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Your work is incredible. Every time you post an update it's fascinating and humbling. That being said, it's hard to be excited about the game, because there d
by sebular 11y ago
Your work is incredible. Every time you post an update it's fascinating and humbling.
That being said, it's hard to be excited about the game, because there doesn't seem to be one. I'm looking forward to when you release the engine in a documented usable form so that people who are passionate about games--not game engines--will have a chance to use this amazing tech.
On the other hand, it seems like there's nothing you can't do, maybe you're also a genius game designer. Though I'd still like to see what other people can do with it.
- gavanwoolery 11y agoThanks - I agree with you on the game part, which is why I am buckling down on creating a simple game to ship within the next few months (this is outside of my long term goals for the game). I am open to suggestions as well as to what this should be - there is a thread on the forums about the prototype game and all ideas are welcome. I really can't claim to be a good game designer yet. My primary goal really was to get this engine into other people's hands, and the only reason I am building a game is because I can't build a business off an engine alone, and I need to dogfood the engine to ensure necessary features. :)
- Glyptodon 11y agoSome sort of game where you design, build, and manage dams, canals, and water usage for a small coastal country might be interesting and let you take advantage of the terrain and simulation aspects of the engine. Plus you could find out what happens when CA really does run out of water, ha ha.
- gavanwoolery 11y agoSo, Where's My Water 3D? :)
- kleer001 11y agoBenefits of this idea: Quirky. Takes advantage of strengths. Easy to implement?
- TrevorJ 11y agoWow, that would be quite fun! How does one sim water in 3d effectively in this sort of case? Is it basically a 2d grid with a third "depth" variable and some simple rules like "where neighbor depth > mine: +1 to neighbor depth on tick" or something?
- detaro 11y agoThat approach has the downside that you can't have water jets or multiple layers of caves with lakes above each other. Most "voxel"/block-based games allow blocks to be filled with different levels of water and then have rules to spread it around. 2 Examples: In Minecraft, there are source blocks and normal water blocks. Water spreads from source blocks towards the lowest point in the area and loses one level (from 7) each step. If you put water source blocks close together, new ones spawn between them. Water just "evaporates" after a few blocks: If you dig up from a cave with flat ground into an ocean, water will spill to the ground and flow 7 blocks. But that makes it easier to handle for players. Example: http://minecraft.gamepedia.com/File:Das_Waterfall.png http://minecraft.gamepedia.com/File:Das_Waterfall.png Details: http://minecraft.gamepedia.com/Liquids#How_liquids_work http://minecraft.gamepedia.com/Liquids#How_liquids_work Dwarf Fortress on the other hand has infinite water sources that also have pressure, so hitting a water source with a tunnel will fill your fortress up to the level of the source block, because the water spreads infinitely and also can go up bends. FUN! (Especially if you hit one with high pressure = producing a lot of water. First thing you notice is that the frame rate drops to slide show speed, a few frames later there's water everywhere) If you block it off, it remains. (vs in Minecraft plugging all source blocks makes water disappear) This is a more realistic approach, especially if the speed at which the sources produce water is limited and they are only used at the map edges to simulate inflow. Or one could look into finite element modelling and other fluid simulation techniques and try to adapt them for game usage.
- TrevorJ 11y agoCool info, thank you for sharing that's quite interesting!
- gavanwoolery 11y ago
- ambiate 11y agoI can't help but see a Final Fantasy Tactics clone.
- gavanwoolery 11y agoThat would be interesting...Actually when I first started I wanted to achieve the visuals of Tactics Ogre programmatically. http://www.impulsegamer.com/psp/tacticsogre02.jpg http://www.impulsegamer.com/psp/tacticsogre02.jpg The only problem is that there is a good deal of content production and balancing that goes into such a game - I want to build a "simple as possible" game in the short term.
- DanBC 11y agoWould it be possible to produce a stub? Two example "units" for two example "teams" (4 units total), 2 maps, but plenty of documentation, allowing the community to create a fuller game?
- tmoullet 11y agoWhat about a game like Worms or Tanks? Simple artillery firing with destructive landscapes. Maybe two castles firing siege weapons at each other? Worms: http://ciaranmccann.me/wormsjs/ http://ciaranmccann.me/wormsjs/ Tanks: http://www.addictinggames.com/strategy-games/tanks.jsp http://www.addictinggames.com/strategy-games/tanks.jsp
- nacs 11y ago> Maybe two castles firing siege weapons at each other Sounds like Castle Storm [1]. [1]: http://store.steampowered.com/app/241410/ http://store.steampowered.com/app/241410/
- pault 11y agoRampart[1] was always one of my favorite console games as a teenager, and strangely addictive. Perhaps that would be a fun game to port (destruction and water are key game mechanics, plays well to a voxel engine, game play is already pretty well balanced) [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rampart_%28video_game%29 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rampart_%28video_game%29
- gavanwoolery 11y agoI got one other suggestion for Rampart from another person - definitely a possibility. I would like to take advantage of building stuff. :)
- gavanwoolery 11y agoWorms has been a common suggestion (as well as Scorched Earth) - definitely not a bad idea and I will likely incorporate some aspects of these games at minimum.
