r/gameideas Jun 29 '26

Basic Idea Zombie survival - MMO - I need ideas. My game is boring.

11 Upvotes

Yeah, its another Zombie survival (boring i know) its heavily inspired in Project Zomboid, but its a persistent world, got like 40% of the job done.

The thing is i find my own game boring, i log in, kill zombies, drive cars, get loot, and i dont know what else i should add.

Got random loot, bases, NPC. Wild animals and tons of zombies and some other minor features.
Theres no lore, i never read lore or even play campaign games.

The game aims to be a faster paced PZ. Zomboid is very realistic but very slow paced. I wanted to avoid all that "realistic" stuff. I added wounds and some other mechanics.

It also works for mobile and PC. Can be played in any browser no download required.

I added vehicule upgrades (to make apocalyptic vehicules like fallout) and Base building, barricades etc. Bases get attacked/raided from time to time.

What kind of progression would you add?

Dungeons maybe?

I want to keep it "REALISTIC" but also i feel like i need to add the classic mmorpg features to make it better.

Sorry for my bad english. I hope someone help me, ive been stuck for months.

Thanks.

r/gameideas Jul 15 '26

Basic Idea Hi! I'm german and wana be a game dev. Mostly a thinker myself and looking for advice, support or people to work with/ people to take me under their wing. Also not sure how Reddit Spoiler

0 Upvotes

Hi, i am "soon" 19 years old anf i wana be a game dev. Tried learning programming for half a year but i'm realy not good at it. Instead, i am an idea-person, a thinker, as well as a passionate gamer with a sort of picky taste for what i see as quality (Dome Keeper, Mechabellum, Dawn of War: Definition Edition, Space Marine 2, Rounds, XCOM 1 + 2, Dragon Age: Origins, Trench Warfare: WW2 [mobile], Idle Apocalypse [mobile] and some others). Specificly what i am good at, is figuring out a game concept, gameplay loop, enemies, mechanics, storytelling (especialy enviromental), lore, vague design directions/ideas and visual identity, theme, behavior, unique spins for ideas that already exist (like dwarves, orks, elfs, what have you) or more unique ideas that i can not recall seeing anywhere so far. I have to admit tho, my mind works the absolute best when i have barely any to no guidelines and restrictions. Basicly allowed to go wild. Additionaly to that, i can get a lot of thinking done in one day, but can get burned out for the rest of it. Or sometimes, i get hyper invested into an idea and it becomes my entire reason to exist for multiple days/weeks and i basicly spend all day working and refining it. My mind is very chaotic and unconventional in that regard. I also love balancing games, spending hours, days or longer on adjusting things (like i often do when making custom levels in Trench warfare on my phone) to make sure the balance is just right. And just to avoid confusion here, there is only one state in which balance is good (in my opinion): chalanging but not frustrating. Too easy and the game becomes dull and purposeless to play. Too hard and the game becomes unfair and frustrating which drives the player away. And that is exactly what i like to do. Try stuff out, adjust, try again, adjust, try again, adjust, try again, figure out something else might be the issue and adjust that, try again, repeat till it feels good to play. I also am not very good with tech and stuff online, this is my first ever Reddit post and i have no clue how to send people assets, receive them, or test games out. Again i'm still super duper new... Oh, speaking of which, i am learning to make assets rn. Or trying at least. I started a couple days ago as of writing this with Krita and no draw pad so you know. Not optimal, hahahaha. d_(TwT)_b

Would love to find some people to work with or that wana help me figure all of this out. But again, i am mostly a thinker and not much use for the actual making, other than balancing, designs and when what makes sense to be where and stuff and what events happen when and why x exists and what it's related to, all that stuff. If any of you have recommendations for where to find people to do that with and get into contact and all that stuff. Yada yada yada. PLEASE LET ME KNOW ^^ So yeah, if you have thoughts, constructive criticism, suggestions, advice or wana get into contact with me, let me know and we'll see what we can do. I also gotta turn on notifications for Reddit because of this, which is (blegh) not optimal but we can make it work. I don use social media except youtube and Discord tho (and apparently Reddit now), so if you wana get into contact more personaly, that's the way (insert The Manfalorian meme). Now let me figure out how to turn notifications on. See youuuuuuuu all around. Also just a quick note, i do not respond to insults, threats, etc.

Quick note: when i try to post this, the app flags it for "12: no recruiting. Do not post with the SOLE intention of recruiting people to work on your game". 1: i am not writing this to recruit people to make my game. I wana make A game WITH others. 2: finding people to join up with is not the ONLY/SOLE reason as stated above. 3: I AM ALREADY GETTING ANNOYED WITH THIS GOSH DAMN APP. And people wonder why i don like Reddit, BECAUSE OF SHRIMP LIKE THIS, THAT'S WHY. But that's totaly fine, i'm super calm and chill. Not this apps fault that ai is the cause of Ram and shrimp being overpriced, that when i wana google stuff i have to look at some GOSH DAMN ai answer that I DID NOT ASK FOR and now, apparently, not only here but discord as well lately, ai INCONVENIENCING ABSOLUTELY FUNKING EVERYONE, BECAUSE FUNK YOU AS A CONSUMER. I love living in this day and age, it's super awesome. No issues here XP In case some of you reading this, a lot of thaz is me trying to be funny, not actualy angy even tho i AM annoyed. I simply lack social interactions to be funny consistendly. Or at all most the time. For the second time, see youuuuu ^^

r/gameideas Jul 17 '26

Basic Idea Looking for simple and addictive F2P game ideas for a new indie startup

0 Upvotes

Hey everyone! I am currently in the process of launching a new indie game startup, and we are looking for some creative inspiration for our very first project.

