Modding Discussion Mod Request: Stardew: Pokemon Universe

Discussion in 'Mods' started by brockali, Jul 18, 2016.

?

Would you like to see pokemon in Stardew Universe?

  1. I can see that happening

    68.4%
  2. No your idea is trash

    13.2%
  3. Maybe, if i saw a screenshot of it. It could potentially change my choice

    18.4%
  1. brockali

    brockali Space Hobo

    I'm just suggesting that maybe someone creates a pokemon mod for the game! The game's art style is amazing and reminds me of the pokemon universe in a way. Myself personally would love to see pokemon enter the world of stardew. Imagine of a more grown up pokemon game where you build relationships and create a team of followers as well as catch pokemon and battle!

    This is a very broad mod request and idea. but then again nothing is impossible.

    Let me know what you think! Comment below!
     
      juicyslew likes this.
    • Hel

      Hel ✨ Johto's Finest ✨ Forum Moderator

      Moved to Stardew Valley Modding instead of Starbound Modding.
       
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      • Gwenhwyfar

        Gwenhwyfar Subatomic Cosmonaut

        I haven't voted in the polls because I don't want to call your idea trash, but I'm not keen on the idea either.

        I'm not keen on this because your idea essentially turns this into a Pokemon game, just one where you can farm and form relationships, as you said. That's my opinion, but maybe there are others, with your fantasy, that want to be a Pokemon farmer.

        There are problems with your idea because, as you pointed it out, this is a very broad idea. But I think the main problem is that it might be too broad and ambitious; you're essentially taking a good chunk of what it takes to make a Pokemon game and melding it together with another game. Pokemon games aren't known to be small. You'd need a big team, or a lot of passion and dedication, to make this mod happen.

        The other problem is that the modding community is still trying to figure out how to manipulate the coding in Stardew Valley to do a lot of things that Stardew Valley devs can already do; add new NPCs, add new shops, learn how to modify the game's fridge and storage content without breaking the game, etc. There's progress in learning how to make new NPCs, but there's no formal guides on how to do it, only threads spread throughout the forum with people who had some success in making those NPCs. I'm learning how to customize an NPC that previously had limited functions and pretty much make a new one, so I might possibly make a guide for it, if successful. I haven't really seen people who made mods for new shops, but I've seen someone working on expanding an existing shop. Also, people thought it wasn't possible to mod the fridge without breaking the game, but there's someone with recent success on it and it's currently in testing for bugs.

        To give you an idea on how massive your idea is and how much programming you'll need to do, I'll give you a list of goals you need to do to make this mod. You'd pretty much need to make this mod through SMAPI to make it work.