- hobs 11y agoSandbox games like Beseige also would be fun in this type of world.
- gdubs 11y agoThe bombs are particularly compelling -- awesome work. In terms of potential for gameplay, my mind went right to Legend of Zelda. Going around, trying bombs on different walls was a big part of the gameplay for me in that game.
- gavanwoolery 11y agoYep - as simple as a mechanic as it is, I really enjoy discovering secret areas in these types of games, FPSs, etc.
- JanSolo 11y agoHi Gavan... Fellow gamedev here; I like your tech; it looks neat! As soon as I saw it, I had a great idea for a game. It's pretty simple too... Imagine a sort of hybrid of Angry Birds and Defender of the Crown (https://youtu.be/Af0vFi4sSzw?t=272 https://youtu.be/Af0vFi4sSzw?t=272). Where you have to build up your castle and then knock down your opponents. You already have pretty good walls, rocks, brickwork, etc. So you could use that for the construction phase. Then you'd need to add a variety of weapons; Ballistas, Trebuchets, Cannon, etc. Each one would destroy a few blocks in a certain pattern. Maybe you can unlock/upgrade weapons as you proceed. You'd also need some kind of physics to detect when blocks are unsupported and allow them to fall & destroy themselves. I'm envisioning a simple single player mode where you take it in turns defending and attacking castles and then an MP mode where 2 or more players can defend and attack each other. You'd need some kind of replication system to report which blocks are created or destroyed during the game, but that shouldn't be too hard for you. Let me know if you like my idea. Thanks Jan.
- gavanwoolery 11y agoYeah, actually when we were originally considering ideas it was not far from this, and will probably retain a few elements of this. We are dabbling with the idea of CTF where you build bases and try to hold a flag for the longest period of time, with a secondary objective perhaps being to destroy your enemy's base through whatever means (sabotage, artillery, etc).
- anigbrowl 11y agowhich is why I am buckling down on creating a simple game to ship within the next few months I love games where the mechanics of the engine are part of the gameplay. When I saw your little video of 'what happens if you apply the ripple effect to land?' I immediately thought of how fun that would be in a fantasy wizard fight. Great cartoon violence potential! I've really enjoyed reading your updates on this project, because of your excellent writing as well as your technological achievements. ISTM you have a great platform here that would be suitable for a wide variety of gameplay styles, which will attract other creative people to your project to help. Can't wait to see where this goes!
- gavanwoolery 11y agoThanks :) I think other people will make this engine shine, or I hope, in the same way modders made Minecraft much more interesting.
- archagon 11y agoI got a strong Final Fantasy Tactics vibe from your demo. I think your engine would be fantastic for 8-bit-style games set in a new, malleable 3D world.
- gavanwoolery 11y agoIf I don't make it, I'd definitely like to see someone do a tactics game in the style of FFT :)
- chipsy 11y agoAt this point I'd say build a minigame collection. It's a no-no most of the time because it means "now you have two problems" but if all of them explore the engine, it sets the right tone. I remember seeing the lack of design as an issue back in the initial trailer. My main suggestion for completing a design now is: spend an hour or two each day trying to kill the design on paper. As in - the only unknowns left should be tuning and balancing. Everything else - assets, systems, ui - should get a paper spec, and then be turned into tasks. This process makes for faster iteration than doing it on the computer since you can mix visual ideas with text. It lets you make bolder decisions up front and see the size of the game properly.
- gavanwoolery 11y agoNot a bad idea actually - I have considered just pumping out a game every few weeks. It may end up sort of a hybrid of this path and focusing a bit more on the launch prototype.
- AndyKelley 11y agothrowing out my suggestion for a game here: networked multiplayer combat game, but make killing each other not the main goal, the main goal should be capture the flag, or find the treasure, or build a bridge to the enemy's castle. Maybe one team is trying to build a bridge over a chasm to get to the winning thing, but the other team is trying to sabotage them, blow up the bridge or something.
- gavanwoolery 11y agoThis is slightly similar to some of the prototype ideas I've discussed in the past (in the forums) -- so I like the idea! :)
- xioxox 11y agoHow about a game like Populous? You're basically a god who intervenes in the life of his followers. There's lots of landscape generation, etc..
- karmelapple 11y agoA remake of Blast Corps for the Nintendo 64: http://youtu.be/_N51L5h37VQ http://youtu.be/_N51L5h37VQ It plays to the strengths of the engine: explosions and terrain deformation are key, and huge draw distance is not needed the way they placed the camera (likely needed back in the N64 days).
- JonnieCache 11y agoMassively multiplayer PvP marble madness?
- swframe 11y agoI would love to see a puzzle solving game like Clark (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dPVseD0Va8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6dPVseD0Va8). I think the puzzles should be community-defined in some easy to create format (json, xml, etc) if possible.
- pests 11y agoThis is right in the article: "That said, the point here is not just to make a game (plenty of people are doing that already), but to make a unique engine, and that could not happen in a vacuum."
- pests 11y agoThis is right in the article: "That said, the point here is not just to make a game (plenty of people are doing that already), but to make a unique engine, and that could not happen in a vacuum."