Suggest a Game Idea for my 3D World

Question

Been creating a 3D complete world in OpenGL. For now, it features navigation like Google Earth, making possible the zooming from outter space to meter like level.

My question is: How do you suggest I make this a fun and interesting game?

My initial tought was to have a kind of moon lander where the user simply navigated the lander around the world. Anything better to suggest?

Answer 1

Most games I've found to be good have:

• limited resources (so you can lose).
• short-term goals (e.g., gathering resources to stave off the loss).
• progress points (e.g., level changes) to ensure ongoing "rewards" for playing.
• a long-term goal (so you can win).

While a moon lander can limit resources (fuel?) and stave it off (pick up fuel cells from the surface), how do you "win" your game?

Perhaps you need to rescue some stranded astronauts (and if you're targeting the young boy crowd, you might want to make them female and dress them in skimpy outfits a la "Leather Godesses of Phobos" - I'd buy that :-).

Answer 2

Under the Moonlander Idea:

1. Make it a non standard ship (Tardus, Tie Fighter, Toaster)
2. Let users select the planet affecting gravity, graphics, etc.
3. Make a goal to conserve enough fuel for a subsequent lift off.
4. See if they can land it in the Hudson River for bonus points.

Answer 3

Scorched Earth

Answer 4

I wrote a blogpost about a dream I had: http://bustingseams.blogspot.com/2007/11/another-dream-i-had.html

a 3d video game with a vast world, with many realms. Each realm has a race of people, who are either helped by, or under the tyranny of some flying demon. Each realm also has a "Flying Demon", whom you can ride, but only if you solve some riddle, or defeat them in battle, or solve some other puzzle.

from that point forward you can summon a flying demon to ride. Each one will have some unique ability, such as speed, stamina, altitude, tight handling, transportation, transformation, and so on.

There is an over arching goal, in that the entire world is under threat by a species of what may be called "Gaia parasites", who feed directly off the planet's life energy. As you travel the planet, the previous realms you encountered may become infected, and mutate the creatures there. The goal would be to revisit every realm, and find the solution to this global menace.

why were you traveling in the first place? You are an alien, and you are trying to find the uberdemon that can travel between planets, so you can go home.

Answer 5

Poker.

Black Jack.

Roulette.

Craps.

The options are endless.

And you could play strip poker against the prementioned leather clad astronauts you rescue

Answer 6

If you're using satellite imagery, as you imply by the Google Earth comparison, how do you differentiate between water/land?

If not, you could always create an exploration type game. Add limited resources, create a fog of war, and create a nice tech tree to colonize the planet. Of course, you can create challenges such as monsters to fight as well.

Answer 7

Multiplayer. Build a pyramid to the moon. You get stones from mountains or you can steal stones from other peoples pyramids and if you pick the right one it will fall. First one to the moon wins.