to even post a description. A simple title can help to spark other's imgainations far more than an already laid out game. For example: what images does the title "Nose Picker 3D" bring to mind? I'm sure that they are radically different from most other people reading this post =)
-Try to avoid mentioning the name of already existing games. If you liken your game to another you are begining to stray back onto the beaten path.
-Try to avoid games that are described by something like, "It is a cross between StarCraft and Deer Hunter 3D". If you can't describe your game without mentioning a blend of existing games then spell out exactly how this mixture will work.
-Try to avoid describing your game with genres. There is a big difference between saying your game has a first person view and your game is a first person shooter.
-Don't worry about whether or not existing technology will support you game idea. We are talking about ideas not implementation.
-If you want a challenge, try to come up with a hardcore game that doesn't involve violence in any form (not even laser tag or nerf).
-Don't worry about marketability. Who cares if it would sell well. These are just ideas.
-Ask friends and family what game they would want to play. It may not be your idea originally but you can expand on it greatly.
These are just suggestions. Please don't let them hold you back in any way!
Well, have at it! I look forward to seeing what this fine community can come up with!
What if everyone who visits GG would post just one original game idea? You would have several thousand original game ideas! So, just make something up! Look around the room! Look around as you drive/ride around! Think about what you like to do, what you like to read, what tv shows and movies you like to watch. Think back to when you were a young kid and try to remember those games you used to make up. Think about your fondest memories and dreams. Go crazy, go wild, be silly!
Here are some things to think about while you think up your ideas:
-You don't have to even post a description. A simple title can help to spark other's imgainations far more than an already laid out game. For example: what images does the title "Nose Picker 3D" bring to mind? I'm sure that they are radically different from most other people reading this post =)
-Try to avoid mentioning the name of already existing games. If you liken your game to another you are begining to stray back onto the beaten path.
-Try to avoid games that are described by something like, "It is a cross between StarCraft and Deer Hunter 3D". If you can't describe your game without mentioning a blend of existing games then spell out exactly how this mixture will work.
-Try to avoid describing your game with genres. There is a big difference between saying your game has a first person view and your game is a first person shooter.
-Don't worry about whether or not existing technology will support you game idea. We are talking about ideas not implementation.
-If you want a challenge, try to come up with a hardcore game that doesn't involve violence in any form (not even laser tag or nerf).
-Don't worry about marketability. Who cares if it would sell well. These are just ideas.
-Ask friends and family what game they would want to play. It may not be your idea originally but you can expand on it greatly.
These are just suggestions. Please don't let them hold you back in any way!
Well, have at it! I look forward to seeing what this fine community can come up with!
About the author
By day, I am a senior programmer at The Playforge, makers of the popular iPhone game Zombie Farm. By night, I work on my own games as Night Heron Games. I am an ex-GarageGames employee who helped ship TGE, TGEA, Torque 3D, and Constructor.
#162
getting the picture?
The main focus of the game is on the players. All interaction is between players. minimal npc interaction unless a peasant is hired as a shopkeeper.
Ok now back to the "present day" alterations in the game. This was just an idea i threw in to the mix to get some feedback. Being that the setting is in the future after "end of world" thing, players going to ruined cities is a given. but the story of how the cities got ruined is something that could be possible given the present state of things. I hope im explaining this right. Gameplay wouldnt actually change, just the places you can adventure to level up, the way they look, etc would change.
Well thats the idea in...not so many words.....sorry :P
Thats what is currently in the works with my team....Feedback appreciated.
02/18/2005 (4:06 am)
Player crafting will be implemented as well. Instead of selecting a structure and placing it and having it built and removing X number of resources, the ruler of the kingdom will place a "request" for a building at a certain position in the world. The crafters of the kingdom (ie carpenters, masons, blacksmiths, ect) will then craft the neccessary components of the building and then apply them to the building. In the case of player housing, rather than having generic houses that players choose from, there will be generic house sizes (ie small, medium, and large) and generic "rooms" or "units" that make up a house. A player will have a designer layout the house's rooms however the owner wants. A hallway here, door here, 3-4 rooms here , stairs go up here, more rooms, etc, exterior syle (wood, stone, brick, etc) and interior color/style...then you have your frame....crafters do their thing and bam..you have a new fully customized house to fill with furniture, storage chests, beds, craft tables, etc.getting the picture?
