071. How To Do a Proper South Park Game
South Park has not had much a track-record with video game conversions, with one crappy FPS, one crappy quiz show thing and a pretty crappy Mario Kart clone. This is because South Park's early humor was hard to pin down in one genre, since it relied on various non-sequiturs and oddities mixed with swearing and fart jokes. Might've possibly had something to do with the low production values of these games also. Now that they've moved almost exclusively onto spoofs and all-out satire, a South Park video game that makes fun of other video games and conventions seems much more workable. Using a 3rd-person action/adventure engine to tie it all together, each new chapter will introduce the denizens of South Park getting embroiled in some kind of video game cliche and have the boys (or Randy Marsh) rescue them. For instance, you could have the Visitors come back, only make them really squeaky and annoying while you try and fight them in a jeep that keeps flipping over. Another chapter could have rival gangs descend on South Park (invited by honorary "crips", Jimmy and Timmy) and you need to spraypaint tags in their territories. Prevent a Zerg Rush from demolishing the City Wok. Take out the goths before they can use their fog machines and static-emitting radios to turn South Park into an eerie place. Shoot Spanish-speaking homeless people in the head claiming they're "infected". Considering how seriously some of these games take themselves (not to mention the fanboys), it's ripe territory for the South Park fellows to exploit.
072. Sim City Cop
Modern versions of Sim City have actually allowed you to see the city you've built as one of the many occupants of the city, staring up at the majestic skyscrapers and landmarks that you yourself were responsible for. This, in turn, partially led to making a game focusing on the person instead of the city in which they live, becoming the acclaimed Sims series. However, there's so much room for development in the city part. Plus, city-sims that also employ other genres aren't unheard of - consider the blog-favorite Dark Cloud 2 for example. So in this idea, you are able to deal with problems in your city directly by assuming control of police officers, fire-fighters and other men and women of action in an equally action-orientated gameplay mode, as well as assuming the regular overseeing role as mayor. The ways in which you can help your city increase several-fold, creating a much more immersive and lasting connection to your city of choice than you would get playing some bureaucrat willing to demolish a few useful buildings for the profit.
073. Hackmaster (MMO)RPG
074. Game Demo Screensavers
Simple enough, really. You have a series of little games that play as a screensaver whenever you're away from the computer. Sort of an extension of that one where you go through a maze, only it plays out all sorts of games that look good on a single full screen like Pacman or Elevator Action. The environments change each time and the protagonist is AI controlled to take a sensible (but not constant) route to complete the level. Pressing a specially-configured key (instead of just any key, which would end the screen saver) would allow you to pick up from where the computer leaves off in case you come back from your lunch break a few minutes early or something.
075. Nanobot Nanomischief
An RTS of sorts, Nanobots are invading our machines and taking over, one electrical appliance at a time. You control their struggle to take over a household by working up from electric toothbrushes to toasters to fridges and finally the home security system. Each new venture is accompanied by an RTS-themed campaign against the machine's indigenous coding before you're able to take it over. Sometimes, taking over one electrical object that doesn't seem vital to your plans (you want to be steadily increasing in size as you move between new electrical gizmos) may end up containing data that can be useful for your future battles, such as new vehicles or buildings (or nanobot variants of the usual RTS fodder). The Nanobots get around inside a microscopic UFO that contains all the data you've discovered so far and transmits it to agent Nanobots in the field, allowing your itty bitty minions to be constantly improving themselves.
