Controller-less Gaming

With the new Xbox 360 Kinect technology (formerly Project NATAL) , we will take on a differenct approach on how we comunicate with games.

Because Kinect is controller-less and uses the human body itself as a controller, novice players already have a heads up on how to play the game; since a person already knows how to use their body, we can safely assume they can move their arm in a certain direction or make a gesture to trigger something in-game. Sure enough this new method of interactivity with games will appeal to non-gamers, such as older generations and non-hardcore gamers. Someone with no gaming experience can quickly pick up the motions of the game and in no time be playing like a pro. 

But like all things new, things don't work, it comes with bugs, or it needs to be patched. I usually am optimistic about such technologies but throughout my personal experiences, the more it sounds too good to be true, the more it is too good to be true. One example is the Wii Remote. Like a politician, it promised many things that did not come true, mainly the accuracy of its motion sensors. The cursor regularly shakes and most of the complex motion inputs do not deviate from "shake the wii-remote to perform function". Until recently the Wii Remote has had an update. Another innovative attempt was the SIXAXIS Wireless Controller for PS3. It works occasionally and for the most part, users turn off the feature because it frequently hinders gameplay from accidental user motions and like the Wii Remote, most input from it is "shake the damn thing like it owes you money". It also is getting an update. I'm actually glad Microsoft never decided to go the motion controller route and instead, motion capture. But like I mentioned earlier, with new things there are false promises. I don't think it will be as accurate as they make it. I think the motion detection may be delayed, and the facial recognition will fail most of the time. Another thing that will happen is that the first batch of games will be a liking to the Wii Sports games; Billards, Tennis, and Bowling. 

My major concern is the lack of feedback, force-feedback that is. A lot of information can come from the feedback the player gets from the controller; perhaps rumbling can notify the player of a nearby enemy, or in Legend of Zelda : Ocarina of Time, it can let the player know about secrets that are nearby. But besides that, the lack of matter in my hands makes me feel like rowing a boat, holding a tennis raquet, or shooting M16 very empty. The lack of weight might detacht me from the gameplay or make me feel like "am I doing this right?" Only time will tell, once I get my hands on it and try it out.

Another concern is for the Hard-Core gamers. Being controller-less means there is no Analog Stick for motion. I'm sure some math can be done to find the vector between your left and and right hand to make a cross-hair appear on screen for aiming but motion will be limited. Perhaps running in place is a signal for moving, and the direction the body is facing for where to run to, turning could perhaps be a quick motion of the torso or arms (which would be in the pose of holding a rifle.) All of it seems like too much work for little effect. Hard-core gamers might not get the full effect and experience of Kinect.

The future of gaming looks promising with new ways to interact with games. I can't wait for Star Trek style VR rooms.. yes!

Some links after the jump.

Android Game Development

Mobile gaming is taking new heights with improved technology and software. With iPhone being pioneers into good mobile gaming, others take a look at this and see this as an opportunity to seize new territory and expand their horizons.

One such technology is the Android platform. Android itself is a wonderful thing, a platform where you can put anywhere, PC's, phones, printers, monitors, toasters? And with the Java based language , it's "Write Once, Run Anywhere" which is convenient , seeing as how the OS takes itself.

There are some problems with the platform however. The biggest one ,I think, would be the community itself. I'm not saying that the community is terrible and no one is willing to help, far from it. What I am saying is that it's full of hopefuls. People who want to make something rather than actually doing something. A lot of the software on the Android market is sub-par and not quite polished, especially in the field of gaming.


The resources on developing games is also quite sparse as there is no real basis to create your game. The API demo that SDK comes with is buggy and is a terrible example to base ones game upon i.e "Lunar Lander"/"Snake"

I hope to figure out all this mess and create a simple document that can be used as a basis/foundation for game development on the Android. It is much needed.


Links :

• AnDev.Org
•  Android Development

New wave of controllers?

Eye-Tracking web-cam-glassesmaggigers.
Students at London Imperial College are developing new input devices that use your own eyes as the controllers.

As of now they have developed the tech to match eye movement with the movement of a paddle in a classic game of pong. The potentials for other uses are what make this contraption ... juicy.

Imaging a game where you can actually focus in real time, reading something up close then taking aim down the sight of a rifle. Eye tracking can provide cursor input for computers (but considering the technology needs to right-cick, middle-click, left-click and even scroll now a days, it would need some tinkering). If they work it out, FPS's will be more accurate and more about who spots who first. The disabled get a win for their side too , since sometimes they are not able to use their hands, this way they are provided with a means of playing games they could otherwise never play.

The best part is that its somewhat affordable. At about $37 USD for developing the glasses, it doesnt seem too bad.


Impulse Controls
Microsoft is developing tech that uses muscle impulse for controller inputs. As of now its a series of wires connected to your arms that allow your muscles to dole out raw data to computers that other developers can use as inputs. So playing guitar hero is as simple as holding your thumb to your index finger for the green button then strumming your right hand for the strum bar (think Air Guitar!). Other applications include snapping fingers for car doors or changing ipod songs while on the move. This device can also aid the disabled that do not have hand movment to bypass conventional controllers.

Audio In Games : Taken for granted

Most people, when asked what makes this game good, say that graphics and game mechanics are what made this game amazing/great/fun. I promptly ask, how was the music, sound effects, and ambiance. They look at themselves and reach deep into their minds to fetch something which they seem to have lost. After a brief minute or two they say something along the lines of "Yea, it was good.. I think" or "I don't really remember."

