Hey, people! I''ve been following along with the threads for about a month now, and I thought I''d throw a question to the masses. I''ve started designing a game in the spirit of The Legend Of Zelda, and I was wondering if you guys could throw out a list of cliches I could keep from using, and/or twist in some way. I am totally ignorant about cliches right now because of limited money for buying games, so any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

big cliche'':
Save the princess.

Another one: there are too many magic stones.

Treasure boxes are always left just lying around in the middle of nowhere.No one knows how most of them got there and why someone else has''nt found them first.

There are too many Zelda Clones !!!!

Just Joking....

That is a very difficult question to answer, it will be difficult to make a clone of it, and disregard a lot of what made it so popular. Rather base an RPG on something that u would invision as being slightly unique.

I know that u are saying.. easier said than done, but uniqueness is what lasts in people minds.

That is my 2 cents



Green Erick Software

Erick:
I don''t think I could ever make an actual Zelda Clone... I am just using the third person perspective and lack of stats, as well as the hearts for life and bar for magic... I guess I''m just borrowing the interface! I have an interesting idea I''ve been thinking about for a little while, now: Branching Story line. I think it''s already been done, but I like it anyway. You start the same way you would in a normal game, but every decision you make sets you down a path with its own options, until the end of the game. It will probably be very complicated, and I''ve just started fleshing it out. That''s what makes it fun, though, right?

Cliche: On a quest to save the world from destruction at the hands of a purely evil monster/tyrant/wizard.

I guess it would be lame if the end boss was the guy next door who stole your cow, and players expect some amazing endings that can only be had with the destruction of something/someone that presents a challenge, but for the love of God no more purely evil end bosses that don''t do anything! The final boss is (or should be) a character and he/she/it should develop and interact and do stuff like every other character!!

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- outRider -

Yeah, I see what u are saying.

Umm about artifacts and stuff, it can''t really be a big cliche. I mean you get chests that can hold magic, and you get tombs and vases and stuff, that is pretty much constant. Therefore I don''t think that it will be a cliche if u use, such holders of artifacts.

Cliche''s would definately stem from using like the usual weapons, therefore try to think up something new. Also it will obviously be a good idea to have a original story line that does not in any way stem from before heard stuff ( Hasbro cough )

I suppose that generally u would be pretty safe in this respect.

Originality is the KEY !!!

Erick

Green Erick Software

One cliche that all RPGs have is the ability to walk into anyones house and take stuff (money,weapons items) with out asking.

Let''s see...cliches...gee, there''s so many to choose from! : )

Like you, I''m working on a game in the spirit of Legend of Zelda, except I have two characters after the same thing, a la Threads of Fate.

One cliche I''m bypassing is the idea that any female character is a weak magic user while males are the uber-buff fighters. I''ve reversed these roles : )

Another cliche that runs rampant is that evil is always extreme. In other words, anyone tagged as evil runs around killing anyone and everyone, robbing babies from cradles to sacrifice, etc. Mint (to use Threads of Fate again) could be called evil since her goal was world domination, but she wasn''t overly cruel. Personally, I like the idea of playing a character that isn''t a hero...after all, who wouldn''t like to try to rule the world every now and then?

Something else that was touched on is that whatever bad guy is around should have a personality and goals of their own. Not to mention the extreme cliche of "evil guy sends out his henchmen to battle you while standing there doing nothing". This guy had to come from somewhere, and unless he''s too busy with something else (charging his ray of doom, or something), he''s not going to sit there and let you make mincemeat out of his hired help...after all, it''s hard enough to find good help : )

What about giving the main villian a past, and have him develop alongside your own character? Maybe he starts out by taking over a town, then move on to bigger things while you''re trying to do whatever it is you need to do to take him down?

Another cliche is that all members of any given race are good/evil. Maybe that orc you''re about to hack to bits is really nothing more than a salesman who had something you couldn''t get anywhere else? And since you''ve mindlessly destroyed, you have no way of finding it?

Save the princess has been done so many times...why not have the princess save herself? You could make it to the dungeon just in time to find her taking out the last guard!

The main character having a secret past or anmesia (I call this Square syndrome). This a a rather thin excuse to reveal his/her past while advancing the plot, and there are better ways to do this. Flashbacks, or remenicing with an old friend are all valid methods. Maybe they go to a place they''ve been before and mention that fact?

Just a few things to think on

Silvanis