Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

A place for game announcements, and for people to discuss games being made.
Forum rules
Please read the sticky before creating a new topic. Linking to Kickstarter/Crowdfunded games requires a demo. Updates to Patreon-backed games may be posted once every 2 months. Adult content should not be posted in this forum.
Post Reply
Message
Author
User avatar
noeinan
Eileen-Class Veteran
Posts: 1153
Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:10 pm
Projects: Ren'Py QuickStart, Crimson Rue
Organization: Statistically Unlikely Games
Deviantart: noeinan
Github: noeinan
Location: Washington State, USA
Contact:

Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#1 Post by noeinan »

Image
"Til Valhall!"
Logo pending.
SETTING
Drawing from the tabletop role playing game Heavy Gear by Dream Pod 9, the Heavy Gear Fan Game takes place on Terra Nova, a former Earth colony, some 4,000 years in the future. Terra Nova is a super-earth exoplanet: it is slightly larger than Earth, but significantly less dense, resulting in gravity of 1.1G. Its slower spin rate means that a single Terra Novan day is close to 36 Terran hours. While Terra Nova is located within the Goldilocks zone of its old orange-hued sun, Helios, this zone is situated much closer to the star, meaning that Terra Nova completes its yearly orbit much faster. These orbits are known as cycles, and instead of months they consist of four Seasons: Winter, Spring, Summer, Autumn, each comprised of eight 6-days weeks, or 48 36-hour days. A cycle consists of 192 of these Terra Novan days, or 288 Earth days.

Unlike Earth, Terra Nova has almost no axis wobble, and thus generally does not experience very pronounced seasonal changes. This is the primary reason for the disappearance of the traditional Solar monthly gradation calendar, since seasonal changes occur gradually throughout the entire cycle, rendering monthly breakdown meaningless for purpose of meteorology. The other reason is that Terra Nova has two moons -- Hope and Charity -- both of which have irregular orbits that are not conducive to a lunar calendar.

Terra Novan calendar begins on the date Terra Nova was discovered by Earth, and the current games takes place in TN1941.

Terra Nova is primarily desert planet with little surface water, and nearly all of it is concentrated around the polar latitudes. The far North features a cooler climate with strong seasonal temperature changes and very mountainous terrain covered in deciduous and evergreen forests. The Southern hemisphere is a much more tropical jungle climate interspersed by extreme mountain ranges and vast swamplands. While surface water is a rarity outside of polar zones, the entire planet is honeycombed by a vast underground fresh water system called the MacAllen Cave Network.

The tropical and subtropical latitudes of Terra Nova are inhospitable to human life, featuring many natural hazards: temperatures of over 50 Celsius during the day, corrosive volcanic ash known as the white sand, and lethal sandstorms that can reach speeds of over 300 kph. The polar population commonly refers to the entire area as the Badlands. However, settlements and even occasional city-states can be found here. Most of these communities are focused around exploiting the naturally abundant resources found in the Badlands -- everything from rare ores to valuable gemstones to oil. Many travel to Badlands to get rich; many others escape here for political, religious, or social reasons.


A BRIEF HISTORY OF TERRA NOVA
Earth, circa 4,500AD: after an end of major ice age -- the worst one in history -- humanity rushes to reclaim the planet stolen from them by ice over two thousand years ago. This sparks a golden age unlike any other, and even as men reclaim their lost ancestral homelands, they turn their gaze back towards the stars. A study of strange particle emissions at the edge of the solar system leads to the discovery of the key technology that would make colonizing other planets possible: the Tannhauser Gate. By focusing a powerful beam of exotic radiation on a super dense particle cluster, it is discovered that its effect on the curvature of space-time can dramatically expand in both size and magnitude until space folds upon itself, creating a shortcut to a distant entangled cluster elsewhere in the galaxy. A journey of several hundred, perhaps several thousand light years can now be done within several hours.