I have not conducted a survey of this (yet) but I would bet that a Great game would be pushed down to Good or even Mediocre if they played it the game first with mute on. The experience is literally cut down. Sound is very subconscious and it sets the moods and lets the players know if to expect something or if they should be picking up the pace.

An example of this is Half Life 2. I decided to dissect the game and figure out why I enjoyed it so much (a discipline that ALL game designers should adhere to and practice!) I played the game as it was intended. (Normal difficulty, Full Graphics, Full Audio, no personal music or distractions) I let myself go and immersed myself in this world. I became Gordon Freeman - felt kind of empowering.

What I found out about this was not only about AMAZING level design (pacing, flow, guidance,difficulty) but paid more attention to the sounds of the game. In the first level where Gordon is in the apartment building and Civil Protection(CP) is basically raiding the building and taking everyone out, I can hear footsteps on wood, clanking of dishes, CP vehicles driving back and forth on the streets below, leaky pipes, birds, wind, and Dr. Breen addressing a letter from a Concerned Citizen. It was perfect. I felt like I was in this building, I felt the bad vibes of the whole deal. I was immersed entirely.

The entire game was like this and I appreciate the game developers attention to detail that much more! So next time you play one of your favorite games, don't take sound for granted. Snap on some good headphones and soak in the sounds in games.

D.I.Y. Game Mechanics by Introversion

Beyond brilliant! I am so fascinated by what the people over at Introversion are doing. One thing had struck me as ingenious; they are creating a system where you can build your own complex gadgets out of simple things. The basics of this is simple: create objects in the world that do one task (perhaps two) such as a wire that transmits a signal of 1 if on and 0 if off, and other objects that respond to signals , such as bomb detonating when it receives a signal of 1 and stays off when receiving a signal of 0. Things can get more intricate when you throw in time delays, motion sensors, and laser trip lines creating dynamic environments where saboteurs actually have to look at what wire they are cutting rather than holding the action button for 8 seconds.

Imagine the things you can make with some simple tools. Lets throw in some neat examples, so what can you make with, wires, sliding door, a motion sensor, a few trip lines, an explosive, a keypad, a gun-turret, pressure pads, some time delays, and an alarm... it almost seems like an electricians play ground...or explosives expert. If you were playing against another player, you can set up elaborate defense systems or traps and the other player will have to do some undercover recon to take note of all your defenses and to see how to bypass them. With a system like this , custom downloadable content is foreseeable and perhaps in some sort of MMO universe it could even be a class of some sorts that builds templates and sells them for mega credits depending on how useful it is.

I don't know why we haven't seen this in games as simple as it is. Half Life 2 did try this with some of their force shields and ....... force shields, and as trivial as it was - using the gravity gun to pull the plug - it still brought a different side of gameplay us gamers haven't seen and we felt proud knowing we "figured" out how to turn off the .. shields . 

This is such a great design and I plan on using a derivation of this in future games.

Procedurally Generated Cities

Imagine just clicking a button and bam! a randomized city is constructed from start to finish right before your eyes. Fiddle with some preset information such as city centers and population density and your city is born. No longer any need for expensive artist to conjure up hours of detailed work if the algorithms and math can do it in fractions of the cost and time! 

Procedural cities bascially use existing data about expansions of cities and roads and apply it into an existing plane. Then they calculate where residential, commercial, and industrial zones would most likely be or fit. Skyscrapers are fitted in down town areas with lots of room and small suburban housing on the fringes. 

Imagine the capabilities with this technology! Soon the tech will support different styles of cities with just an adjustment of a few parameters. Want a metropolis with rome style buildings? Sure thing! You can find more information here

Applying this to a game seems almost obvious. Next step is to make each building accessible and destructible.

Social Network Games : New Grounds For Experimental Gaming

If you are part of one of the biggest social networks , eg. Facebook, Myspace, then you might have noticed a new wave of game showing up and a bunch of your friends playing them. These new games offer twists on great game designs and are unique each in their own ways. Playfish  has been one of the biggest influences out there , having most of their games on the top of the charts on Facebook. So why are these games catching the attention of millions?

For one, it's how they are designed. Their are two types of social networking games, those that are just games to have fun with friends and others that the point is to add friends to your app game. The latter usually has a big "INVITE FRIENDS" button on the main page imporing you to click on it. Games like this are usually not as entertaining because they usually force you to get people to play so that your experience is more enjoyable telling you things like "invite one more peron and you can buy the ROCKET LAUNCHER FROM HELL!!!! RAWR RAWR!" and it really ruins the fun because you end up saying your friends "look you don't need to even play, just join up and thats it." 

This is deplorable... but it is a great marketing scam. These games are called Viral. The point is to spread and get people to eventually click the micro-transaction button so they can get fake money in the game. We'll that's actually how all social network games make their money but when that's the focus it waters down gameplay to null. So the other option is to actually use the network as a testing ground to the infinite possible game designs. MAKE an actual game that people would play rather than some crappy, cookie-cutter spreadsheet game that has been the case for a while now. 

The network is there and people are willing to play; it's like a Game Designers dream! The risk is so small that games can be pumped out as fast as you can make them and the quality does not have to be AAA so to speak. People recognize that graphics are gonna be sub bar and try to make the best of what you have created. Games can be expirmental now that the risk is so low and designers can go nuts and just make far out designs where they could have otherwise on a bigger title. Publishers are out of the picture and it goes straight to the costumer. And if you need to survey your audience, just ask. You have a tool which allows millions of users to be at your questioning and that kind of service is invaluable. 

I see a future of wacky far out games that will call attention to many users proving that games can reach out to all audiences. This new environment will nurture experimental growth for designers and hopefully we'll see some more original games.