Idea I have a great game idea! But I don't know how to pitch it...

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UnknownDevil666

Guest
Hi all,

I have a game idea that I've been thinking about for some time now, and am just now starting to document it. Although I have a pretty clear vision of the game and its underlying systems, I just can't seem to figure out a pitch for the game, probably because I'm not certain of the target audience or the player experience.

So I'm hoping anyone here at the forums could take a look at the idea and give me their opinion on it, or simply a suggestion for the pitch/high concept statement. Also, I'm having difficulty simply writing things down and the documentation process as a whole, so if anybody as any tips on that, I'd be super grateful.

Thanks for any help! The game's description and pitch are in the spoiler just below:

PITCH: Ghost Train is a top-down horror exploration game about a runaway boy stranded in an Old West ghost town.

The player’s narrative objective is to find fuel for their steam train to leave town. To find it, the player explores the world through puzzle-solving means: find keys, decrypt safe codes, discover hidden areas, etc. These mechanics exist primarily to segment the world into “levels”, maintaining a sequential narrative and giving the player a sense of accomplishment and/or progression.

As you progress through the narrative, you encounter “horrors”, ghosts of the town’s residents, and they are not friendly. These encounters come in various forms and so they may be conquered quite differently. For example, one might jump at you in a sudden quick-time event and another you might simply have to stealthily avoid. But you don’t ever actually fight or beat the horrors, just avoid them. If they do finally catch you, then the screen fades to black. . . .And then fades back in, showing your shivering body crouched on the floor.

The horrors aren’t real. Rather, they are figments of the boy’s terrified imagination run rampant, but he doesn’t realize it. After the boy realizes he is no longer captured by the horror, he gets up and the player can move along as if nothing happened. Well, not exactly. Without any actual death that may cause the player to backtrack, there would be no fear of loss in the game, which might put off players. Instead, when the boy believes he has been captured, he is filled with terror.

The terror mechanism is a scale of how frightened the boy is throughout the game, and based on this scale, it may influence the player’s ability to do things, like escape later horrors or explore certain areas. Your level of terror towards the end of the game, where the game comes to a climax and the stakes are truly raised, will also influence the ending. Terror is influenced by a mixture of explorative factors and evasion of future horrors: if you successfully evade a horror, the boy becomes slightly less terrified and successive evasions increase the decrementation of terror. On the other hand, getting “captured” by the horrors increases terror dramatically. But horrors aren’t the only terrifying thing. Exploration affects not only your level of terror, but also the appearance of horrors.

Among the things you may inspect around the world, there are plenty that expand on the lore of the town, such as newspaper articles about mass tragedies or wanted signs of devilish outlaws. Such things strike the boy with apprehension, that raises terror. Beyond that, because the horrors are figments of the boy’s imagination, horrors of those stories will manifest later in the game. If those horrors aren’t conquered, then terror is increased tragically, but if they can be overcome, then terror is greatly reduced, as the boy has been able to conquer a great fear.

Most of the information given here isn’t granted to the player immediately, if at all. At least, not directly. Part of the player experience I wish to craft is this sense of discovery or mystery behind the mechanics, which requires giving only hints as to what’s really going on. For example, every time the player is captured by a horror, a visual effect is displayed during the moment of darkness that scales with the level of terror the boy feels. Some extra notes on player experience:
  • Besides the underlying mechanics, should have their own feelings of unease through the chime of a clock striking 3:00AM, the recurring presence of a gallows in the middle of town, the mangled movement of a grotesque horror, and so on.

  • The variance in narratives also allows for a social aspect of the game to arise, where players can share their own experience of the game with players who crafted different narratives.

  • Exploration is satisfying to the player because observable objects (not all of which are important) will be indicated to the player so that the player doesn’t have to check every nook and cranny of the room, and the dialogue boxes given are through the perspective of the boy himself, rather than a neutral voice.
 

Smiechu

Member
Just like above... just do it...