Earth reaches out towards the stars, leaping through Tannhauser gates until it finds it Terra Nova -- the first (although not the last) of the colonizable planets found within the Tannhauser network. It is a new hope for mankind, and is carefully portioned out to the highest bidders, mostly corporations and trusts, which find that they are able to exploit its vast natural resources better than the dwindling ones back on Earth. By and large, in the first half a millennium of its existence, Terra Nova is settled prevalently via concentrated corporate camps focused on exploiting a single natural resource. This trend remains true all the way until the collapse of the colonial system.

Roughly a millennium after the discovery of the Tannhauser gate particle, Earth finds itself in a bad place. The glaciers are completely gone, but ice is far from humanity's only problem: its rapidly dwindling natural resources and a massive population explosion put living space at a great premium. Simply put, Earth is filled to capacity, full of people it can no longer support, and yet it finds itself spending much of its precious production upon developing the faraway colonies. Finally, massive unrests and a coup in the planet wide political structure coincide to allow the isolationist radical element dictate colonization policy. They waste no time shutting down colonization program in its entirety, recalling all vessels and stranding the fledgling colonies.

Terra Nova is left as a planet of perhaps several million colonists living in isolated city-states, left to their own devices on a hostile frontier planet. This is a trying time, and mankind comes close to perishing; however, after several hundred cycles, two major powers emerge above all others: the Southern Republic, a curious mix of extreme social freedom and equally extreme political repression, and the Norlight Confederacy, an almost mirror opposite, greatly valuing political freedom of those who subscribe to a particular brand of the state religion. Both of these are major superpowers who head their respective Polar Leagues: Allied Southern Territories and the Confederated Northern City-States.

Although each city-state has its own culture and values, there are some general differences between how the North and the South work. The North values and protects political dissent, but is very socially and religiously strict, though their social policies may still be considered liberal by current day standards. It operates similarly to the United States, but with a much heavier emphasis on religion. The South is extremely socially and religiously diverse, but does not tolerate political dissent. Think a socially liberal Soviet Union, if it happened in France.

The namesake of the franchise are humanoid bipedal fighting systems called Gears, 4 to 6 meter-tall machines which evolved from construction equipment to tools of war in terrain too dense or cluttered for conventional vehicles. They generally possess a single pilot and are powered by a V-engine design not very dissimilar to the ones found on many motorcycles, although they have a much higher performance and are capable of guzzling almost any combustible fuel, from kerosene to ethanol (optimal performance is usually achieved through diesel or gasoline).

To assist combat pilots on the battlefields of 62nd century, Gears are endowed with very advanced self-learning Artificial Intelligence subroutines called Neural Networks, which link sets of receptors from every major component to the central computer in a pattern similar to that of a human, permitting Gears to learn through experience and develop reflexes that can supplement and sometimes outright replace those of a pilot. While a vehicle that can dodge hypersonic projectiles can be a great advantage in the field, it also means that Gears can pick up bad habits or mannerisms from external stimuli, and must be regularly trained and conditioned to maintain optimal performance. Some Gears have an intelligence level equal to that of a very clever dog and have even been known to operate without input of their pilot for extended periods of time, but the Leagues of Terra Nova have outlawed further advancement of their intelligence and autonomy as a precautionary measure against technological singularity.

Unlike most mecha-oriented settings, Gears are prominent but do not dominate the field, but for the most part occupy the role of heavy mechanized infantry, capable of long-term autonomous operations with high degree of survivability. However, both vehicles and infantry play key roles on any Terra Novan battlefield, even though they are not considered quite as glamorous. Air power can also be a major part of any war, but Terra Nova's turbulent, unpredictable atmosphere and rapidly forming high-altitude sandstorms make air support a very unreliable factor. However, the planet's unique superdense magnetic field has resulted in the development of maglev technology on a strategic scale, permitting construction of landships -- massive floating vessels that can range in size and displacement from a light conventionally powered corvette all the way to a multiple-reactor super landcarrier that exceeds dimensions of any twentieth century vessel, a veritable floating city amongst the dunes.


