You have an Idea for a Football Control System!?

[GingerPete]

Girls,

As some of you may know I am busy working hard on my own football game project which I started at uni. Anyway, most the work so far has been improving what i had done so far , and now i come to the control system. Well its not as simple as i had hoped! The reason is I have told myself I want the players to be able to face in any 360 degree direction, as i want some realistic physics in here (Mommentum, acceleration, friction, gravity etc...) . I have a few some problems figuring all this out and implementing but i will get there, but I also need to decided a good control method, so who better to ask than you chaps right!?

My ideas...

1) The mouse (eek!) for looking, buttons for kick and jumping. and the trusty keyboard for forward backwards and sidestep(?!)

2) all keyboard arrow keys to turn (rotate), other keys for movement and stuff.

3) Analogue joystick only? Like the console stick things? Limits players though?

Any ideas on any of this?

Pete.

[Steve Camber]

When I was writing my last soccer game (UEFA Challenge) we of course use the analogue controller to move the players. However we found that it was easier for the user to have just the standard 8 directions.

I like the idea of the mouse + cursors though, sounds like a laugh !!

As with all things, it's best to try different methods out and choose the best for the job.

[GingerPete]

I know, I like it, it may work and make the player feel really in control?!

I thought of it playing after playing counter strike for hours through the night. My grief with the 8 way is..

My current version already does it! And so does every other game, so whats new!?

If i can only move 8 way, so can the AI to be fair, so its not realistic.

not realistic = no physics, and i want some realistic physics in there, may bring a new edge to things, also if it models physics then i have ideas that mimic real football.

[Abyss]

Yeah, but what about 2-player action? Football games are great when you get to play the person sitting next to you. How is this going ot be implemented with mouse control? Two mice on the same PC?

[Steve Camber]

In game programming there is often the choice between realism and playability. Are you making a physics demo or a game? It's your call !!

[Tripod]

Indeed, and there's always one that is more important than the other - the playability of course. I've seen too many good ideas gone bad because they wanted to make things more realistic. But of course that's not saying that a completely different approach shouldn't be attempted, but within that, always choose playability over realism.

[durban]

What I normally do is have the human controlled player stick to the 8 directions, but the CPU players will be able to run in any direction on account of them needing to find the fastest route to the ball.

Then what I do is put half the control mechanism in place and then give up and start another project...

anyone for pirates!!!

[Durbz]

When I was writing my last soccer game (UEFA Challenge)

Are you ever going to release a demo of that game?

[GingerPete]

Yeah, but what about 2-player action? Football games are great when you get to play the person sitting next to you. How is this going ot be implemented with mouse control? Two mice on the same PC?

Mate, I am 100% determined on making this support networking, LAN at first, but then accross the interent. But locally thats a good point if no connection is available.

Playability Vs Reality.

This is true, and I, like some of you im sure, sadly seem to find reasons why i dislike a game before i find reasons to like it! So i am no fool, and will be sure to make it fun to play b4 anything else.
I just want this game to stand out and from the other demo's in as many ways as possible! All for hopefully good reasons!

[Steve Camber]

When I was writing my last soccer game (UEFA Challenge)

Are you ever going to release a demo of that game?

No demo was release as far as I remember, but it can be bought on ebay for PSX, PS2, and PC

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... egory=3727

[Davetoast]

Hey Ginge.

Have you thought about those joysticks with the little hat thing on the top?

Not sure if it'll do what you want it to but it'll certainly give more variation.

[durban]

Yes imagine you could run one way with the stick, whilst using tyour thump to rotate the hat and pick out a player to pass to, that would be neat!

Instead of passing as the cpu intends you could do all sorts, including deciding where to shooot, as you \are running you use the hat to aim or something.....so you could effectively to a backwards pass, or shot from an angle etc without ever turning (like in real footy when becks curls in a pass he doesn't face the player he just whips it!)

Nice idea toast

[Davetoast]

Problem is, the sticks with hats are flight sim sticks (I think) and not overly suited to footy, maybe though.

Like you say, there's all sorts of possibilities with them things though.