Average dev, f95 enjoyer. help me shape my game!

[okonwame]

Hi everyone, longtime lurker here finally stepping into game development.

I’ve been a quiet user of this platform for years, mostly just admiring the projects shared here. Recently, I decided to start developing my own game, inspired by many of the titles and ideas I’ve seen in this community.

I’ve read quite a few older threads about game design and development, but since many of them are from years ago, I’d love to hear some fresh perspectives from current members: What do you enjoy or dislike in RPGs these days? What makes a game feel meaningful or memorable to you?

About the game
It’s a medieval fantasy RPG, currently about 50% into a playable beta. The concept started from personal taste, but I’m trying hard not to make something that only I would enjoy. My goal is to create something fun and interesting for others, without being overly ambitious or pretentious.

Story & setting
You play as a man trying to escape his past. On his journey, he ends up stranded in a small border town. His main goal is simply to gather what he needs to continue traveling.

The town is full of small stories involving its inhabitants. The player can choose to get involved, and each story offers at least two possible outcomes, not necessarily “good” or “bad,” just different.

Survival mechanics
There’s a light survival layer:

You can forage and cook food (slower, but gives temporary buffs)

Or buy food (faster, but costs money, which delays your main goal)

Combat & freedom
I’ve added several enemy types with different combat dynamics (still working on this). The main character’s goal can be achieved without doing side stories. I don’t want to force any playstyle, players can engage as much or as little as they want.

Random events
There are small, randomized events that may or may not appear depending on time and location. Much of the content is optional and hidden unless you’re in the right place at the right moment.

Inspirations & tone
Originally, I was aiming for something dark and pessimistic, think Berserk, Darkest Dungeon, Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, and some hentai influences. But the tone has shifted over time. It’s now less edgy and more grounded, which I think is a good thing. Also, with the current wave of censorship around NSFW content, I’ve decided to keep things toned down.

If you’ve read this far, thank you! I’d love to hear your thoughts:

What tropes feel overused in RPGs?

What kinds of mechanics or story beats keep you engaged?

Do you prefer games that guide you, or ones that let you wander?

Any feedback is welcome. I’m here to learn and improve. Thanks again!

 

[MissCougar]

Welcome! Love it! Good luck friend! <3

I think the worst trope in RPGs is using the default stuff in RPG Maker or making a game where the combat or parts of the game are boring and pointless.

 

[entovx15]

the most thing i dislike in all sort of games is the loooooong unneeded dialogue, like the game is full of words that does not help u, nor enjoy u.
i play vn, and i like to see the character perspective through their words, however in the same time i will get bored if the dialogue is boring.
black souls games or any excellent rpg games focus on you do your work then a characters will have conversation with you with meaningful words, so u get attracted with the characters and think with yourself "this long grinding worth having an interaction with those npcs".
what do u think of my opinion? thx for reading.

 

[Cajun Fox]

Hey there

Good luck with your game

 

[Count Morado]

Hi everyone, longtime lurker here finally stepping into game development.

I’ve been a quiet user of this platform for years, mostly just admiring the projects shared here. Recently, I decided to start developing my own game, inspired by many of the titles and ideas I’ve seen in this community.

I’ve read quite a few older threads about game design and development, but since many of them are from years ago, I’d love to hear some fresh perspectives from current members: What do you enjoy or dislike in RPGs these days? What makes a game feel meaningful or memorable to you?

About the game
It’s a medieval fantasy RPG, currently about 50% into a playable beta. The concept started from personal taste, but I’m trying hard not to make something that only I would enjoy. My goal is to create something fun and interesting for others, without being overly ambitious or pretentious.

Story & setting
You play as a man trying to escape his past. On his journey, he ends up stranded in a small border town. His main goal is simply to gather what he needs to continue traveling.

The town is full of small stories involving its inhabitants. The player can choose to get involved, and each story offers at least two possible outcomes, not necessarily “good” or “bad,” just different.

Survival mechanics
There’s a light survival layer:

You can forage and cook food (slower, but gives temporary buffs)

Or buy food (faster, but costs money, which delays your main goal)

Combat & freedom
I’ve added several enemy types with different combat dynamics (still working on this). The main character’s goal can be achieved without doing side stories. I don’t want to force any playstyle, players can engage as much or as little as they want.

Random events
There are small, randomized events that may or may not appear depending on time and location. Much of the content is optional and hidden unless you’re in the right place at the right moment.

Inspirations & tone
Originally, I was aiming for something dark and pessimistic, think Berserk, Darkest Dungeon, Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, and some hentai influences. But the tone has shifted over time. It’s now less edgy and more grounded, which I think is a good thing. Also, with the current wave of censorship around NSFW content, I’ve decided to keep things toned down.

If you’ve read this far, thank you! I’d love to hear your thoughts:

What tropes feel overused in RPGs?

What kinds of mechanics or story beats keep you engaged?

Do you prefer games that guide you, or ones that let you wander?

Any feedback is welcome. I’m here to learn and improve. Thanks again!

