Some stuff I have been thinking about: Bully 2 will likely be for next gen platforms, such as the PS4, which was revealed yesterday. With this in mind, I feel they can include a far greater variety of gameplay without worrying NEARLY as much about disc space and other aspects. With the new tech, I see no reason these ideas couldn't be at least mostly implemented.
Combat: I feel like R* could MASSIVELY improve the core system of the game, with realistic and fluid hand to hand combat. I would like to see a character that starts out as a wimp, or at least average. From even the beginning of the game, Jimmy was a broken character combat wise. Unless you had no aptitude to play the game, Bully was truly a breeze. The only time there was any trouble is if you were surrounded by more than five or six enemies, and even then, there wasn't any true rush of danger.
I want to feel like the protagonist is in genuine danger when he's surrounded in an alley by four thugs in town in the middle of the night, miles from school with no friends around. I want my character to get in fights he won't win occasionally. I WANT to worry about him getting knocked out. I want training up my protagonist to be a process, where the abilities he unlocks truly make him grow as a combatant.
I think some semi realistic injuries could make for a good combat system. When the Protag gets hit hard in the head, make the screen blur a little, or maybe even a lot. Make him fall down. Make it harder for you to see the enemy, and let head injuries decrease your reflexes accordingly. All of this could be done without too much of an increase in the actual violence LEVEL of the game by making attacks more precise. Perhaps introduce a motion controlled combat system where your swings can hit different parts of the enemy's body.
Next: Living environment: I want my protagonist's town to be alive. I want there to be areas it's safe to go to from the beginning of the game, and I want areas to avoid at all costs until my skill level is increased. I want viciously strong combatants in run down areas of town who won't think twice about knocking me out and taking my cash, hat, jacket, etc.
At the same time, I want highly commercialized areas where there is very little danger, and a weak character can hang out safely.
I want night time to be a factor that changes gameplay. For instance, it MAY be safe to go through the ghetto in the day time by keeping your head down and walking quickly, but at night, when the streets are emptier, and you take the alley shortcut, you're just asking to get jumped.
I also want AI that assesses the situation. If there is one AI enemy that wants to jump you, and you're with a social group of two or three, he might think better of it, even IF you're in his turf. Which brings me to my next idea
SOCIAL GROUPS: I believe that the AI hiring system should return, but be altered. I want to be able to build (or destroy) a relationship with characters. I'm talking about a faction, and even an INDIVIDUAL reputation system that is fluid and changes with your actions. For instance, if you're friends with Bobby, but you beat the crap out of him, he may not be so quick to help you out in a tough spot a few days later when he sees you getting stomped in the projects. Also, I believe this would be an excellent way to structure a system where you can become friends with a character and actually forge a genuine friendship, slowly learning his story as he begins to trust you, and being able to earn or break that trust based on actions and socials that raise or lower your individual reputation. This would also apply to girlfriends, getting girls, breaking up with them, and building new relationships? Get a rep as a cheater and you might find it harder to get a new girlfriend.
Massive environment: I want a town that compares at the very least, to the size of liberty city in GTA IV, with varied environments that are affected by factors such as crime levels, economy, etc.
I like the idea of being able to affect my reputation with different groups depending on how I choose to dress, and how I wear my hair.
With the social features of the PS4 in mind, I want the ability to invite friends into my game as backup, and be able to literally communicate with them with an ingame mic, hanging out with them much as we could IRL. This is next gen, and with the hardware, very possible. I also want the option to schedule my classes. People who don't want this could pick from several preset schedules by going to the office. I want to be able to pick certain areas of study. This is after all, a game about school.
Milestones: Wouldn't it be cool to have a storyline branching multiple school years, say even 9-12. Where you can watch your character age from a bratty freshman into a more mature senior, and even have a graduation at the end of the game? Wouldn't it be cool to have a city environment where you have mass transit available to you, but can also earn a driver's licence?
This would be a first for rockstar, but I also kind of like the idea of branching dialogue, and morality options, giving you MULTIPLE ways to approach different missions, and different ways to socialize.
What do you all think?
