In preparation for a small article, what are your opinions on what makes a game look more professional? Here are my suggestions so far:
Configurations
Music and sound effect volumes (as well as options to mute them) and keyboard configurations. The latter can be done using Control X object and an INI file or array to remember the values.
Where the game changes the screen res, it may be worthwhile to feature an option to disable screen res changing. This can be done by making a second application (let's call it runme.exe). All shortcuts for the game point to runme.exe. This checks the settings (such as 'don't change screen res') and then runs the game with '-NOF' in the command line. That'll execute it without res changing.
Logos at the start
A personal preference this. I find games look more professional when several logos are used on startup. It suggests that this has been worked on by a group rather than a hobbyist. In our case it's pretty easy. Shove in a logo for clickteam, the MMF 'Fueled by Fusion' logo, and then your own logo. These can load on successive screens, skipable by pressing any key.
Transitions
In the case of menus, pimp them out with some neat transitions. If your menu is made to look like a scroll, make it so the scroll unfolds and the menu options appear one after the other, for example.
One trick I've found effective is using the screen-capture object to take a photo of the screen when you pause. When you go to the menu screen (either using 'jump to frame' or opening it in a modal subapp. Subapp is better, because it does all the pausing for you), load the screenshot as an active picture in the background. This makes it look like all the stuff in your menu screen is sitting on top of the game window. Looks great if you mix it with semitransparencies and fade-in transitions.
Credits
Another personal one this. I tend to feel that a game is bigger if there are lots of names in the credits screen. So if you can, include the names of the original composer and sequencer of each midi you use.
Eg:
Music
"Bubblegloop Swamp"
Composed by Grant Kirkhope
Sequenced by Sebastian Husnik
If you wanna make a feature of the credits screen, make it all priddy with fades and animation - so it looks dynamic.
What things would you guys recommend about making games look professional?
you didnt really mention the menu screens, presentation of the game all the way through and keeping the same orignal style all the way through, for example, if the person uses his graphics for level one, and then in level two he uses a crappy library graphic, in my opinion that ruins the entire game. Graphics to me is the most important thing. I only tend to like games with top notch graphics such as a game with a kitty etc. If the game is poorly programmed but has amazing graphics, i would likely forgive the creator and still give him/her a thumbs up!
-Don't use MIDI files for your game, use MOD's or MP3's or something instead.
-Never use the built-in installer
-Don't forget to remove the built-in menu functions like Ctrl+P, F8, F2 and stuff. Even when your menu is invisible these functions still work.
-NEVER USE THE BUILT-IN INSTALLER
ok, if it isn't a story based game, or even if it is, you could use a level editor, especially since it extends the life of the game to the point where the player can remka levels that they found were crappyin your game, and then you could even get taht improved level, and add it to your game officially, and rerelease it not only with improved levels, but enhanced game play as well of course, and not only that, you could use the level editor yourself to speed up the game's production, because the levels can be made in the editor, now how much better does it get? i'll admit that it could take a while to learn how to create a level editor, but it'll definitely be worth your time, and not only that, if you combine it with text files, you could even have players making storyline branches of your game, like sub-stories, now how cool would that be?
What's more, you can also make more powerful games using your own level editor. For example, you can find out what tile the player is on. This can be used to change the sound of the player's footsteps, to start him swimming, to switch between different types of footprint, to make the player skid or slide, etc. You can also use the info to animate background tiles (every few seconds, find a set of random grass tiles in the visible area and paste another frame over the top).
But that can get pretty complicated after a while.
-Don't use any crazy fonts for text. It'll look very weird when talking to other characters in the game and it is most likely that a)the player doesn't have those fonts and b) you'll forget to put the fonts in with your game. Titles are probably the only exception here. Always make the title text an active object or background though just in case the players don't have the font you used.
i am a shareware game maker. &&& i can say the problems(about pro seein)here:
-help&infos
-tutorials
-you should keep limit less than 15mb if shareware
-i recommend usin 800x600, but if you can add change res support add it
-make simple menu or menus
-use a good installer
-if shareware make a good security
&&& if you are usin keygen write it on c && give devs c sdk(know, lots of them asks c sdk)
I guess its the little things that matter a lot when you're trying to make a game look professional. I would say:
-Bother to make an icon for your game
-Try not to make your game look like it is made up of frames, try to make it more seemless by adding some tranition effects which have already been mentioned.
-If you have lots of sound effects, or play lots at once, load them externally
-An options menu
-Make sure you can pause your game
-Don't use crazy or unreadable fonts, even if you think they look cool but for God's sake don't use the default font either!
-If you're going for a professional look over size then make the install program have side pannel pictures and don't force the install to create a icon which clutters up desktops.
-Make a decent readme or even an html helpfile
-include the dll files people need to play the game
-The player shouldn't be able to find a bug for at least the first fifteen minutes
-If there's an pause-menu options screen and a title-menu options screen, make sure that both of them have the same content.
-Make the user interface simple and efficient. Nothing looks more unprofessional than a cluttered UI that's difficult to navigate
-Have customizable controls w/o having to go through MMF's default control configuration screen.
-Have a consistent style throughout the game
-If you have save files, encrypt/hide them
-Don't automatically save files in C:\Windows
-Don't use 2-frame animations.
Basically, it's all about 1 thing:
Making people forget that they're playing a game.
Just like how professional movies make you forget that those tears and laughs are fake, that cameras are following them, etc. A professional game makes you forget that you're playing a game. It's not about little details like transition or full screen, it's about the big picture, on how people aren't reminded that it's a game.
Little things like bad spelling in conversations really kill the mood. Professional games have a non-intrusive interface, where you can get missions and stuff without having to move to some big, ugly black screen.
This also includes impossibly hard levels where the player just doesn't feel smooth moving from one level to the next. It shouldn't be too easy, but neither should you have to memorize the exact paths of every enemy in the game. Extroadinarily difficult games are works of amateurs .
Also, a good game shouldn't require a manual or even a readme read to play. It should explain enough within the tutorial, but that doesn't mean the manual/readme doesn't contain tips or detail on the little bits in your game. E.g. if you have an advanced RPGs with all these stats, the stats should be perfectly understandable without looking at the manual, but a look at the manual would explain the formulas and stuff just to clear any confusion.
Of course, there's also those little details outside the game, like installers and credits, but most people don't really notice those, so they're very low on the list.
Disclaimer: Any sarcasm in my posts will not be mentioned as that would ruin the purpose. It is assumed that the reader is intelligent enough to tell the difference between what is sarcasm and what is not.
Advertisement
Post Reply
It's a secret 
Edited by the Author.