Originally Posted by spacehamster

Originally Posted by spacehamster
Hello There,

My name is Zac Cramer, and my company is in the process of programming a new online game which you will play entirely within your browser, just like this one, for free. On my limited budget, (roughly $30,000 for the whole game) I don’t want to shell out the $5,000 necessary for a good focus group response, and instead am coming directly to you, the players of the top online web based RPG’s, to ask you to read over my concept for what the game is, and provide me with your feedback. Know that this is not a pipe dream, I have hired two programmers and two graphic artists, and they are working on it as you read this, so your feedback really will be valuable as we decide which game features to keep and which to toss. If you would like to provide me with your thoughts on this new game, please read the page below and respond with your opinions.

riderscartel.com/imports/sh/pirate.jpg Go there for a funny picture of a Space Pirate Hamster from one of our artists.
There is another picture at the end of this message!

Thanks!

Please note: this is a 3 page summary of a 25 page document, so yes, many details are being left off (roughly 22 pages of details) but this is the basic outline of the game.

The new game is called Space Hamsters, and it shares a lot with games like Travian, and Civilization. The basic concept is that you, the player, are a hamster who has been given a small city on a planet in a galaxy far, far away, and you must build up your city, conquer your neighbors, fly to other planets, and rule the universe.

The concept of Space Hamsters is to provide players with actual choice. Not just, “small, medium and large” but, “small, purple, and Pepsi:” the choices should not be degrees of each other. The Races are not aggressive, defensive, and middle, rather they are military men/technologically minded, sneaky/knowledgeable, and aggressive/explorative.

The Story – In the year 2007, researchers at Cal Tech in the Fermi National Laboratory began work, on behalf of the US government, on selectively breeding hamsters to create a hyper-intelligent hamster race that could be used to hunt down terrorists. The research was an amazing success: hamsters were taught to speak, carry weapons, and follow orders. Soon hamsters were running all over the world. The government developed two races of hamsters: Hidden Hamsters and Mechanical Hamsters; the hamsters themselves developed a third race, the Dawn of Time Hamsters. Eventually, in 2013, the terrorists were defeated and the government had no further need of the hamsters. So they sent all of them off into space, to another galaxy, because, at the time, that seemed like a reasonably decent way to get rid of a bunch of hyper-intelligent hamsters, who would probably notice if somebody tried to kill them all, and turn it into some sort of awful Planet of the Apes type scenario. You are one of those hamsters. The US government put you on a ship and sent you off through a one-way worm hole to found a new life on a new planet in a new galaxy. Your goal is to grow your city and bring glory to your great hamster name! There are three races of hamsters, each with their own advantages and disadvantages.

Resources – everything that can be built, units, buildings, etc., requires resources to build. There are 17 types of resources.

Common Resources – these are the basic things of life that are involved in most buildings, units, etc. They are the easiest to find and gather in large quantities.

Uncommon Resources – These are less common, but still found often enough. At least one is usually required for most intermediate level buildings and weapons systems.

Rare Resources – These are meant to be difficult to find, difficult to cultivate, and are only cultivated in small quantities. They are used for the elite weapons systems of a given race, as well as very high level structures.

Very Rare – these two resources are almost impossible to find, nearly as difficult to mine, and come out in maddeningly small quantities.

The Unique Resource – This is the most difficult thing to find in the game, but the most deadly units, highest level buildings, etc, require it.

Planets – In a game about the universe, planets are key. There are five different types of planets. All players start on a type 1 planet. Cities can only be founded on type 1 and 2 planets; types 3, 4 and 5 require special resource exploitation settlements.
a. Type 1 – An easily settled planet, most low level resources can be found here.
b. Type 2 – A harder to settle planet, on which players can find more of the higher level resources.
c. Type 3 – A planet that is unpleasant and requires significant effort and technology to live on. Like the ones before it, the higher level the planet, the harder it is to live on, the higher level of resources are found on it.
d. Type 4 – These are scorched earth planets, either totally frozen or totally volcanic. Like the ones before it, the higher level the planet, the harder it is to live on, the higher level of resources are found on it.
e. Type 5 – These are gas giant planets and the least easily settled planets. Like the ones before it, the higher level the planet, the harder it is to live on, the higher level of resources are found on it.

City/Settlement building – Players can build city’s and settlements, which give them control over the resources near them, as well as giving them places to build new buildings. A city is the central location of hamster life, in which all the hamsters live, work, play, etc. To build a city, a player needs to construct a colonization ship in the Space Port. The ship can then be sent to its new home to found another city.

A settlement is a small outpost of hamsters. Only a limited subset of buildings can be constructed in a settlement, as it functions only to the purpose of exploiting one or more resources, and is not meant to be a pleasant place to live. Building settlements is a bit more complicated, because settlements can be founded on all types of planets, different levels of technology are required for different levels of settlements.

Buildings – there are 50 different kinds of buildings, ranging from barracks in which you build your soldiers to trade offices where you trade your goods and space ports where you build your exploration craft. Each city has a limited number of spots in which buildings can be built, and so players will have to be careful in what they chose to construct.

Trade System – In Space Hamsters everything can be traded, on large and small scales, including knowledge of planets, technologies, and resources. Military units, however, can not be traded. The trade system will be extensive and filled with options, such that players can very nearly create, “Player Stores” in which they sell their resources and knowledge for a price.

Exploring your home planet. In order to explore, a user will need to build first a space station in their city, and then an exploration shuttle. The exploration team can then be sent out into unknown areas of the planet to explore them with various orders. From the beginning, the existence of other planets in your solar system is known, but not what type they are or who is on them. You can explore your solar system with a telescope or with a shuttle exploration crew.

Once a player develops sufficient technology to reach out beyond their solar system, their shuttle crews are upgraded to hyper-shuttles which can reach out farther and have additional options.

Alliance System – There will be standard alliances in Space Hamsters to allow players to work together. Being in an alliance can grant the alliance members several benefits, all of which can be toggled on and off by the guild leader. Alliances work pretty much like every other game: people join, have levels, there is a forum, there can be taxes, etc.

Demand Letters – Players can send each other demand letters, in which they can demand anything in exchange for a non-attack pact for a set length of time.

Combat- There are 3 types of units, infantry units, mobile units (tanks, etc) and air units. Each unit has 8 stats, the number of men required to build it, speed, and attack/defense versus all 3 types of units. There will also be “Generals” which are specific units that go out with an army and, depending on their level of experience, provide small/medium sizes bonuses to the army they are commanding. Units will also be able to gain experience, as they survive more combat missions.

Also note there is a fog of war, you can’t see anything unless you’ve traded for a map of it, or you’ve discovered it yourself.

Espionage: With spy hamsters you can infiltrate enemy citizens and order your hamsters to commit both benign and malicious acts.

riderscartel.com/imports/sh/general.jpg Go here for another funny hamster picture!

riderscartel.com/imports/sh/rich.jpg And here for the last one I’m giving you!

Please do respond with your comments/opinions/questions about this game…note that while I appreciate all comments, things to the effect of, “this will never work, save your money, get off our message board, go home loser…etc” probably won’t do me much good, although if they make you feel like a, “big man” you can ahead and boost your ego at my expense, I’m a good sport =)

Thanks guys!