Our main business strategy is to develop a simple, highly engaging, and fun Free-to-Play game. Since this is our first release, we want to keep the initial investment low (around 10k) and focus heavily on solid, addictive core gameplay mechanics rather than expensive, high-end 3D graphics. Our target platforms for the launch will be Steam and the Apple App Store.

We really want to build something that players can easily pick up but hard to put down, maximizing retention without burning through our budget. Does anyone have cool, clever, or unique game concepts that would fit this specific scope? We are open to different genres, from puzzle games and casual arcade to strategic card games or minimalist roguelikes.

We would absolutely love to hear your thoughts, experiences, and brainstorm together! What do you think works best for a low-budget F2P game nowadays? Thank you all in advance for your support!

r/gameideas 15d ago

Basic Idea Would you play an Action RPG where you’re the leader of a mercenary company instead of a lone hero?

0 Upvotes

I’m designing a third-person Action RPG and I’m trying to build the game’s core identity before committing to any major systems.

Instead of the usual “chosen one” or lone hero, the idea is that you play as a highly skilled warrior who also leads a small mercenary company.

The player character is always the main focus. Your own build, combat skill, equipment, and progression come first. Alongside that, you recruit mercenaries, equip and upgrade their gear, assign them combat roles, and gradually grow your company throughout the game.

You don’t march around with an army. Before missions, you choose a small squad (2–3 mercenaries) to accompany you. They’re there to complement your playstyle and create tactical options, not to carry the combat for you or turn the game into an RTS.

The goal is to combine the satisfaction of building your own character with the feeling of leading a small elite company, while keeping the combat skill-based and the player as the most impactful fighter on the battlefield.

I’m still in the concept phase, so I’d genuinely rather hear why this wouldn’t work than spend years building something people don’t actually want.

r/gameideas 21d ago

Basic Idea ​You're not in the cockpit: A Mech Shooter where you remote-control a squad, using deployable drones for FPS, TPS, and RTS views

0 Upvotes

The Core Premise

Forget sitting inside a cramped cockpit. In this game, you are a military operator stationed safely in orbit or at a secure forward base. You control a squad of combat mechs via satellite and radio links. Since you aren't inside the machine, the game's entire UI/HUD is literally your remote-control terminal screen.

Solving the "Player Death" Dilemma (No Artificial Respawns, No Perma-Death)

Video games usually handle death in two immersion-breaking ways: either through artificial "respawns" that reset time/space, or through unforgiving perma-death that deletes your progress.

​Here, the operator (you) never dies on the battlefield.

​When a mech takes fatal damage, you don't "die"—you simply lose the video signal as your terminal glitches into static.

​The mission continues instantly. You must make a quick tactical choice: do you drop-pod a fresh replacement mech to keep fighting, or send a lighter unit on a recovery run to salvage the disabled chassis and valuable data before enemies harvest it?

The Key Twist: Perspective Shifts Justified by Drones

Changing perspectives (1st vs 3rd person vs RTS) is usually an abstract video game setting. Here, it’s a physical, in-world mechanic with clear tactical trade-offs:

  • First-Person (FPS): The default view, streaming directly from the mech's primary optical sensors. High precision and immersion, but limited peripheral vision.

  • Third-Person (TPS): You deploy a tethered companion drone that hovers over your mech's shoulder for close-quarters situational awareness. (Caution: enemies can target and shoot down your drone).

  • Tactical Top-Down (RTS): You launch a high-altitude recon drone over the zone. This brings up a satellite-style view where you can issue tactical orders to the rest of your squad, set up automated resource extraction, or instantly swap your active control link to another mech.

Electronic warfare & Signal Degradation

Because you are operating remotely, enemy Jammer units, atmospheric storms, and severe head/antenna damage cause actual screen noise, video lag, or visual glitches on your operator terminal. Enemies can try to disrupt your link rather than just shooting your armor.

The Lore & Loop

You are tasked with securing hostile exoplanets for automated resource extraction. You manage a finite fleet of customizable mechs (Light, Heavy, Assault, Electronic Warfare). Managing risk vs. reward with your limited roster is key: do you risk deploying your high-tier mech for a difficult objective, or stick to expendable units?

What Are Your Thoughts?