The main focus of the game is on the players. All interaction is between players. minimal npc interaction unless a peasant is hired as a shopkeeper.
Ok now back to the "present day" alterations in the game. This was just an idea i threw in to the mix to get some feedback. Being that the setting is in the future after "end of world" thing, players going to ruined cities is a given. but the story of how the cities got ruined is something that could be possible given the present state of things. I hope im explaining this right. Gameplay wouldnt actually change, just the places you can adventure to level up, the way they look, etc would change.
Well thats the idea in...not so many words.....sorry :P
Thats what is currently in the works with my team....Feedback appreciated.
#163
I think Multi Player gaming is the hottest thing. And it attracts people from every level of life.
While I would like to see a game that allows a player to do many different things during their journey (walk, talk, hit, shoot, drive a car, rob a pedestrian, help catch bad guys, etc.), I wonder what theme would attract a vast participating audience.
An idea came to me where a person can join a community (date irrelevant). First they choose or design their character which includes loading their own bitmaps. Choose a skill or trade.
The rest is wide open community life. Be bad, good, helpful, or a beggar.
If enough people could join this type of virtual world, where anything can happen, but they have to make it work with tasks such as water consumption, food, etc.
The fun part is commerce with another community. I believe this type of sim would mimic real life, and I bet the worst of society would shortly show it's ugly face. Think of elite types trying to control everybody else with their twisted ideas of control using the resources they control.
I would bet that chaos would become the norm and the whole thing would become an analogy of post halocaust living. Whereas another community may have more balance and defenses to keep undesireables from the chaos community out.
With a game that allows one to travel from one server to the next (salesman, theatrical group, conman), the scenarios would be exponentially amazing. I saw this in another thread, so I guess this is where the difficulty of having a game like this hits a wall. But with the right setup for each community, I think something like this would be great.
Wouldn't it be fun to enter a corporate environment, only to try to mess up everything? Or to follow suspicious players and see if you get yourself into trouble or find new alliances? Be a fireman, hang out with firefighters. Go to the bar and get drunk, which causes your character to react to controls differently based on a personality profile you create. Enter the world of organized crime. Be an entertainer or artist....on and on.
02/18/2005 (10:13 am)
Ever since I played with 'Robot Wars' for the Apple II, I've been facinated with having some type of control over the game contents. Some twenty years later, I found Red Baron 3D for Multi Play and am totally enjoying making my own skins for all the objects in the game.I think Multi Player gaming is the hottest thing. And it attracts people from every level of life.
While I would like to see a game that allows a player to do many different things during their journey (walk, talk, hit, shoot, drive a car, rob a pedestrian, help catch bad guys, etc.), I wonder what theme would attract a vast participating audience.
An idea came to me where a person can join a community (date irrelevant). First they choose or design their character which includes loading their own bitmaps. Choose a skill or trade.
The rest is wide open community life. Be bad, good, helpful, or a beggar.
If enough people could join this type of virtual world, where anything can happen, but they have to make it work with tasks such as water consumption, food, etc.
The fun part is commerce with another community. I believe this type of sim would mimic real life, and I bet the worst of society would shortly show it's ugly face. Think of elite types trying to control everybody else with their twisted ideas of control using the resources they control.
I would bet that chaos would become the norm and the whole thing would become an analogy of post halocaust living. Whereas another community may have more balance and defenses to keep undesireables from the chaos community out.
With a game that allows one to travel from one server to the next (salesman, theatrical group, conman), the scenarios would be exponentially amazing. I saw this in another thread, so I guess this is where the difficulty of having a game like this hits a wall. But with the right setup for each community, I think something like this would be great.
