Game Idea help needed

[4T5]

Ok Guys you all know i play a fair bit & an idea for the Perfect FPS came to me last night whilst drifting off to sleep.
I am not prepared to share this publicly as I personally think it roxs, Well I would wouldn't I
Anyway the point, Where/who do I contact to take this idea further or is it best to just learn to mod a current FPS into the game I want & release it for free.
Commercially it will be Huge as the idea is Perfect but then obviously unless i can get in contact with a gaming producer I have no chance of getting it out there.
As far as modding a game myself I don't think it would take that much as it is more the games mechanics I would change & not the chars or hit boxes.
Effectively I would just be tweaking BF2 to make it more suited to the masses.
I think there is just one thing in FPS i could change to revolutionise FPS gaming online, With this Major thing & a few other subtle tweaks I am positive I could produce a Very popular game.

So,
Any Ideas guys, possibilities or am I ****** into the wind.

 

[Zefan]

You definitely won't get anywhere by writing to developers/publishers, (unless you have lots of good ideas and want to make a career out of it).

Is it just BF2 you think you could mod to make your concept? Think of the other game engines such as Unreal (very flexible and extremely simple to mod from my experience) as they may provide an easier way to scult a concept.

The only other advice I can give is to really think it through throughly and wonder why it hasn't been done already. If you decide to have a play with Unreal Editor then add me to MSN as I'd love to give you a hand

:edit: BTW re the email - not sure I'm selling yet

 

[Tefal]

if it's basically a tweaked version of bf2, either mod it, or you'll have to ring EA if you want to try and make any money from it.

 

[4T5]

It doesn't have to be BF2, It's just the game I know. The only requirements would be decent hit boxes & Humans as the chars.
I'll have to sniff out a copy of Unreal & check it out.
Cheers.

 

[Zefan]

It doesn't have to be BF2, It's just the game I know. The only requirements would be decent hit boxes & Humans as the chars.
I'll have to sniff out a copy of Unreal & check it out.
Cheers.

You can get the editor free and start having a play with levels. Textures, meshes, models, sounds and all other content you need can be taken from any Unreal game that you buy. Pretty handy to get a game with it so you don't have to spend time creating your own content to make levels that look anything more exciting than grey blocks. If you're going to get it, get version 2.5 or higher, from personal experience anything before that is pants.

Is game mode not a requirement? Does it have to be capture the flag/territory/or deathmatch? These are the sorts of things we need to know really, thankfully Unreal does them all pretty much.

 

[AHarvey]

Personally I wouldn't bother with the unreal engine, instead look at the source engine. There are so many resources out there for the source engine, easy to mod and the majority of games that have been done well have gone on to be very, very popular.

As for your idea, your best bet is to sit down and write it down on paper. Throw some sketches in as well, but remember, you aren't just designing your idea you have to sit down and develop the entire game from the option menus right through to the story.

You may be able to find a cheap book on ebay called "Game Design: Secrets of the Sages" edited by Marc Saltzman.

Its a few years old now but was written when the original HL and some other classic games had been around a while. There are loads of chapters and interviews about different game related designs and problems and solutions other people came up with.

Best thing I could suggest would be to get a few gamers or modders in a chat room, pitch your idea to them and see what they think. Being your idea you will find it hard to look at subjectively so other peoples opinions are vital. Be prepared to make changes if you realise something won't work they way you want it to. If you need advice on your idea feel free to email me I will be more than willing to help.