Continue with the design documents? Thread

Edit: All info removed to keep possible pirates away.

Edited by: Rrtaya_Tsamsiyu

i think you should keep the ideas and keep working on the design and documentation. You could do a few things 1) use the designs the learn most parts of game development to a ok standard. 2) pull together a team to help work on the game 3) sell the designs. although if you learn how to do modeling and leveling you could become a game designer but keep in mind its more design than creation

Rrtaya_Tsamsiyu wrote: It would be a mix, between turn by turn, real time strategy, and first person shooter w/vehicle combat.

How would you enter FPS mode?

Fragvergnugen wrote:

Rrtaya_Tsamsiyu wrote: It would be a mix, between turn by turn, real time strategy, and first person shooter w/vehicle combat.

How would you enter FPS mode?

Selecting a unit and using a hotkey or button, or possibly right-clicking a unit

If you are the only programmer on the project, and you don't foresee any others joining, then you don't really need to write the document. However, if you are part of a team of developers you need a document so everyone is on the same page as to what they are making.

Thanks for the input guys.

i've decided ill keep working on it, even if this game is never made it will keep me busy for a while lol. Further help/ideas/etc. is certainly welcome though.

Main question now is; if i do make a full design document would a company/person possibly buy it, or does that just not happen? If so, how much would a fully thought out, few-hundred-page design document go for?

Edited by: Rrtaya_Tsamsiyu

Rrtaya_Tsamsiyu wrote: Main question now is; if i do make a full design document would a company/person possibly buy it, or does that just not happen? If so, how much would a fully thought out, few-hundred-page design document go for?

Google.com
"It is not feasible because there is no precedent for selling a design document as one would a screenplay. The market simply does not exist."

Then again, the text is 10 years old, so maybe things have changed since then.

Fragvergnugen wrote:

Rrtaya_Tsamsiyu wrote: Main question now is; if i do make a full design document would a company/person possibly buy it, or does that just not happen? If so, how much would a fully thought out, few-hundred-page design document go for?

Google.com"selling+a+design+document\"
"It is not feasible because there is no precedent for selling a design document as one would a screenplay. The market simply does not exist."

Then again, the text is 10 years old, so maybe things have changed since then.

I do wonder why, though. No screenplay is perfect at first draft, so they get changed and rewritten until they fit. I wonder why that doesn't work with games. Maybe, because it isn't necessary, as long as a) the story is not as important as the gameplay is, b) we will buy it anyway ^^

Companies dont buy concepts because its to big of a risk. The costs involved make it better to developed a original idea that fits the market you are looking at. You best chances are either looking for a small indie team who will but it. Or make your own team.

dragonCASTjosh wrote: Companies dont buy concepts because its to big of a risk. The costs involved make it better to developed a original idea that fits the market you are looking at. You best chances are either looking for a small indie team who will but it. Or make your own team.

I think why the "buying concepts" idea wouldn't work, is because writing a real Design Document requires extensive knowledge of the technology you are working with. It's probably much easier to sell a tabletop game, because it will work on paper. The 3D game will also work on paper, but it will need to work with a combination of different modules the target engine uses. So, in order to successfully write Design Documents, you actually have to have invested those "ten years" into learning the technology. And by then you'd probably not think about selling it, but making it yourself or being a large part of the development.

Thanks again for the info everyone. From all this and my own calculations, im thinking my best chance would be to create the design document minus engine/code structure details, and then find indie developers who like the game idea. In any case if this did go anywhere, i probably wouldn't get much out of it but i might at least get a free game from it lol