A special note from our resident wizard @wizardzap
The wizard needs your help in deciding what to do? This post contains early insight into a new (possibly) SMT driven game; now in concept and beginning early development.
IBT has gone quiet for awhile now... there are a couple of good reasons for this, but one is I have been spending some time working on a future concept IBT (something Steemians asked me to do - 'Develop an off Steemit platform Game' was the general feedback/sentiment from the last IBT feedback.
So I have been thinking on this deeply.
How to make a first class, role playing game (RPG) of epic proportions; built to blow your mind, integrated with Steem, fun, free and of course exceeding expectations :)
A few concepts have come and gone, but I keep going back to one - It's a wilderness Survival game.
The current thinking is I partner with an existing game creator and we job share - myself consulting with the Steem community for early engagement, token integration, story line and in game concepts and the heavy coding and heavy lifting work handled by a professional programmer - the lead creator of Word Of DASM - A kind of partnership gig!
SNEAK PEAK AND PROPOSED GAME BACKGROUND:
The world has gone mad (Again!). Humans are on the menu and you are the only survivor of a plane crash - fleeing from Zombie Central you stole a plane...but as luck would have it your plane has crashed on a remote and isolated island (At least your safe from the Zombies - for now :)).
The environment is 'the wilderness' and the principals are... you must survive.
Unlike other survival games you actually need to have real survival skills and the time you spend playing the game is based on actual time as it passes (you don't have 3 or 4 days every few hours, i.e. 1 hour in game = 1 hour in real life). Yes! it is possible to make this multiplayer, so you can play with your Steemian communities/friends :)
You may know from my travel posts I was brought up in the Australian outback.
From as early as an infant I spent time in the bush and developed the skills and knowledge to survive using some very simple tactics and utilizing resources nature provides. As a teenager I taught basic survival classes, taking people out for overnight/multi-day camping and survival classes...later in life I left the country for work, but I have been really lucky and traveled the world; I never lost my interest to see and learn how others survive in the wilderness.
I didn't learn these things from tourists guides - I learned from applying my own knowledge and talking to the indigenous people and spending time in their unique habitats. This is not something you can learn from a book, you simply must do it to experience it! I know it seems odd, but it's something I have always had an interest in.
Those who follow LordNigel's Travel posts have had a glimpse (I occasionally give special tips), but I was thinking wouldn't it be great to have a game that fully taught you how to survive (and not just using some loose principals like many of the current games do). What if I gave these special insights in the style of a game, a game designed to truly teach you how to survive.
If I have learned anything at all about the world, it's that remote places are becoming rare and people have lost contact with the natural systems around us - why not give people the chance to explore and learn from the comfort of their arm chairs at home hehe.
Enter - A Interactive Battle of Survival - IBS - (which also stands for Irritable Bowel Syndrome haha!!).
HELP ME DECIDE WHAT TO DO?
The way I see this, I have three main choices on how to approach this.
- Do a traditional IBT JS style delivery here on Steemit. Probably take a bout 2 months of development. I would have the usual Steem give away prizes, but the interface would be basic, the commands would be based loosely on the IBT classic styles and the game would be short lived (and probably replaced by a better idea quickly).
- Go it alone and make it a web based and hosted game. Probably about 6-9 months development, and I could even integrate with vanilla STEEM (using API calls) benefits to all (bit like Steemmonsters). The problem with this is while I love spreading the wealth, promoting and giving away Steem - programming takes allot of effort!! 1000's of hours and unless your good at marketing it's pretty hard to get seen to cover some of those time costs.
- In partnership I can do a Special 'downloadable game' something similar to the Word of DASM. Probably about 3-6 months of development and I could use SMT to help fund raise in advance to cover some of those costs in point 2 and maybe even bring in a few more experts, i.e. a marketer. A key feature of this game would be to integrate the SMT token itself, allowing players to earn some through their smart survival actions.
-A bit on World of DASM; it is a complete open world game that is helping with early childhood education. It's a project I was involved with before my time with STEEM. You can grab a copy here if keen:
https://steamcommunity.com/app/543910
GETTING SPONSORSHIP
I have been often referred to as the 'idea guy' at work, but what is an idea really worth?
An old mentor of mine once told me "the enemy of a good idea, is an even better one!". You can interpret this as you want, but for me it sums up my life! anytime I innovate or create a vision others around 'squeeze me' and like the proverbial lemon I'm nearly out of juice.
Over my life I have come up with many new concepts and designs and delivered them into early concept reality using my meager practical skills to implement my imaginative visions.
The idea is seen, people see it, feel it for themselves and take it and run with it (allot of people I know have become quiet wealthy)...and it's not long before the idea is old and the 'idea guy' is forgotten. Such is the way of the world and to a certain degree seeing your idea inspire others and grow can a be very nice feeling and rewarding.
About 5 years back I dropped an idea with one of the major game builders (not going to drop the name and create controversy now - just sharing the story). I didn't ask for anything for the idea, I just gave it to them because I lacked the skill/time/money to build it myself. A short time after it came out as one of the greatest games of the year built very closely to the vision I gave (it remained for multiple years running game of the year). No one even knows the original vision was actually mine (TIP for those in the industry: I provided it under an alias name/account, very similar to my Steemit name). The app made millions and I enjoyed playing it for free for many years with millions of other players; which is why I shared the vision.
ON WITH THE GAME
The thing I love about Steemit is the choice is yours to upvote or not, come March when SMT tokens come out the choice will be yours to support a token or not? At least with an SMT if you did an ICO type launch approach you know you have supporters and you can justify the 1000's of hours of work to release a great game and get something back for that important but often forgotten first idea or vision!.
Final Thoughts:
- I love the idea of a game that as you play, you automatically get Steem or a SMT delivered to your wallet (simply by playing). I learned a bit about this with IBT, I really think I have nailed what is needed to make something like this work.
- I need some sponsors this time - There are no more 'free rides' for Nige's ideas; once the concept is built I have no doubt it will encourage an explosion of better ideas - I'm happy for this if it benefits Steem, but I need to cover the costs.
- I hate pay to win games - they come in many forms, I get you need to find ways to cover costs. But I believe if you put in the hours you should have the same benefits of those who are willing to pay to take short-cuts. The short-cut should not be an overwhelming advantage or what is the point? you just end up with rich people handing you your own arse and bragging how they beat you - when the truth is they simply paid more. Game makers should support their community and make sure the rules are balanced and fair for all.
Please share your thoughts and fears? I am edging towards option 3 above. A SMT driven game, but would people buy some tokens to support my idea through to development?
If you enjoyed playing IBT and would like to see further development from this game designer please Resteem this post and leave your genuine thoughts and feelings, please don't hold back :)