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Jul. 6th, 2015 07:51 amStarted a new document just days ago, about general game mechanics in Day of the Beehive. Managed to get more time in with it after beating DW2, and spent more than half of yesterday working on it until I burned myself out. Shared it with Jake and Brian after that, particularly in hopes of discussing it just to fill the rest of the day in. (Will likely discuss both the doc in question and some others I've recently updated with Brian next time he comes home.)
Jake had a lot to address about what I had written, but I've been having enough thoughts about one thing in particular that it seems more practical to describe here than to try to wedge into the file.
To start off, one thing I like about the way parties function throughout the Earthbound trilogy, is how they all line up single-file in fixed orders (mostly in order of their first entry, though there are exceptions).
Here, everyone's order in line when present would normally be Rokuna, Mondo, Kagami, Tsukasa, Konata*, Miyuki*, Maria, Davì, Nurşen, Claire, Desiré, Robin, and then anyone joining just briefly. Barring three of them, this technically is the order in which most of them will be first playable. Kagami is the first one you play as when Miyuki calls her house, then you play as Tsukasa when Miyuki actually arrives there, and then Miyuki joins Tsukasa upon being greeted. However, Rokuna and Mondo are the main exceptions here; Rokuna, despite being the fifth one to become playable, has the most pivotal role in things, and given his relationship with her, it would only be fitting for Mondo to assume second place despite being the sixth one you recruit. And then there will be times when someone besides Rokuna will take the lead, such as Mondo and Miyuki, when paying one last visit to their respective houses before the party embarks on their real journey; Robin, who is in familiar, battle-ridden territory when the party first meets her and is already a seasoned fighter; and Konata, when Ivo ( Finale spoilers )
(*Might switch these two around, considering that Konata will first become playable upon hearing Kagami at her front door. But then again, Konata would be somewhat braver than Miyuki, despite neither of them initially having any real experience with combat or adventure.)
So, even though they'd more likely travel in a cluster in the fanfic (and this did come up between me and Chelle when I was working on the first chapter; lines are just easier to animate or program), everything above already settles things logically enough about the party in exploration mode. Combat mode is the next issue to arise: Under my own ideas, with six or fewer PCs, the party will form just one row expanding from the bottom-center of the screen, in the order of which everyone is lined up outside. Exceeding six, though, it would then form two rows, the bottom row with either one member less than the top when the number if PCs is odd or an equal number when the number is even. That means that when Maria first joins, Rokuna, Mondo, Kagami, and Tsukasa would form the top row, while Konata, Miyuki, and Maria form the bottom row. However, at the party's completion, Rokuna, Mondo, and all the main four would comprise the top, while everyone else forms the bottom.
This is where Jake points out an issue. Most notably, Tsukasa, being the weakest of the main four, should not be at the front in front of someone who can fight better.
Right now, this is obvious material for Starbound. Even Earthbound 199X has a point at which Jeff formulates a formation based on everyone's capabilities and weaknesses, which involves Paula staying behind him (unlike in Earthbound itself), and that is something Rokuna might just put some thought into between Maria and Davì's entries into the party. Miyuki, Tsukasa, and Maria would all form the back row, and she could stand between Mondo and Kagami (due to her own healing powers and Kagami's protective nature particularly of Tsukasa).
Will need to put some more thought into the game, though, because how well each character functions in battle would depend more on the player. Furthermore, if I wanted interchangeability in battle, I would more likely set up a set of fixed spaces, rather than one or two expanding rows. I know the field formation changes without changing the battle formation (which is an inversion of this, but still the same concept) when someone is diamondized or unconscious in Earthbound or Earthbound Zero, but those are things you don't want happening when you can help it, (and also something I plan on eliminating, mainly because they're annoying due to limited opportunities to revive anyone). I also know that Super Mario RPG made use of both an expanding line formation and character slots, but that obviously had something to do with its limit of three characters in battle.
I do understand, though, that the reason Earthbound's battle formation isn't negotiable, is because it would be redundant if you could switch characters around. Most enemies' attacks (including PK Fire, since your party forms only one row anyway) target either one character or your entire party; the only exceptions are bombs and defeat-triggered explosions, which hit up to three adjacent characters and deal more damage to the actual target than to the other two.