Wouldn't it be fun to enter a corporate environment, only to try to mess up everything? Or to follow suspicious players and see if you get yourself into trouble or find new alliances? Be a fireman, hang out with firefighters. Go to the bar and get drunk, which causes your character to react to controls differently based on a personality profile you create. Enter the world of organized crime. Be an entertainer or artist....on and on.
#164
Spaceport
Based somewhat on the Theme Hospital game style, you play a manager of an orbital spaceport. You have to build check-in desks, lounges etc. Focus is on comedy, so really extreme aliens (who don't necessarily get on with each other) and wacky items to have in shops. Also completing level you move to a different planet with a bigger port. You have to compete with other spaceports which are also orbiting the planet (a possible multiplayer component).
Death Race - Working Title
A driving game set in the near future and a post-apocalyptic world, where the rich live high in the clouds and the rest of society slowly stagnates below. There is this revolutionary new technology which allows a chip to be implanted into peoples' brains and store their consciousness on it. This means that even if they die they can be resurrected easily if the chip survives. In a world where death can be made meaningless, society quenches its bloodlust by seeking ever more violent entertainment, culminating in the Death Races. Players drive cars equipped with devastating assault weaponry around bizarre and deadly arenas. The winner is the first person to make it out alive. In single player there are different leagues, with different levels of drivers in them and you have to compete to reach the top of the league table.
Will try and post more later, watch this space
03/06/2005 (5:19 am)
Here are a few ideas for games I might just make one day:Spaceport
Based somewhat on the Theme Hospital game style, you play a manager of an orbital spaceport. You have to build check-in desks, lounges etc. Focus is on comedy, so really extreme aliens (who don't necessarily get on with each other) and wacky items to have in shops. Also completing level you move to a different planet with a bigger port. You have to compete with other spaceports which are also orbiting the planet (a possible multiplayer component).
Death Race - Working Title
A driving game set in the near future and a post-apocalyptic world, where the rich live high in the clouds and the rest of society slowly stagnates below. There is this revolutionary new technology which allows a chip to be implanted into peoples' brains and store their consciousness on it. This means that even if they die they can be resurrected easily if the chip survives. In a world where death can be made meaningless, society quenches its bloodlust by seeking ever more violent entertainment, culminating in the Death Races. Players drive cars equipped with devastating assault weaponry around bizarre and deadly arenas. The winner is the first person to make it out alive. In single player there are different leagues, with different levels of drivers in them and you have to compete to reach the top of the league table.
Will try and post more later, watch this space
#165
Infection
RTS? You control an army of viruses. You have to make people ill. Each level is played in parts of the body (no suggestive comments please!). A set of levels (campaign?) could be the complete body. Different viruses have different abilities. Some attack and destroy other viruses, some turn body matter into food, some defend against anti-bodies, capture enemy viruses or anti-bodies.
You can mutate viruses to give you better strains, or cross abilities. You can also mutate using enemy viruses or anti-bodies, effectively capturing abilities and defences.
You must infect the part of the body in a certain time, before anti-biotics are introduced and your army is wiped out.
03/07/2005 (12:39 am)
@Ben: something similar to Spaceport has been done - the very cool Outpost Kaloki from NinjaBee. Worth checking out!Infection
RTS? You control an army of viruses. You have to make people ill. Each level is played in parts of the body (no suggestive comments please!). A set of levels (campaign?) could be the complete body. Different viruses have different abilities. Some attack and destroy other viruses, some turn body matter into food, some defend against anti-bodies, capture enemy viruses or anti-bodies.
You can mutate viruses to give you better strains, or cross abilities. You can also mutate using enemy viruses or anti-bodies, effectively capturing abilities and defences.
You must infect the part of the body in a certain time, before anti-biotics are introduced and your army is wiped out.
