Opinion: Would you play this game?

[Evilsbane]

Hey everybody, I'm doing video game development in college and one of my projects is to develop a game prop. I was wondering what you all thought of this?



Prop Name: Monster Rodent Wheel


Function and Characteristics

The Monster Rodent Wheel is basically a giant hamster wheel for giant hamsters. The premise is simple: battle a giant hamster, knock it out, pick it up, and throw it in the wheel; whereupon it wakes up and starts running mindlessly. The Wheel is connected to machine next to a door, with the hamster’s running causing the door’s mechanism to open. The Wheel has limited interaction with the player if he/she doesn’t have the Hamster in hand; you can ‘check’ the prop by pressing the action button to see the message: ‘Hmm. Looks like this was designed for some type of rodent. I wonder what it does.’ If the player does have the hamster, it still only has limited interaction: you can throw the hamster in by standing in front of it and pressing the action button. Once the Hamster is inside, the door next to it opens, where you can leave the level for a Bonus Area.

The concept is that it and similar mechanisms should be found at the end of levels next to the conventional gateway to the boss room, with the player needing to find the giant hamster and other required props elsewhere in the level to operate the machinery and thus access the secret exit. The other props are a standard ‘treasure hunt’ for various items around the level but the Hamster is a veritable mini-boss, which is difficult to even catch up with and fight. This will be explained in the ‘Environment’ section of this presentation.

Ideally, the hamster should only be a hamster in the first level, with numerous hints to help the player make the mental connection. In later levels, the required enemy should be a similar but different rodent (e.g. rat, rabbit, weasel) that is found in a different way, so that the player sees the wheel at the end of the level and assumes they need to find a hamster, but this time they have to figure out for themselves that the required rodent is actually different. In this way, there can be an alternate boss battle for each level, with each rodent and puzzle presenting a completely different challenge than the last.

Environment
The envisioned environment for the prop is a 3D platform/adventure game; however it could also conceivably be used in RPGs and 2D platform games, among other genres. Porting the idea to a 2D world would easy enough, whether in a top-down view, side-scrolling view or isometric. The envisioned platform/adventure game would involve an accident at an animal testing facility, where the animals have now grown huge and are running amok. An ordinary person then gets dragged into the whole mess when it turns out that a member of his family or a love interest (whichever is preferable) is trapped inside.

The game would emphasise puzzle elements as well as battles, with the Monster Rodent Wheel epitomising this blend. This is because – since it likes to run – the Hamster would be running at a madcap pace and in a randomised pattern around the level, which is a giant hamster maze that is difficult to navigate. If you block its path and it collides with you, however, it will suddenly attack. This should be reasonably easy to accomplish since it would be the first level of the game. However, subsequent levels would become more difficult: the Rabbit jumping around instead of running, which does a good deal more damage to the player if it hits you, while the Rat, instead of wandering around at random, is actively trying to evade you.

[GooberGrape513]

Hmmmm...

Monster Rodent Wheel, doesn't give much to the imagination eh?

I like the whole idea and whatnot, but I don't know if it will be all that interesting to play.

What are you using to make the game? Flash, 3ds max, etc?

EDIT:
Nevermind about last comment...just a prop game...

[Evilsbane]

Well, even though it's just a prop I'm using 3DS Max to make a model of it to show. Thanks for the feedback!

[GooberGrape513]

Originally Posted by Evilsbane

Well, even though it's just a prop I'm using 3DS Max to make a model of it to show. Thanks for the feedback!

No problem.

Can you elaborate on the idea some more, because I don't quite understand what goes on.

Is it a puzzle game where you have to guide a rodent somewhere to do something?
Can you explain these boss battles?

[Evilsbane]

The envisioned platform/adventure game would involve an accident at an animal testing facility, where the animals have now grown huge and are running amok. An ordinary person then gets dragged into the whole mess when it turns out that a member of his family or a love interest (whichever is preferable) is trapped inside.
That's the character you play

As for the boss battles, well the first one could be a simple 'dodge the attacks and hit the weak point when it appears' thing, or it could be a 'trick him into running into a wall and then hit him when he's stunned' affair. On the other hand, I could always make it more complicated and make the hamster chase the hero. Then you have to keep one step ahead while trying to throw objects at it or whatever.

[Hollow Golem]

I'd play it.

[Dr. Blaine]

This game is definetly something I'd look into, if it were available for mac.