If you've read a lot of these kinds of threads, then you should already have your answers because a lot of them have my same responses or someone's whose are similar:

All your questions can be answer thusly:

If you are wanting to make a game to make money, don't. The median adult game creator on Patreon earns about $100 USD per month even after 4 years. Only 1 in 5 earn more than $1000 per month after Patreon's cut, but before credit card fees, etc.

If you are making a game YOU want to see made and are passionate about making it, then these questions are moot. YOU should make the game YOU want, using the tropes and mechanics YOU enjoy. It should be the game no one has made yet but one YOU have always wanted to be made. It should be YOUR dream game. There will be an audience. There are 9+ million accounts on here... Tens, if not hundreds, of millions of people have played adult games from the Internet. If even 1/100 of 1% find and play your game, that's 10,000 easily.

If you're worried you don't have what it takes to make your dream game, try a smaller version with just a little bit of what you want to do -- simply a few scenes with a quick and simple story arc to connect. Once you feel comfortable, go big.

The questions you are asking are the questions YOU should be answering because it's your passion, your belief, your desire, your commitment that you will need to get you through the difficult times, the ruts, the bugs, the creative blocks, the haters, after thousands of hours of work on the game to keep you going... Not sampling opinions from a very small minority of people who post on these kinds of threads of the small minority of people who post in general discussion threads of the small minority of people who post at all of the small minority of people who read any posts of the small minority of adult game players who actually sign up for an account on F95Zone.

 

[okonwame]

If you've read a lot of these kinds of threads, then you should already have your answers because a lot of them have my same responses or someone's whose are similar:

All your questions can be answer thusly:

If you are wanting to make a game to make money, don't. The median adult game creator on Patreon earns about $100 USD per month even after 4 years. Only 1 in 5 earn more than $1000 per month after Patreon's cut, but before credit card fees, etc.

If you are making a game YOU want to see made and are passionate about making it, then these questions are moot. YOU should make the game YOU want, using the tropes and mechanics YOU enjoy. It should be the game no one has made yet but one YOU have always wanted to be made. It should be YOUR dream game. There will be an audience. There are 9+ million accounts on here... Tens, if not hundreds, of millions of people have played adult games from the Internet. If even 1/100 of 1% find and play your game, that's 10,000 easily.

If you're worried you don't have what it takes to make your dream game, try a smaller version with just a little bit of what you want to do -- simply a few scenes with a quick and simple story arc to connect. Once you feel comfortable, go big.

The questions you are asking are the questions YOU should be answering because it's your passion, your belief, your desire, your commitment that you will need to get you through the difficult times, the ruts, the bugs, the creative blocks, the haters, after thousands of hours of work on the game to keep you going... Not sampling opinions from a very small minority of people who post on these kinds of threads of the small minority of people who post in general discussion threads of the small minority of people who post at all of the small minority of people who read any posts of the small minority of adult game players who actually sign up for an account on F95Zone.

Hey, thanks for taking the time to reply!

I'm not doing this just to make money, I genuinely love games and wanted to create one myself. But that doesn’t mean I want to put out just anything,I’ll do my best with the time and resources I’ve got.

I think listening to the audience is super important. Some creators have done amazing things just by paying attention to what people want. That said, if you only follow what others ask for, things can get messy and lose direction. So yeah, I get that there needs to be a balance.

I get what you mean about putting my own identity into the game and honestly, I think you're right. A lot of great games came from personal ideas and deep passion, and I really admire that. But for now, I’m not trying to make something that’s just for me. That’s not what I’m aiming for (at least not at the moment).

It's funny you brought up the idea of a dream game, because I actually do have one in mind. But this isn't it, this one's more of a practice run.

This game is meant to be something chill, aimed at a specific group (which includes me ). So I kept it simple, with short stories and lots of porn.

 

[okonwame]

Hey there

Good luck with your game

Thank you very much, I appreciate the support.

 

[okonwame]

the most thing i dislike in all sort of games is the loooooong unneeded dialogue, like the game is full of words that does not help u, nor enjoy u.
i play vn, and i like to see the character perspective through their words, however in the same time i will get bored if the dialogue is boring.
black souls games or any excellent rpg games focus on you do your work then a characters will have conversation with you with meaningful words, so u get attracted with the characters and think with yourself "this long grinding worth having an interaction with those npcs".
what do u think of my opinion? thx for reading.

Hello, thanks for the reply.

I totally get your point. Years ago, I played a visual novel called "Katawa Shoujo". it was fun and pretty engaging (at least back then). But there was this one character who would drop super long monologues, and it just killed the flow and broke the immersion.

 

[okonwame]

Welcome! Love it! Good luck friend! <3

I think the worst trope in RPGs is using the default stuff in RPG Maker or making a game where the combat or parts of the game are boring and pointless.

Hey, thanks for the support!

I get what you’re saying, it’s pretty common for creators to drag out gameplay with boring, artificial mechanics.

I’ll keep that in mind.

Thanks for replying!