Idea for an open-based Carmen Sandiego engine

Zero Cool · Post by **Zero Cool** » Sun Jun 17, 2007 11:26 pm

Now, I'm not a programmer, but I've got an idea for an open-source game engine based on the old Carmen Sandiego games.

Essentially, you can make games with the same gameplay. Import graphics, design the graphic interface, add sound, et al, all with a convenient point and click interface.

Naturally, one can recreate their fave Carmen games (mine are the old ones before they started changing the gameplay), so long as they play like the "real" Carmen games.

And you can create your own. Here's a list of features:

* Create your own dossier and clues. Comes loaded with the basic clues (hair, sex, vehicle, etc), and allows one to upload others (fave movies, music, fave game, hobby, etc).

* Create your own locations. Base your game on your home town, your fave movie, etc. Where in Middle-Earth is Carmen Sandiego, anyone?

* Design things to steal. Comes loaded with various examples

* the end results are endless!!

I got the idea when my mom suggested an idea called Where the Hell is Carmen Sandiego, where the theme is horror movies. And naturally, I have other ideas for CS games.

But like I said, I can't program. I would love to see this, though.[/list]

Harshboy · Post by **Harshboy** » Mon Jun 18, 2007 8:18 am

No idea what these games are, but if i had a few resources I could do it. I mean hell, if i can recreate the Pokemon Menu and Battle System in VB in 2 days with original graphics, I can do this (If its 2D/Text/Top-Down/NOT 3D)

Post by **Sparkfist** » Mon Jun 18, 2007 9:18 am

The Carmen Sandiego games were simple geographical clue based where they'd mention she stole an artifact from [here] and give some information about it. They'd have a couple items she took and in the end you have to guess or figure out (same thing as I see it) where she is at the end of the game session.

And yeah Harshboy it's really nothing more then 2D graphics. Show a map, over lay with picture of item stolen, little window with text about item and area with clue. If you're as good of a programmer as you claim it should be easy.

I'm not that great with programming so I don't think recreating a game like that from scratch will be very easy. Call me a pessimist if you will.

P.S. Never really played the games but I understand the concept pretty well.

Zero Cool · Post by **Zero Cool** » Mon Jun 18, 2007 5:51 pm

Sparkfist wrote:The Carmen Sandiego games were simple geographical clue based where they'd mention she stole an artifact from [here] and give some information about it. They'd have a couple items she took and in the end you have to guess or figure out (same thing as I see it) where she is at the end of the game session.

And yeah Harshboy it's really nothing more then 2D graphics. Show a map, over lay with picture of item stolen, little window with text about item and area with clue. If you're as good of a programmer as you claim it should be easy.

I'm not that great with programming so I don't think recreating a game like that from scratch will be very easy. Call me a pessimist if you will.

P.S. Never really played the games but I understand the concept pretty well.

Click here. It's one of the many abandonware sites that have the games for download. I want to actually buy these games I get from here, but they're so damn hard to find.

And about your sig, a nerd is one who pursues esoteric AND academic pursuits. A geek only pursues only esoteric OR academic, but not both.

The Carmen engine would be based more on the old games, not the deluxe games.

And the engine would have a scripting system so one could alter the engine.

vskid · Post by **vskid** » Mon Jun 18, 2007 6:50 pm

Zero Cool wrote:And about your sig, a nerd is one who pursues esoteric AND academic pursuits. A geek only pursues only esoteric OR academic, but not both.

I wrote that, and at the time, Wikipedia said that nerds are more interested in school and that geeks are more interested in technology.

NiN^_^NiN · Post by **NiN^_^NiN** » Mon Jun 18, 2007 6:52 pm

This is a very simple game to make quite basic i use to play it on my commodore 64

Hell you could make it in click creator if u wanted it's nothing more than a point and click game with some animations here and there unless ur talking bout the one on sms which lets u move ur guy to the buildings instead of selecting them from the menu

siegeshot · Post by **siegeshot** » Mon Jun 18, 2007 7:00 pm

Sounds fun, I remember playing this back when it was on a 5/1/4 in 4th grade at school.