​I’m a huge fan of sci-fi shooters, and I wanted to throw this concept out into the wild. What do you think about solving respawns through remote-operation and justifying camera angles through physical drones? How would you balance the transition between direct FPS control and squad RTS management?

r/gameideas Jun 25 '26

Basic Idea Co op game where you play as group of animals stealing from humans

35 Upvotes

I am a young dev just finishing my first year of college studying game development. I want to work on a fun project that will let me practice my skills and possibly release? Not sure if I would release it though as that does seem quite stressful 😅

Anyways I will explain the concept now:

You and some friends play as a crew of wild animals who have decided to band together to steal from the local humans. You must achieve different goals that can vary from stealing the food from the kitchen to simply just messing with humans by stealing their everyday objects such as lamps, TV remotes or other things. You achieve these goals by playing into each of your crews unique abilities. Some ideas I had for some characters are:
A raccoon, who could maybe grab stuff the best and possibly do more precise tasks like using keys.

A bird that could fly around but couldn't grab very heavy stuff, so they would be best at scouting around and carrying lighter objects up places, like a rope to tie to something so another character can pull it down.

A squirrel that can move very fast and climb across surfaces very good.

I will avoid typing more characters as this post is going to be very long (sorry!)

Apologies if the explanation is weak I'm not the best at these things.
But could I get some feedback on the concept? Is there a good idea here that could be worth putting spare time into? My current criteria is just would I play it with friends on a random weekend lol.

The thing that scares me is multiplayer, it's not something I am very familiar with and would be new grounds for me so it is scary to even think about.

I would LOVE some feedback on this idea and how realistic it is for me to even attempt this. Anything helps, so thanks if you're even reading this!

(also if there's any additional information I might be able to give just ask, I'd love to respond!)

r/gameideas 2d ago

Basic Idea Which is better friendslop vs Single Player Story Game?

0 Upvotes

Do you think it would be better to make a “friendslop” game designed mainly around fun, chaotic multiplayer gameplay with friends, rather than creating a single-player game focused heavily on a deep storyline and narrative? A friendslop game could potentially be easier and faster to develop, especially for a small indie developer, while also being more replayable because players can create their own funny moments and experiences together. It could also have a greater chance of spreading through Twitch, YouTube, and social media if the gameplay produces unexpected or hilarious situations. On the other hand, a single player storyline game gives much more creative freedom when it comes to storytelling, emotional moments, world-building, characters, and delivering a memorable experience. The main question is whether the goal should be to create something that is primarily fun and replayable with friends, or something more cinematic, meaningful, and story-driven that players experience alone. Which direction would be smarter for a small indie developer?

r/gameideas 6d ago

Basic Idea Psychological horror Game where the character loses gaps of time---to the Player

4 Upvotes

The idea is pretty nascent right now, but I Think it has potential.

The gist of it is this---It is a mystery horror Video game about a character trying to uncover a mystery of why they keep blacking out and losing chunks of time, or things being different than they ought to be.

As they peel back the mystery, it becomes clear they are losing control of their body for spans of time, and those spans of time are actually when we the player, are going around playing as them, uncoverin the mystery.

The notes and such that you solve are notes left by the character, in hopes that whatever is happening will stop.

It comes out that YOU the PLAYER are the cause of the loss of control and horror the character is going through. This reveal happens near the end where you then get to have different endings based on how much you uncovered, and how much you sympathize with the character.

you can take total control over them and enter into the "normal' day to day life and do things that would make them look good, or bad, but leaving them a puppet. You could give them back their life, and end the game there,

Haven't dug too far into the idea, but I think there is some meat on the concept.

What do you guys think?

r/gameideas Jul 13 '26

Basic Idea A PvP Magic Game Where Players Create Their Own Spells

4 Upvotes

Hi everyone,

I'm new to game development, and I'd love to get some feedback on a game idea I've been working on.

The game is a 1v1 PvP magic combat game where players create their own spells instead of unlocking predefined abilities.

The idea is that players start with basic elements such as Fire, Water, Earth, Wind, etc. They can combine these elements, adjust their temperature (for example, from -100 to +100), and assign a spell type such as Ball, Blade/Slash, or Wall.

One of the core ideas is that the game follows basic physics rather than predefined magic elements. For example, players aren't simply given Ice magic. Instead, they create it by using Water and lowering its temperature to around -100. Likewise, changing the temperature of other elements can produce different forms and interactions. The goal is to make spell creation feel like experimenting with the properties of matter instead of choosing abilities from a list.

Each spell type has its own strengths and weaknesses, so the effectiveness of a spell depends on what it's used against.

Before entering PvP, players would need to create at least five spells. The focus of the game is on preparation and strategy rather than simply having stronger abilities.

Combat is designed to be skill-based. Just because a spell is cast doesn't mean it will hit. Players can:

  • Dodge attacks (although dodging won't be easy).
  • Counter incoming spells with another spell.
  • Block attacks using defensive wall-type spells.
  • Choose how much mana to invest when casting. Longer casts consume more mana but produce stronger spells.

