@Euphony You're right, here's proof:
------
Day / Night systems and Dynamic Lighting Effects in general
One of the things about Dynamic Lighting systems is that there needs to be a logical reason for lights to be visible. Thusly, Dynamic Lighting and Day / Night systems go hand in hand with each other. Telling a player that it is currently night in some form or another is a legitimate reason to show Dynamic Lighting effects, which when used properly can make semi ordinary games look absolutely incredible!
This is a pic that I already put in the Screenshots Thread, and it just goes to show that even with very ordinary tilesets, relatively simple maps can look amazing!
(Animated, give it a moment to load)
Im actually pretty close to releasing that script for RMXP if anyone is interested in trying out its current form:
http://downloads.chaos-project.com/heretic86/LightCollectionBeta.zip
But this isnt about just pimping out my own scripts and what not. As I said, Lighting Effects can take a bland looking game and make them look much better. The real trouble with many Day / Night Cycles is that it has the
potential to frustrate players when poorly implemented, as seen in the AVGN video in my above post.
Logical things happen when there are Day / Night cycles. People go to bed, shops close, townsfolk dont really wander around at midnight, and dialogue can change. Monsters can become stronger and certain areas may be inaccessible to the player. That can lead to the aforementioned frustration. For example, making a player wait an hour before being able to go and purchase weapon upgrades can be irritating to the point where the game is no longer fun.
When properly implemented, it can add a tremendous sense of realism to a game and increase how much players enjoy the game. Thus, it really is not about simply having a Day / Night system, but how it is implemented. For example, if events are Timed, then players need to be provided with a means of waiting so that the artificially imposed Time Restrictions do not interfere with gameplay. For example, sleeping at an Inn for 8 Hours is a good way to advance time logically without breaking the Suspension of Disbelief that is necessary to enjoy a game, and thus avoids the frustrations caused by Day / Night systems.
Day / Night systems also should not overwhelm game creators to the point where every light source needs an hour to properly edit and set up. Creators need to be able to implement lighting effects as quick as can be achieved. That is typically my goal when writing any script, high degree of functionality and minimal effort for users of my scripts to set up.
The decision to implement such Day / Night systems is a choice that needs to be made with much consideration of how much effort it will take a creator to implement into their game so that Suspension of Disbelief is not damaged. It isnt just a matter of changing the Lighting Effects, then leaving everything else exactly the same as that is exactly what destroys that precious Suspension of Disbelief, and that is where much of the work in implementing such a system will come from. Different dialogue from NPCs is easy, but giving an NPC a means of going inside when it is dark creates a ton of Eventing work and why due consideration needs to be taken into account. An easy work around would be to have most NPCs indoors already so Eventing them going inside when Day turns to Night can be avoided.
Does this NPC really just stand here day and night and NEVER sleep? Do NPCs ever sleep, period? Shouldnt things be like this during the day and like that during the night? Do your Stats change? Those are questions that players will ask of the people that create the games. When Day / Night systems are implemented and transitions occur, all people have certain Expectations of Normalcy. People sleep at night, shops close, Inns may stay open, etc. Damaging that Suspension of Disbelief by violating Expectations of Normalcy are the troubles you will experience when trying to implement a Day / Night system. Although Scripts and Events may not be "broken", when that Expectation of Normalcy is not met, that is when players will begin to ask questions. Creators need to be able to ask these questions and answer them in a logical way well before the players do, and why implementing Day / Night systems is NOT just about changing lights around.
There are many easy solutions to this. For example, some games might be entirely at night. You could also pause time when in a town, locking doors, and giving NPCs another Event Page so they are not active at night. That would meet a players Expectation of Normalcy. They can also understand why time might be paused in towns, but not in field maps. This would also require the availability of an Inn so that players can advance time and not become frustrated by having to wait an hour outside of town before advancing the story or interfering with gameplay.
Summary: Dynamic Lighting and Day / Night systems can add a high level of immersion to your game and improve its overall quality, but will also create a lot of additional work for creators that needs to all be taken into serious consideration.
