@caeles maybe implementing a comment "like" system would be the best way to award points. It would disincentivize the act of posting throwaway comments. I myself don't treat points with much importance, they are a somewhat nice reward if you post something people like, but when somebody's goal is to get points rather than try to make constructive additions of to the site, it can become a problem.
I know there isn't anything that can be done about this until we have access to the code, but another suggestion is to edit the points system to not give people points for commenting on a submission. I like the idea of the comments section being a place where other users can offer criticism, praise, or ask questions. But there are a few people who are abusing the comments for points. When someone is posting a generic comment like "sweet" on almost every new submission, it feels a little insincere. Maybe other people don't feel the same way, and I probably shouldn't care, but I guess I would just rather have an empty comment section on one of my entries rather than someone saying "cool."
more ambient melodic music, more music that is quick and to the point, separate songs but with related instrumentation, and more foley SFX. That's definitely something to go on.
There is kind of a conflict of what route should be taken when it comes to sound. Composers/sound designers could try making VERY specific sounds with the risk that no one will use them, or they can go more generic but it might not fit someone's game as well. Like Kagerato was saying, Metroid's music has a good blend with the environment, but to make music like that, it is easier if you know the actual environment it will be in beforehand. I just released a SciFi ambience pack, but most of the sounds are rather specific to certain environments, so I'm not sure how useful they will be to people. Either way, I have a sizeable library of samples and synth patches so I'd rather not let it go to waste.
I don't know if it's an easy fix, but maybe the site could have an anti-spam feature in which there is a cooldown period between starting new forum topics? I know I've logged on and seen 3 or 4 of the exact same bot-uploaded forum posts all done within a span of 15 minutes or so. Unless there is something I'm overlooking, I don't foresee a 30 minute or hour wait between creating a new forum topic being extremely detrimental to the site. If you are eeking to post another topic right after you just posted one, I don't think it's too much to ask to wait a little bit.
I understand that it is as easy as using the "report spam" button, but not everyone has the sense of community to do that, or they don't have the time to monitor the forums. In my opinion, it makes the site feel safer and more secure if preventative measures are taken rather than relying on the community to clean up the spam after the fact.
I haven't been on long, but in my time here I've noticed some things on the site that could be drastically improved. Also, I've noticed a lot of bot spam in the forums. Usually people flag this quickly, but it doesn't give a great impression to new users, and it doesn't exactly give off the feeling of security, especially considering that email phishing scam a while back. .
One system which makes business games very fun for me is having a "stock market" style system. If you have (unlikely) ever played the game, Drug Wars, for the graphing calculator, it is similar to that.
In Drug Wars, you play as a drug dealer who buys and sells various drugs and can fly to different locations. You can go to Jamaica, buy a bunch of marijuana, then fly to Chicago and sell it at a higher price. Although this game is meant sort of as a joke, the underlying "buy low sell high" system is an excellent one for encouraging the player to make savvy business decisions.
For your game, you could have shipments of items you need to order. You could have random events which would increase or decrease prices. Something like, "another business is in competition with your current supplier for X item, prices have decreased!", "Your supplier for X is having an out-of-business sale, prices severely reduced!." Something along those lines. I would say just having a system wherein knowing when to buy something is a learned skill and knowing when to sell is important.
You could try having multiple suppliers to choose from for your products with different benefits. Say one supplier will give you a discount after a certain amount of time you are buying from them. Another will give you your first shipment for free but keeps you in a contract for a certain amount of time.
You are a legend.
--In the arctic, flying over penguins and narwhals
--on a resort island, bothering tourists
--in a factory, flying through conveyer belts and machines
--in a volcanic cave, dodging lava flow (think Alladin in the giant sand tiger cave)
--Flying through the olympics, dodging tennis players and javelin throwers
That's the best I got.
@caeles maybe implementing a comment "like" system would be the best way to award points. It would disincentivize the act of posting throwaway comments. I myself don't treat points with much importance, they are a somewhat nice reward if you post something people like, but when somebody's goal is to get points rather than try to make constructive additions of to the site, it can become a problem.
I know there isn't anything that can be done about this until we have access to the code, but another suggestion is to edit the points system to not give people points for commenting on a submission. I like the idea of the comments section being a place where other users can offer criticism, praise, or ask questions. But there are a few people who are abusing the comments for points. When someone is posting a generic comment like "sweet" on almost every new submission, it feels a little insincere. Maybe other people don't feel the same way, and I probably shouldn't care, but I guess I would just rather have an empty comment section on one of my entries rather than someone saying "cool."
Currently, I'm doing all my stuff CC until I make a name for myself. I want to be the Kenney of game music :)
Good to hear some input.
So far I hear:
more ambient melodic music, more music that is quick and to the point, separate songs but with related instrumentation, and more foley SFX. That's definitely something to go on.
There is kind of a conflict of what route should be taken when it comes to sound. Composers/sound designers could try making VERY specific sounds with the risk that no one will use them, or they can go more generic but it might not fit someone's game as well. Like Kagerato was saying, Metroid's music has a good blend with the environment, but to make music like that, it is easier if you know the actual environment it will be in beforehand. I just released a SciFi ambience pack, but most of the sounds are rather specific to certain environments, so I'm not sure how useful they will be to people. Either way, I have a sizeable library of samples and synth patches so I'd rather not let it go to waste.
I don't know if it's an easy fix, but maybe the site could have an anti-spam feature in which there is a cooldown period between starting new forum topics? I know I've logged on and seen 3 or 4 of the exact same bot-uploaded forum posts all done within a span of 15 minutes or so. Unless there is something I'm overlooking, I don't foresee a 30 minute or hour wait between creating a new forum topic being extremely detrimental to the site. If you are eeking to post another topic right after you just posted one, I don't think it's too much to ask to wait a little bit.
I understand that it is as easy as using the "report spam" button, but not everyone has the sense of community to do that, or they don't have the time to monitor the forums. In my opinion, it makes the site feel safer and more secure if preventative measures are taken rather than relying on the community to clean up the spam after the fact.
Just my constructive feedback on the matter.
I haven't been on long, but in my time here I've noticed some things on the site that could be drastically improved. Also, I've noticed a lot of bot spam in the forums. Usually people flag this quickly, but it doesn't give a great impression to new users, and it doesn't exactly give off the feeling of security, especially considering that email phishing scam a while back. .
One system which makes business games very fun for me is having a "stock market" style system. If you have (unlikely) ever played the game, Drug Wars, for the graphing calculator, it is similar to that.
In Drug Wars, you play as a drug dealer who buys and sells various drugs and can fly to different locations. You can go to Jamaica, buy a bunch of marijuana, then fly to Chicago and sell it at a higher price. Although this game is meant sort of as a joke, the underlying "buy low sell high" system is an excellent one for encouraging the player to make savvy business decisions.
For your game, you could have shipments of items you need to order. You could have random events which would increase or decrease prices. Something like, "another business is in competition with your current supplier for X item, prices have decreased!", "Your supplier for X is having an out-of-business sale, prices severely reduced!." Something along those lines. I would say just having a system wherein knowing when to buy something is a learned skill and knowing when to sell is important.
You could try having multiple suppliers to choose from for your products with different benefits. Say one supplier will give you a discount after a certain amount of time you are buying from them. Another will give you your first shipment for free but keeps you in a contract for a certain amount of time.
Just a few ideas to consider.
Thanks for the advice!
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