Zero Cool · Post by **Zero Cool** » Tue Jun 19, 2007 11:31 am

NiN^_^NiN wrote:This is a very simple game to make quite basic i use to play it on my commodore 64

Hell you could make it in click creator if u wanted it's nothing more than a point and click game with some animations here and there unless ur talking bout the one on sms which lets u move ur guy to the buildings instead of selecting them from the menu

The SMS version can rot in HELL!!

And would click creator make it so each case is different? Because if each case was pre-ordained (instead of random), it would become too easy.

NiN^_^NiN · Post by **NiN^_^NiN** » Tue Jun 19, 2007 6:43 pm

Yeah it would you just have to write a script and have it load that script for each game which could just be a text file

nightwheel · Post by **nightwheel** » Tue Jun 19, 2007 9:35 pm

Sparkfist wrote:The Carmen Sandiego games were simple geographical clue based where they'd mention she stole an artifact from [here] and give some information about it. They'd have a couple items she took and in the end you have to guess or figure out (same thing as I see it) where she is at the end of the game session.

And yeah Harshboy it's really nothing more then 2D graphics. .

Your wrong about all the games being 2D Sparkfist. Carmen Sandiego: The Secret of the Stolen Drums is a 3D platformer for PS2, Xbox, and GameCube. More about it here: http://www.gamespot.com/ps2/adventure/c ... index.html

MrTroy · Post by **MrTroy** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 8:15 am

I remember liking this game the one time I played it when using my brother's computer like... 13 years ago. I can't remember crap about it though. Like how it played or anything... It should be simple enough to rig up an engine for it in a few days. I'm guessing the big thing would be being able to customize it... and how in depth are you talking?

Yes yes yes... change graphics sounds etc... but. Are you talking about one file that is distributed and anyone can change it... or a compiler that'll compile the file so no changes can be made?

Sounds like a very fun project. I gotta see what the original played like.

NiN^_^NiN · Post by **NiN^_^NiN** » Thu Jun 21, 2007 7:33 pm

It all depends what u want there are free engines out there for text based games that use a very simple scripting system

e.g.

[Scene 3]
text1=He Said Wanted to Scuba Dive
text2=In the Gulf of Manner.
bgmusic=mboxbeat.mid
bg=tennis.bmp
image=tennisman1.bmp,L
next=Scene 4

Thats basiclly how simple the script are in these engines all you do is select the background image and music (or leave the music playing from a previous scene) then u select the image to overlap the bacgkround in this case a tennis pro alingled to the left then you put in however many lines of text u want.

Zero Cool · Post by **Zero Cool** » Fri Jun 22, 2007 4:09 pm

NiN^_^NiN wrote:It all depends what u want there are free engines out there for text based games that use a very simple scripting system

Yeah, but I'm spoiled, so I want graphics and a simple-to-use point-and-click creation interface. I don't like using games that require me to know a programming language. If I could program in whatever language, I'd make it myself.

But what about Adventure Maker?

It can make games for the PSP, but without anything one would need for a true Carmen game.

And also, remember, that if the engine has included source code, one could reprogram it for the PSP, DS, GP2X, etc. So one could make the game on the PC, but not necessarily be stuck on the PC.

And besides just remaking the old stuff, one could make their own, share them with their friends, and on it goes.

Oh, and a little off-topic, but I altered the poster to the Broadway play, Wicked, to make the Wicked Witch look like Carmen Sandiego. I've got a lot of kudos on the Voices For RENT message boards.

That mustard yellow thing under her chin is supposed to be her turtleneck.

NiN^_^NiN · Post by **NiN^_^NiN** » Sun Jun 24, 2007 7:51 pm

Well if adventure maker works then use it.

As i said there are heaps of free engines problem you will have is there is almost always a scripting language needed

For a game like that you need a scripting language

Zero Cool · Post by **Zero Cool** » Mon Jun 25, 2007 12:08 am

NiN^_^NiN wrote:Well if adventure maker works then use it.

As i said there are heaps of free engines problem you will have is there is almost always a scripting language needed

For a game like that you need a scripting language

That's why someone should make an open-source Carmen Sandiego engine with a simple point-and-click creator program with an optional scripting engine.

So someone like me wouldn't have to learn some dumb scripting language.