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Socoder -> Mini Challenges -> Design: Coolest vehicle weapons

Mon, 24 May 2010, 19:41
mindstorm8191
Okay, so I'm working on a spaceship game called Garbage Invaders (the name is temporary), the idea is that you can salvage parts off enemy ships and use them for your own ship. The game has really developed into an RPG style game, similar to Diablo II (and yes, I play that quite a bit), where you can aquire better pieces to your weapons and other parts to upgrade them even more.

The trouble is, I don't have that many weapon types. I'm curious to know what other people think of as the coolest weapons on a vehicle, be it a space ship or something else.

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Vesuvius web game
Tue, 25 May 2010, 04:12
Jayenkai
Perhaps it might be better to think of components, as opposed to weapons..?

Given splitters, mirrors, and focal points, along with a selection of fire types, the player could link up weapon pieces to build their own..

Laser -> Splitter -> 2 mirrors = 1 shoots forward, 1 shoots backwards.

Plasma -> Splitter -> Splitter -> Splitter = 8 way spread, weak.

Plasma -> Splitter|Focus -> Splitter|Focus -> Splitter|Focus = 8 way spread, full power.

Maybe create a nice little simple gui to piece the bits together, and then allow the player to strap a couple of their best weapons to the sides of the ship.

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''Load, Next List!''
Tue, 25 May 2010, 06:41
mole
Purely because I watched a program about HMS Illustrious (aircraft carrier) last night on iPlayer, I am going to suggest the goalkeeper. A Gatling gun which shoots down incoming missiles automatically, prioritising up to 30 targets at a time. It shoots 70 rounds a second, and each round looked to be EIGHT INCHES long. Crazy stuff. I just thought it was ridiculously cool
Tue, 25 May 2010, 07:35
JL235
mole Purely because I watched a program about HMS Illustrious (aircraft carrier) last night on iPlayer, I am going to suggest the goalkeeper. A Gatling gun which shoots down incoming missiles automatically, prioritising up to 30 targets at a time. It shoots 70 rounds a second, and each round looked to be EIGHT INCHES long. Crazy stuff. I just thought it was ridiculously cool
I saw this too, tis very cool. You could build it as a gun that shoots tonnes of tiny bullets, that age and fade out very quickly (short range). Each bullet would also be pretty weak (it's the quantity that makes them deadly).

There are a couple of approaches you take with this. One is to have mix-and-match like Jays.

Another could be to use types, like Borderlands. Just think up 5 or 6 very different types of weapons (laser beam, shotgun style, standard shot, rapid fire) each with their own pros and cons. Then implement each lots of times (say 50) with different stats and tiny variations (one or two rapid fire weapons might be very accurate, whilst most aren't). Better variations are found further in the game, so the player is constantly improving.

I think Jay's method will allow the player to think more and so make the game deeper, but be harder to build well. The second version will be an easy way to have lots of weapons. Pretty much all RPGs use something like the latter, where you just get better swords/daggers/staffs over time.
Tue, 25 May 2010, 09:41
Erebel55
Homing missiles
Wed, 26 May 2010, 17:15
mindstorm8191
Yeah, defensive weaponry like that can be nice. I had an idea of using tiny missiles to destroy incoming missiles, but gatlin gun fire could be used as well.

JL, yeah I do plan on making this an RPG approach, where you find progressively better weaponry and defenses. I'm just trying to think of higher-end weapons which the player could work for to own. Something which could devastate enemy ships...

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Vesuvius web game
Wed, 26 May 2010, 17:18
JL235
Don't forget that even if you pick my second lazy suggestion, just make the same weapons multiple times with different stats, there is no reason why you can't make a small selection of special weapons. That is how Phantasy Star Online did it's weapon system, lots of very similar weapons and a few very distinct ultra weapons.