Recently, I've been working up a dream about developing a game. It gets to me more and more, and I feel like I really want to do it. Trouble is - I don't have any experience. Zero. No programming experience or anything. So I figured I'd start with some kind of small project I can realistically make on my own. However, I do have a grand dream of what game I would like to make if I ever get the means to start such a huge project, and that is... A Maplestory-inspired MMO. That is what I'm really dreaming of. I would draw heavy inspiration from pre-BB Maplestory and develop a game which would be very similar in spirit. I would want to take what is old school Maplestory and make my own thing. That is, to take the concept of Maplestory and improve it where I feel it is lacking, but also to make sure it's in the taste of a true Maplestory veteran. Now, I know MMORPGs just simply aren't as popular as they used to be, but I really want this to happen purely out of my passion for old Maplestory. I guess it's only a dream, and will likely remain that way, but I thought I'd share it with you all and see if anyone has anything interesting to say about it.
With grand projects like that, you need to break it down into reasonable milestones. This way you can continually see you are getting closer to your end goal. Else you will make very little progress and you will end up feeling even more discouraged.
Yeah, this is along the lines I've been thinking. I know I can't just get into it straight away, expecting to create a full MMORPG just like that, by myself. I'm not really sure where to start learning though. One idea I have is to try making a much smaller project with a same-ish concept, but making it single-player instead, and see if I can take it from there somehow.
I have some ideas where I'd like to make changes or add features. For example, I really like the feeling of finding a rare, valuable item in Maplestory, but I'd like to make it more rewarding to go out of your way to find specific items. This is why I'd like to make every map viable for training, so people can feel encouraged to go look for items they want. I would also like to provide more alternatives to leveling your characters than just grinding. PQs are very cool in Maplestory, and I'd like to have more and better PQs that are more rewarding. I'd like there to be alternatives to grinding for every level, and I don't want the quests/PQs/other alternatives to run out before you're presented with new alternatives, if that makes any sense. Still not sure if anyone's interested in reading any of my thoughts about this, but I'm having fun jotting it down at least.
I'm not speaking out of experience, but I'd guess that a project like this is always undertaken as a group project. I encourgage you to find like-minded people who are willing to share your vision. Some of them might, like you, lack experience. Others might already be good at programming, design, leading projects and all sorts of other things that are needed for a project like this. I'm sure there's alot of people out there with the experience and knowledge you need. Especially in Sweden, we have some great game developers here. You only need to find the right forum I think
Then it also comes down to having the money to make such a project become a reality. Also, I'm worried that it'd be hard to find people in Sweden that want to create this type of game. I want the people on board to create it because they're passionate about it. Thanks for your insight! I need to hear this sort of advice. I have to figure out where to start and what the short-term and long-term goals to aim for are if I'm ever to make this a reality.
If you are in university or live near a university town, it should be relatively easy to find people that can work with you. If not, you can try to find hackathons near you and network. The people that go to hackathons tend to have a passion for working on side projects and would have some experience in development or design or etc.
Thanks for the advice! And sorry for the late reply. I don't know if anything will ever come of this, but it's been on my mind a ton lately. If I had a billion dollars, I would invest a ton into making this come to life.
This is pretty much the exact same idea me and a group of friends are working on we just started on the planning and story about 2 months ago and will be doing so, as well as simple prototypes for probably a year or so. As mentioned already, a group is definitely needed for a project as big as this. Would be interesting to hear updates on how it goes!
Oh man, it makes me happy to hear that someone else has a similar idea! If your project comes to life, I am definitely interested in trying it! I am still very interested in bringing my own vision to the table though, and have been scribbling down some ideas and thoughts already. Maybe one day I'll be able to make something out of it. I just need to find the right people for such a project.
I really wish our project will be something nice in the end too You should totally do that. Hope you find someone that will join you so you can fulfill your dream. I believe it'll be a great experience to work with a project like this wether it works out or not