#166
Spaceport
Based somewhat on the Theme Hospital game style, you play a manager of an orbital spaceport. You have to build check-in desks, lounges etc. Focus is on comedy, so really extreme aliens (who don't necessarily get on with each other) and wacky items to have in shops. Also completing level you move to a different planet with a bigger port. You have to compete with other spaceports which are also orbiting the planet (a possible multiplayer component).
Death Race - Working Title
A driving game set in the near future and a post-apocalyptic world, where the rich live high in the clouds and the rest of society slowly stagnates below. There is this revolutionary new technology which allows a chip to be implanted into peoples' brains and store their consciousness on it. This means that even if they die they can be resurrected easily if the chip survives. In a world where death can be made meaningless, society quenches its bloodlust by seeking ever more violent entertainment, culminating in the Death Races. Players drive cars equipped with devastating assault weaponry around bizarre and deadly arenas. The winner is the first person to make it out alive. In single player there are different leagues, with different levels of drivers in them and you have to compete to reach the top of the league table.
Will try and post more later, watch this space
03/07/2005 (9:28 am)
Here are a few ideas for games I might just make one day:Spaceport
Based somewhat on the Theme Hospital game style, you play a manager of an orbital spaceport. You have to build check-in desks, lounges etc. Focus is on comedy, so really extreme aliens (who don't necessarily get on with each other) and wacky items to have in shops. Also completing level you move to a different planet with a bigger port. You have to compete with other spaceports which are also orbiting the planet (a possible multiplayer component).
Death Race - Working Title
A driving game set in the near future and a post-apocalyptic world, where the rich live high in the clouds and the rest of society slowly stagnates below. There is this revolutionary new technology which allows a chip to be implanted into peoples' brains and store their consciousness on it. This means that even if they die they can be resurrected easily if the chip survives. In a world where death can be made meaningless, society quenches its bloodlust by seeking ever more violent entertainment, culminating in the Death Races. Players drive cars equipped with devastating assault weaponry around bizarre and deadly arenas. The winner is the first person to make it out alive. In single player there are different leagues, with different levels of drivers in them and you have to compete to reach the top of the league table.
Will try and post more later, watch this space
#167
Wow, how many times do people use that same name? Oh well, at least we have a better title now. ;)
Apocolypse Racers! - Action on a race track has never been this fun, nor this dangerous, as a secretive, time-traveling team of 50 futuristic drivers battle it out while trying to survive historical tragic disasters as they happen during the races in realtime!
03/07/2005 (2:05 pm)
Quote:
Death Race - Working Title
Wow, how many times do people use that same name? Oh well, at least we have a better title now. ;)
Apocolypse Racers! - Action on a race track has never been this fun, nor this dangerous, as a secretive, time-traveling team of 50 futuristic drivers battle it out while trying to survive historical tragic disasters as they happen during the races in realtime!
#168
03/14/2005 (8:45 am)
Ideas are not in short supply. People who can turn those ideas into functioning games are.
#169
Besides which, it's about time I put another wacky idea down.
Swag
You play a thief who has to nick x amount of goods. You start in the shop, and you have to lift as many items as you can. Each item you lift and put under your coat slows you down and increases your size. When you steal an item, there is a chance you will get seen, and a security guard will give chase. Stealing more items gets more guards.
The game arena is the shop floor - some shops are easy to manuover around as they are just large isles, some are more difficult as they have lots of hazzards and more shoppers.
You can use parts of the shop to your advantage i.e. pyramid stacks bean tins can be knocked over. The security guards will slip and slide on the tins, helping you make your escape.
Goods vary in bulkyness (increase size), weight (decrease speed) and value (increase score). As you steal more and more, your noteriety increases, and you get different ranks i.e. pilferer, filcher, scoundrel, thief, plunderer etc. Get yourself out the door, and the swag is yours. Get caught, and it's the nick for you, my son.
Game should be done in a comedy style, but with a real message about the effects of theft after each level. Each level is played in a different shop, and each stage is played in a different shopping center.
