One day a little two player game found its way to our hard disk. It
was named BattleXII WB and was after a short time of confusion really
funny to play. But as time passed many bugs and gameplay mistakes arised that we
wouldn't live with. Instead of sending a bug report to the author
like others do we started to code our own version... ...three weeks of hard work later our own version was finished,
called
Both players own a base at their screen half. It consists of ten
spaceship hangars, the generator and a fixed defence lasercannon. At the beginning each player has 5 fighters (2 special and 3 normal)
and 5 bomber (same splitting). The fighters are a bit faster, armed
with a lasercannon. They are planned for short range fights. The
bombers are able to drop their bombs at higher range, but have to
return after every shot to get new ammunition. The destiny of the game is to eliminate all enemy ships. It may be
helpful to destroy the others base and its repair facilities.
Good programmers are lazy. Concerning this point we are great
programmers. :-) The game was originally never planned to get
published, so we renounced of all optimizations and details. That's
the cause for the giant hardware demands: CPU 030/50, the more the better Graphics board necessary!!! That may sound very much for such a little game, but at the beginning
it was aimed to work only with our system. If you're interested in it, visit the Binary Dreams page. Between the Lines (short: BTL; Don't confuse this with Shadowrun) is
a 3D realtime action RPG. The idea behind is quite old, but it had
to wait until the technology was able to handle our demands :) Its
simply the dream of a RPG that doesn't need any text to tell you
what's happening, only having the rules everybody already knows.
Just real life, taken to an strange new world.
The Story is not sure yet. We've so much ideas, it's impossible to
get them all in one plot. The only thing sure is that there will be
no brave chosen warrior, no big bad guy and no happy end. All people
you encounter in the game will have their own aims, their behaviour
will depend on yours. Maybe the help you if you're friendly, maybe
they hate you because you killed friends of them. Even your own aims
aren't determined, it all depends on your decisions. Of course, it's
impossible to kill all your enemies yourself. Most of your opponents
are as good as you in fighting matters or even better. So you have
to use tricks to kill them or you ask someone more mighty to help
you. Or you simply avoid the fight by trying a different way to
achieve your aim. It's all up to you.
The game will offer you as much freedom as possible, in an easy and
intuitive way to act. go, Run, crawl, jump, climb, attack, defend,
look... everything is possible by the mouse and a few keys. Using
the mouse and its keys you control your own hands which do the rest
then. For example, opening a door is done by simply grabbing the
doorhandle and dragging it. Closing it is similar. To activate a
lever switch you just need to grab it and drag it down. To fill a
flask just take it in your hand and hold it in the water. It
couldn't be simpler. Physics are also very important. Sharpness,
weight or range of your weapon will be simulated by the speed the
weapon reacts upon your input or similar symptoms. You'll feel it
more than see it. The monsters will also be live calculated instead
of using fixed anim phases. So the beasts will move freely to react
on all situations they encounter, not determined on fixed reactions.
Be also prepared to encounter many animals that are only there to eat
and to be eaten, a possibility for you to get some food to sell or
eat. Speaking to people is also an important part of the game.
Maybe multiple choice, maybe something completely different, but no
separate screen. In fact, you'll never see yourself from outside,
all talks and actions are seen with your own eyes.
I'm dreaming of giving this game multiplayer capabilities via
internet. Live your life in the net, be a pirate, a trader, a
mercenary, a thief. Be member of a guild or a secret society. Talk
to other players, deal with them, solve quests together or simply
fight them for the expensive armour they wear.
An AmigaNG. That's the computer this game is aimed at. But until
then PPC, fast 3D Hardware and 32 MB RAM. Later surely more. The
engine uses Warp3D and RtgMaster.
Most of the things written above are only a wish list, I don't know
how much of it I'm capable to realize. But it will surely take years
until it is finished. The only thing of the game that exists so far
is a provisional 3D engine. The editor is developed further,
offering all the things that are needed to build, texture and
enlighten a world. Nothing more so far.