STORYLINE
Our story takes place on one such vessel: the Allied Southern Territories Landship (ASTL) Nagato, a medium-displacement Battlecruiser. It carries a regular crew of 1,500: some 200 members of the 385th Allied VTOL Wing The Crescents, 500 marines and naval crew of the vessel, and roughly 800 members of the 72nd Peacekeeper Interdiction Regiment, The Wild Hunt.

The Peacekeepers are a militarized law enforcement arm of the Mekong Dominion, one of the members of the Allied Southern Territories that was founded as a league by expatriate corporations who wanted to bring Eastern culture and traditions to Terra Nova. Mekong Dominion is a fascinating, often lawless place where the rich live in stark contrast to the poor, money can legally purchase and dispense both justice and citizenship, and technological marvels of postmodern cityscapes are surrounded by undeveloped, rural wilderness.

The Dominionites are known across the planet for being merciless and truly outstanding traders with a mind of their own. Even though they, like all other Southern leagues, live in the political shadow of the Southern Republic, there is no guarantee that this status quo will last for much longer. What Republic can get by force, the Dominion achieves through cunning; what Republic conquers, Dominion buys out; where Republic brings a sword, Dominion brings a trade agreement. It is a land of the famously clever and the infamously corrupt, where almost everything can be bought for a price -- aside from the Peacekeepers.

However, no organization, especially one tasked with hunting down terrorists and dissenters, can play entirely by the rules. This is why 72nd exists outside of the established regional structure, reporting directly to the office of Chief Constable, and this is why the Dominion leases the Nagato from the Southern Republic for an enormous cost. Some scoff at the Wild Hunt for being little more than mercenaries from other leagues, burnt-out BlackOps and desperate Badlanders tarnishing the Peacekeeper uniform. Others see them as necessary, effective, perhaps even heroic.

As usual, the truth is somewhere in between.

As a member of the 72nd Peacekeepers, you'll play the deadliest game in the Southern hemisphere: that of politics and intrigue, clandestine backroom deals and BlackOps operations gone FUBAR in the worst possible way.


FEATURES
  • Unlock different PoV to see the story from another perspective.
  • Different characters get different events, though there are also global events.
  • Each PoV has its own art style to reflect how they see the world.
  • Build friendships to unlock character events.
  • Multiple endings
Features are still under development and we are considering the following features, but they are not confirmed.
  • Character specific mini-games, depending on their job.
  • Tactical turn based combat displayed on a hex map.
  • Combat uses Heavy Gear war gaming rules.
  • Build reputation by impressing superior officers.
  • Spend reputation on modifying your Gear.

GAMEPLAY
The first segment of the story allows you to play as Alvere Moreau, a very strange young mechanic who just joined the 72nd. He attempts to situate himself in his dream job, get to know his coworkers, and avoid being assassinated for breaking the equivalent of the Geneva convention.

This game is primarily a visual novel, with choices affecting branching story paths. Each character has their own timeline, with the player following along on their adventure. These stories intersect throughout the game, allowing the player to see different events through the eyes of characters with varying levels of involvement. Characters of higher military rank are unlocked later in the game, giving a new perspective on the events going on in previous storylines. I also have plans for a collection of data files that are found throughout the game which give insight into the world of Heavy Gear and its technology, politics, sociology, and more.

We are also implementing a dating sim-esque mechanic which keeps track of the players relationship to various characters. (Of course this value is different depending on what character they are playing!) There are plans for a friendship stat, romance stat, and possibly a rivalry or enemy stat.

If we get another programmer, or if I find myself with enough time to learn, we will include a battle system based on the Heavy Gear role playing game. Battles will take place on a hex map and use the rules for Heavy Gear's war game with some modifications. The player will be assigned a Gear or other combat device when they start playing as a specific character. Depending on the feasibility of the programming, we would like to add another stat called "reputation" which can be spent to personalize your Gear. (You will start with a standard model.) You would be able to exchange your weapons, add or reduce armor, and apply various upgrades that will aid you out on the field.