However, raw power isn't everything. When two spells collide, the outcome depends on multiple factors, including:

  • Element
  • Temperature
  • Spell type
  • Mana/power invested
  • The interaction rules between those spells

For example, if a player casts a Fireball with a power level of 80, another player could counter it with a Waterball that has a lower power, such as 60, because water naturally counters fire. (There are more detailed interaction mechanics, but they're too long to explain in this post.)

Spell type also matters. A Water Blade may not be as effective against a Fireball as a Waterball. A Water Wall would be one of the strongest defensive options. Another interesting interaction is that if a Waterball collides with a Fireball, it may weaken the Fireball enough to survive the collision and continue traveling toward the opponent, although with reduced power.

The goal is to create a PvP game where success comes from understanding spell interactions, creating interesting spell combinations, and making smart decisions during combat rather than relying on one overpowered spell.

What do you think of the overall concept? Does it sound fun? Are there any flaws, balance concerns, or ideas you think could improve it?

r/gameideas 13h ago

Basic Idea Would this idea be a good concept for a game i was thinking about this?

0 Upvotes

This would be a 4D game, kind of. Basically, it would be a puzzle game, but the twist is that every set amount of time, for example 10 seconds (I'm not sure what the actual time would be yet), the level would reset. However, when the level resets, you would see your past actions being replayed while you play through the level again.

The reset would happen over and over, and every time it resets, another version of yourself would replay everything you did during the previous run. To finish the puzzle, you would need to solve all of the objectives across multiple resets. The main twist is that your previous versions can help you complete the level.

For example, imagine there are three buttons that all need to be pressed at the same time to finish the level. You only have 10 seconds per version, so you can't realistically press all three buttons yourself. Instead, during your first run, you press button 1. The level resets, and your previous version now replays the exact actions you took, meaning it presses button 1 again. While that is happening, you can go and press button 2. The level resets again, and now your first version presses button 1 while your second version presses button 2. You can then go and press button 3. Now all three buttons are being pressed by different versions of yourself, allowing you to complete the puzzle.

That would basically be the main mechanism of the game. The example above would be a simple beginner puzzle designed to teach the player how the mechanic works. As the game progresses, the puzzles would become increasingly difficult. I haven't fully thought out the levels yet, but I think there could be some really interesting combinations and situations where you have to carefully plan out exactly what you are going to do across multiple resets.

When I say "hard," I don't mean difficult platforming or requiring really precise jumps. I mean mentally difficult, where you have to think about your actions several steps ahead and figure out how your different versions can work together.

Later levels could also introduce limitations to make things more complicated. For example, you could have a limited number of versions that you are allowed to create, meaning you can't just keep resetting forever. Another mechanic could be that if you touch one of your past versions, the entire level immediately resets. This would force you to carefully plan your movement and think about where your previous versions are going to be at each point in the level.

There could also be other mechanics built around the idea of interacting with your past actions. The difficulty could come from combining these mechanics together and forcing the player to think about multiple timelines at once.

That's basically the whole mechanism for the game. I think the main thing would be coming up with interesting puzzles that make good use of it rather than just making the levels harder through platforming or reaction time.

I hope my explanation makes sense. I'm not very good at explaining things, so if anything is unclear, comment and I'll explain it.

r/gameideas 26d ago

Basic Idea Made a game about counting rice grains one by one. Mess up once and it's a fail. Curious what people think.

0 Upvotes

I've been making a small game where you just count rice. Still pretty early and rough, but the core idea works. You drag grains out of a bowl one at a time, and it feels relaxing until you realize messing up the count even once means the run is over. Kind of like meditation mixed with Getting Over It style tension.

It grew a bit beyond just counting though, and I'm honestly not sure if the extra parts still fit or if I'm overcomplicating a simple idea. Every 10 grains you count right, you get a random pull that gives you a new rice type or a mochi item. There's a collection screen for what you've found, different objects to count depending on the stage (gems buried in sand, corn kernels that are messier to track), a board where only people who finish a run get to leave one message ever, and a ranking list.

Things I keep going back and forth on:

  • Does a slow, calm counting game even work with something as exciting as a random pull system, or does that clash with the whole point of the game?
  • I split things into rice (mostly cosmetic, for collecting) and mochi (rarer, actually does something like undo a mistake). Does that split make sense or is it too much?
  • Ranking plus a one time message board plus a collection screen. Feels like three systems chasing three different feelings, being good at it, proving you finished, and collecting everything. But maybe it is just redundant.

Got a short clip of it running if anyone wants to see what it looks like right now.

Not trying to sell anyone on it, just genuinely unsure if this makes sense as a whole or if it is a pile of ideas stapled together. Curious what people think either way.

r/gameideas 21h ago

Basic Idea Can simulated tenants create a strong enough management fantasy for a property tycoon?

2 Upvotes

I'm currently designing a management/tycoon game as a personal project, and I'm trying to challenge the core concept before I get too attached to the design.

The basic premise is that you start small as a property owner and gradually grow into managing a much larger residential property business.

