Sientir's Blog

For quite some time now, I've been trying to make an RPG in RPG Maker MV . Each time, I've run into problems, but I've also learned from those problems. They're pretty variable, but they all result in me getting utterly bogged down in particulars that drain me of all interest or motivation in continuing to make my current game. Along the way, I've also learned a few things about RPGs in general, both from my own gaming experience and from watching other's playthroughs. I'd like to share some of these thoughts, because I know doing so will help me better process the lessons I've been learning. Before I really get into it, though, something that's important to know about me as a creative is that I'm a pantser. (A word from the writing world that refers to "flying by the seat of your pants." People like me need to figure things out as they go. It stands in contrast to "plotters," who plan everything out ahead of time, and then ma...

In FromSoftware's Elden Ring  there is an extensive weapon customization system called "Ashes of War." This system allows you to change a weapon's special skill, and it's also linked with the infusion system that lets you change its damage properties. However, not all weapons can have Ashes of War applied to them, typically because they have unique skills. These weapons usually upgrade with Somber Smithing Stones instead of regular Smithing Stones. In other words, it's generally correct to say that weapons that upgrade with regular Smithing Stones can have Ashes of War applied to them, while weapons that upgrade with Somber Smithing Stones cannot. This all makes sense. It's cool to have unique weapons with unique skills in the game, as Souls games have traditionally had, and to have those unique weapons upgrade with their own material, again, as Souls games have traditionally done. This format works well, since it means regular weapons aren't competin...

I've been replaying Pokémon Omega Ruby , and it's been getting me thinking about the element system in my own game, Psychopomps Are Missing . I have 9 types in Psychopomps : Slashing, Striking, Piercing, Fire, Ice, Lightning, Arcane, Divine, and Abyssal. I like these types, as I feel like they give me good coverage for the full range of damage types I want in the game. The way I'm using them is very analogous to Pokémon: weaknesses and resistances to types use multiples of two. However, unlike Pokémon, what weaknesses and resistances exist is not immediately obvious. I do try to be consistent among enemy types. For example, the bandits in an early area are generally weak to Arcane damage (there are caster versions that are weak to Piercing instead). However, what types enemies will be weak to is not obvious, nor is there some clear mnemonic one can use to remember. Again, I try to make it feasible to group enemies into categories to remember that way, but this only goes so ...

Last night, as I lay in my bed with the intention of falling asleep, my brain, as it so often does, had other plans: thinking about game design. Specifically, I was contemplating something I'd been noticing as I've been replaying Dark Souls III in preparation for a video retrospective series on the trilogy, which is that it seems like I've spent the entire game making my character and her build, which means there won't be any game left in which to actually use that build. Put bluntly, I don't like this. Granted, New Game+ exists, thankfully, but nevertheless, it got a thought-train rolling. I also thought about how that contrasted with my experiences with Guild Wars 1 , a game that generally wants you to get set up very early and that has a lot of game to experience after you've got your build put together (as much as "a" build is a thing in that game, anyway—it encourages experimentation and variety). I much prefer this, where I can feel like I'v...

I recently released an article introducing the game I'm working on in RPG Maker MV , which I'm calling Psychopomps Are Missing (at least until I come up with a finalized title). While discussing it with a Patron afterwards, he pointed out that, while I'd talked a lot about the game's design and mechanics, I'd failed to give a clear sense of what my final goal is or how to determine how close to achieving that goal I am. I intend to correct that oversight here, and to release regular articles in the future to communicate my progress on the game. I'll consider Psychopomps Are Missing completed when the twelve world regions are finished (the ten primary game regions of The Abyss, Wandering Wood, Ashdala, Avarei, Bowan, Kingdom of Dolfy, Ghymnipolis, United Streets, Cybernight City, and the mashup location that I should come up with a general term for that's a combination of two destroyed regions, plus the Pocket Dimension and Crossroads of Reality), the over...

So there I was, thinking about things that I wish were a bit different in RPG Maker MV, when I started thinking about the drop table system. You know, the thing that looks like this: I personally find this to be entirely insufficient for three reasons. One, I can only have three items in the list; two, I can only have an item quantity of one drop per thing; and three, the drop probabilities are in the form 1/N (where N is a whole number). This last one is notably annoying because it means I can't have drop chances between 100% and 50%. So, like I said, I got to thinking about this, and that's when it hit me: I could easily write a plugin to solve these problems! Well, to easily solve two of these problems, anyway...changing the number of entries in the list is not so easy. So I'll do just that: write a plugin to change how drop chances work and to enable drop quantities of more than one. I decided I wanted to share this process, primarily my methodology and how I approach f...