03/15/2005 (12:45 am)
Yeah, thats true, but being able to put ideas down and be inspired or motivated by other ideas all helps your game development 'mojo'.Besides which, it's about time I put another wacky idea down.
Swag
You play a thief who has to nick x amount of goods. You start in the shop, and you have to lift as many items as you can. Each item you lift and put under your coat slows you down and increases your size. When you steal an item, there is a chance you will get seen, and a security guard will give chase. Stealing more items gets more guards.
The game arena is the shop floor - some shops are easy to manuover around as they are just large isles, some are more difficult as they have lots of hazzards and more shoppers.
You can use parts of the shop to your advantage i.e. pyramid stacks bean tins can be knocked over. The security guards will slip and slide on the tins, helping you make your escape.
Goods vary in bulkyness (increase size), weight (decrease speed) and value (increase score). As you steal more and more, your noteriety increases, and you get different ranks i.e. pilferer, filcher, scoundrel, thief, plunderer etc. Get yourself out the door, and the swag is yours. Get caught, and it's the nick for you, my son.
Game should be done in a comedy style, but with a real message about the effects of theft after each level. Each level is played in a different shop, and each stage is played in a different shopping center.
#170
Predator and Prey
The basic concept is that there are 2 players, one the predator, one the prey.
The predator has weapons (close range, no sniper rifle ;) ), strength, limited stealth, an assortment of traps, and a map which gives him a general idea of where the prey is.
The prey is fast, nimble, and has keen senses.
The prey has a series of "goals", perhaps objects to collect, when it gets them all the predator loses. However, the predator can see these objects on his map, this gives the predator "watering holes" which he knows the prey will go to, and can set ambushes around. The predator must use cunning, stealth, and traps to hunt the skittish prey. The prey in turn gets points for completing the objectives.
Another game mode is survival, where the prey gets points for how long it can stay alive, and the predator for how fast it bags the prey.
I think there will also have to be predator only secret tunnels or portals so that he can quickly get to ambush points and setup traps.
I can also see team games, or games with a single predator, or with one Uber prey which predators compete to bag first.
The trick with this game would be that it requires VERY careful balancing. You don't want the predator able to kill the prey too easily, or the prey to escape too easily. You also want to keep them coming into conflict, ie you want to avoid a situation like in Counterstrike when 2 people continually run around and miss each other. Also, the prey must be fun to play, acrobatic, to offset the "cooler" predator option, which most people would probably want to play. The environments must be well thought out to facilitate ambushes and strategy.
Basically, I want to create that sense of alert tension, pulse quickening fear and adrenaline. I picture shadowy and nook filled environments, and a persistent feeling of being watched...
03/15/2005 (4:50 am)
I've just bought Torque (great work GG, an awesome product) and am currently brainstorming for game designs (focusing on tight fun gameplay, NOT genre of gfx, as I have in the past). I also want to go through the whole prototype, iterate, refine, repeat technique, as described in the Marble Blast discussion (fantastic docs as well, great job guys). This is one of the more promising concepts I have come up with.Predator and Prey
The basic concept is that there are 2 players, one the predator, one the prey.
The predator has weapons (close range, no sniper rifle ;) ), strength, limited stealth, an assortment of traps, and a map which gives him a general idea of where the prey is.
The prey is fast, nimble, and has keen senses.
The prey has a series of "goals", perhaps objects to collect, when it gets them all the predator loses. However, the predator can see these objects on his map, this gives the predator "watering holes" which he knows the prey will go to, and can set ambushes around. The predator must use cunning, stealth, and traps to hunt the skittish prey. The prey in turn gets points for completing the objectives.
Another game mode is survival, where the prey gets points for how long it can stay alive, and the predator for how fast it bags the prey.
I think there will also have to be predator only secret tunnels or portals so that he can quickly get to ambush points and setup traps.
I can also see team games, or games with a single predator, or with one Uber prey which predators compete to bag first.