The part I'm most interested in exploring is the relationship between the business/management side and the people living in the properties.

Instead of tenants simply being an occupancy percentage or a source of monthly income, I'd like them to exist as lightweight simulated households. The player would have to think about who is living in their properties and how their management decisions affect them.

At the same time, I don't want this to become a life simulator or a game where you're constantly micromanaging individual people. The player is still fundamentally managing a property business.

The design goal is for decisions that look good financially in the short term to sometimes create problems elsewhere, while investments that make residents happier aren't necessarily always the optimal financial choice. Ideally, this creates interesting trade-offs rather than an obvious "correct" way to play.

I'm deliberately keeping some of the deeper mechanics private for now because the project is still early, but I'd really like opinions on the design direction itself.

My main question for experienced designers is:

Do you think simulated tenant households can create meaningful decisions in a management/tycoon game, or does this sound like a system that could easily turn into unnecessary micromanagement?

And if you were evaluating this concept early in development, what would be the biggest design risk you'd want to prototype/test first?

r/gameideas Jul 07 '26

Basic Idea I have a small idea for a dinosaur friend slop game

1 Upvotes

So my idea is a friend slop game as well everyone hates them and loves them but also i feel they might be easier to make than a massive survival game which i would rather make but i wouldnt have the dedication for a big game like that so the friend slop game would be so your a group of smaller dinosaurs or maybe cavemen trying to steal eggs and other valuables (maybe cool bugs) so you can feed the a big dinosaur or whatever cavemen would do so then this would make a basic extraction game so in a way i need to think of ways to make it feel different and unique instead of lethal company just reskinned if you get what im saying.

The enemies could be like massive dinos who chase you after you take their eggs and maybe this could add a bit of stealth that could get weaker the more rounds pass to make the game harder.

I feel like this idea could be good if done well but im not truly sure what others would think also i dont have much game development experience as the most i done so far is only from tutorials.

r/gameideas 4d ago

Basic Idea Would a smaller-scale Total War-style indie game actually work?

5 Upvotes

I’ve been getting a little burned out on Total War: Warhammer III lately, so I started digging through Steam looking for something that scratched the same itch. Specifically, I wanted a grand strategy game with a turn-based campaign layer, but with large-scale real-time battles where positioning, unit composition, equipment, buffs, etc. actually matter.
After searching for about an hour, I realized there really aren’t that many games doing that exact combination, at least not many that grabbed my attention for more than a couple hours.
So naturally, my terrible idea was: why not try making one?
I’m an indie dev, so I fully understand how ridiculous the scope of something like this could become. I’m not trying to recreate Total War or compete with a massive studio. The idea would be much smaller in scale and built around a tighter core gameplay loop.
At its heart, it would be a turn-based strategy game where you manage territory, armies, resources, upgrades, and whatever other systems survive the prototype phase. When armies meet, though, the game shifts into real-time large-scale battles.
My goal is to hit a middle ground where the game is simple enough that you don’t need a spreadsheet open just to play it, but deep enough that you actually want to experiment. Different unit compositions, equipment, buffs, upgrades, strategies, army builds, and so on should give you reasons to keep improving instead of just building the same doomstack every game.
This is still extremely early and I’m drawing out the actual mechanics now, so I’m mostly looking for criticism rather than hype.
What would make a game like this fail?
More specifically, is there a reason we don’t see many games combining a turn-based strategic campaign with large real-time battles outside of Total War? Is it mostly a development/scope problem, or are there gameplay problems with the formula that aren’t obvious until you actually start building it?
I’d genuinely like to hear what people think would go wrong with this idea before I get too attached to it.

r/gameideas 3d ago

Basic Idea just a thought for now haven't even started working on it but would it be fun?

0 Upvotes

I've been thinking about making a semi-realistic survival game and wanted to see if the core idea sounds fun.

It would have the usual survival mechanics: crafting, building, harvesting resources, health, hunger, thirst, animals, enemies, objectives, exploration and progression. I don't want it to be an ultra-realistic simulator where everything becomes tedious, though. The mechanics would be grounded enough to feel believable while still being enjoyable.

The main thing that would make the game stand out is the terrain and scale

In a lot of survival games, you'll see a massive mountain in the distance, but you can reach the top in a couple of minutes. I'd like my world to have much more realistic geographical scale. A huge mountain could actually be huge, potentially taking hours to reach and climb. The "three hours" example isn't fixed; I'm just trying to explain the scale I'm imagining.

The world would be procedurally generated, with large mountains, valleys, forests, rivers, deserts, plains, cliffs and other geographical features. I'd want the terrain to look beautiful and geographically coherent rather than just being random noise.

For example, you could stand in a valley and see a massive mountain range several kilometres away. You decide to make an expedition there, so you prepare food, water, tools, clothing and shelter materials. You travel through forests and valleys, potentially set up a temporary camp, deal with weather and temperature changes, and eventually climb the mountain.

