Are These Possible in RPG Maker VX Ace? Options

[kallisti]

Hi, my name is Lytta (an alias, and I'm a guy). I am currently starting work on a Survival Horror game using RPG Maker Vx Ace. I had come up with a couple of concepts I wanted to use in the Gameplay mechanics, but, being new to actually using RPG Maker, I'm not sure if I can do these things:

• I'd like to have a difficulty setting. The difficulties would be Easy, Normal, and Hard (the typical ones). Each difficulty will effect slightly different things. In Easy, enemies do the least amount of damage and HP will NOT decrease (see next bullet), but still present a challenge in Gameplay. Normal will have HP decreasing at its normal rate and enemies will deal the normal amount of damage. Hard will have HP decrease its fastest (without being annoyingly fast) and enemies deal more damage. The point being, is there a way I can have things affected based on difficulty? Or will everything always be set one way?
  
• The player's HP is intended to be connected to a phone's battery life. Meaning, if the battery reaches 0%, it's game over. Taking damage decreases battery life, kinda obvious, but sitting still and doing nothing can too. I want it to mimic real life, where battery life decreases on its own, but at a slow rate. There will be "Charging Stations" scattered around to recharge the battery, but I feel that taking damage AND the thought that the battery could die out before you could reach a charger would present more of a challenge. Is there a way to have HP naturally decrease, but at a slow enough rate that it still proposes a challenge while not being too difficult? Like, 1% every minute or two as an example.
  
• A "Sanity Meter," whether hidden or visible. When it gets lower, the player will experience strange things like the buttons not working, the screen blacks out and sounds will be heard (and the player might take a small, random amount of damage), changes in scenery and NPCs, etc. If anyone has played Eternal Darkness, they might get a sense of what I'm talking about. I plan on having things that will allow a player to increase the meter so these strange things might not happen, like candy or drinks or something. I'm still deciding on if I want to use this, but either way I'd like to know if something like this is possible.
  
• Multiple outcomes, but not necessarily just Endings. Certain actions you take, or certain items you've obtained, might effect how people react and whether another person might live, etc. Basically the story changes in minor details on how you play. It won't necessarily change the general plot or mechanics, but taking certain actions to ensure someone is alive when you reach a certain puzzle might have benefits (such as more hints or being able to solve the puzzle faster).
  
• Taller sprites. Not really for the effect of Survival Horror, but more so personal taste. I've noticed the sprites are on the smaller side. Is there any way to make them taller, possibly so the player might be able to differentiate between a child and an adult or someone standing and a person in a wheelchair?
  
• Speaking of sprites, does anyone know of any place (or person) where I can make a sprite of a character in a wheelchair? One of the characters I intend to use is supposed to be in a wheelchair, and it may end up being the main character.

Like I said, I'm new to RPG Maker, and I'd like to know if some of these things are possible. Also, if anyone knows a way to do these things or might have an idea as to how to do them, it would be greatly appreciated if you could provide that too, but if you don't it's okay.

[ZarroTsu]

All of the above seem decently easy to put together, most of them more reliant on scripting than anything (Which I suggest you leaf through and learn yourself so you have something to call your own as opposed to ripping other people's work and making your game look like stolen content from other RPG maker games (YES, COMMUNITY, THAT IS WHAT OFFERING UNEDITED SCRIPT ANSWERS DOES)). "Multiple Outcomes" Could be driven without any scripting at all, and is sort of the... POINT of RPG event making.

"Taller Sprites" are just a matter of making the graphic file dimensions larger, as it automatically splits the image file into portions. There are already "Taller sprites" in the RTP you can look at for reference, but generally the default script determines character height by character sprite image height. So all you need to do is make the sprites. (Oh hey look at that, the help file that comes with the maker says just that!)

"Wheelchair sprites"... I can't help but question why you needed to ask this. Do you intend to just rip sprites from other games and can't find a resource with wheelchair sprites? In that case, if you need to find someone to make sprites for you, why not have them make sprites for the entire game to keep the visuals consistent? Seems like the better idea to me.

The only 'difficult' thing on this list would possibly be the "Sanity Meter" -- not so much the meter itself, that's the easy part, but rather the effects themselves. This would probably take a considerable amount of polish to make the game flow into these effects naturally, to make the player think it was intentional and actually freak out at what the heck is going on. Aka Eternal Darkness, your example. How exactly the effects occur is dependent a lot on custom animation and picture uses, and would take a lot of time and effort to get looking fluid.

[kallisti]

I actually plan to make things on my own, ZarroTsu. Since the software is expensive, I'm merely asking if these things are possible so I don't buy a program that I won't end up needing. Some people may think that's stupid, but I for one would not like to spend $90 on a program that I might not use often. As for ripping people off, no I am not intending that at all. I'm just curious as to how scripts might be done or if there are sprite creators that can successfully create a sprite sheet of someone in a wheelchair (to which I had planned to ask them to make sprite sheets for the characters so I can have a consistent feel to the game). I actually want this game to feel as original as possible, even f that means I learn how to script and make the scripts myself.

I do agree with you about the Sanity Meter. I figured it would be difficult, especially since it should at least look and feel like it's on purpose so the player doesn't flip and restart the game. I might see how things work scripting wise and decide if I'll use it after I'm better at scripting.

[ZarroTsu]

Since the software is expensive, I'm merely asking if these things are possible so I don't buy a program that I won't end up needing.

If it's such a risky purchase, I'd go so far as to suggest temporarily pirating the program, and purchasing when your project is complete so your game distribution is legal. That way, if you don't think VXAce is the program you're looking for, you can just uninstall it without having lost $90 for nothing (and without making Enterbrain cry).

Of course I'm sure I'm going to get heat for suggesting this, now.

This post has been edited by ZarroTsu: Nov 6 2012, 12:15 PM