076. Pocket Universe
You have somehow found yourself in charge of a pocket universe, an empty void with a breathable atmosphere (installed before your acquirement) that you decide could use.. well.. anything. The first thing that gets introduced to this world is your own house, which floats in the center. It'll do for starters, plus it gives you somewhere to crash while you're not floating around trying to figure out what to do with this generous gift. Eventually, you discover a way of guiding this bubble of reality close to other, much larger bubbles that comprise of all the worlds of the multiverse. Because of the strange laws of reality that control the bubble, you're able to step outside it (providing there's something to step outside to) and then shrink your bubble so you are able to carry it around with you. While this all sounds weird and complicated, I wouldn't worry about it. Just hover to any reality you like the sound of (a Fantasy world with dragons or such, or maybe the Cyberpunk town the next world over) and find as much interesting tat to "decorate" your own pocket universe with as possible. Think of it as something like the Sims' house-building mode, only you can have anything you want as long as you're able to run off with it. Sure, a couple of blaster pistols or a futuristic computer terminal from the Cyberpunk world would be nice, but so would a giant neon billboard that animates 3D images or a patrolling police hovercar. Simply wrap your pocket universe around it and then sort out where it will go later. Finally, like Animal Crossing, you'll be rewarded for how idiosyncratic and varied your pocket universe looks, by bizarre entities that claim to know about this sort of thing. Scoring points with the creators of the pocket universes (and possibly, indeed, the universe itself) may even reward you with larger pocket universes to fill with whatever you desire.
077. Besieged
A siege simulator of sorts (whoo, alliteration!), Besieged is a tongue-in-cheek action strategy game that puts you in the command of either an army breaking into a castle or a defending force trying to hold out against invaders. As well as directly monitoring the sheer force of the armies of either side, you'll also need to set up traps to deter the stealthier or more ingenious ways of sneaking into your castle and, inversely, coming up with said ideas and plans to sneak in and lower the drawbridge. Each castle is vastly different, with different factors to take into account (such as a moat, or the castle being built into a mountain). Send spies, ninjas, forces via air, forces via the sea/moat (maybe inside a submersible), hire monsters, bribe the enemy forces already inside the castle or anything else that will get you and your fighters inside the castle. Likewise, deploy traps, archers, detection systems, moat monsters, watch out for traitors and use ninjas of your own to block any attempt at taking your fortress. Play a two-player game (or more, with the players assuming two teams) for even more deviousness, using the resources available to out-think your opponent.
078. Enchanted Sword
These things are always such fun in video games. Who could forget Lilarcor from Baldur's Gate 2, for instance? In this game, you assume the role of one of these intelligent blades, trying to make its way in the world. Obviously, you won't get much done lying at a bottom of a treasure pile, so the game starts the moment you're picked up by an unsuspecting peasant. You need to cleverly work your charms and powers as a magical object to see that you're in the hands of someone truly worthy of your abilities. Like the warmongering King who is scoring victories all across the land. He'd be a good place to start. Though you don't directly control whoever happens to be holding you, you can use your considerable will to effectively point them in the right direction. Shape the "Chosen One" who picked you up into a lean fighting machine, or simply find ways of getting him killed and allowing you be recovered by the obviously stronger opponent. Work your way up to the big-name fights and make a name for yourself as a legendary weapon. You might finally beat your overachieving brother Excalibur or all the other talking swords that you'll meet (and often be clanging against) on the way up. This game would be ideal for the Wii, as you control the blade itself with the Wiimote, rather than the hand holding it.
079. Mutant League Basketball
OK, so the "Mutant League [Sport]" is getting kind of old. Well, this list doesn't have one yet, and I seriously think a Mutant League Basketball could be the best basketball game since NBA Jam. Imagine having a hell-demon that's literally "on fire". Or rock golems on defence. Or gargoyles who use their wings to gain airtime on their shots. And Will Smith could even show up, reprising his cameo role from NBA Jam. His special move would be to brutally tackle the Alien player and say "Welcome ta Earf!"
080. Super Robot Wars vs. Robot Wars
Super Robot Wars: an SRPG series where mechas from all sorts of giant robot anime, strongly focused around the various Gundam series though often including Patlabor or Evangelion. Robot Wars: a show in the UK that features home-made vehicular robots made from lawnmower motors and painted scrap sheet metal trying to flip each other over. Put these two groups of metal warriors together and who will come out on top? It could really be anyone's fight. Sure, the bigger mechas have laser cannons that can vaporise an entire city. But does it have a little lever that allows it to right itself if it gets flipped onto its side?