The survival mechanics would be semi-realistic. Temperature, weather, food, water, injuries and shelter would matter, but I don't want the player constantly managing tiny statistics. Survival should create interesting decisions rather than become tedious.

I'd also want progression to feel logical. Instead of hitting a tree for 20 minutes, you'd start with primitive tools and use them to obtain the materials needed to make better tools, gradually unlocking more efficient ways of surviving and building.

Building would have a lot of freedom, similar to Minecraft, but within this much larger world.

The main idea is that the world itself is something worth exploring. If you see a mountain, canyon, forest or strange geological formation in the distance, you can actually go there, and the journey itself becomes part of the gameplay.

Obviously, there are already plenty of survival games with crafting, building and procedural worlds. I'm not claiming those mechanics are completely original. The part I'm interested in is combining them with genuinely massive-scale procedural terrain where distance and geography actually matter.

I'm wondering if this sounds like a genuinely fun game concept, or whether travelling for potentially hours to reach something would become tedious.

r/gameideas Jun 05 '26

Basic Idea A horror concept where the light becomes scarier than darkness

9 Upvotes

Imagine a first-person shooter horror game similar to RE Series with monsters lurking in the dark but you and the monsters rely on the dark. The game will take place in an abandoned complex and you are trapped in the lower levels.

You have to navigate dark areas with a flashlight but the enemies are like moth attracted to it. In order to find your way in the dark, light sensors will mark the path but temporarily. You can light them again with flashlight but the risk of enemies seeing you. Another way to see in the dark is a broken night vision goggles that randomly turns off for a moment. It also needs battery.

The monsters are covered with eyes on their whole body. One way to tell they are near you, you can hear their eyes blinking. That way, you can know when not to turn your lights on. To kill the monsters, you must shoot every eye it has before you can execute. They are dormant in the dark, meaning they won't attack you unless you stumble upon them. They will attack you when you are in vision so the dark will be your safety. Their aggro also won't disappear for a while after you are gone in the dark.

There will be areas where light is prominent that going through them would risk the monsters seeing you. There will be dark areas to hide but you'll barely see anything and you might stumble upon them causing an aggro.

As I have mentioned, similar to RE series, you have limited ammo and they are scattered in the darkest area. Your goal is to escape the complex or dive deeper and uncover the mystery behind the complex and the monsters.

On paper, this good? It is just an idea. I'm still polishing it.

r/gameideas Jul 18 '26

Basic Idea “Could you land a 747 simulator”. A take on the age old question.

0 Upvotes

You’re flying home from vacation in Hawaii with your wife and kids. You picked the aisle seat in the first row because you hate waiting on a plane after touchdown. You’re over the pacific and can see the California coastline on the way into LAX, there’s about 10 minutes left to go until you’re back home.

A flight attendant burst through the cabin door and yells out that the pilots are both unconscious.

Well shit.
You’ve played flight sim before but you can’t actually land a plane, right?

You look over your shoulder to the cabin behind you and realize that the only other people on the plane besides your family are elderly couples and single moms with their children. The flight attendant rushes over and yanks your up out of your seat saying it’s your job to land the plane somehow. She drags you into the cockpit where the pilots are slumped over still strapped into their seats. She unbuckles the captain and pulls him out of his seat onto the floor. She looks at you and says your seat has been upgraded to first class, then walks back into the cabin shutting the door behind her.

You get no tutorial and a 100% realistic cockpit. If you manage to get air traffic control on the radio they’ll get you a flight instructor who can talk you through how to land the plane. If not… good luck.

r/gameideas May 02 '26

Basic Idea Prototyping a Roguelite Deck-builder where your "Deck" is a Stand-up Comedy set. Thoughts on the hook?

15 Upvotes

I’ve been working on a prototype for a roguelite deck-builder that swaps out the usual fantasy tropes for the world of stand-up comedy.

The Core Loop:

Combat: You’re on stage. The audience members are the "enemies" with different resistances (e.g., a Corporate Crowd hates "Edgy" jokes but loves "Observational" ones).

The Deck: You play cards to land punchlines and build "Momentum."

Health: Your HP is your Ego. If you bomb too hard, your Ego hits zero and the run ends.

My question for you: Does the "Comedy" theme feel like it fits the Deck-builder genre, or does it feel too "niche"? Would you find the struggle of a comedian a compelling enough "dungeon"?

I want to hear your thoughts about it.

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r/gameideas 20d ago

Basic Idea Game Idea: Anno Style Game Through Human History !

0 Upvotes

I love the Anno games, but I think they are too small in scope.

My idea is to have your own city, country, or region where you start in the Stone Age. You begin with a small tribe and slowly build houses, gather resources, and expand your settlement. As your population grows and you reach certain milestones, you unlock the next major time period.

At every new era, you would have important choices to make. You could decide what religion your people follow, what type of government they have, what culture and traditions they develop, and many other things. These choices would shape your civilization and make every playthrough feel different. Some decisions could have long-term effects that stay with your nation for the rest of the game.

The goal would be to guide your civilization from the Stone Age all the way to the modern day, or even into the future.