The question is, what are your abilities? Do you only have this idea? Or you have some talents on drawing/painting/storytelling/music... etc?? and want to expand them into a game?? From "programming" side I don't see any bigger challenges...

The problem with horror/thriller games is that they base on climate / drama / tension building... and to achive it you need a very specific and very well made mix of graphic/art, story and music/sfx.

In my opiniom the idea is nice, but you need a strong team for this...
 

JackTurbo

Member

Your concept does actually sound pretty cool, however the hard truth is: simply having a good idea and pitch for a game doesn't mean a lot, heck there's a whole subreddit for game ideas. The reality is that game dev is a huge amount of hard work, having ideas on the other hand is comparatively easy.

If you want to make your game a reality you'll have to at least make a start on something more substantial than a simple pitch. This could be art assets and mockups of the various screens or a basic prototype. Once you've demonstrated your commitment and the skills you bring to the table this way, you'll find it much easier to build a team.

As for your actual pitch it sounds fine to me, you could do with creating an elevator pitch though (basically a super short tldr version), to hook people in. And the actual concept does sound really cool.

One thought though, being a steam train couldnt anything that burns be used as fuel?
 

sylvain_l

Member
pitch seems ok for me.
I'm more concerned by the mix horror with puzzle&hidden object. It doesn't work well for me as player
if I have to give you a explaination I would say it's because horror works on emmotionnal mechanisms while at the opposite puzzle&hidden object genra for me I rely on analysis/logic
(well let's say the sure thing, I'm not in your target audience for that game)


@JackTurbo you can't easly change fuel because wood and choal (or oil) don't have same BTU. (think it as for petrol and diesel car, really not a good idea to use the wrong one. Edit: in fact same goes for for diesel & petrol locomotive).
 
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Viper

Guest
There is an official demo for top-down shooter game, something like 'Surfaces'. Just use other's pictures/images for sprites to make a model for the future editing, and read some tips and tutorials to get better in programming this game. I'd join this but I believe I don't have time... Good luck.
 
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UnknownDevil666

Guest
Thanks for all of the responses guys!

(For the "JUST DO IT" advice) I probably have the ability, or can at least gain the ability during implementation, to program the game (I've prototyped basic mechanics already) and I do have a potential graphic artist that could help me out, so its not infeasible to put the game together. The biggest barrier to entry I feel right now is properly organizing code and assets for a full fledged project, not letting things get too unwieldy. But, admittedly, I do get bogged down in unnecessary details, so I could use a "stop thinking and just do" approach.

As for your actual pitch it sounds fine to me, you could do with creating an elevator pitch though (basically a super short tldr version), to hook people in. And the actual concept does sound really cool.
Oh, in case it wasn't clear, the "pitch" was supposed to be the first line, which seems pretty weak. It doesn't capture the core of the game, though I'm not sure if it even should.

I'm more concerned by the mix horror with puzzle&hidden object. It doesn't work well for me as player
if I have to give you a explaination I would say it's because horror works on emmotionnal mechanisms while at theopposite puzzle&hidden object genra for me I rely on analysis/logic
This is a really good point. The games I have some inspiration from are those horror RPGMaker games like The Witch's House, which do include some kind of light, puzzle-like mechanics that leads the player along. So yes, I'll keep in mind the "puzzle" vs horror issue.

Thanks again for the input everyone!
 
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qureshimarwat

Guest
Don't just tell it to any one hire some guys on freelancer sites and they will develop the game for you.
 
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Wunjo

Guest
Anyone can think up of a great idea, the aspect that it needs for others to take it seriously is progress shown that it's in the reality.
Focus on what your capable of whether that be art,programming ect, to the best of your ability and it will bear fruit.
And don't give up if something doesn't work. A great concept come from building something it up overtime.
 
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FROGANUS

Guest
sounds like a good enough idea, though kinda complicated.
how did this boy come to acquire his own steam engine?
 
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