Posted: Sat Mar 10, 2012 9:19 am
Thanks. If not for James telling me how cool the game would've been with bar graphs, I never would've thought to put them in.I'm going to take a moment while I'm here to respond to the Entrepreneur screenshots. They are awesome, and I am amazed that you managed to bring statistical analysis into an OHR game. Information sticklers will have a ball with that, I'm sure. I really admire the effort you put into them.
I have a feeling that you think this game is a bit less than what it really is. The statistics are there for those people who love the nuts and bolts of numbers management, yes, but there's no actual requirement to keep up with them. The business side of things is a lot stronger, mainly in keeping up with supply and demand. But the game isn't limited to making and selling coffee. When the game is finished it won't even be limited to business.But at the same time, I look at these charts and think "No way I am ever playing that game, it looks so boring." I'm not a fan of management or budgeting simulators. (The only way I managed to enjoy Sim City was with an unlimited funds cheat) This is a good thing, though, since it firmly cements Entrepreneur for what it is, giving it an extremely distinct identity and niche in the OHR library.
This statement is actually mostly wrong, and will be even more wrong when the game is complete. The heart of the gameplay is business-based, and yet, it is every bit a story-driven choose your own adventure game as is your standard RPG. It's not about making coffee and selling it as much as it is a story about revenge. Where most RPGs send in heroes to fight monsters with swords and arrows, Entrepreneur forces its protagonist to outsmart his nemesis. It also forces him to outsmart all of those lost-in-time OHR members who have nothing better to do than to complain about the bad coffee they're getting. It forces him to get creative with garbage. It tests the core of his morality when he finds himself trying to buy something when he doesn't have enough money to pay for it. It judges him when he makes customers ill from serving them things he fished from the trash. It coddles him when he visits those sick customers in the hospital to wish them a speedy recovery and then offer them a discount on their next visit. It rewards him when he successfully wins the favor of a critic. It challenges him when he decides he'd rather fix a broken piece of equipment and pawn it or mow somebody's lawn than make another stinkin' pot of coffee. It tests his endurance when it forces him to work for 60 days. It punishes him if he's caught stealing, or if he falls off a ladder while painting someone's house. And who's to stop him from pushing his lawnmower right into the swimming pool? A wallmap??? Not a chance! His fate, his future, are about much more than business. Who can he blame but himself if his attempts to sabotage his competitor's business goes belly-up? And what about all those people he meets during his free time? What about that girl who's trying to steal his attention? Will you tell her that she's stuck in a game that's a straightforward business sim? That late-night party sure looks adventurous to me. In fact, I think one of those missing members of the OHR community could be hiding there--you know, one of the 15 members who are tramping around town somewhere, but have no interest in buying coffee. He spits on most business sims.*Entrepreneur is not an OHRRPG, nor is it an adventure or a riveting story waiting to be told. It is straight-up business, and if you enjoy pinching pennies and watching a businessman grow and flourish, then stop reading this and download the game. The rest of us will happily ignore it in favor of a different OHR title.
So...er, it's not strictly a business sim. However, it can be played that way if that's what you want. I'm designing it as an open adventure where you pick your own path to success. The only hard rule is that you've got 60 days to beat your opponent.
I do appreciate the compliments, though. It's among my favorite OHR games, and I'm not saying that out of bias.
*Some features mentioned here are planned for the full release, but are not yet implemented, and may not be for some time. There are also plenty of features present and planned not mentioned in this rant.