There is also a possibility of several mini-games or alternative mechanics to allow the player to participate in other activities aboard the ship, besides combat. Said activities may include: mechanical repair, hacking, selling stuffed animals, filling out paperwork (more of a joke than a mini-game), or sneaking about the ship unseen.


CHARACTERS
I have attached a very large file that shows the command structure of the Nagato, which may prove helpful when looking over the following characters. Not all of them are there, since not all are a part of the 72nd, but most of them are. Each character will have a full sprite, but for now I am only including a mugshot. Art is not final art, as much of it is old and will need to be updated.
Here's a brief height chart of some uncompleted sprites:
Image
Image Image
Alvere Moreau // Sous-Caporal // 22 cycles
Playable Character
Both of Alvere's parents were prominent scientists, his father in the field of bionics and his mother designed ONNets for gears. They raised him in seclusion from society, and it shows. Until he blackmailed his parents into funding his college education, his only interaction with other humans came from trideo shows. Because of that, his sense of the world is very skewed, and he believes everything operates on tropes. Fortunately for him, he’s a character in a visual novel, so he’s quite often correct.

Strengths: electronics and programming, wealth, breaking the fourth wall.
Weaknesses: delusions of grandeur, insufferable, Weird but Tasty
Hobbies: hacking, gear training, finding “adventures”
Image Image
Charles Bouchette // Sous-Lieutenant // 26 cycles
Playable Character
Fresh out of academy, Charles attended the MILICIA War College, but failed his exams after getting into a political argument with one of the more influential professors. After a cycle of remedial courses in the Peacekeeper Academy, he was commissioned by the 72nd as a junior officer in the Gear section. Charles comes from a long line of military personnel, though unlike most of his predecessors he has little regard for politics, and sometimes makes downright rash spur-of-the-moment decisions. This brought him some acclaim over the Hermes network when footage of one of his breathtaking maneuvers surfaced all over the nets, but it may very well get killed one of these days.

Strengths: Gear piloting, quick thinking, leadership.
Weaknesses: impulsiveness, politics, stubbornness.
Hobbies: shock music, gambling, conspiracy theories
Image
Anastaszia Sebastian Rucker // Caporal // 24 cycles
Playable Character
Also fresh out of academy, Anastaszia is equal parts beautiful, ambitious and ruthless. Having grown up as a daughter of a second in command of the powerful Rucker group, Anastaszia is determined to outgrow the shadow of her father's achievements in her own way, by serving in the military. Spurning her family's fierce disapproval, she joined the 72nd after her father's schemes got her kicked out of the MILICIA war academy. Her dream is to become a regimental duelist.

Strengths: charisma, Gear dueling, politics.
Weaknesses: arrogance, recklessness, vanity.
Hobbies: fencing, singing, romantic entanglements.
Image
Celty Sturmson // Sous-Lieutenant // 42 cycles
Playable Character
Celty is the head of the Supply section of the 72nd, and a former trideo actress/idol with an immense following. Little is known about her past -- most crew of the vessel do not even suspect that their Supply Officer is a former trid star. Even those that know Celty quite well have little idea of why she dropped her career at its height and joined a Peacekeeper regiment. Quite averse to firearms and combat in general, Celty is definitely not a combat ace -- yet when it comes to sorting out logistical tangles, she is a wizard second to none.

Strengths: detective work, interpersonal skills, connections.
Weaknesses: combat paralysis, aloof personality, indecisiveness.
Hobbies: sewing, trideo games (action/MMOs), singing and acting.
Image
Saiph bint Harun al-Alphard // Sous-Commandant // 36 cycles
Playable Character
Commanding Officer of the 72nd. Formerly an officer of Legion Noire, who was quietly transferred to the 72nd after being deemed psychologically unstable for senior command. Tends to prefer a hands-on style of leadership, but her temper and anger hides a sharp analytical mind and a cold-blooded approach to any conflict. Veteran of the Interpolar War, she is often maligned for her prosthetic eyes, and tends to be very sensitive about this subject.

