So Exilement had a great idea for a ragdoll game back in this thread I started.

It's a game where you build elaborate contraptions in order to brutally kill and maim ragdolls. You get points for the ragdolls you kill, perhaps depending on how horribly you manage to kill them, and then use those points to get more and better building parts. For example, there would be structural things like blocks and boards, but also levers, ropes, weights, spikes, spinning blades, and whatever else we can think up.

In terms of the three reward types that make a game fun, this game satisfies competence by its level-based progression and unlocking of new building parts. Also, the visceral action of the player's machine emphasizes the feeling of mastery and effectiveness when a ragdoll is successfully killed. It satisfies autonomy in the ability to design whatever sort of contraption you want within your abilities and your in-game resources. Each unlocked building part offers a new opportunity for experimentation. Finally, it satisfies relatedness similarly to Line Rider in the ability to share your unique designs with others. This can either be through YouTube or directly facilitated by the game with a copy'n'paste-able killing machine format.

This is a game that I think is feasible and could be quite successful. I have a few smaller projects I'd like to complete before I take on this bigger one, for practice mostly, but I would like to start this game in the fairly near future. Meaning: we haven't started yet! We need to solidify the design first.

What I ask of you is that if you have an interest in contributing to the design of this project, post written suggestions, concept art drawings, or even concept animations if you're up to it. They don't necessarily have to be great, but for now we're just brainstorming.

Let the concept art begin!



Here are some good concept animations that people have contributed, from oldest to newest:

Quote from Rombie

Quote from Lone Wolf

Quote from Plaguesoul

[SWF="http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h136/Plaguedsoul666/ragdoll.swf"]http://i63.photobucket.com/albums/h136/Plaguedsoul666/ragdoll.swf" width="300" height="300"[/SWF]

Quote from Lone Wolf

Quote from coopercrue

Quote from coopercrue

Quote from coopercrue

Quote from coopercrue

Quote from Lone Wolf

Quote from coopercrue

Quote from SoulEater

Quote from Lone Wolf

Quote from drocksta

[SWF="http://www.swfup.com/uploads/swf-161899.swf"]http://www.swfup.com/uploads/swf-161899.swf" width="0" height="0"[/SWF]

Quote from Raffeh

[SWF="http://www.trportfolio.net/upload/uploads/908911earthquake.swf"]http://www.trportfolio.net/upload/uploads/908911earthquake.swf" width="300" height="200"[/SWF]

Quote from Raffeh

[SWF="http://www.truploader.com/uploads/914183connectorstiffness.swf"]http://www.truploader.com/uploads/914183connectorstiffness.swf" width="300" height="200"[/SWF]

Quote from Phosphorus

Quote from Phosphorus

Quote from pheonixslayer21

Quote from JamMan

Quote from JamMan

Quote from JamMan

These concepts don't quite match our intentions for the game, but they are still interesting:
sticrush
coopercrue
Kagedanji
coopercrue
mironic



If you make a concept animation for the game, we'll post it up here! :D

Here's what I was thinking could be the starter items. Plenty to kill a ragdoll with.

I'm thinking you can either change the size or mass of all of the objects below aside from the connectors, and the bar's size will only be changable.



Here are two rudimentary structures I made in literally 6 minutes in Flash:

http://img507.imageshack.us/my.php?image=previewve1.swf

The idea is really good.
Maybe bombs? The explosion could set things off balance... but it would need...

Fire? For burning ropes, causing pullleys to drop, or igniting a bomb?
Also burning the guy.


Why not the six machines?

Wheel and Axle (done)
Lever (done)
Wedge?
Screw?
Pulley?
Inclined Plane? (ramps?)

this reminds me of a game. where this guy is ur friend but u can hurt him and place bombs everywhere and he goes flying around.

btw good idea

Those are great, Exilement, and thanks everyone for the suggestions. I have some stuff I'm going to post tomorrow or this weekend, but please continue to discuss your ideas. :)

Besides for ideas for the actual gameplay, concept art for the look and feel of the game would also be great.

looks like a great Idea makes me think of "the incredable machine" games from way back when, maybe ball weights? that move down slopes and stuff, trampolines to launch weights/ragdoll places, and something that we should all love to kill the doll with, a paper shredder =D

This is like that interactive buddy game. And that is what it is called *jynx*, the interactive buddy game. Here's a link.

@ Exilement


You also have to consider not only the mass, but how high the object was dropped from.


For example, if the wieght was dropped from the top of the screen, it would possibly be falling at terminal velocity (that is, with regular gravity)


Thus, dealing more damage.


And you can also implement the mass into that too. If the object was heavier, it would reach terminal velocity faster than one weighing less.

just pointing it out.

This could be a coding nightmare, good luck with it.

I see this as a "Garry's Mod" style thing; building catapults and crushing machines is endlessly fun on that game.

I have LOADS of ideas for this xD.

- A cage witch can trap stickmen until you decide to kill them either by using another trap on the cage to kill the thing inside it or squashing it under a huge weight.

- When somone walks onto a pad on the floor like lasers burst out and slice them gruesomely in half xD.

- Supersonic wave projecters witch make there heads explode randomly blood spurting everywhere.

- Mind control on the stickmen to kill eachother xD.

- Gravity powerups, Other addons.

I would like something experimantal, like differnet elements and items with diferent combinations that do different things to the ragdoll, also different environments that may change hte combinations into something wierd or cool, thats what i would like to do, and and keep updating the game to make it more interesting.:D



edit:woot first post on second page

Quote from black_parade

I have LOADS of ideas for this xD.

- A cage witch can trap stickmen until you decide to kill them either by using another trap on the cage to kill the thing inside it or squashing it under a huge weight.

- When somone walks onto a pad on the floor like lasers burst out and slice them gruesomely in half xD.

- Supersonic wave projecters witch make there heads explode randomly blood spurting everywhere.

- Mind control on the stickmen to kill eachother xD.

- Gravity powerups, Other addons.

Wow, you didn't even read what the game was about, did you?

This isn't a "LOL RANDOM WEAPONS KILL BLOOD GORE CRUSH DEATH" game. It's an actual thinking game.

@General zim, I know gravity is going to play a major part in this. I thought it'd be kind of redundant to mention it, but thanks.

I'm also thinking the easiest way to pull this off would be to have a grid system, so there's some kind of uniformity to the structures.

I might draw it later but what I'm thinking the inteface would look like is just a big white empty space.. nothing fancy. on the top would be a bar with the damage done to the ragdoll and any other specs you want to throw in there. On the bottom would be a menu of items you can use. Structural, weights, miscellaneous, etc.

I have an idea. Well in Interactive Buddy, you can put gernades and stuff in with him. So why not be able to have gernades and bombs in this? Lol, bombs on pullys, bombs on support beams, that would be awesome.

seems like a good idea but whoever was talking about gravity and terminal velocity...wow heavyer objects don't reach terminal velocity faster it actualy takes longer terminal velocity is when gravity and air resistance are even and the object stops accelerateing a wider object would reach it faster because air resist would be acting on a bigger area increasing it's force and gravity has a force of 9.8N so it forces things down at 9.8m/s/s or meters per second squared so if you fell for 1 sec u'd be falling at 9.8 meters per second 2 seconds and u'd be falling at 19.6 meters per second and if you fell for 3 seconds u'd be falling at... lets see,19.6+9.8=...29.4 meters per second

and if you didn't understand that i'm just saying he was wrong and it's realy complicated and i like to brag that i got a 97.7% on my semester test in science :Happy: