ForumsProgramming ForumSonny: Genesis [Sonny Fan Game]

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Miraidematro
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Miraidematro
738 posts
Blacksmith

https://s32.postimg.org/cyowpj0sl/Sonny_Genesis.png

Back when the first Sonny hit the internet I was hooked;
I didn't develop games back then, but it's one of those games
that sparked my interest for the profession.
Now, it's time for me to create a tribute.

Sonny: Genesis is the next big project I've set for myself.
It'll cover much unexplored territory for me,
and is a perfect opportunity to grow as a developer.

https://image.ibb.co/fm5kwb/Art1.png

Sonny: Genesis
The game takes place in the same universe as the original
flash games, but will feature a brand new cast of characters.
This doesn't necessarily mean you won't see familiar faces

The gameplay will be very similar to the flash games, with the
addition of some new battle mechanics. This means it'll be
characterised by turn-based combat, and broken up by 'roaming'
sections where you'll be able to outfit your characters and
purchase new gear.

Sonny: Genesis is being developed as a standalone
game for the PC platform; this means it won't run inside
a browser like the originals. Porting the game to HTML
or mobile is not something I currently plan to do.

Planned Features
- 3 (Playable) classes with unique skill trees and playstyles:
The Combatant, Illusionist and Sentinel.
- 5 Story Zones + Post-Game Content
- Side quests
- Fully voice-acted
- Illustrated story cutscenes
- Online leaderboards and achievements

Community
I love involving fellow fans of the series in the creative process.
That's why I encourage anyone to post their ideas and suggestions;
several have already made it into the game!

I'll also be holding multiple creative contests throughout development;
winners of these contests will see their name and contributions added
to the final version of the game!

Previous contests:
Armor Design
Winners: @spaceskeleton @jonathannanhu and @Koshionos

Very early Screenshots & Artwork:

All of these are subject to change!

https://image.ibb.co/m4wThG/s_12.png
(Inventory)

https://image.ibb.co/nDcqwb/s_13.png
(Ability screen)

https://s23.postimg.org/r3lng0ofv/Log.png
(Base character)

https://media.giphy.com/media/3o6Yg7vJpsZEwPKD4I/giphy.gif
(Idle Animation)

https://media.giphy.com/media/l0MYFvRo9PqMkyjPG/giphy.gif
(Healthbar)

https://media.giphy.com/media/3o751Yqo4z8KyjddrW/giphy.gif
(Skill Icons)

I need Playtesters!
As a playtester you'll recieve unfinished builds of the game
in various stages of development, with the task of helping me
find bugs & glitches and providing feedback.
I'll try to strip these builds down to include as few story elements
as possible, in an effort to minimize spoiling the finished version.
I can't promise that they will all be spoiler-free though.

At first it'll mostly be about trying to find the most enjoyable
game loop and working out any bugs and quirks on different machines.
Then we'll move on to balancing the different classes and abilities.
I fully realise everyone's got a life, so there are no deadlines
and you can always take your time.

I need an Artist!
As you've probably seen, my art is mediocre at best.
That's why I'm looking for a skilled artist that's willing to help
me bring this project to life, and speed up the development!

Again, there will be no set-in-stone deadlines; as this is a fan
project and everyone's doing it on their own time. You'll of course
be credited for your work, both in-game and on the forums.

If you're interested in bringing this project to life,
you may send samples of your work to: SonnyFanGame@gmail.com
If you know anyone that might be interested,
you may refer them to this thread.

Keep in mind that the story will be spoiled for you;
because you'll mostly be working on the art for the cutscenes
in-between zones!

Q&A
Will it be free?
Of course the game will be 100% free.
Besides obvious legal reasons, I always intended to create
a tribute to the games for the community; and I feel the
best way to do this is to not charge anything.
Once the game is released, I may consider adding
the option for people to be able to donate something;
this won't give you any in-game rewards or benefits,
but it allows people to support me if they want to.

What are the system requirements?
I'm always trying to optimise the game where I can,
in order for it to run smoothly on a wide variety of machines.
Final system requirements are TBD and depend on the feedback
from the playtesters.

Will players be able to duel online?
Network programming is something I sadly have very little
experience with.The closest thing to an 'Online Mode' I could
implement would be something similar to the PvP-mode
from Sonny 2; which I'm currently not focussing on.
I am planning to add online leaderboards and achievements
to the game.

What is the release date?
There's currently no release date.
You can stay up-to-date on the progress
by keeping an eye on this thread.

Feel free to ask any questions, provide feedback
or post ideas in the comments!

  • 90 Replies
Doombreed
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Doombreed
7,022 posts
Templar

Οooh Best of luck! Can't wait

Miraidematro
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Miraidematro
738 posts
Blacksmith

@Doombreed Thank you for your interest!
First 'Development Update' is now live!

Doombreed
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Doombreed
7,022 posts
Templar

You seem to be quick and efficient in designing. If you ever run out of context ideas, feel free to ask

jonathannanhu
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jonathannanhu
3 posts
Nomad

Good Job 😁

Miraidematro
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Miraidematro
738 posts
Blacksmith

@Doombreed thnx for the kind words!
I will!
I'm planning on making this a community driven project, so any fan of the series is welcome to give their input.(Story, Abilities, Mechanics) Right now I'm even considering if I should have some kind of armor design contest and have the best one implemented in the game. Though I don't know how much of a response it would get, seeing as there is (sadly) little activity in the programming forum.

@jonathannanhu Thanks!

Doombreed
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Doombreed
7,022 posts
Templar

Hmm...For story, I think obviously something different than the original Sonny series, obviously. Don't know when is it supposed to take place, but if you are going for something in parallel to the original one, then it could feature the same well-known characters (vera/roald/etc.)

As for abilities, it would be good to opt for a system with the balance of the first game in the classes and the unique abilities of the second game. We all loved the shadow xD Even in Krin's poll, Shadow Sonny won by far.

In the mechanics aspect, it also depends how much you want to stick with the original series mechanics. Some of them are ancient by today's standards but they still work.

Miraidematro
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Miraidematro
738 posts
Blacksmith

@Doombreed I'd definitely like to set the story in the same universe as the original;
Maybe shed light on those characters before the events of both games?
Go with a brand new cast?
I dunno, I'm open to everything at this point.

As for abilities, definitely ;P
I was origionally thinking of having a shared skilltree among classes like the first game;
but now that I've gone over the idea, it would probably favor different playstyles and replayability if each class has one of its own.
I didn't really like the way sonny 2's late game relied as heavily as it did on combos;
but I also don't want to exclude anyone who likes it (my brother).
Designing them won't be easy, and I'll need all the help I can get when I get to that stage.

I'm open to ideas regarding the mechanics; the sooner in development I know, the better. I haven't really given this any extra thought myself, so I'm interested to see different takes on it.

nichodemus
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nichodemus
14,981 posts
Grand Duke

Good luck, I hope you make it as a professional developer one day.

Doombreed
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Doombreed
7,022 posts
Templar

For the mechanics, the very obvious thing Krin failed at in the second game was making speed a reliable way to deliver damage. In the first game it's fine, the assassin class depends on it rather well. But for example the Predator build of the Biological had to be purposefully glitched just to put it on the same level as the others. Krin intentionally programmed every physical Biological ability to have a critical hit ratio x3.1 the one other abilities had. I think he intended to have some sort of speed based highly damaging class like the assassin in the first game but Piercings and speed did not quite work as intended.

Another thing were the bugs of the hot hydro and poison bio builds. Those abilities miss their targets way too often for it to be a coincidence. It is possible that it was meant to be a way to reduce the power of those builds but that also failed.

I'd say since this is a fan-made game, go with a new cast of characters. If you plan on going there, you can show what happened to sonny and he ended up on the ship for example.

Miraidematro
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Miraidematro
738 posts
Blacksmith

@nichodemus Thank you! So do I

@Doombreed Thank you very much for this information!
I think a fresh cast can work really well too, so I'll be doing that then.

BalkanRenegades
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BalkanRenegades
824 posts
Treasurer

It looks awesome! Can you post animations of enemies and player outfits please?

jimmycarlos
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jimmycarlos
204 posts
King

Wow, these look amazing. Great job, keep it up!

Miraidematro
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Miraidematro
738 posts
Blacksmith

@BalkanRenegades @jimmycarlos

Thank you both for the kind words!

I'm designing the outfits as we speak; I'll be sure to add them to the next development update!

ivan
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ivan
1,417 posts
King

I know you have mentioned that you are not an animator, and don't get me wrong , I am not here to criticize, on contrary , I would like to suggest you to look at following layer: leg part from knee to ankle/foot !

It's not consistent with other body parts! It looks good on its own , but fails when it comes to animations! Now , I would not change it , I would just adjust upper part of leg to look fatter! I think that such a move would adjust the quality to much higher level (it would look smoother) , especially when it comes to melee attacks animations !

Miraidematro
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Miraidematro
738 posts
Blacksmith

@ivanxxxxxxx You're absolutely right!
Now that you've mentioned it, it's starting to bother me when I look at it.
I drew them a tad bigger on purpose; The images would basically be swapped with armor, so it would be easier for me. example:
https://s31.postimg.org/4vx2mqugb/picca.png
But while this works with armor, it definitely doesn't without it.
Consider it fixed by the next update.
thanks!

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