Hello RMS,
Today I would like to share my Costume system design. I have seen many different systems, but I do not know if anyone has done it this way before.
Project Pokemon Unique Costume System Design
https://youtu.be/oC14m5mGJJ0The current systems I see available that servers use are:
1. Traditional costumes that are made one by one, they fit in their respective lower/upper/mid slots
2. Dynamic system - Where players can input an ITEM ID number and their costume item transforms into that item
3. Conversion based systems where regular headgears are converted into costumes via command/NPC
Traditional systems are great, they are excellent for the economy/trading markets. When talking about implementing 2000+ Headgears, the implementation process becomes tedious and the time it would require to sort the headgeras into lower/mid/upper would be a large consumption of time.
Dynamic systems are very flexible and the ability to choose any headgear style you want (Custom and iRO styles) is a simple process of just inputting the ITEM ID and transforming your costume placeholder into whatever you want. This also eliminates the slot limitations and you can now slot headgears wherever you please to come up with a variety of combinations. Implementation is also easy for the developer to add in thousands of customs without the need for much adjustment and descriptions.
I've come up with a bit of a hybrid of both. I value the economical value and trading market as a way to promote and maintain a healthy trade server in which the traditional costume system offers. An item that is tradable and high in demand, is going to feel rewarding to obtain or trade for.
My hybrid system involves equipping the item and then prompting a menu to set the costume in its respective slot as demonstrated in the video. This system allows players to choose a variety of different headgear combinations while having tangible costumes to trade and obtain. Due to the nature of the system, we no longer need to worry about sorting the headgear positions the items need to slot in. This saves huge time as a developer when it comes to implementation. There is also no need to inconvenience the player by heading to town and talking to an NPC to change looks. The item can simply be equipped normally with the option to set the slot before placement. This method also allows for all new clients to take advantage of the item linking and cash shop preview options. All these costumes you create can still be previewed before purchase.
I am always looking to improve my systems, if anyone has seen other systems available or have ideas in regards to creating a better costume system, I would love to hear and discuss it.