So, yeah, still need time to consider things here.
Jake had a lot to address about what I had written, but I've been having enough thoughts about one thing in particular that it seems more practical to describe here than to try to wedge into the file.
To start off, one thing I like about the way parties function throughout the Earthbound trilogy, is how they all line up single-file in fixed orders (mostly in order of their first entry, though there are exceptions).
Here, everyone's order in line when present would normally be Rokuna, Mondo, Kagami, Tsukasa, Konata*, Miyuki*, Maria, Davì, Nurşen, Claire, Desiré, Robin, and then anyone joining just briefly. Barring three of them, this technically is the order in which most of them will be first playable. Kagami is the first one you play as when Miyuki calls her house, then you play as Tsukasa when Miyuki actually arrives there, and then Miyuki joins Tsukasa upon being greeted. However, Rokuna and Mondo are the main exceptions here; Rokuna, despite being the fifth one to become playable, has the most pivotal role in things, and given his relationship with her, it would only be fitting for Mondo to assume second place despite being the sixth one you recruit. And then there will be times when someone besides Rokuna will take the lead, such as Mondo and Miyuki, when paying one last visit to their respective houses before the party embarks on their real journey; Robin, who is in familiar, battle-ridden territory when the party first meets her and is already a seasoned fighter; and Konata, when Ivo ( Finale spoilers )
(*Might switch these two around, considering that Konata will first become playable upon hearing Kagami at her front door. But then again, Konata would be somewhat braver than Miyuki, despite neither of them initially having any real experience with combat or adventure.)
So, even though they'd more likely travel in a cluster in the fanfic (and this did come up between me and Chelle when I was working on the first chapter; lines are just easier to animate or program), everything above already settles things logically enough about the party in exploration mode. Combat mode is the next issue to arise: Under my own ideas, with six or fewer PCs, the party will form just one row expanding from the bottom-center of the screen, in the order of which everyone is lined up outside. Exceeding six, though, it would then form two rows, the bottom row with either one member less than the top when the number if PCs is odd or an equal number when the number is even. That means that when Maria first joins, Rokuna, Mondo, Kagami, and Tsukasa would form the top row, while Konata, Miyuki, and Maria form the bottom row. However, at the party's completion, Rokuna, Mondo, and all the main four would comprise the top, while everyone else forms the bottom.
This is where Jake points out an issue. Most notably, Tsukasa, being the weakest of the main four, should not be at the front in front of someone who can fight better.
Right now, this is obvious material for Starbound. Even Earthbound 199X has a point at which Jeff formulates a formation based on everyone's capabilities and weaknesses, which involves Paula staying behind him (unlike in Earthbound itself), and that is something Rokuna might just put some thought into between Maria and Davì's entries into the party. Miyuki, Tsukasa, and Maria would all form the back row, and she could stand between Mondo and Kagami (due to her own healing powers and Kagami's protective nature particularly of Tsukasa).
Will need to put some more thought into the game, though, because how well each character functions in battle would depend more on the player. Furthermore, if I wanted interchangeability in battle, I would more likely set up a set of fixed spaces, rather than one or two expanding rows. I know the field formation changes without changing the battle formation (which is an inversion of this, but still the same concept) when someone is diamondized or unconscious in Earthbound or Earthbound Zero, but those are things you don't want happening when you can help it, (and also something I plan on eliminating, mainly because they're annoying due to limited opportunities to revive anyone). I also know that Super Mario RPG made use of both an expanding line formation and character slots, but that obviously had something to do with its limit of three characters in battle.
I do understand, though, that the reason Earthbound's battle formation isn't negotiable, is because it would be redundant if you could switch characters around. Most enemies' attacks (including PK Fire, since your party forms only one row anyway) target either one character or your entire party; the only exceptions are bombs and defeat-triggered explosions, which hit up to three adjacent characters and deal more damage to the actual target than to the other two.
So, yeah, still need time to consider things here.