Neighborhood view

monkey · 2014-03-03 19:04:07

As someone in Australia, GMT+10 it's usually pretty lonely, and early Monday morning seems to be the busiest time. It would be nice to know how many people are online and how many houses exist. It could be displayed in game, or I was thinking it would be cool to have a web page that shows this information, even cooler if it was displayed graphically, like a Sim City top down view, at night with different house icons for different values, lights on for people editing, dim lights (ie: a torch inside) for active robberies, lights off for idle, vacant lots for robbed houses, maybe even little people roaming the streets to show people browsing the house list. Basically something to give us a feel for what is going on without giving away information on specific houses.

It would be pretty easy to make a page like this if you could make the right sql query to the main server...

Suedeo · 2014-03-03 19:33:42

I like these ideas.

A player's (un-modded) default view of the 8 houses in their price range has a powerful effect on the way the game plays out.

Scrolling through those lists is hurting my index finger more and more as the neighborhood population increases.

I would love to be able to search a number and GOTO a page with houses of that value!

Last edited by Suedeo (2014-03-03 19:40:19)

jasonrohrer · 2014-03-05 08:33:09

Yeah, I'll think about a way to deal with this.

LiteS · 2014-03-05 21:53:44

monkey wrote:

As someone in Australia, GMT+10 it's usually pretty lonely, and early Monday morning seems to be the busiest time. It would be nice to know how many people are online and how many houses exist. It could be displayed in game, or I was thinking it would be cool to have a web page that shows this information, even cooler if it was displayed graphically, like a Sim City top down view, at night with different house icons for different values, lights on for people editing, dim lights (ie: a torch inside) for active robberies, lights off for idle, vacant lots for robbed houses, maybe even little people roaming the streets to show people browsing the house list. Basically something to give us a feel for what is going on without giving away information on specific houses.
It would be pretty easy to make a page like this if you could make the right sql query to the main server...

I also really like the idea of seeing occupied houses, although it might not fit the theme. Physically I know that every other name on the list robs and kills just as much as I do, but other houses being robbed isn't really shown in the game. Having an actual indicator that other houses are currently being robbed might change the feel of the game. I'm not quite sure if that would be good or bad, but I think it's an idea worth exploring.

A graphic representation of the neighborhood would be a bit of an undertaking, but it could provide a better way to view the list of houses.

AMWhy · 2014-03-06 01:34:07

Initially, every house would look the same (top down view, small yard, fence) but as new additions are brought to the game, you could have the option to modify your house (cosmetic changes for a cost to show wealth). Also, if (and it's a big if) floors, or an expanded house are added to the game, this would be shown with a different house in the street-view.
The idea of dim light to show houses being robbed and no lights to show 'robbable' houses is excellent!

How would new houses (new players) be added to the neighbourhood? What about players who die and restart? would they always start from a new plot on the edge of town? What would happen to old houses/plots?

I guess the answer would be to have a fourth house image of an empty plot (a run-down house, maybe) and every time a new player is added or a player restarts, they are randomly given a new plot.

So, to recap:
When you enter the street view you see your house (no name) and surrounding houses (perhaps 9 or 16 on screen at a time). All houses look the same. Each house is in one of four states:
Owner away (black windows)
Owner home (lights on)
House being burgled (dim lights on)
House vacant (police tape)

You could only enter (attempt to rob) houses with black windows. Hovering the mouse over a house would give details of robberies/kills.
The screen would refresh/update if you went off screen then returned (the equivalent of page down/page up in the present 'which house should I rob' view).

You would have to physically walk from house to house along a street. Meeting a policeman during night (or a dog owner during the day?) would prove fatal due to a night curfew (or overly aggressive dog).

monkey · 2014-03-06 04:31:13

Hah, I like the idea of crime scene tape AMWhy, but those should be on recent murders. (ie player hasn't logged in since the killing) What you propose is a whole lot more involved than what I was thinking... I wasn't even thinking it would be part of the game, more like a server stats webpage that polled the database, but I guess Jason is already looking at improving the list view somehow.

If it was going to be in the game so that you could scroll around in it and choose a house to rob, I think the first thing to note is that houses would have to move around or the map wouldn't be very useful or realistic. Keeping players set in the place they spawned in would mean mansions sprouting up like mushrooms in the middle of slums. They'd need to be re-sorted each time, just as it is now. Because the map is 2D, you could also sort houses on two metrics, at the moment it's sorted by combined value of vault and wife, I wonder the effect of sorting by that value on one axis and value of the house defenses on the other. Depending on exactly how it was calculated, there'd be different kinds of prestige in at least 2 of the corners.

You could also show other info graphically, like the police tape or tall brick fences for people with dead families since most go into "fortress mode" after that.

MazeHunter · 2014-03-10 17:04:34

monkey wrote:

As someone in Australia, GMT+10 it's usually pretty lonely, and early Monday morning seems to be the busiest time. It would be nice to know how many people are online and how many houses exist. It could be displayed in game, or I was thinking it would be cool to have a web page that shows this information, even cooler if it was displayed graphically, like a Sim City top down view, at night with different house icons for different values, lights on for people editing, dim lights (ie: a torch inside) for active robberies, lights off for idle, vacant lots for robbed houses, maybe even little people roaming the streets to show people browsing the house list. Basically something to give us a feel for what is going on without giving away information on specific houses.
It would be pretty easy to make a page like this if you could make the right sql query to the main server...

OMG that is a great idea! Jason please do this! It will help promote your game and give us a sense of community. Kudos to Monkey!!! A++++

Last edited by MazeHunter (2014-03-10 17:05:42)

The Castle Doctrine Forums

#1 2014-03-03 19:04:07

Neighborhood view

#2 2014-03-03 19:33:42

Re: Neighborhood view

#3 2014-03-05 08:33:09

Re: Neighborhood view

#4 2014-03-05 21:53:44

Re: Neighborhood view

#5 2014-03-06 01:34:07

Re: Neighborhood view

#6 2014-03-06 04:31:13

Re: Neighborhood view

#7 2014-03-10 17:04:34

Re: Neighborhood view

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