Strengths: tactics, close combat, Gear piloting.
Weaknesses: strategy, interpersonal skills, alcoholism.
Hobbies: dance, ancient books, trideo games (strategy)

Image
Svetlana Portmaneau// Sergent // 20 cycles
Non-playable
Image
Emile Bhravo// Caporal // 23 cycles
Non-playable
Image Pending
Taiga Evangelyne Wintersmith// Sous-Caporal // 19 cycles
Non-playable
Image
Melissa Aang// Sous-Lieutenant // 34 cycles
Non-playable
Image
Yuu Spanakopita// Lieutenant // 35 cycles
Non-playable
Image Pending
Rashieve Nyarlathotep// Unknown // 36 cycles
Non-playable
Image
Takeem Bhravo// Civilian // 38 cycles
Non-playable
// //
Non-playable
And to give you a look at their uniforms, here's some finished art that (mostly) didn't make it into the final sprites:
Image

SCREENSHOTS
No screenshots yet, but look forward to them in the future!


PLAN & PROGRESS
Most likely we will not implement advanced mechanics, including the battle system, on our first release. We are aware that all of this is extremely ambitious and want to put our priority on the story and character art first. We are not working on the project full time because we have to work day jobs to pay our bills. I am also working on other projects to enhance my skills, and to provide me with additional experience on what it is like to produce a visual novel.

I figure once I am more experienced with the programming aspect of Ren'Py I will be able to say for sure what we will and won't include in the game. Unfortunately, this means that this game is not coming out anytime soon! This will take several years at least, and perhaps more unless another programmer is interested in joining. (Currently I am both the artist and programmer.)

But, we are both very dedicated to this project and will continue working on it. The progress may be slow, but we will not drop it!

Setting: 100%
Story Outline: 80%
Character Designs: 90%

Programming: 20%
Friendship Engine: 60%
Codex: 80%
Calendar: 100%
Battle Engine: 0%
Reputation Engine: 0%
Gear Customization: 0%

Sprites
1st Set: 25%
2nd Set: 3%
3rd Set: 0%
4th Set: 0%
5th Set: 0%
CGs: 0%
BGs: 0%
GUI: 5%
Music: 0%

CREDIT
daikiraikimi: Art and Programming
noxchaos: Writing and Music Selection

DISCUSSION
  • Are you familiar with the Heavy Gear role playing game/war game?
  • Which character are you most interested in?
  • What do you think about our plan to implement different points of views, with related art?
  • What kinds of art styles would you be interested in seeing? (Provide examples if you like.)
  • What do you think if the Reputation system? Do you think it would add to the game?
  • Any other feedback?
Attachments
_Command Line Chart small.png
Last edited by noeinan on Sun Aug 31, 2014 2:07 pm, edited 5 times in total.
Image

Image
Image

User avatar
Sleipnir56
Veteran
Posts: 245
Joined: Fri Nov 15, 2013 9:24 am
Completed: Under the Sycamore Tree,Timeless-D Gray Man VN(NanoRenO 2014)
Projects: Chocolate Kiss
Organization: SleiphericWings
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#2 Post by Sleipnir56 »

Looks cool. I'll keep with this. Good luck :)

User avatar
Ophelia
Regular
Posts: 96
Joined: Mon Sep 16, 2013 11:38 am
Completed: tobag
Projects: Kajima
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#3 Post by Ophelia »

- Are you familiar with the Heavy Gear role playing game/war game?
Nope!

- Which character are you most interested in?
Probably Melissa, since she reminds me a lot of Leen from Grandia from the design and she even seems to be in a similar position.

