Chapter 756 One-stop professional planning service
"In order to relieve players' fatigue, it is recommended to adopt the design of long and short levels. For example, the prologue is a short level to guide players to adapt to the gameplay, which can be completed in about 10 minutes; the first level is a long level, after defeating the boss.
Previously, complex puzzle content was required and it took about 1 hour to play.
; The second level is another short level, where you can directly enter the boss battle, and then incorporate several stages of puzzle-solving elements into the chase battle against the boss. The game time is about 30 minutes; the third level is another long level.
, the time is extended to 1 hour and 15 minutes, and there will be more complex puzzle solving content..."
"Through this design, the emotional flow of players in different levels can be adjusted, creating a relaxing effect."
“Furthermore, based on the length of the level we finalize, we can decide which scene will be used in a certain level, and combine boss battle gameplay, level background, level duration and other elements, so that we can leave a deeper impression on the players.
.”
Wu Zhicheng blinked: "Yes, it makes sense!"
He actually didn't think so much before. He just planned 10 levels for the game with a simple mentality of making up the numbers. Each level has a different background packaging.
But after listening to Xi Hao's analysis, there are so many ways to do it?
The length of the level can control the player's game emotions and achieve a relaxed effect, so that the player will not suddenly feel boring and boring in the middle of the game, which can bring a better gaming experience.
Moreover, the length of the game also determines the form of a certain level: Is it a boss battle after a long puzzle solving? Or a direct boss battle? Or is it a boss battle divided into multiple stages, with puzzle elements added when switching stages?
Different forms of levels bring completely different gaming experiences to players.
After Xi Hao's analysis, Wu Zhicheng instantly felt that the previously very vague content had become much clearer, and the places where there were no clues became traceable.
Wu Zhicheng hurriedly recorded it in his notebook, fearing that he would forget it later.
Xi Hao reminded: "I am just making a suggestion, not that we must follow this. If you think it makes sense, you can plan it this way. If you have other ideas, we can discuss it again."
"In the final analysis, "Ink Clouds and Smoke" is a game designed by you, and you have the final decision. We just make suggestions from other perspectives, and you are free to adopt them or not."
Wu Zhicheng nodded: "Understood."
Xi Hao's attitude also made Wu Zhicheng very satisfied.
Obviously, Xi Hao has several years of experience in the game industry, so he can provide a more professional perspective than Wu Zhicheng when looking at many issues.
Of course Wu Zhicheng would happily adopt these better suggestions.
But "Ink Clouds and Smoke" is a game designed by Wu Zhicheng after all, and he should have the final say. There is no doubt about it.
Xi Hao has absolutely no intention of interfering with Wu Zhicheng's design, which reflects the most basic respect for the creator.
Xi Hao looked at the contents recorded in his notebook and said: "Do you have any expectations for the approximate resource amount and development time of the game?"
Wu Zhicheng still shook his head: "No."
Xi Hao did not show any contempt, but said in a normal manner: "Then let's make a simple plan first, and some details can be improved later."
"According to the previously estimated 10 hours of game time and the length of the levels, it will roughly require 9 levels of different sizes. In addition to the prologue and the final chapter, there will also be 7 levels in the middle."
"There are about 15 kinds of mobs in it, 8 of which can be used as basic mobs, and the remaining 7 can be used as special monsters that appear under special conditions or environments."
"The same kind of mobs can also be reused and made into different colors or skills. However, this reuse needs to be restrained and consistent with the characteristics of the level, so that players cannot have the feeling of repeated battles."
"There are a total of 8 levels from the first level to the final chapter. We have designed 8 different boss battles. For the boss in the prologue, you can choose one of the bosses to reuse and make a weakened version of the boss to pass the plot."
"In this way, the map size of each level can be roughly estimated."
"Determine the art resource list based on these needs and determine the approximate workload. The editor is ready, and horizontal action games are also very common, so the production time can be relatively faster..."
"The overall construction period is estimated to be approximately 6 months."
"Although you have initially completed part of the content, you still need to leave sufficient time for subsequent revisions, so we can tentatively set two deadlines."
"The first deadline is two months later. We strive to complete the game content before the third level. We can test the players' feedback through trial play. If the feedback is not good, we can make timely modifications;"
"The second deadline is five months later. We will try to complete the game, fix all the bugs, and polish all the details. In this way, the game can be officially released."
"Maps, characters, monsters, special effects and other related art resources must also be completed within this deadline."
"If we estimate the development cost based on the current amount of resources... let's apply for a funding limit of 1.5 million first. The art of this game is very important. We need to contact more excellent painters to choose the most suitable style.
If you don’t have enough money, you can apply again later.”
"Do you think this is okay?"
Xi Hao looked at Wu Zhicheng and asked for his opinion.
Wu Zhicheng nodded immediately: "Okay!"
Regarding Xi Hao's speech, Wu Zhicheng had only one feeling, and that was professionalism!
When chatting with Qiu Hong before, Wu Zhicheng had no idea about the development time of the entire project, how much money it would cost and other details.
This cannot be blamed on his poor professional skills. The key point is that he is just a wild man and has never worked in a regular game company. How can he understand this?
Under this situation, Qiu Hong decided to invest money, which shows that he really appreciates the gameplay of "Ink Clouds and Smoke".
But now with Xi Hao's help, these more detailed problems can be solved immediately.
Wu Zhicheng is quite satisfied with the current plan, and even feels that this plan has changed his thoughts on the game "Ink Clouds and Smoke" and become clearer.
Moreover, this plan can be changed at any time, with a high degree of freedom, so you don’t have to worry about being restricted in your design.
Xi Hao continued: "Well, we will seize the time to make the entire development plan, art resource list and demand list for you to take a look at. If there are any problems, you can communicate and modify them at any time."
"As for you, just focus all your energy on game design. If you encounter any problems, just come to us anytime."
"We will also collect some information on the Internet or similar ready-made games based on the type of game, provide it to you as a reference, and continue to update it."
"When you feel you have no inspiration, you can take a look and get some inspiration."
Wu Zhicheng was pleasantly surprised: "Okay, okay."
He couldn't help but sigh, this is really a nanny-style one-stop service!
There are people who help formulate the game development plan, there are people who help make requests for game art resources, and there are even people who help collect game inspiration!
Obviously, the mission of this three-person team is to help independent game producers complete various time-consuming but essential tasks, while serving four independent game producers.
As long as the time is slightly staggered, the entire team's manpower can be fully utilized.
Soon, the meeting was over, and all the previously uncertain contents had been preliminarily finalized.
Xi Hao attended this meeting mainly to set a general direction with Wu Zhicheng, and then left the specific work to his subordinates.
In two or three days, the development plan of "Ink Clouds and Smoke", preliminary level planning, art resource list, requirement documents, etc. will be uploaded one after another, and there will be a dedicated person responsible for promoting the relevant work.
As for Wu Zhicheng himself, he only needs to do a good job in design.
On the one hand, it regulates and guides his original wild path, so that he can make games more efficiently within a certain framework, instead of continuing to run around like a headless fly;
On the other hand, the burden is greatly reduced. Wu Zhicheng no longer needs to do those inefficient but necessary repetitive tasks, and only needs to focus all his attention on the game design work that requires the most creativity.
Wu Zhicheng returned to his work station and took a sip of milk tea, feeling a lot more excited.
Why are you so motivated all of a sudden?
He immediately began to redo the level planning of the entire game according to the details that had been finalized before.