        1. Creating the Pokemon: (Overall, probably the simplest goal to reach)
          1. Create sprites for Pokemon (time consuming but easy). - Probably the easiest thing to do, but you'll have to be a good artist, or have a good artist.
          2. Make a whole library for those Pokemon (either time consuming or only a little bit of time wasted). - Can be pretty daunting depending on how many Pokemon you want to introduce to the game, but can be a breeze if small.
        2. Creating abilities for Pokemon: (This is where it starts to get difficult and really daunting)
          1. Create a library of abilities (either time consuming or only a little bit of time wasted). - Can also be daunting depending on how many abilities you want to introduce.
          2. Make each ability distinctly different with effects they have, such as dealing damage or lowering a Pokemon's attack (difficult or slightly less difficult). - This will either be difficult or slightly less difficult depending on the number of abilities introduced.
          3. Create a library of sprite animation for those abilities and assign them to those abilities (either time consuming or a little bit of time wasted). - Can be daunting or a breeze depending on how many abilities you introduce.
          4. Create a dictionary for the number of abilities that can be assigned to each Pokemon (simple). - All you need to do is create a dictionary.
          5. Assign the ability dictionary for each Pokemon and create a method to add or remove an ability from the array list when you choose to have your Pokemon learn or forget an ability (difficult). - You're gonna have difficulty getting this dictionary to work as you want it to.
        3. Creating random Pokemon encounters: (Difficult and daunting)
          1. Create a method for either stepping on a tile that gives a chance for a Pokemon encounter or for every movement your character takes (difficult and/or daunting). - If you choose the tile method, it'll be difficult getting it to work as well as daunting to assign it to each map tile you want encounters to occur. If you choose the movement method, it'll still be difficult but you won't have to edit maps; however, you would have no control over where random encounters occur.
          2. Creating a method for determining which Pokemon you encounter (difficult). - This will involve a lot of if-statements and maybe a while-loop to connect it with the Pokemon encounter method. A lot of debugging will occur when using if-statements and loops.
          3. Create method for encountering different Pokemon in different areas (difficult but optional). - If you want it to really feel like Pokemon, you'd include this. You can put this method inside the determining Pokemon method based on tile ID or create separate methods and somehow link it to the determine Pokemon method. This method would be even harder to create if you use the movement method for randomly encountering Pokemon.
        4. Creating a storage for Pokemon: (Difficult)
          1. Creating a new storage for Pokemon to be placed in: one for your character and one for extra Pokemon to put away in (difficult). - If modifying Stardew Valley's fridge has proven a lot of difficulty and caused the game to crash, this is going to prove a lot of difficulty. I don't even want to think of what methods you'll need to create to make this all work because it sounds really daunting and a headache. Creating a dictionary or array for storing the Pokemon you own is the first step... Method will probably be needed to differentiate if it's in your inventory or chest.
          2. Create storage UI to see, retrieve, and remove the Pokemon (difficult). - Ties closely with the first thing you need to do to achieve a Pokemon storage. I really don't feel like brainstorming all that you have to do to achieve this... My head is starting to hurt from creating this list, bleh.... You'll probably need a method for viewing the Pokemon, method for retrieving, and method for removing.
          3. Create a storage version of the Pokemon sprites (easy but could be time consuming).
        5. Creating a team of followers: (Difficult)
          1. It's pretty much the same list of things you need to achieve as creating a storage for Pokemon (difficult). - Read the list for Pokemon storage.
          2. Create a Pokemon storage for your teammates so they also have their Pokemon (difficult). - A Pokemon storage within a Pokemon storage (that's renamed to teammates).
        6. Creating Pokemon items: (Difficult and daunting)
          1. This is essentially a combination of creating the Pokemon, creating abilities for Pokemon, and creating a storage for Pokemon (difficult). - Read about creating the Pokemon, abilities, and Pokemon storage to see what you have to do.
        7. Creating Pokemon battles: (Difficult)
          1. Create a battle UI (AKA a battle menu) for choosing abilities, Pokemon, items, your teammates, and choosing to flee (easy if you understand user interface programming, slightly difficult if you're a beginner). - It's like the user interfaces/menus on websites, it's mostly cosmetic and easy. The tricky part is the methods the UIs call upon.
          2. Create a method to call the Pokemon you have in hand and want to use (at least slightly difficult). - This would involve pulling the Pokemon you want to pull from your Pokemon storage dictionary.
          3. Create a method to call the ability on the Pokemon and get it to apply to the enemy and not you (difficult). - You may run into trouble and find that ability will apply to both your Pokemon and your enemy's. You'll need to create a method or maybe even multiple methods to change this.
          4. Create a method to apply a health bar to your Pokemon and enemy Pokemon and a method to affect the health bar based on abilities used (difficult). - You'll need to create a method that stores an integer for your Pokemon's HP and figure out what method you need to create to apply the effect of abilities used.
          5. Create a method to call the item you want to use and apply the item's effect to the Pokemon you target (difficult). - This is similar to what you'd achieve with abilities.
          6. Create a method to call to switch between teammates while retrieving them and their Pokemon storage (difficult). - So you're calling your teammate storage and their Pokemon storage.
          7. Create a method to give a certain percent chance to flee and end battle (slightly difficult). - Probably the easiest of the methods to create for the battle UI.
        8. Creating a Pokemon Center: (Moderately difficult and optional)
          1. Create a map for the center and create a warp point to reach it (pretty easy). - It's easy to do once you understand how to make maps for this game and create a warp point to reach the map; all the tools are already built into the game, so that's why it's pretty easy.
          2. Create a new Nurse Joy NPC to talk to and heal your Pokemon (slightly difficult to difficult and time consuming). - Depending on how interactive you want Nurse Joy to be (eg: form relationships with her, make her datable, create events with her), it can be really difficult cuz you'll need to debug this NPC a lot. If you make her as interactive as the museum curator, Gunther, it should be only a little difficult.
          3. Create a method that you can evoke when talking to Nurse Joy to heal your Pokemon (difficult). - This is what would probably make Nurse Joy a real pain.
        This mod would probably take at least a year to make because you're essentially making the Pokemon game, especially if you're not a very skilled programmer. For a skilled programmer, it'd probably take only several months with a lot of time on their hand.

        If you're really passionate about this mod, I'd suggest getting your hands into making it. People on this forum don't really create mods for people, if it isn't easy to make, unless they absolutely love the idea and are passionate about it. If you're new to programming and modding, I'd suggest starting with XNB modding for this game and do small modding projects first, like changing the portraits of NPCs. Read the modding thread we have stickied to figure out what you have to do to start modding. I'd recommend learning HTML and Python while learning XNB modding. Once you get confident with XNB modding, consider learning Java and C#, and then move on to SMAPI modding.

        When people see you put your own work and programming into your mod, they usually want to jump in and help, so try modding for yourself! It might be difficult and daunting, but it can be totally worth it! People are here to give you tips if you ever get stuck!

        Start small and build up to your dream of making this Pokemon mod!

        Edit:

        A less daunting Pokemon mod would be to change the sprites of the monsters in the mines to Pokemon and then create methods to tame them with food, let's say, and make them farm animals. You wouldn't have Pokemon battles, but there's already a lot of existing data that you're just modifying and you'd be collecting Pokemon in a way.

        Perhaps you can first create that and then work yourself up to creating a real Pokemon mod.
         
