Cartoon games

#1 I miss adventure games. I didn't have to work too hard and they were extremely entertaining. Somebody should take the V12 and create an adventure game engine, so artists, writers and designers can be in control of the process. Take the technology out of the equation. Add to the scripting engine, so it is EASY to make an adventure game.

Create a cartoon renderer so the 3D shapes look like cartoons.

I loved Space Quest. I think Leisure Suit Larry would absolutely rock with today's 3D technology.

I don't think adventure games are dead. The problem is the budget. There is so much art in an adventure game that the budget blows up the ROI. The way around this is to remove the technology component, so the risk reduces to simply creating the art and story. The art creation tools are getting so good that creating all of tha animations, props and backgrounds for an adventure game should become manageable.

Jeff Tunnell GG

#2 Its a little uncanny ... many people here have been thinking along the same lines as me. The cartoon idea is another one that I really like. I'm tired of gibbing everything in sight in fist person games. I'm sure that somebody could come up with something a little more entertaining, and the cartoon idea sounds like it would be a good bet. I'm not an RPG/adventure fan myself, but cartoonish action games would be really cool. What about roadrunner vs. cayote in tribes2 land... cayote would have to find ways to capture roadrunner with certain tools and roadrunner would have to make hotrod runs for seed or something. I dunno ... just a thought. Actually I did really like the space quest/liesure suit lines as well.

#3 The RR vs. Coyote game is a cool idea. You will have to invent your own characters. Probably not even coyote vs. roadrunner, but the idea is still the same.

Jeff Tunnell GG

#4 Proffesionally speaking Jeff,is there still a market for adventure games? I ask this because if Sierra isn't publishing any more adventure games,(and they practically invented them) then that should tell us something.

My idea for a next project (We've got other plans for our first project with the V12) was something like Space Quest but it makes fun of the Star Trek Voyager episodes. (I think you call it a spoof of Voyager.Not sure what the word is) And it would all be fully 3D cartoon rendered.

But I obviously don't understand the scale of a project like this.I've never really though of programming an adventure game before.What I would like to know is,what kind of a team would you need? (Right now we're 2 programmers, 1 texture artist and one 3D artist) We could all write out the story together,but would more artists be needed? I'm just curios as to what goes into an adventure game.

#5 Adventure games died from lack of creativity and expanding budgets.

I was disappointed at the sales figures for Monkey Island, but that product didn't really scratch my adventure game itch. IMHO it had too many verbal puzzles and too many "in" jokes.

So, to answer your question, the market for adventure games still appears to be soft. However, I think the right concept combined with a slightly updated play mechanic and the right look can hook in large numbers of players again.

The budget is another issue. Even with an adventure language married to the V12, art and production will be expensive. What I would like to see is many of the above changes to the genre combined with a chapter approach. That would keep costs down while the audience was found.

Jeff Tunnell GG

#6 Chapter approach eh? Hmm...that's a really good idea. Release the game with say 3 chapters at first.Then let the players download additional chapters at no cost (or little cost) That's actually pretty good.

Jeff,do you have any friends at Sierra that worked on the Leisure Suit Larry or Space Quest series? If so,do you think you can bring them here to shed some light on the adventre gaming market and what's involved? And then later on,we can bring the manager of sierra here so I can personally kick his a$$ (or who ever's idea it was to turn the police quest series into a SWAT game)

#7 No, you're not the only one who thinks that cartoon games are cool. A friend of mine, Seth, made for only himself a game based upon a cartoon called Prince Valiant He mixed it with another series called Gargoyles. What happens in the game is this: Some gargoyles use some kind of time traveling item and travel back in time and somehow link up with their ancestors and Prince Valiant. They link up with King Arthur and engage Vikings in battle.

#8 Here's something that might interest you then:
http://cube.ign.com/news/37692.html

Regards

#9 i assume you were talkin about zelda's dramatic change in graphics. seriously the pics may throw you, but see the movie, it makes a world of a difference. i think that the market for cell shaded graphics is growing, it makes the graphics look like art and less like what a computer did. plus it adds diversity.

#10 Amen!!

I'm doing cartoon style games, I totally agree with you. I am a cartoonist and animtor, and love the look, I'm using iTGB to make games for the iPhone/iPod Touch.