Fusion Effect: One

#The First Game

The very first project I developed and launched, back in my early teenage years was an online text-based RPG game. It had few graphics and many bugs, and it was based on a PHP script some kid was selling for in-game currency for a different game. It had a few features hacked together in 1,000+ line files. It was built using Notepad (Notepad++ would come about a year or two later), and my programming skills were non-existent. It’s where I got my start some 17 years ago, inspired by popular online games at the time, and my desire to learn, I set out to build something that other kids in my school and around the world could enjoy to escape the daily stress.

I made many great friends during the game’s lifespan; nearly 6 years from 2005 to 2011. While the game existed a full year before I sold it in 2006, I still count the many betas and attempts to launch.

Luckily, the people I sold it to would ensure the infrastructure was funded and handled. They even paid a second developer to help extend the story and flesh out some of the game’s mechanics. It was a decision that at the time, netted me a nice paycheck as a 16 year old ($500 if I recall correctly). Ultimately, I focused my time and efforts on building a career for myself, and the ownership of the game ceased operations over time. In reality, the game mostly died out between 2009-2010 and life moved on.

The final iteration of the game was sleek, clean and nice-looking.

I was proud of what I had built, the memories I made, and the friendships, which I still have to this very day!

#Failures to Launch

I would go on to attempt to bring the game back online many times. Either by using the original code base with as little work as possible or by recreating it in whatever new and cool framework existed at the time. Those efforts never went anywhere, and I would continuously shelve the idea.

I’ve always had this strong nostalgic urge to just launch the game in some form, but I was never happy with “good enough”. I either expanded the scope too greatly, had life get in the way, or realized no one really plays text-based MMORPG’s these days.

I ultimately gave up trying to reproduce the game and the chase for nostalgia. I felt like it was a waste of time putting in effort that no one would likely ever see. Until one night, many years later, I came across an old Facebook post where I talked about the game, I interacted with the friends I had made, and we all shared some fond memories of what we liked most about it. It was then and there that I realized I had to once and for all cross the finish line with remaking the game. Irregardless whether people would play it or not, I had to do it for myself, the young kid in me. The one that spent his days and nights coding and learning. I knew that until I actually did what I had failed to do for many, many years, I’d never be fully satisfied with paying my respects to the young me, and in some ways, the friends I had made along the way.

#Fusion Effect: One

Enter Fusion Effect One. A throwback to the original name, Fusion Effect.

This is going to be what the original game should have been if I knew what I was doing. The features I’ve already implemented far surpass anything the original game had. The UI is far more clean and usable, and the mechanics are a lot deeper than the concepts of the past. Everything has a connection and tie to the lore… That weapon you just bought was produced by a company that you can buy stock in and help mine raw materials to ensure they have the supplies to make more.

The game has a dynamic weather system, fluctuating market prices, a customizable living area, an interactive NPC system, and so much more! It’s the game I dreamed of developing and putting out into the world.

It takes place a about 200 years before the original game, doing away with various playable species, and instead, utilizing classes within the Human race. As the game evolves, those species will be introduced and intermingle within the city.

I gave myself around a year and a half to get it completed. I started four months ago, May 2024, and decided I’d launch the game in early 2026; the 20th anniversary of the original launch date. I plan to use this blog as a way to continue to advertise and promote the game, giving insight into my personal process.

#What’s The End Goal?

To finally re-launch a game I developed as a teenager; to fully build out the concept and vision I had chased prior as a naive and young developer. I don’t care if the game attracts thousands of players or none at all. It will remain on the internet for at least 10 years, with no resets or refreshes. It will be my hobby project that continues to grow, and something I experiment with to further expand and evolve my skills, career, and the game I’ve enjoyed developing so far!

#Coming Soon!

I’ll be opening up an official Discord, along with a Subreddit, and website where those interested can keep up.