Monthly Archives: January 2012

MegaMan RPG Prototype Update 2012/01/29 :
Menu Tweaks, New Abilities, New Mechanics

MegaMan RPG Prototype 2012/01/29

After nearly three weeks of no posts, you'd think I had forgotten about the game. Not true! I just finished a very large update to the MegaMan RPG Prototype that I had been working on for the last few weekends. The update includes plenty of visual tweaks to the menu systems and battle graphics, unique abilities for all sixteen robot masters(!), and a tons of new mechanics to make the game more fun. :D

The prototype menu itself has been updated to include randomized banners for each of the robot masters. At the moment there are only six (AirMan, CutMan, GutsMan, WoodMan, IceMan, and BubbleMan) but I plan to add more as time goes on (they're not that difficult to create). I've also updated the overall engine to dynamically adjust to the browser window size, including a "landscape" mode for wider browsers. The iPad version of the prototype still works in both landscape and portrait, though some positioning tweaks have been made to keep robot placement consistent.

In terms of new mechanics, I've added functionality for (what I call) "attachments". This way, I can attach persistent objects to the robots to allow for a greater sense of realism when using abilities (within 8-bit, browser-based limits of course). For example, the Leaf Shield now stays active after use and continues rotating in the background until thrown at the enemy. Atomic Fire creates a sort of blazing halo effect behind the user while charging to show the building power of the attack. Even BombMan has a Hyper Bomb persistently attached to him until thrown at the enemy. I'm absolutely going to add more abilities that make use of this new feature, and it's very exciting to play with. Because these abilities can be copied by MegaMan or ProtoMan with the Copy Shot, some pretty awesome combinations are possible. At one point I had ProtoMan with a raised Leaf Shield and a charging Atomic Fire simultaneously and it looks pretty cool with the Game Speed turned up. Oh, and that's another thing. If your browser can handle it (or you're using an iPad), you can go into the Options and turn the "Game Speed" up or down to your liking. Having it up really high makes the game pretty fast, and having it low gives it an almost storybook quality. The last new mechanic I can think of would be the change to the "Scan" option. Before, scanning the target required a whole turn, leaving your robot open to attack. Now, scanning can be done as many times as you want without sacrificing a turn and to anyone on the field. Simply tap any sprite on the field during a scan (even your own!) and you can see their entire breakdown – stats, weaknesses, resistances, everything.

In terms of new abilities, I've added Copy Shot (copies target's last used ability), Crash Bomber (higher accuracy, explodes on contact), Hyper Bomb (higher damage, explodes on contact), Leaf Shield (raises shield first use, throws shield the next), Quick Boomerang (always strikes first), Super Arm (changes based on battle field), and Super Throw (throws target to bench, forcing switch).

There are tons more tweaks under the hood that I'm not thinking of, but I invite you to take a look and test the engine out. And if you're still unsure (it's not like you have to sign in or anything…) you can take a look at some screenshots from the game that I took today. Thanks for reading, and take care! :)

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MegaMan RPG Prototype Update 2012/01/08 :
Prototype Menu, New Abilities, More Tweaks

I've updated the MegaMan RPG Prototype's main menu to be a little more user-friendly (though you still have the same options as before) and added a bit of a title/splash screen to make it look a bit more interesting.

Additionally, I've revised the way stat damage/recovery animation is handled. Previously, the +/- background images during stat modifications were part of the abilities causing them. This meant that certain graphics were repeated over and over in different files and caused a lot of unnecessary file size. As a result, some of the attacks look a bit cooler as they have multiple layers of graphics happening at once.

Lastly, I fixed a bug in the "Mega Buster" move, lowered the accuracy of the “Rolling Cutter” move, and created three new moves – "Proto Buster", "Buster Shot", and "Metal Blade". The two buster moves are exact clones of the Mega Buster but with different colours, and the "Metal Blade" move is MetalMan's ability from MegaMan 2.

And…that's it. I think. :P Have a good night!

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MegaMan RPG Prototype Update 2012/01/08 :
Time Stopper, Damage/Recovery Indicators

I've updated the MegaMan RPG Prototype with a few small changes that should add to the overall polish of the game, as well as a new ability and some long-overdue indicators for damage/recovery amounts on the canvas.