- What do you think about our plan to implement different points of views, with related art?
Very ambitious, but I would definitely be interested in seeing the point of views of both Celty and Anastazia. I definitely want to know more about those two and playing them is even better!

- What kinds of art styles would you be interested in seeing? (Provide examples if you like.)
I actually really like this art style. I love Celty's detailed curls.

- If we could get it licensed, would you be willing to pay to play the game from the perspective of your favorite character, provided there was one whole free route to play first?
Sure.

- What do you think if the Reputation system? Do you think it would add to the game?
It would definitely make sense in this kind of setting, though I don't know how it would be implemented if this is a straight up VN.

- Any other feedback?
Yep, it's "Die Jagd" in German, not der. :D

User avatar
noeinan
Eileen-Class Veteran
Posts: 1153
Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:10 pm
Projects: Ren'Py QuickStart, Crimson Rue
Organization: Statistically Unlikely Games
Deviantart: noeinan
Github: noeinan
Location: Washington State, USA
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#4 Post by noeinan »

Thanks both of you! :D

@Ophelia Haha, the art part is super ambitious-- especially since there are so many characters! Pretty much only on the table because I thought it would be cool and I'm the artist so we don't have to pay for it all. It's definitely a labor of love. That said, I'm glad you like the first art style-- it's my main art style actually. I'll be branching out a bit more on the others, trying new things. :3 (Also, I was super proud of Celty's curls because it was the first time I'd done detailed, curly hair!)

And the reputation system would only be in effect if we included the battle system (unless we found some other mechanic that could use Rep.) So you'd start off with a basic gear, tank, etc. and you could use reputation to modify it to your liking. It goes without saying that this is pretty complicated, so we're looking far into the future with that feature, haha.
Ophelia wrote: - Any other feedback?
Yep, it's "Die Jagd" in German, not der. :D
Thanks for pointing that out! I don't know any German, so I was just writing down what my partner told me. XD
Image

Image
Image

User avatar
Taleweaver
Writing Maniac
Posts: 3428
Joined: Tue Nov 11, 2003 8:51 am
Completed: Metropolitan Blues, The Loyal Kinsman, Daemonophilia, The Dreaming, The Thirteenth Year, Adrift, Bionic Heart 2, Secrets of the Wolf, The Photographer
Projects: The Pilgrim's Path, Elspeth's Garden, Secret Adventure Game!
Organization: Tall Tales Productions
Location: Germany
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#5 Post by Taleweaver »

As usual, careful with fan-games as the original copyright-holder may take steps to shut projects down after most of the work has already been gone. Maybe you should ask for permission.

That much said, about your logo: "Der wilde Jagd" is wrong German. "Jagd" is a feminine noun in German, so it's "Die wilde Jagd".
Scriptwriter and producer of Metropolitan Blues
Creator of The Loyal Kinsman
Scriptwriter and director of Daemonophilia
Scriptwriter and director of The Dreaming
Scriptwriter of Zenith Chronicles
Scriptwriter and director of The Thirteenth Year
Scriptwriter and director of Romance is Dead
Scriptwriter and producer of Adrift
More about me in my blog
"Adrift - Like Ever17, but without the Deus Ex Machina" - HigurashiKira

User avatar
noeinan
Eileen-Class Veteran
Posts: 1153
Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:10 pm
Projects: Ren'Py QuickStart, Crimson Rue
Organization: Statistically Unlikely Games
Deviantart: noeinan
Github: noeinan
Location: Washington State, USA
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#6 Post by noeinan »

We are most definitely planning on asking permission. :) It will just remain a free game due to copyright issues. We just really love Heavy Gear, so it's kind of like a tribute.