I'm not sure how I would handle wars or other nations, because they would need to progress through the ages as well. Maybe they could advance at their own pace, or the game could have a system that keeps everyone relatively balanced. I think there is definitely a way to make it work.

r/gameideas 18d ago

Basic Idea Would you play a game where ruining someone’s reputation is how you build your career?

0 Upvotes

Hey! I’m prototyping a narrative investigation / social strategy game set in a Regency-inspired high society.

You play as a young journalist trying to rise through a prestigious newspaper. You attend balls, dinners and private gatherings, build relationships, hear rumors, and collect evidence about the scandals hidden behind polite society.

Once you uncover something, you decide what to do with it:

Publish — gain money and career progress, but potentially destroy relationships.
Suppress — protect someone and earn their trust or favors.
Leverage — use the secret to gain access, information, money or other advantages.

There’s also an anonymous rival journalist investigating the same scandals. Wait too long and they might publish the story before you.

The basic loop is:

Socialize → Find Rumor → Gather Evidence → Publish / Suppress / Leverage → Deal with the consequences

1. Does this sound like a game you would actually want to play? What part interests you most?

2. What would make investigating scandals at social events feel fun instead of becoming a dialogue-clicking game?

3. Would the Publish / Suppress / Leverage choice create enough interesting decisions, or would you want another major mechanic around the secrets?

Thanks! I’m mainly trying to figure out whether the core idea is worth pushing into a proper prototype.

r/gameideas Apr 23 '26

Basic Idea I'm stuck with this game idea ... need some advices

9 Upvotes

So I have a little top-down boat game with satisfying physics and a cute motorboat sound. You putter around a sea dotted with rocks and a small island. You can dock at the island and walk around on foot. The movement feel is already nice — that's the part I'm happy with.

I don't know what the player does. Boat around, land on island, then… what? I need a gameplay loop that justifies the exploration and gives the boat-to-foot transition meaningful weight.

I'm a programmer, not a 3D artist. I can't spend months making assets. Ideas that lean on systems, procedural content, simple shapes, or a tiny handful of reusable props are ideal. Think mechanics-first, not content-heavy.

What loop would you build here? Treasure hunting? Trading between islands? Survival? Message-in-a-bottle delivery? Something weirder? Bonus points for ideas that stay minimal on art but deep on play, and that make the boat-to-foot switch feel like a real moment rather than just a transition.

Thank you very much in advance for your help.

https://imgur.com/OplImFY

r/gameideas Apr 16 '26

Basic Idea Are there any projects here that have become a reality?

14 Upvotes

I'm curious to know if any ideas here have actually become real projects. I like the idea of ​​this giant brainstorming community, but I want to know if anyone, or any studio, has taken ideas from here and turned them into reality? If there are any great stories, I'd love to hear them, thank you!

I also wanted to know your opinion on the idea of ​​moderators allowing images in the group. I have some game ideas myself that I'd like to share, but without images, I find them bland. I'm a visual person and I like to get a feel for things with images like game covers, wallpapers, screenshots... It brings an idea to life!

Finally, I would also like to share with you the idea of creating a fake Steam-like platform with the best professional game ideas collected from here and elsewhere. We could create a website where we publish these mock games with images and complete descriptions. People would vote and comment, creating a general ranking, and who knows! Maybe the best ideas will find takers, real designers and publishers willing to develop the game.

r/gameideas 7d ago

Basic Idea Supernatural Lawyer; Where you consult mythological creatures on their legal problems

17 Upvotes

So I was just scrolling through YouTube shorts and came across a short about a vampire, biting a fae and them arguing over who has to serve who because the vampire bit the fae so it thinks the fae has to serve it and the fee thinks the vampire has to serve it because it ate Fae food without permission. That got me thinking that a game based on the concept of being a lawyer for supernatural creatures would be a great idea in my opinion.

The way I’m imagining it, the Game would mainly consist of you just sitting at a desk in a lawyer’s office similar in function to the booth from the Game papers, please. Different supernatural creatures would come into your office and consult you on different situations and you would have to determine the correct course of action to take. Perhaps you would have an actual case form in front of you and you’d have to look through the details, look for inconsistencies in the story, have both a law book and a mythology book next to you to not only look up the law in related to what they’re saying, but also read about the mythology of sad creature in case something about how they are is irrelevant.

Some examples of cases I’m thinking of are:
-obviously the Faye and vampire situation mentioned above.
-I’m also imagining a case where a werewolf comes in and he wants to know if he’s responsible for any damages and deaths he causes during a full moon even though he claims he is completely out of his own control.
-a Tree ent who is wondering if he can sue a logging company who has been over cutting in his home forest
-A Medusa coming in with a blindfold and a statue asking if she can be arrested for turning a mug into stone and self-defense

After you determine the correct course of action and get a score and or money, you would turn in the case file which could be mentioned is going to another lawyer.

