Creating a process game

[NMe]

Long post incoming without a TL;DR. You were warned. :P

Right, after over 7 years of mostly being a leecher in this community, I finally figured out how I could do something back for all of you guys. The problem I have though, is that I need help. And probably lots of it.

In the real world, I'm a developer. I earn my keep mainly by making websites. However, I want to get back into native application development before I grow too rusty. A great way to get back up to speed would be by making a game. And if I'm making a game anyway, wouldn't it be great if it involved process?

What I need
This is where you guys come in. I'm no good as an artist, and depending on what the game is going to be like, I will need an amount of artwork done. Big scenes (backgrounds and foregrounds), sprites (animated objects), logos/menus, the works. I'm looking for any amount of artists that can work together on a common artwork style who can create the world that we as a team would agree upon.

Less work, but equally important: sound. A proper game needs sounds and music as much as it needs graphics. Though I'm okay as a musician, I'm not much of a composer. Neither do I have a special effects studio or software that can simulate one. For the game to be as optimal as possible, I will need a composer/performer who can provide some music, someone who can make decent sound effects and depending on what type of game we agree upon, even some voice actors might be called for.

Lastly: although I'm convinced I can create a game on my own (I've got over 15 years of experience as a developer, 6 of which are as a professional), I would not turn down an offer to help on the actual programming bit as well. The game will be written in C# using Microsoft's XNA toolkit. If you've got any level of experience with those tools and want to help out, you're more than welcome.

What would the game be about?
Quite frankly: I'm not fully sure yet. I've got a couple of vague outlines in my head including how gameplay in both variants would work, but I'm open to suggestions on this point. I'll list my ideas:

Idea 1
A point & click adventure style game, much like the well known Monkey Island franchise. The main character (most likely a girl) will find herself in a situation she has to get out of (mad scientist's lab? mysterious island? haunted house? not sure yet ) by solving puzzles and using items available to her. Obviously, many of the puzzles would involve transforming the character. Though this idea has my preference, it has a bigger requirement in terms of story, artwork, sound and voice actors, so this will only work out if enough people volunteer.

Idea 2
A bit more straightforward and more easy to make, artwork wise: a classic platform/action game, probably most easily compared to this game. Though instead of trying to prevent transformations like in that game, I would like the transformations either to happen before a "level" or puzzle starts, either as a means to finish the level (the usual "transforming into a frog means higher jumps" and the likes), or maybe the main character could be cursed to keep transforming (randomly? one specific creature per level? at will? not sure yet ) until she finds an antidote. This would make the transformation the reason for actually playing.

More ideas
Any more ideas or suggestions would be welcome. You could either help out by replying in this thread with your idea, or you could join the team as a story/scenario writer.

What kind of process can you expect?
I myself prefer animal transformations, but as this is a team/community effort, I would not like to limit the game to only that kind of process. Any kind of transformation that can fit into whatever story line we agree upon could be added, if an artist would be up for making it. This is why, for now, this thread is here in the General Discussion forum for everyone to see regardless of preference.

What can I offer you in return for your help
Realistically? Squat. I would like the game to be free for everyone on this board to play. However, included with the eventual download link there will be a donation button; any donations made through that would be shared with everyone on the team in a fair way. It might also be possible to release the game to Steam or the Xbox Live Arcade, but that mostly depends on how the game works and whether or not those two organizations find the end product worthy of their support. Artists may want to note that releasing a game to either platform would require a non-adult version of the game, so possibly some alternative artwork should the game we release here contain nudity.

In summary
This will (hopefully) be a big project and as such it will take a relatively long time to complete. Anyone offering to help will have to commit to nothing, though I would prefer it if you only offer your help if you're fairly sure you can in fact commit to it until the end.

So...any thoughts?