And yes, someone else also brought up the misspelling in the crest-- I'll have to go back and change it, thanks!
Last edited by noeinan on Sun Aug 31, 2014 2:09 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Image

Image
Image

User avatar
noeinan
Eileen-Class Veteran
Posts: 1153
Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:10 pm
Projects: Ren'Py QuickStart, Crimson Rue
Organization: Statistically Unlikely Games
Deviantart: noeinan
Github: noeinan
Location: Washington State, USA
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#7 Post by noeinan »

Currently working on a lot of writing for this game-- I've been busy trying to finish my other game, the Homestead: A Centaur's Story, but since the writer is on hiatus for a bit I'm concentrating on this one for a while. :)

Still have lots of art and GUI to do, but as I'm more involved in the writing process I think I'll try to get some of that down before throwing myself deeper into the artwork. Any suggestions for art style, or just whatever, would be very welcome!

Also, finally fixed the poor German in the crest, haha.

As a small extra, since it's been so long since I last posted, here's a picture I drew of Anastazia for a special segment of the game. ;)
Attachments
DateLoveAnastazia.png
Image

Image
Image

User avatar
noeinan
Eileen-Class Veteran
Posts: 1153
Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:10 pm
Projects: Ren'Py QuickStart, Crimson Rue
Organization: Statistically Unlikely Games
Deviantart: noeinan
Github: noeinan
Location: Washington State, USA
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#8 Post by noeinan »

Started working on the GUI for the codex. I started with yellow and orange hazard striping, made in the style of the older Heavy Gear books.

Image

I didn't like it very much though, too much yellow. Plus I couldn't figure out how I was going to design the buttons. :/

Image

Then I decided to scrap that whole thing, and instead work off one of the new books, Forged in Fire. I liked this layout a lot better, and it compromised my two desires. I wanted a futuristic computer layout, but I didn't want to do the generic glowing blue that nearly all sci fi games have-- including an older Heavy Gear game.

Image

This is what I ended up with, and I'm nearly done. :) I'll have to reprogram my codex a bit, because instead of a side list of all the names you get a grouping of files that almost look like a desktop. You select one, and it opens up a whole new screen with all that persons details. I'm glad I redid it and am pretty satisfied with these results. Will be uploading more once I've finished the files, and the personal character screens!

Image
Image

Image
Image

User avatar
noeinan
Eileen-Class Veteran
Posts: 1153
Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:10 pm
Projects: Ren'Py QuickStart, Crimson Rue
Organization: Statistically Unlikely Games
Deviantart: noeinan
Github: noeinan
Location: Washington State, USA
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#9 Post by noeinan »

Since the other pic is empty, I'll upload these as kind of an example of what they'll look like. The technology listed probably will be in full color, not with the whole red 3D model look, but we'll see. In the first screen, you'll click on the document to open it.

Image

Then you get this larger screen with the person, historical data, or tech that you're looking for. I will probably end up making the text boxes a bit bigger here to make the data easier to read as well. The symbol behind the gear is for the Southern Republic. I plan on having symbols behind each character, showing their allegiance. Due to all the political backstabbing, this symbol may change for various characters as the player finds out more information about them. :)

Image
Image

Image
Image

User avatar
noeinan
Eileen-Class Veteran
Posts: 1153
Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:10 pm
Projects: Ren'Py QuickStart, Crimson Rue
Organization: Statistically Unlikely Games
Deviantart: noeinan
Github: noeinan
Location: Washington State, USA
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#10 Post by noeinan »

Okay, got the little file icons done, and created a default icon for locked characters.

Image
Image

Image
Image

User avatar
noeinan
Eileen-Class Veteran
Posts: 1153
Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:10 pm
Projects: Ren'Py QuickStart, Crimson Rue
Organization: Statistically Unlikely Games
Deviantart: noeinan
Github: noeinan
Location: Washington State, USA
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#11 Post by noeinan »

Just finished the background for the opened files! Generally speaking, the crest in the background of each character will display their nationality. The current crest is for the Southern Republic, and I'll be working on Mekong and the Eastern Sun Emirates next! On top of the background will be character art for profiles, expanded images of the technology, and probably maps or other resources for the history section.

The top data box has the persons basic information, and the bottom has a more detailed background check. I think for tech and history maybe the top section will describe how that history/tech relates to the game while the second box is a more detailed explanation.