First and foremost, I've added numeric indicators above the robot's heads when they take damage or recovery to any of their stats, like most RPGs have on-screen (instead of just in text windows). I think that this addition is one of the most important (visually) that I've done in a while. I feel like it really makes the battles feel more finalized (even though they totally aren't). :P

Next, I've added a bit of a dark overlay to the canvas during abilities to fade out the background and non-active robots slightly. This helps to focus on the foreground-action better while making the abilities themselves “pop” a little more than they did before. I also had to add a bit of a pause between abilities so that the screen wouldn't be constantly dimmed, but given that the frames auto-scroll now it shouldn't be too bad.

Small tweaks include making the text in the console a little larger, as well as making the delay between frames a little longer (from 1000ms to 1500ms). This not only allows you to read the text in the console easier, it also gives the game more time to load assets. I plan to eventually add an option to auto-play or manually click-through each frame, but for now this should make the game easier to play.

Lastly, I've added a new ability to the mix for FlashMan – his signature Time Stopper ability (I've always wished it was called "Flash Stopper" instead rather than giving that ability name to FlashMan – they really goofed there in my opinion). The ability lowers the target's speed by 20% of their base, but has a lower accuracy than the typical “Speed Break” ability (80%). Additionally, if used on a robot that is typically weak to “Time” type abilities, they will also receive energy damage in the process, just like in the original games (kind of)!

That's all for today, hope you enjoy!

FlashMan vs MegaMan | GutsField | MegaMan RPG PrototypeBubbleMan vs MegaMan | Ice Field | MegaMan RPG Prototype

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MegaMan RPG Prototype

For the last several years I've been toying with the idea of creating a browser-based RPG using the mechanics of the Pokémon series and the characters of the classic MegaMan series. After years of simulators, tests, and design mockups, I'd like to show you what I have made so far – a prototype for a potential browser-based MegaMan RPG using turn-based battles, 8-bit sprites, in-depth mechanics. and it's completely written in PHP/HTML/CSS/JS. The prototype currently has 16 (2 x 8) playable characters, a full weakness/resistance/affinity/immunity system, complex stat-management, 17 different abilities, and 3 playing fields. I'm adding new content all the time, and this thing is far from being finished, but I wanted to at least post something for the new year and I've been working on this thing for so long in secrecy – so why not?

UPDATE 2012/01/02 : Revised post to make it shorter and to the point, moved the full-post with detailed mechanics to a separate page for those willing to deal with the text-wall. :P

MegaMan RPG Prototype
http://megamanpoweredup.net/rpg2k11/

MegaMan RPG Prototype

Overview

MegaMan RPG Prototype is a working prototype and early demo for a potential browser-based role-playing game using the characters from the MegaMan series and mechanics inspired by the Pokémon series. Choose your team of eight robots and defeat your opponent's in classic turn-based battles from your web-browser. As a prototype, this is an unfinished product, but updates are being made all the time and the project is constantly evolving.

You "win" by defeating all eight of your opponent's robots using your own. Robots are defeated when their Energy gauge reaches zero. In addition to Energy, each robot has an Attack, Defense, and Speed stat. Attack and Defense influence the amount of damage inflicted/received and the Speed stat influences turn-order and the accuracy of abilities. Each robot also has their own set of Weaknesses, Resistances, Affinities, and Immunities to specific types of attacks that affect the amount of damage/recovery received. Hover your mouse over abilities in the menu for more information, and use the “Scan” option in battle to see your opponent's stats and other information.

For more information and a detailed breakdown of the game's mechanics, please see the main MegaMan RPG Prototype development page.

Game Screenshots

GutsMan vs QuickMan | Base Field | MegaMan RPG PrototypeIceMan vs MetalMan | Base Field | MegaMan RPG Prototype

AirMan vs MegaMan | Ice Field | MegaMan RPG PrototypeHeatMan vs CutMan | Ice Field | MegaMan RPG Prototype

MegaMan vs BubbleMan | Guts Field | MegaMan RPG PrototypeProtoMan vs BubbleMan | Guts Field | MegaMan RPG Prototype

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