Anyone interested in a reefkeeping simulator?

[Anonymous]

Like the topic says:

As some of you may know, I make video games for a living. Currently, I'm making a 3D aquarium game for the PC. It is a budget title and will retail for budget prices if we find a publisher willing to distribute the game.

The game will have an initial release and then "game packs" will be released depending on popularity. Game packs will most likely retail for less than the initial release. The initial release will be required to play the game packs.

The initial release will be a simple game. You can pick any size tank (they are predetermined sizes, from a large library), and you can arrange the live rock in any fashion you please. Some simple corals and clams will be available to stock the tanks with. You can stock fish from 30 different species in your aquarium. You will be able to feed the fish, and they will behave in a manner very similar their real-life counterparts.

The first "game pack" that will be available will be a Reef addition. This will allow you stock many different types of coral and add clean-up animals such as snails and stars. The corals will be limited to certain types, mainly for system performance reasons.

The second pack will be a simulator pack. In this version, you will be able to control everything that you control in your real reef. Fish must be fed to keep them alive, you can determine what type of lighting to use, what filtration to use, the sandbed depth may play a factor, etc. etc.

Does this sound like anything that people here would be interested in? I've been making this game for a long while now in my spare time with a few colleagues. This game isn't much for profit, but more for a love of the idea. We highly doubt we'll make much money with it.

 

[Shelby1317]

I just read my boyfriend the idea and he says thats cool, so I guess that means he would buy it. So good idea!!!!

 

[Shelby1317]

Forgot to mention, he owns a MAC are you just gonna make it for PC's?

 

[kristofer1]

hey chris, do you need any help with the game, im fully traind CG artist traind in Maya, adobe, macromedia, 3d max, softimage XSI. id be more than happy to put some stuff togeather to show you, just e-mail me back. i also have quite a gew contacts in the game industry, <radical games, EA, Blackbox, ect. so i might be able to help you out there as well

here is my e-mail... let me know

Kris

kris@whitefuzzymonkey.com

 

[MedicineMan1]

Sounds kinda fun; do I get to pick lighting and a budget, too?

 

[cindywennin]

Can we frag and sell frags? This could greatly add to the 'budget'

 

[Anonymous]

Haha, that's not a bad idea at all. That might be complicated though, as then we'd have to add an internet function. Maybe we could just email them to each other.

 

[Anonymous]

hi.
How about a multiplayer game in which when a player/tank dies, the other player can take it apart, and "incorporate" the parts to the running tank with lower "cost?"

Includes some "time-bombs" like certain powerheads, snake oils, cracking tank, snail in overflow, hidden penny hunt, mantis trapping, and useless gadgets, etc!

Maybe a reefs.org version that each of us can play here, starting with $400

Seriously, I believe it is a great idea for a simulator, but I suspect the interaction among the game "parts" will be much less complex than the real thing.

 

[danmhippo]

Great Idea, but you are right, it may not make much $$.

To make $$ out of it, is to have a authoritative organization to list it as "must have for beginners" to get a feel of what it involves to keep and maintain a functional aquarium. OR, even create the game so it become a "Fish keeping license". (It's a long shot, but hey, what the heck?) You should also factor in nutrient attributes such as Nitrate and phosphate input and the nuiance algae growth into the game variables.

I will personally pay top $$ for such a simulation, but I doubt if any Jonh Doe off the street would.

The reefs.org multiplayer game version is great, we can compete head to head, or join allie by either frag trade or sharing resources (eg. sump & large skimmers!)

The internet version will eliminate the MAC vs. PC version problems.

Jimmy

[ January 04, 2002: Message edited by: danmhippo ]</p>

 

[Anonymous]

It will definitely be FAR less complex than the real thing. The resources and time just aren't there to make it like that. Also, many of the small details in the real world won't be able to carry over.

Here is how I forsee the "disasters" will be handled: Let's say the pump on the skimmer dies. You'll get a message that says something like "the skimmer pump seems to have stopped working." Then a list of options will pop up with what you'd like to do, such as 1)try and repair the pump. 2)replace the pump 3) do nothing

Option 1 will give you a percentage of success. Option 2 will fix the problem, but will take money from your budget, option 3 will of course keep the skimmer from working, but perhaps the tank can thrive without it. Or option 3 can cause an algae bloom or kill off some animals. The possibilities are endless, but we need to handle them as simple as possible.

At the moment, I'm getting ahead of myself. The initial release isn't even done yet, and the "game packs" won't be released unless I can earn my investment back on sales of the initial release. I'm paying for all art (at least the art I dont' do myself) and all programming out of my own pocket. I do have a small team working under contract at the moment, so this game will happen...its not just a pipe dream anymore.

 

[Anonymous]

Budget was going to be something that you can set before setting up a tank, yes. That way you can only afford to stock a certain number of animals or buy certain equipment per month.

In the simulator pack, you would be able to choose everything from lighting to skimmers. We'll have to leave out brand-names I'm sure, but skimmers can be called something like "downdraft skimmer" or "needle-wheel" etc.

 

[Anonymous]

Kristofer, I'll email you soon. I may have some stuff to send your way.

 

[MandarinFish]

SOunds like fun. Especially if it "taught" the player how to maintain a tank.

 

[Matt Lyon]

It sounds like fun to me also.

Now I can finally get my monster 300 gal tank.

 

[Yellowboy]

i think by adding a scenario or a goal mode it would be a lot of fun. Like you start with a tank that is shot to hell and you have to advance it till it is able to sustain sps or maybe another scenario would be fish are dying and you have to identify and eliminate the problem. Sounds like a neat simulator. Have you ever seen the Sims by Maxis? Except this is with fish!! I need it.

 

[HARRISON]

This sounds a bit like Sim City, lord know I wasted enough time on that game...hahaha

I think it would be fun to try, although i am not sure about scraping cyber glass.

HARRISON


and I want a bigger budget to work with this time around

 

[Anonymous]

In the "sim pack" of the game, budget would be adjustable. Some people would probably like to see what kind of tank they can raise on a limited budget, while others would want to create the tank of their dreams with an unlimited budget.

I'm not too sure about making the game so realistic that you have to scrape the glass. If we did do that, scraping it would be much easier than the real thing. Above anything I want the game to be fun, and scraping coraline is NOT fun.

 

[HARRISON]

Chris,

Actually it sounds like it would be interesting to see. Let me know when you are done I will be up for trying it. Not sure if you will have a large enough audience to mass produce though. Although you never know, if it were in LFS's all over it could be picked up and played with like a game but people would actually be learning at the same time. They could get that flowerpot coral they always wanted and not actually kill a live one. Then when they have gotten to the master cyber reefkeeper level they can go buy the 40 gallon tank and try the real thing. Could also keep people busy and learning while they saved money for a "real" set-up...

Keep us informed on your progress.

HARRISON

 

[Anonymous]

I will keep everyone informed. The initial release should be ready to ship by the end of February, and it will most likely be distributed through the internet and can be purchased on CD from fish stores, including online ones. I don't need to sell much to make my investment back and be able to pay for the reef package to be made. I will only need to sell a few hundred copies.

There will be a free shareware version that will have limited tank sizes and styles, as well as limited fish types you can keep.

 

[IBJJ]

You should contact some of the equipment manufacturers to give you some cash and permission to use their names of their products in your game. Capital for your endevour and advertising for their products.