The trick with this game would be that it requires VERY careful balancing. You don't want the predator able to kill the prey too easily, or the prey to escape too easily. You also want to keep them coming into conflict, ie you want to avoid a situation like in Counterstrike when 2 people continually run around and miss each other. Also, the prey must be fun to play, acrobatic, to offset the "cooler" predator option, which most people would probably want to play. The environments must be well thought out to facilitate ambushes and strategy.
Basically, I want to create that sense of alert tension, pulse quickening fear and adrenaline. I picture shadowy and nook filled environments, and a persistent feeling of being watched...
#171
03/15/2005 (6:29 am)
OMG this topic is so old, that the second post mentions possible uses for the v12 engine.
#172
We should buy it a cake
03/15/2005 (6:31 am)
This posts 4th birthday is coming up in a couple of weeks. We should buy it a cake
#173
03/15/2005 (7:15 am)
Wow, this post is old. lmao
#174
03/16/2005 (6:22 am)
Its an Aires thats why this forum has staying power :) hey sim game about making comp games could be called by sim studio or something
#175
www.gamedev.net/community/forums/topic.asp?topic_id=325976
I'd like any comments you'd wish to make regarding technology, feasibility, and the overall concept. Cheers. :)
06/15/2005 (4:09 am)
I wrote a brief concept doc for a procedural 'galaxy-to-individual NPC' scale simulator/game creation tool, and I was going to post it here, but it seems to exceed the max length by about a thousand characters...so here is a link to the Gamedev.net forum thread where I've posted it:www.gamedev.net/community/forums/topic.asp?topic_id=325976
I'd like any comments you'd wish to make regarding technology, feasibility, and the overall concept. Cheers. :)
#176
This idea could also be used with a Private Investigator twist, where you would need to collect evidence of peoples wrongdoing either by use of photography or other means.
It might even work without violence!!! ;)
Whatcha think? I might even have a go at this one myself. Anyone know of any other similar titles?
06/15/2005 (5:02 am)
What about a game where you play as a photojournalist. It would work in a similar way to GTA3 where you get missions/assignments that you can either take or turn down in favour of going out and finding your own story. You would get tip offs about celebrities, crimes (i.e. bank robberies etc.) and other events and have to make your way there and take pictures and return them to the office ready for that day's edition. Maybe criminals/bodyguards/other hacks may try to steal your camera to stop you printing the photos etc. or you would need to get in concealed positions with a zoom lens to take a photo of a celebrity or other sensitive subjects without being compromised.This idea could also be used with a Private Investigator twist, where you would need to collect evidence of peoples wrongdoing either by use of photography or other means.
It might even work without violence!!! ;)
Whatcha think? I might even have a go at this one myself. Anyone know of any other similar titles?
#177
You could start out at a certain period in time. The player interacts with the environment, and has some type of tasks that are assigned to accomplish. They can decide whether or not to do these, and based on those decisions, the section of the game eventually completes. This could be time based or goal driven... all depends on how the developer wants to implement the level.
In the next level, there are a new set of goals. Based on actions taken in the previous level(s), the player could have an easier or more difficult time with certain tasks. You can kinda see how the game would build upon itself. There could even be forks in the plot of the game, where based on a decision made in the past, the current player has a disposition towards good or evil.
It could even get comical, where for one life, you come back as a persons pet. My personal idea here is that you have 10 minutes to do what you would like. You could snoop around the owners place and find things that you can take and bury in the yard, or you could look for items that you would read that could help you later, OR you could just make a mess of the house. I think everyone can see how these things would effect the future life that you control. Burying something in the backyard for future use... reading a confidential document that you could use to pass security points with ease... enfuriating the owner so that when you run into him later, you use him as a distraction since he is on a short fuse.
You can see how this is a very open ended type of game. Best thing I like is that you can have a good story (which I feel a lot of games are missing lately), and this could almost get into the realm of "Chose your own adventure" (for those out there that remember those books).
