I’ve seen other game idea threads so I thought I post mine too. I’ve got some web development experience but no game development experience. I might try to execute this idea but it’s more likely I will never be able to do anything with it. So if anyone wants to take up this idea, on a non-commercial basis, I’m fine with it.
My idea came from the 1999 game Gangsters: organized crime. Here you play a prohibition, Chicago style gangster trying to make his fortune. You have several lieutenants, who have a maximum of 9 other people under them, who you can give orders to. They’ll in turn perform these orders. Here also comes the biggest flaw of the game: you delegate the orders to lieutenants in a turn based phase and you will see them executed in a real time phase. But you’re unable to change any order except to send someone who’s on the streets to do some simple tasks like go, wait and kill. While in the turn based phase you get to all kinds of complicated stuff like extorting, raiding, bribing, etc. It wouldn’t be such a big problem if the real time wasn’t extremely long, it takes 5 game days in which all your, or you can do it to the enemy of course, businesses can easily be burned down or worse: you can be killed. But you can’t really do anything against it. I also have some minor gripes about the game that are less severe.
The game is build up by the random generation of a city consisting of a bunch of blocks. Containing tenement blocks, shops or special buildings like the police station, court house, department stores etc.
Now my idea was a curses game where you play one of the characters in a city divided by the different gangsters. My idea was that there would be gangsters/lieutenants/capo’s who can do whatever they want in their controlled territory but they do have a boss. Like in the real life mafia the boss isn’t doing or even ordering the crimes himself. He has people that control certain territories or rackets that do the planning, ordering and executing. They only pay the boss a cut for his protection and association. This way the boss can really claim he’s not doing anything illegal and the lieutenants do have a lot of freedom to do what they want. Two games that have had such a system are Mount and Blade and Crusader Kings. Both games have an ultimate ruler but his vassals can manage their own business without, much, intervention of the big boss. I’d like it to be like that (and how it is in real life).
Here comes the player. He will probably start out as one of the hoods doing the bidding of one of the capo’s/crewleaders without even knowing who’s in real power. You will probably ordered to do tasks like extorting people, collecting protection/loan shark money, robbing businesses and maybe some violent jobs like killing people or burning down enemy illegal businesses (whorehouses, speakeasies, casino’s, etc). You will probably be given the chance to rise in the ranks and in the end be given your own rackets and have underlings (who you can also give rackets). It should also be possible to strike out on your own and make some money yourself and even hire your own goons, essentially creating your own gang/family instead of rising in the ranks. But the other gangs probably won’t like it if you’re undercutting them in the loan shark business or are robbing the businesses they’re protecting.
The player should be limited by the amount of territory/rackets/businesses he can hold on himself. Maybe by a 'stress' factor. So eventually he will need to give away stuff to his subordinates if he wants to expand. You will take a cut of the action. If the cut you take is too high they should get unhappy or start skimming money. Obviously this has to be dealt with someway.
Now I’m not sure if you’re going to be doing stuff turn based in a strategic mode (example: you send yourself to rob a place and a RNG determines if you’re successful), a turn based roguelike approach (example: you walk through the streets and rob a place, combat ensues in a turn based mode) or a real time roguelike basis.
Violence should be costly. Not necessarily on a monetary basis but on a manpower and police heat basis. Although I like violence in video games I would want to avoid LCS-style violence. People shouldn’t be über (a well trained gangster shouldn’t be able to kill a battalion of police officers) and killing people should really attract the attention of law enforcement. Obviously bribing the police chief, police officers and the DA’s should help you it doesn’t make you immune. Killing should be a last resort and not something you do for fun.
Now after reading this I’m really enthusiastic about it. I might even try to do it myself. I’ve got a lot more detailed ideas but I’d like to hear what you guys think about it.
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Topic: Game idea: Gangsters remake (Read 2094 times)