/fg/ - Fangames

> I then found this subforum and I feel a little discouraged.

I'd say just try it out. The one important piece of advice that I can give to you is this: make it your own. Too many "fangames" simply rip off the original Yume Nikki. Just because it's a fangame doesn't mean you can't put your own spin on things. LcdDem, for example, used the same basic gameplay of Yume Nikki, but many of its worlds were unique ideas from Koronba's own dreams (save for a few like the teleport maze and monochrome desert).

It'd also be interesting to see your own idea of how the dream world works… if you even have a dream world. Just let your creativity flow.

And you know… maybe making a fangame - or any type of game for that matter - just isn't your thing. If it isn't, that's fine. But I'd say at least give it a shot first. Even if the first version flops, try a few more releases afterwards, and if you're just not happy or not having fun, then you can try something else.

Also, don't be afraid to ask other people for help. If you can't make music, try asking around and see if somebody out there would be willing to help you.

>What makes .flow and 2kki special exactly?

Because 2kki and .flow were two of the first Yume Nikki fangames to ever be released. LcdDem and Yume Nisshi were once up there with them before they disappeared off the face of the earth.

>What would you personally like/not like to see in a fangame?

Like: Good music and sprites, interesting locations, a nice story/overarching theme

Dislike: Huge looping maps, area lifted directly from Yume Nikki, red maze rip-offs, nexus that's just a circle of doors, useless effects, bugs/glitches

>>9392
Well, I haven't played any of the fangames yet to compare my own ideas to theirs. So I can't say rather or not I'm being original.
Like I said though, I'm going to be basing this one off my own mind, rather than being completely fictional. Might seem a little 'up in myself' to say, but I feel like my experiences and thoughts would be interesting though to make a YN clone out of.
I do also have a dream world of my own. Although I can't directly control my dreams (IE: Lucid Dreaming), I can remember them quite well. Since they largely reflect my own thoughts, I can easily implement them.

Anyway, as for music, like I said, I'm mostly a programmer. I have a wife who does the art for most of my projects. I have no experience with music, either.
I am hoping to do most of the art and music myself this time, though.
Yume Nikki's music, for the most part, was just a bunch of simple beats in the background. I do feel like I have a ear for what sounds good and fits, so I'm hoping I can try making little clips of sounds and see if they sound good together.
As for art, I will probably ask for advice on rather or not something I make is okay, but other than that, I'm hoping to just do this project mostly on my own.

>Dislikes
I might use a few Huge Looping maps. Because if used right, they can help make a area feel like it was pulled from a bizarre world. Large, vast and empty. Of course, I'd put more in than just that. There is more to dreams than just emptiness. But it might work with a few areas.
Useless effects can be used to directly tie something to the main character, even if largely useless, so I'd probably have some of those. Though I'd like to make sure each effect does have a use, even if not apparent at first.
As for other things, (Maze, Area rip-offs, Nexus) I agree that they are a little annoying in some regard. I have plans for the Nexus.

Altogether, I decided I'll continue my project. Although I'm discouraged by how normal YN fangames are, it's a fun idea to make something directly related to me. Might help me kinda express myself in a weird way.
In any case, thank you for your input.

My best and the best advice is, take your time to see the clues on what really suck, there is no science really, prepare some tea, and download a good ammount of random fangames, you will notice very fast that the mistakes are always the same, which were listed many times (Mado Recolors, YN-Clone, huge empty maps, itsuki)

If you want an example of a good fangame that worked well, take Miserere by Owl, it has a storyline, its different, and its good, if you want to do something good have your own style, dont copy.

>Apparently everyone and their mothers have made a YN 'fangame'.
My mom's fangame suck

>Although there are so many fangames out there, what makes .flow and 2kki special exactly?

Along with .flow and 2kki being the first few fangames to be released, they also offered an improvement on Yume Nikki's style of gameplay and storytellying in subtle but impressive ways.

.flow introduced a theme and hint at Sabitsuki's story via medical imagery like hospitals and ekg visuals and sound effects, along with a lot of hints at physical loss and sickness like bodily mutilation, effects that removed or changed parts of her body, etc.

Yume 2kki was the opposite, by expanding the exploration possibilities and surreal nature of dreams by including tons of different and unique areas and effects, along with a hub for customizing the save screen, looking at fanart made by the creators, etc.

The most successful fangames nowadays either completely change how a Yume Nikki styled game can be told (The Other Line, Fleshchild, etc) or build upon the theming .flow established with impressive artistic skills (Ultra Violet, Answered Prayers, Dream Graffiti, etc). However, it feels like the Western side of the YN fangame community is starting to embrace liberties taken with Nikki's style, while the Eastern community still tends to prefer 'carbon copy' styles.

>What would you personally like to see in a fangame? Or what would you 'not' like to see?

Most of us here on uboachan can't stand carbon copies. Use Yume Nikki as inspiration, not as a model to follow. YN had its fair share of problems in its structure such as the problems Psi listed above. Don't be afraid to get creative.

Personally, I don't mind if there's "useless effects" because I play these games to collect that shit anyway. Have a good mix of cosmetic effects, and ones that influence the dream world. Cosmetic effect example: a pretty dress, a top hat. Useful effect example: a key that unlocks new areas, a teleporter that returns the player to the most convenient location to begin exploring again. And all people enjoy effects that can do animations (like cat Madotsuki's meowing)

Bugs and glitches in the games are inevitable, because nobody is perfect and you have AAA game companies releasing patches on the day they release their first game. Ensure there's nothing that breaks your game before you give it to people is all I care about.

I would really like to see original spritework, unique situations for the "dreamer" (they CAN leave their room, they don't sleep in a bed to go to the dreamworld), and smaller areas with more points of interest.

i can't speak for all yn fangames, but i've been planning one for a while and it'll be years before i can make it and release. it's so vastly different from the yn formula that i doubt many would recognize it as a fangame even. i see yn as just an inspiration though; this game idea has evolved from so many sources that it's really just "my thing" and hopefully others can enjoy it when i eventually finish. i recommend that whatever you do, just make sure it's "your thing". look to other fan games for ideas and inspiration, but also look outside of the yn community.

and as others have said, .flow and 2kki are big because they innovated and because they were early on the scene. although it feels less cohesive as a whole, i somewhat adore 2kki more than yn. i still need to play .flow though, been putting that off since i'm squeemish.

anyway, good luck in your endeavors! if nothing else, have fun with the project!