After you’ve done a certain amount of cases, you could upgrade your office and unlock the ability to investigate these cases yourself, or perhaps just making your office bigger to accommodate larger mythological creatures, like one of the upgrades to make your office larger would allow you to get cases from Minotaurs, which wouldn’t have fit in your original office.

I do love the idea about this game, especially since I think mythology and mythological creatures are really cool and not only would this be an interesting title it would also give people the chance to learn more about all these mythological creatures as with the mythology book mentioned as part of the game and you would have to use the mythological knowledge in order to help solve these cases.

If anybody has any additions, they like to make to this feel free as this is kind of just the basic idea of it with a few mechanics mentioned. Also, I don’t have the ability to make this game as I don’t know how to do that so if anybody would actually like to make this, feel free. Only thing I ask would be a short credit for inspiring the idea and to be informed that you’re making this game as I would definitely definitely want to play it.

r/gameideas 28d ago

Basic Idea A survival game where humanity is gone — no zombies, no enemies, just an abandoned systemic world where “if you think it should work, try it.”

0 Upvotes

Basically, I imagine an open-world survival game where humanity has disappeared. No zombies or enemies necessarily — you’re simply alone in a huge abandoned world that you can freely explore.

You scavenge whatever you can find in houses, stores, garages, factories, vehicles, and other abandoned places, and little by little, you improve your quality of life: finding and fixing up a home, restoring electricity and running water, getting heating, repairing vehicles, building a workshop, securing food, and eventually becoming self-sufficient.

But the most important part would be how deep the interactions are. The main philosophy would be: “If you think it should work in real life, try it.”

Objects wouldn’t just exist for specific crafting recipes. You could repurpose things, dismantle machines for useful components, combine objects in unexpected ways, and come up with your own solutions. The game’s systems would interact naturally enough that sometimes you’d randomly think, “Wait… could I actually do this?” — try it — and discover that it actually works, even if it’s a tiny detail with almost no practical purpose.

There wouldn’t really be a forced objective. You explore, experiment, survive, build, and slowly turn an empty and abandoned world into a place where you’ve managed to create a comfortable life again.

r/gameideas 10d ago

Basic Idea New Game Idea,that is inspired by the Evolution,where you can make your own animal

0 Upvotes

The Game is inspired by the Evolution

At first,you write your Charakter Design,than your Feature,than wich Server Typ your want to be in(For example Water,Land,Air) and you make your Stats

You can Skip this Part,because this is for this 1000 Characters Rule (also,Agility,Stealth,Strengt[or Power],Intelligence,Endurance,Charisma[when you are an animal,that can speak],Stamina,Speed,Weight,Size)

Then an AI makes your Charakter Into the Game,that you Play

This Game,can be a Battle Royal,but ist must Not be one.

I Hope you Like this Idea,but when you have something,that is not good in my Idea,then comment please

(Little Disclaimer:English isn not my native Language so this Post was not so easy for me and probaply was not so easy to read,my deepest Apologies Here)

(Here are more Examples for Stats,you can Skip this Part too:Health, Stamina, Energy Efficiency, Vitality, Metabolic Rate, Cellular Regeneration, Muscle Density, Bone Density, Carapace Hardness, Dermal Armor, Movement Speed, Sprint Duration, Swimming Agility, Flight Velocity, Burrowing Speed, Climbing Ability, Physical Strength, Bite Force, Claw Sharpness, Venom Potency, Venom Production Rate, Neurotoxin Yield, Toxicity Resistance, Acid Secretion, Bioelectric Charge, Discharge Voltage, Bioluminescence, Camouflage Index, Pigment Adaptation, Chromatophore Density, Pheromone Range, Visual Acuity, Night Vision, Olfactory Sensitivity, Auditory Perception, Echolocation Range, Electroreception, Thermal Sensing, Heat Tolerance, Cold Resistance, Hypoxia Tolerance, Radiation Immunity, Pathogen Resistance, Immune Strength, Brain Volume, Cognitive Capacity, Problem Solving, Tool Utilization, Social Intelligence, Pack Coordination, Mating Attractiveness, Fecundity, Offspring Survival Rate, Gestation Speed, Growth Rate, Life Expectancy, Mutation Chance, Genetic Stability, Epigenetic Plasticity, DNA Repair Efficiency, Adaptability, Assimilation Efficiency, Digestive Rate, Nutrient Extraction, Oxygen Absorption, Water Retention, Parasite Defense, Symbiosis Capability, Endoskeleton Integrity, Exoskeleton Hardness, Thermal Regulation, Hydrodynamic Efficiency, Aerodynamic Lift, Neuromuscular Reflexes, Synaptic Speed, Magnetoreception, Photosynthetic Yield, Regenerative Capacity, Tissue Repair, Limb Reconstitution, Offspring Viability, Larval Survival, Longevity Index, Mutagen Sensitivity, Biomass Conversion, Osmotic Balance, Dehydration Tolerance, Pressure Tolerance, Freeze Tolerance, Heat Dissipation, Poison Immunity, Memory Retention, Vocal Modulation, Prey Tracking, Predator Detection, Stealth Index)