Devlog 000: The Start of an RPG

Preface

Well, well, well, what do we have here? A video game and a blog post? It sounds like someone might have recently been let go from their job. If we're being honest, I think being let go is the reason most software devs turned indie devs get started. Don't quote me on that, though, as I did absolutely no research to substantiate that claim.

It is true, though; I did get let go on April Fool's Day. Imagine trying to explain that to friends and family on "prank day." Regardless, we're here now, so let's get Devlog 000 started.

The Idea

All games, good or bad, start with an idea. But this idea was not my own, and this is why the game is called "Robert's RPG." Robert approached me and asked if I wanted to use their idea and make game of it. After some back and forth, I said "Sure, it can't be that hard."

Robert's RPG is simple on paper: a 2D turn-based RPG Roguelite*. When you level, you are presented with a handful of options to choose from, like new skills or extra stats. When you beat a boss, you might get some gold, or you might get a legendary weapon. All in all, you have the chance to do really well or really poorly, and it is all thanks to RNG.

While I thought the game couldn't be that hard to make, it actually is quite difficult. I am building everything from scratch. Item and skill balancing? My math? I really should have paid better attention in class.

*=A Roguelite is like a Roguelike, but maybe not as hardcore.

The Game Engine

I had thought about using Unity, but after the shitstorm Unity caused for itself, I decided against it. Obviously, there are any number of other options, like Godot, Unreal, RPGMaker, and the list goes on. I settled with Godot because it is free, open source, community-driven, lightweight, and (to my novice eyes) performant and capable. If you're interested in seeing some of the games made with Godot, check out Godot's showcase. If you're on Reddit, the Godot subreddit is very active with showcases, demos, and helpful people. It's even being considered by the Slay the Spire devs. Their writeup can explain the pros/cons of the engine better than I can, so give it a read.

Now, my choice might have been biased, as I've tinkered with Godot for a little while now. What started with following a good tutorial by Heartbeast has led me to make a small game myself, and to participate in a Game Jam with a small team. Not to brag, but our game, Spin to Begin, came in 7^th overall and 2^nd in usage of the limitation. Outside of the tutorial, the game jam, and a side project (since abandoned; it wasn't fun), that's about where my experience ends with Godot.

Making Things Difficult

There are so many Godot plugins. They range from asset management, pre-built movement systems, to visual heightmap editors. There are even entire game templates for RPGs! Yes, you read that right —I can get an off-the-shelf RPG and kickstart my development. While I want Robert's RPG to come to life, and plugins would make it easier, I've decided not to use any.

Why am I not using any of these plugins? This might be a naive take, but this is a learning experience, and while I can simplify the process with plugins, that's not necessarily helping me learn in the grand scheme of things. I don't know how to make games, so I want to learn to do it. I want to experience the pitfalls of the weird systems I've come up with and how to fix them. I want to tailor how the item and spell system work to my liking. I want to break things. I want my math to be so egregiously incorrect that I one-shot a goblin just by looking at him. I want to make mistakes and learn from them.

Outro

I'll do my best to keep writing about the progress of Robert's RPG. I can't promise anything, though. I am not much of a writer, and I rewrote this post about as many times as I'm going to rewrite Robert's RPG. Maybe I'll try to write about other things, like cars and finding a job.