06/22/2005 (4:34 pm)
RebirthYou could start out at a certain period in time. The player interacts with the environment, and has some type of tasks that are assigned to accomplish. They can decide whether or not to do these, and based on those decisions, the section of the game eventually completes. This could be time based or goal driven... all depends on how the developer wants to implement the level.
In the next level, there are a new set of goals. Based on actions taken in the previous level(s), the player could have an easier or more difficult time with certain tasks. You can kinda see how the game would build upon itself. There could even be forks in the plot of the game, where based on a decision made in the past, the current player has a disposition towards good or evil.
It could even get comical, where for one life, you come back as a persons pet. My personal idea here is that you have 10 minutes to do what you would like. You could snoop around the owners place and find things that you can take and bury in the yard, or you could look for items that you would read that could help you later, OR you could just make a mess of the house. I think everyone can see how these things would effect the future life that you control. Burying something in the backyard for future use... reading a confidential document that you could use to pass security points with ease... enfuriating the owner so that when you run into him later, you use him as a distraction since he is on a short fuse.
You can see how this is a very open ended type of game. Best thing I like is that you can have a good story (which I feel a lot of games are missing lately), and this could almost get into the realm of "Chose your own adventure" (for those out there that remember those books).
Brandon Beauchene
Me and my mediocre team of hooligans have cooked up an idea (gee really?) for a mmorpg. Theres a twist. Not a very easy way to explain this withought having 40+ pages but here goes.
-Combination of medieval+futuristic+present day time frame (explained below)
-Cross between rts, rpg, and wargame(again explained below)
probably not a very clear picture so heres a little more....
Game is set in the distant future, about year 3000 or so, during the 2nd dark age(medieval times). Real world events that are happening or have happened recently (ie tsunami, hurricanes, twin tower attack, etc) will change how the story, world, and gameplay materializes upon release of the game. For instance, you have this massive tsunami....caused by a massive earthquake (think it was like a 9.0 or something)....proven by scientists to have actually shrunken the world by a fraction of an inch....this shrink causes the earth to spin just a little bit faster as well as shift the axis....this spinning and axis shift has been causing "unseasonal weather patterns"....and then what? What would happen if this unseasonal weather gets so bad that it causes another ice age or something (think Day After Tomorrow but instead it encompasses the whole world)? Well maybe all technology would be destroyed, civilization as we know it would cease to exist.....but there are survivors, they do there thing to survive, world returns to normal, they start life over without technology..thus medieval/dark ages.
ok long description now on to the good stuff ;)
gameplaye-rpg where you level your characters skills either crafting or killing. players will be allowed to create a kingdom and rule over that kingdom(a guild for all intensive purposes). The world will be devided into a grid-like system of kingdoms. when a player creates a kingdom they are assigned to one of the areas unoccupied on the map, they then build that kingdom as they would in a RTS game. Heres the kicker, instead of having AI control the units, all the units under a rulers control will actually be other human players that are a member of that kingdom/guild. they build the buildings, go to war, level up, etc.
When a kingdom goes to war with another kingdom then it is free PVP for all members of both kingdoms no matter where in the world they are or what they are doing. Kingdoms at war can attack the opposing kingdom, kill players, destroy buildings, and steal resources. If a kingdom has its guildhall/castle destroyed, then that kingdom is removed and that grid space is available again for another player to create a kingdom. The winning kingdom then gains resources as a bonus as well as more land availble for them to build.
This will all be done in a 3d world either First Person or 3rd Person views depending on player preference.
As a kingdom grows more npc peasants are "attracted" to the kingdom to work and live. They can gather resources, run npc shops, or be recruited into the militia.
Any attacks by a kingdom can only be made with the available militia and online members at the time. Same goes for defense. This makes it possible for a new kingdom with 5 members and 3 militia to attack a higher power kingdom with say 9 militia but no members online, and the newer kingdom win....keeps people on their toes and focus on kingdom building and defenses.