One of the most exciting things that
just came up for VR Locomotion is the DecaMove device. The DecaMove itself is
an external sensor that attaches to the user’s hip or lower body torso.
Traditionally in many VR simulations
and games, Player Locomotion is normally done via teleportation or having smooth
locomotion with joystick via hand or head direction.
However, there are two main problems
with having the current way of locomotion:
1) Your hands are not free whilst
moving in the game as you need to hold onto a button or joystick
2) It takes some time for users to adjust
to as the movement may not be natural and users may experience motion sickness.
With the DecaMove device, it solves both problems as the sensor embedded senses the movement of the users’ hips for navigation and orientation. This ensures that players can move without having to hold or press a button as well as making the movement a lot more natural since we use our hips naturally to move in real life.
This device makes games with intense combat sections (such as in FPS games) much more natural as it is easier for players to coordinate their movements with their hip motion as opposed to a joystick or button.
Furthermore, this DecaMove device does
not need any external base trackers, making it a lot more versatile and compatible
with various headsets. The setup is also pretty straightforward as shown in the
review of this accessory: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tp27jRDZh18
Overall, it is quite an exciting
product that just got released and hopefully it’ll be the standard for many
games soon.
Roller Coaster Tycoon 2 (Playing the OpenRCT2 open-source adaptation of the game)
Short description of the game
Released in 2002, Roller Coaster
Tycoon 2 (or RCT2 for short) is a construction and management simulation game
developed by Chris Sawyer. The game is second in the Roller Coaster Tycoon
series and it was all designed and programmed by Sawyer in assembly language.
RCT2’s main mode of gameplay consists
of different scenarios where players have to manage a theme park and meet certain
objectives by a deadline. It also has a sandbox mode where players could create
their own scenarios and rides without constraints as well as having scenarios which
modelled after the real-life Six Flags Theme Parks. With its unique gameplay,
it is considered one of the pioneers of the simulation games genre.
The open-source adaptation of the game, OpenRCT2, was created by a group of volunteers to make the game compatible with more modern versions of current operating systems as well as adding more control and options to the game.
Links
OpenRCT2 download: https://openrct2.org/ (Requires the original RCT2
game which can be downloaded on Steam)
Before I dive into the analysis
of the game, this game was my childhood and I would play it ever so often
during my primary and secondary school years.
Upon playing the game, I experience a sense of satisfaction whenever I managed to build a roller coaster that has high excitement ratings. I also realized that at any moment in the game, I am always worried about my park rating as well as my finances and my eyes tend to be focused on this HUD a lot.
Nonetheless, this game really
gave me a sense of nostalgia through the pixelated graphics. The clear
animations as well as the sounds also made me feel like I am overseeing the
management of an actual theme park.
Relate to elemental tetrad and
4-5 lenses
Lens 9: The Lens of The
Elemental Tetrad
Technology: As RCT2 is a
rather old PC game (2002), the original game was only supported on older versions
of Windows such as Windows XP or Windows Vista. However, after the open source
adaption was released, the game is now playable on Windows 10, macOS and Linux.
Hence, I would say that the technology for this game has been well-managed now
thanks to the adaptation.
Mechanics: The main
gameplay for RCT2 is unique in the sense that there were not many games of the
same genre back then. The gameplay involves a collection of scenarios in which
each scenario gives the player the control of a theme park with certain
constraints. For each scenario. the player is required to meet certain
objectives whilst keeping in mind the deadline in order to complete it.
This challenge of managing a
theme park requires a lot of strategic planning from players as there are many
things that the player must take care of. This includes things like finances
and loans, staffing, park rating and guest happiness which keeps the player engaged
at any given moment in the game. The scenarios also progressively get harder as
more challenging scenarios get unlocked with each scenario cleared.
The game also allowed players to
express their creativity and encouraging the spirit of design as players are
able to place scenery around the park to beautify it and think of how to construct
roads/paths and rides that can navigate through the park environment.
Personally, I feel that the
mechanics of the game is the reason why this game is considered a classic as it
really engages the player’s creativity, imagination, and organisation skills.
Aesthetics: As an early
2000s game, the aesthetics can seem rather pixelated when viewed with a modern
lens. However, at that time, the aesthetics of the game was considered amazing with
how life-like the parks can look with clear animations of guests walking around
the park and roller coasters darting about on the tracks. The audio of guests screaming
as they enter a drop on the roller coaster is also a nice touch as it added to
how a theme park should sound like. Although the objects in the game (such as
the scenery) were of low quality, they were definitely detailed enough for
players to distinguish between different objects in the scene and there was
enough variation for players to create their own unique theme park.
Story: As this game is a
simulation game, a story is not needed for it to be fun and addictive for
players. Even though a well-constructed story could be effective in giving
player some context as to why they are managing a certain park, it may be
superfluous as the main appeal of the game are the mechanics which traps the
player to carry on managing the park rather than a deep lore.
Lens 38: The Lens of Challenge
In each scenario, there are
certain objectives that the player must meet to clear them. These objectives
can include achieving a minimum park rating by a certain date or getting a
certain number of guests in the park.
