Let’s get into this!
- A Versus-style (4v4 or 8v8 perhaps) Multiplayer focused survival horror game, with a heavy emphasis on sound
Straight off the bat you’re focusing on multiplayer which I think a lot of people new to this racket make similar kinds of wrong turns. Getting gameplay right even in a single-player game is incredibly difficult; adding multiple players makes this even harder to nail down. My suggestion would be to start with the concept of a single soldier, single mob and work out from there. Mutiny is 2 full developers, a separate game designer and a project manager / tester and we have yet to get multiplayer working in even the prototype stage.
I do however love the idea of using more than just visual cues for tuning the survival aspects; like Umbra, Insomnia etc. Stay with that and develop the concept further.
- 4 Soldiers versus 4 gigantic monstrous beasts that greatly overpower the marines
You could probably build in NPC units that perform tasks for the player or in concert a lot easier than supporting the networking required for multiplayer. The 1:1 ratio is really unique (like Dark Souls but not really like Dark Souls.)
- However these beasts have limited/no sight and rely on the slight visual cues given (Think: Symphony Practice scene in The Soloist - Google it if you haven’t seen it)
- Their sight allows for a basic understanding of the architecture and layout of the map (maybe due to seismic readings or some such)
Great movie. Not sure how you’d work that in to a fluid and reliable gameplay mechanic.
- Could be Class-based, with a handful of different tools which can aid stealth for soldiers, lay traps or enhance sight or health regeneration for monsters
- The point is that the Marines have to work quietly, quickly, and together to take down even one monster - but when things go wrong, hiding and waiting for the right moment to strike again is key.
While not at all detracting from your game concept this reminds me of what little footage we’ve seen so far from Nosgoth. It is an interesting question of whether or not you can build a game around a complete imbalance in archetypes (player v. mob) or if you can build an engaging experience where half the gameplay is about hiding from danger. I like it.
- Using terrain-movement akin to that of Brink or Mirror’s Edge, soldiers can evade monsters in 1v1 situations. Soldiers must also use sound to stay away from monsters as they work together so as not to stumble into more than they can handle, as I don’t think radar has a place in this game as it won’t be a fast paced, call of duty style shooter. More like L4D meets Assassisin’s Creed meets Dead Space.
- I have yet to determine all of the balance issues there might obviously be, however this covers the summary and basic features pretty well.
I want to learn how to make this, the only tools Ive ever used in game design are for flash games, and I think I’d need to use Unreal Development Kit for this, but I’m really a writer at heart and haven’t got a clue how to begin, I’m certainly no animator or coder.
I think your concept presents a lot of interesting challenges, not the least of which are production focused. If you’re going to start out learning a serious game engine I’d recommend Unity. We’ve been using it for well over 5 years now and it is still full of constant surprises. They have really flexible licensing terms if you decide to get serious. I can’t vouch for UDK although I know that @blankslatejoe has had a lot of success with it.
I DO think that you devoting yourself to doing as much as you can on your own is a fantastic idea! There are a ton of support systems in place out there for individuals looking to follow their dreams to make amazing stuff and it sounds like you’ve got a unique idea for this. One thing that Unity has that I haven’t seen for UDK is the Asset Store. Realistically you could make the entire game with content from the UAS for a fraction of the cost in time and resources it would take you to make it by hand.
I’ll be very interested in seeing you take this further.