Poll: Most intuitive travel system

[Fogmind]

I am an indie developer making a browser-based RPG. I know these are a dime a dozen these days, but I'm not making a Maffia Wars clone. I would love to discuss why I think my game will be better, but I was strongly advised against disclosing all the details.

The issue is the travel system. (The game will have a grid of locations where the user can go.) I have tested a mechanism where travel takes time and locks up the interface until arrival, but this was not appreciated by the testers. The next plan is to make a system where you cannot travel for a certain time after arrival, but I'm having serious trouble choosing between 2 options:

option 1: After having moved you cannot travel again for the time it takes to travel. This means if you get on a horse and travel. Then get of your horse you can still travel again quickly.

option 2: After having moved the time you last traveled is stored. The time when you can move again depends on how fast you are. This means that when you arrive somewhere and are unable to travel, you can suddenly move by getting on a horse.

 

[GrizzlerBorno]

OP snip

You could do what they did in the old Might and Magic games (as far as i can remember though it was a REALLY long time ago. It kind of depends on the mechanics of your game, but essentially, have the player expend certain resources (other than money) to travel.

Like if your game has a simple hunger system or food items at all, have a system where you will "spend" a certain amount of food/water/energy/what have you to travel. You can decrease that penalty by taking an established method of travel (eg, coach, train, plane) but that will take more money. generally, the faster the mode of travel is, the less resources you have to spend because you will be traveling for less time.

I think a travel penalty idea (can't travel for some time) is good, but needs to be flexible. Like: You just finished traveling, and your exhausted (oh yeah, temporary strength/other stats penalty maybe?) if you travel again immediately, all penalties (food, stats, NOT money) will double. So you CAN do it, but your character is going to be absolutely drained!

Hope this helps. Let me know if you like the ideas.

 

[Fogmind]

Hope this helps. Let me know if you like the ideas.

I do. I was already going to implement hunger and fatigue of which the latter one would prevent people from playing the game 24/7 thus stopping bots. Traveling again fast could be called a forced march and cause an extreme amount of fatigue or maybe even blisters on a character's feet.
The thing is though I am also planning to implement a javascript allowing users to select a location after which the script will automatically travel from location to location when the character is ready allowing users to do something else while their character travels long distances as long as they keep the browser window open.

 

[GrizzlerBorno]

I do. I was already going to implement hunger and fatigue of which the latter one would prevent people from playing the game 24/7 thus stopping bots. Traveling again fast could be called a forced march and cause an extreme amount of fatigue or maybe even blisters on a character's feet.
The thing is though I am also planning to implement a javascript allowing users to select a location after which the script will automatically travel from location to location when the character is ready allowing users to do something else while their character travels long distances as long as they keep the browser window open.

Personally, i don't like the idea of people having to wait when they travel. It breaks immersion, which i assume isn't easy to build in the first place for a browser game.

I AM fine with making people wait if they run too low on energy however. I think it could add strategy to gameplay if you knew that you will, at one point keel over, so you gotta be careful and not wonder out in the middle of the night if you character is tired.

So i think, you should go with the fatigue and hunger penalties for travel, but allow instantaneous travel, with no immediate time penalties. Then players could just keep playing in one go without having to stop playing if they travel; but if they DO travel they can play for less time before they must find an inn or camp or whatever, where they can save, and continue a certain amount of time later or something?

So does this game of yours have a site i could check out? or is still too early in dev?

 

[Fogmind]

So does this game of yours have a site i could check out? or is still too early in dev?

It is still in dev. I expect it to go in alpha within a month time and after that I will keep adding stuff and implementing features untill i will go into production. I can give you access to the alpha when it hits.

I might even add magical potions that enable the user to restore fatigue without waiting and teleportation to central teleportation relays in several villages, but I'm not there yet. All i have implemented so far is travel (without restrictions) and inventory. I'm half way crafting and I'll have to implement combat and perhaps the ability to construct buildings too before alpha.

 

[GrizzlerBorno]

It is still in dev. I expect it to go in alpha within a month time and after that I will keep adding stuff and implementing features until i will go into production. I can give you access to the alpha when it hits.

That'd be awesome, thanks! I have shitty internet speed, so browser games are the only online games i can play :/

Anyway, I'm glad I could help.

 

[Zaverexus]

neither sounds very intuitive, I'm sorry, but I'm just confused