Design a good game
Level curves, pacing, map layout and testing, so your city is fun to play.
A DreamMist game is short, so every part counts. These guidelines come from how the engine works and from what makes the original games feel good.
Plan the path first
Before painting, write down what the player does, in order. Each line usually becomes a story step:
- Where they start, and the first thing they should do.
- What blocks them, and who opens the way.
- Where they catch Pokémon and train.
- The big fight at the end, and what it unlocks.
Three to six steps is plenty for one city. A longer adventure works better as several cities, or as one city with interiors.
Balance the levels
Every new trainer starts with a level 5 starter (from the Professor's opening, or from your own Choose a starter event), 10 Poké Balls and 5 Potions. Players who arrive from other cities may be stronger, but plan for a fresh trainer.
| Part of the game | Suggested levels |
|---|---|
| First wild Pokémon | 2 to 5 |
| First route trainers | 4 to 7, one or two Pokémon |
| Rival | 1 or 2 levels above the route |
| First Gym Leader | 9 to 12, two or three Pokémon, strongest last |
| Later routes | +3 to +5 levels per area |
Pokémon grow on the "medium fast" curve: reaching level n needs n³ experience points. Beating trainers gives 1.5 times more experience than wild Pokémon, so a route with two or three trainers is usually enough to prepare for a gym.
Give the player options
Put wild Pokémon of different types on the route before a gym. If the Gym Leader uses Rock types, add a Water or Grass Pokémon to the grass so players can catch an answer.
Heal points
Players who lose all their Pokémon go back to the spawn point of the map they're on, healed. That's forgiving, but a Nurse nearby still matters:
- Put a Pokémon Center, or a Nurse standing outside, before every gym.
- Avoid long routes with many trainers and no way to heal.
- A Nurse also refills Poké Balls and Potions up to 5 each, so nobody gets stuck without balls.
Make the map readable
- Paths lead somewhere. Use sand, gravel or light grass to show where to go, and trees, fences or water to show where not to go.
- Gates must be closed. A gate only blocks the tiles you paint. Check the whole edge so the player can't walk around it.
- Use the Above layer for roofs and tree tops so the player can walk behind them.
- Signs help. A sign at the entrance with the town name and a hint (“Route 1, north: Mistwood Gym”) goes a long way.
- Tall grass in patches. Players should be able to avoid wild battles when they just want to walk through.
Write short dialogue
The dialogue box shows a few lines at a time. Keep each page to one or two sentences and use an empty line to start a new page. Say what the player should do next: “The gym is just north. Beat your rival first!”
Test like a visitor
- Press Restart my progress in the Story layer to forget your own steps and beaten trainers.
- Play from the spawn point without using Build mode to cheat.
- Try to break it: walk along every gate, talk to people out of order, lose a battle on purpose.
- Ask a friend to play it before you publish.
Before you publish
- Give the city a name and a description that says what it is (“A seaside town with a Water gym and a hidden cave”).
- Check the publish checklist: people to talk to, wild Pokémon, trainers, a story and interiors.
- Make sure the outside map looks good from above. It's the preview picture on Explore.