So... let's start our own game development group.

[Boaradoor]

If it's 2D remember that you've always got the option to scan in individual drawings to create your sprites ala Earthworm Jim & Comix Zone, or for a more recent example of this, BlazBlue.

While scanned in sprites look better that pixel art sprites I do know that the animation process is slightly more time consuming than the pixel art route but it's payoffs are much nicer. Just look at BlazBlue Vs KOF XII for a good example.

Still, pixel art sprites can look damn close and with a lot frame work of work will move just as smooth as scanned in sprites.

The scanning technique is really effective for backgrounds though as it greatly reduces the time it would take to create it out of individual tiles.

Yes! I agree! Scanned drawings look 10x better than pixel art.
Backgrounds too. It would be much easier, but you couldn't use the tiles for collision detection either!

[the7k]

BlazBlue and other games still use Pixel Art - they're just Pixel Art that is traced on top of drawings. The only reason KOFXII is more noticeable as Pixel Art is because it's graphics are 2x that of standard sprites, while BlazBlue is 4x that of standard sprites.

So, really, it's just a matter of being bigger. As far as I know, we haven't seen any big 2D games that actually use non-pixel methods, such as Vectoring.

Also, having to draw out animations is no easy task. You'd essentially have to being a cartoon animator.

[REPO Man]

Okay, so for our first project, let's decide... what kind of game we should make.

I vote for tower defense.

It should be done with Flash, and for a tutorial on how to make one in Flash, go here for part1 and here for part2.

Also, can anyone out there do music for the project? I kinda want something NES-like.

And the theme should be something not done with a TD game yet, so I'm thinking either cyberpunk, steampunk, ancient Egyptian mythology or Hell (there's a TD game for the iPhone where Hell is where the creeps come from).

[classicgamer5]

engine001 is extremely easy to use and customizable.

[lisalover1]

Okay, so for our first project, let's decide... what kind of game we should make.

I vote for tower defense.

It should be done with Flash, and for a tutorial on how to make one in Flash, go here for part1 and here for part2.

Also, can anyone out there do music for the project? I kinda want something NES-like.

And the theme should be something not done with a TD game yet, so I'm thinking either cyberpunk, steampunk, ancient Egyptian mythology or Hell (there's a TD game for the iPhone where Hell is where the creeps come from).

A tower defense game? Come on, we can do better than that. The problem with the genre is that there's so little room for improvement and creativity. It's a good idea for a test of the team's game making skills, but I don't think it should be a real "first game". While I do say the first game should start out easy [maybe a 2-D platformer], it should still have some creative concepts. For example, I had an idea recently for such a game. I haven't found anything on the internet that says something like this already exists, so it may still work. The game would be a 2-player co-op platformer, where one person controls the on-screen character, as in most platformers, while the other player is given a gallery of screens to choose from. These screens would show up as the next screen that player 1 would enter. [i.e. If Player 2 chooses a screen with a pit in the center, the next screen to be progressed by player 1 would have a pit in the center.] However, P2 can only use a screen once a level, and some of the later levels have certain criteria for the next screen. Every level or so, new screens are added and removed, and new backgrounds and screen themes are made for each world, as well as world-specific screens. If P1 beats the set high score for a level, then P2 unlocks one or two new screens for that level. Obviously, a game like this could only be done on portable systems, or with system-linked home consoles. Still, I think the idea has some potential, and I just wanted to share it.

[Boaradoor]

I think a 2D platformer would be a good start too! I never really like Tower Defense but that is just me. What the team decides should be what we work on.

[lisalover1]

I think my idea might be a bit too much for a first project, since it would either require coding for network multiplayer, or a system link. Anyway, I could contribute to the project by making music. Since the project is going for a retro feel, I think a software music synthesizer would do the trick. Let me know if I could be of any help.

[REPO Man]

Okay, so let's go with a platformer.

Now... how can we make it original yet familiar? Think "Braid".

[Mod_Man_Extreme]

Hmmm, we've gotta get Dr.Cirno in on this, I know he's been itching to break-in his new Yamaha DX-21 and could help on the music side.

[Boaradoor]

* Bathory (working title): In this Castlevania-esque game, you play a woman who finds herself drawn in to a plot hatched by necromancers to resurrect Elizabeth Bathory, known to many as "The Countess of Blood". In this game, use any weapons you can get to stop all sorts of baddies and demons. Another neat feature is branching level progression based on multiple paths in levels and in-game time.

I really liked this idea