Image
Image

Image
Image

User avatar
noeinan
Eileen-Class Veteran
Posts: 1153
Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:10 pm
Projects: Ren'Py QuickStart, Crimson Rue
Organization: Statistically Unlikely Games
Deviantart: noeinan
Github: noeinan
Location: Washington State, USA
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#12 Post by noeinan »

Aaand, included default silhouette and an example of filled out text + titles. The top box that currently says "Alvere Moreau" will probably instead say "Basic Data" and the bottom will be labeled "Details" or something.

Image
Image

Image
Image

Jake
Support Hero
Posts: 3826
Joined: Sat Jun 17, 2006 7:28 pm
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#13 Post by Jake »

A couple of points:

- DP9 always used to have fairly clear licensing information for fan works on their website; they don't seem to have it directly linked any more, and I know they're being a lot more careful with image stuff recently thanks to various joint ventures with other companies and issues they've had with distributors in the past, so if I were you I would contact Robert sooner rather than later and get an OK. He's been totally fine with that kind of thing in the past, so it's probably not a problem, but they may have some deal in place with a third party which precludes allowing any such works to use their properties - and "not selling your thing" is in no way a license to do what you like with someone else's copyright and trademarks.

- You appear to be using the MILICIA uniform for Peacekeepers...?

- Your background crest is again the MILICIA/AST, not the Republic.

- Lastly, no SIU = no sale. :3


Out of interest, which timeframe is this game going to be set in?
Server error: user 'Jake' not found

User avatar
noeinan
Eileen-Class Veteran
Posts: 1153
Joined: Sun Apr 04, 2010 10:10 pm
Projects: Ren'Py QuickStart, Crimson Rue
Organization: Statistically Unlikely Games
Deviantart: noeinan
Github: noeinan
Location: Washington State, USA
Contact:

Re: Heavy Gear VN [Sci-Fi][SliceOfLife][Adventure][Free]

#14 Post by noeinan »

Jake wrote:A couple of points:
-Thanks for the heads up on the licensing-- I'll check their site again myself, and if not send an email to Robert. We have a plot planned out, but we haven't actually started setting stuff up with dialogue etc. though and I was hoping to have at least a short playable intro to show them. But if they don't want us making a fan game, then I suppose it's better to find out now rather than after we've put more work into it... (I also edited the previous comments to make this more clear. Also of note, we won't be using art directly from any of the books, and will be drawing our own for everything from characters, to gears, to technology and history-- working off the original designs of course.)

-The 72nd is not actually a regular Peacekeeper unit. Peacekeepers have a sterling reputation, are very well versed in the law, and generally receive much more intense police training. The 72nd was created to do the dirty work-- they're technically an auxiliary within the Peacekeeper command structure. Basically think of them as the SIU of the Peacekeepers.

Due to their different purpose, the uniforms are very different-- no one wants them to do something and have the "real" Peacekeepers to get blamed for it. The original 72nd was an auxiliary light cavalry regiment, and played a crucial role in holding off Earth forces from advancing on Mekong City during the War of the Alliance, but were annihilated almost in their entirety. After the war, they were rebuilt as a special operations unit aboard a landship leased from the Southern Republic.

It used to be fairly prestigious until a recent debacle caused them to lose face hardcore. Their CO was replaced with a former Legion Noire officer and they started getting much more dirty work.

-The background crest is indeed for the Southern League/MILICIA-- I actually plan on having different crests for different characters to represent their nationalities or allegiances. I hadn't finished the Mekong crest when I posted the last picture, but here it is. (I decided not to include the whole Peacekeeper text, and just put the Mekong crest.)

Image

I have also finished the Southern Republic, Eastern Sun Emirates, and the Humanist Alliance:

Image

Image

Image

-Our campaign takes place in 1941, following the Interpolar War.
Image

Image
Image

Post Reply

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users