          Last edited: Jul 19, 2016
        • juicyslew

          juicyslew Master Chief

          This would be very hard, especially that this game doesn't exactly have a wide range of places to go. Unlike pokemon with all its towns and spread out pokemon in different areas that make sense for them, if pokemon were added to Stardew Valley, they would all be kinda squashed into one place and there wouldn't really be anything to do with them. I feel that pokemon would be much more interesting to have in starbound than in stardew valley. Like the post above me, I do not wish to call your idea trash, I just don't believe it is suited for this game.
           
          • lannihamm

            lannihamm Pangalactic Porcupine

            I second juicyslew's point about starbound > stardew valley. there's a colossal amount of planets in-game with a wide variety of biomes, which would suit a pokemon-based mod quite nicely, and adding a pokemon center to the outpost (or turning the entire thing into a pokemon center) would only further enhance the overall experience. the devs also implemented a pet system where you use pokeball-eque items to capture wild monsters and tame them. I'd highly suggest looking into it if you're really serious about this.
             
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            • Entoarox

              Entoarox Oxygen Tank

              There is nothing stopping someone from adding more area to Stardew, there is no upper limit that we're likely to run into any time soon.
               
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              • lannihamm

                lannihamm Pangalactic Porcupine

                Did i say that we can't add more areas to Stardew? No. I said there is a preexisting game that, unmodded, already has an obscene amount of planets to choose from (12.667 quadrillion to be exact, with a planned 422.22 quadrillion at release, and a possible 77.88 decillion different worlds through modding), which would, again, "suit a pokemon-based mod quite nicely". Please tell me you aren't seriously suggesting that our modding community could even come close to matching that.

                None of that implies, at all, that we cannot add more areas to Stardew.

                I even started the entire paragraph clarifying that I was speaking solely about the pros of creating a pokemon mod on Starbound vs Stardew (juicy mentioned it'd be more interesting in Starbound), not what was impossible to incorporate with Stardew.
                 
                  Last edited: Jul 19, 2016
                • juicyslew

                  juicyslew Master Chief

                  Entoarox has a point though, if someone was really set on making it, a pokemon mod would be very possible. It would just require a LOOOT of work. If someone was really passionate about it, I'd love to see them try to make one and wouldn't be against trying to make it cuz its not impossible or anything.
                   
                  • cankersaur

                    cankersaur Pangalactic Porcupine

                    I've actually seen a bunch of pixel art based on Pokemon games that is free to use, so it's definitely possible to do aesthetically! I think the existing Pokemon stuff used a lot of it.

                    Edit: @lannihamm there didn't seem to be anything malicious about Entoarox's comment -- I don't think they meant anything by it other than exactly what they said.
                     
                      Last edited: Jul 24, 2016
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                    • baddy1000

                      baddy1000 Scruffy Nerf-Herder

                      I for once would be interested in tackling the art.

                      But before this happens I would like to see a previous state of the project, which is a Pokemon Universe conversion mod. We have some retextures already, but I would like to see that the entire town lives together with Pokémons. I already have that Pokemon Soundpack installed and the feeling is nice, but slight modifications to the town and areas would improve upon the play experience tremendously.

                      Weekend's comming up and I feel pretty productive. I think I will tackle a Pokemon Town overhaul. For now I would only take the first two Pokemon Generations into consideration. Don't want the Pokémon list to get out of hand.
                       
                        Last edited: Jul 22, 2016
                        lannihamm likes this.
                      • Kiakakash

                        Kiakakash Orbital Explorer

                        Hey, just wanted to add this to the conversation: there's a thread currently for Pokemon Retextures, and I had practically all of the ones listed going at one point. It's the closest I've ever come to finally being a Pokemon breeder, and it was so much fun. I've since decided to go for simpler mods, as the mod list got pretty daunting.
                        I agree with most everything that people are saying. This task is more for an actual game programmer than a modder and would turn into an entire expansion pack rather than just a single mod. It would be absolutely amazing if someone had the free time to do it, and then was also willing to do so for free and willing to give it out for free. But then again, I've seen some crazy talented people do some crazy kind things for their communities.
                         
                        • baddy1000

                          baddy1000 Scruffy Nerf-Herder

                          Well, game programmer can be modders aswell. Especially, since you have a lot of people developing their own APIs to help the modding community.
                          And for now, we only need proof of concept. We don't need to create 150 Pokemons to see if it works or not.
                          And you also don't have to go full nuts and animate every bit. You can start of with still sprites. Look at the Pokemon Red and Blue versions back then. There is not a lot animation going on. And I am pretty sure, people would be cool with that. They want to catch Pokemons and battle.

                          Personally, I would like to see a Pokemon Trainer/Ranger hybrid. Just so it goes more in line with the core of the original game.
                           
                          • Kiakakash

                            Kiakakash Orbital Explorer

                            Sorry, I didn't mean to sound so negative! You're right, I hadn't thought about it that way :) I'm even studying game design and we're always supposed to start with proof of concept. And the Trainer/Ranger hybrid would be so cool!
                             

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