As the scenarios often have a tight deadline, the player must plan and imagine in advance how they would allocate their resources and go about expanding the park. For instance, the player might start with cheap and simple roller coasters in the beginning to attract more guests in the initial stages of the game or invest bulk of the money into advertisements in order to entice more guests into the park to meet a certain goal. The scenarios also progressively get harder with more constraints as the player advances through the scenarios which keeps the game interesting.
Lens 51: The Lens of Imagination
As the game was fairly limited in terms of technology at that time with regard to graphics, imagination plays a huge role in the game to immerse the player into managing a real-life amusement park. The game uses a lot of sound that is commonly heard in an amusement park (such as guests chatting, screaming upon a drop on a roller coaster, the splashing noise of water rides) which fills the gap in trying to capture the experience of being in a theme park. The objects in the game are also nicely and smartly designed (such as the roller coasters) to enhance the realism of the game. For example, the guest walking animations, although simple, has a lot of variation in the speed as well as going back and forth different sprites which can tell you if a guest in the park is happy/excited or sad/tired. This forces the player to imagine how a guest would appear with various moods by fitting the player’s mental model.
Lens 52: The Lens of Economy
Bulk of the game is heavily centered around managing finances as the player would want to keep the theme park running at a profit to expand the park. As such, there are a lot of choices that needs to be made by the player so that he/she is able to keep the theme park afloat.
For instance, a player might
decide to only build smaller thrill rides in the beginning before spending
massively on a huge and attractive roller coaster. On the other hand, another
player would think that building smaller roller coasters would be more beneficial
in ensuring a more constant supply of guests arriving to the park. Both
approaches are indeed valid ways of managing the expansion of the park with the
financial constraints and they each have their own trade-offs and benefits.
However, even though this game might seem fun for a problem-solver and strategy-game lover like myself, there are players who would find this constant planning of resources to be tiring and may find the game stressful or not as fun.
Lens 21: The Lens of Flow
Although the different scenarios
have clear objectives set, the game (in my opinion) does not do a very good job
in trying to keep the players fixated on them. In my experience of playing the
game, I am often carried away by my imagination in building the best theme park
that I can such that I forget what the original objectives of the scenarios
were. This happens frequently to me as the game rarely reminds you of the
objectives that you need to complete. Hence, the game does not really have a
flow as there is no constant reminder of objectives which does not really hold
a player’s focus.
However, it is also possible that
this seems more like a feature rather than an oversight on how the game is
supposed to be. Bulk of the reason why this game is considered a classic is
because most players consider the fun in the game to be the actual building and
designing of the park rather than the accomplishment of meeting certain
objectives.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the various lenses play a role in helping to shape the experience of the player in RCT2. Even though the game may not necessarily have a defined story or objectives, it was incredibly addictive as it relies on imagination and creativity to keep players engaged (since no playthrough of any scenario would ever look the same due to the endless possibilities of design and management approaches).
Note: Images are taken from the actual game played (OpenRCT2 Adaptation)
By: Sim Jun Yuen, Darren (A0136233N) (CS3247: Game Development AY20/21 S2)
Based on my previous experiences,
I have always found that VR HWs are either clunky, headache-inducing or just
too expensive for the normal consumer. I guess that’s why despite owning a
gaming laptop and a PlayStation that are perfectly capable of supporting VR
games, I never really bought into the hype.
That is until I bought a Nintendo
Switch last year and found this really cool addition that Nintendo has introduced
to the VR world:
Behold the Nintendo Labo VR Kit
made for the Nintendo Switch:
Before someone mocks the design
and appeal of this product (I mean who has heard of a cardboard headset? Is
this a copycat of the Google Cardboard VR?), hear me out on why this is one of
my favourite VR HWs! However, we first need to understand Nintendo’s motivations
behind creating such a product.
What Nintendo has done was truly bizarre
at the time when this product was released. Like many gaming and PC companies,
Nintendo wanted to enter the VR market, but it did not want to stand beside the
slew of competitors such as Microsoft, Google, HTC, Sony, who were all more
than capable of creating the best VRs HWs possible. Furthermore, Nintendo devices
have always been geared towards a younger audience and its latest Nintendo
Switch product doesn’t even have the graphical horsepower like most of its
competition such as the Xbox and PlayStation counterparts. Thus, Nintendo did
what it had to do, it created a VR headset that draws the users’ creativity at
a much lower price point, geared towards its own unique target audience.
The Nintendo Labo VR is a
cardboard VR headset that introduces features and accessories you think only a
company such a DIY company such as IKEA would think of. There are a range of
things to build and customize the VR headset with accessories such as a
Blaster, an Elephant, and even a Bird! These accessories make the VR experience
a truly unique one as they complement the cartoony and kid-friendly characteristics
of a typical Nintendo game. With a battery life depending on the Switch console
itself as well as graphic limitations, it is a good entry-point for
experiencing the VR world without worrying about charging ever so often.
As such, this product taps on the
creativity and imagination in you to experience a world of VR that is unlike many
traditional VR headsets. Thus, it is one of my favourite VR HWs.
Now that we have covered a VR HW
that is more for entry-level VR experiences, the next entry for my favourite MR
HW will be more serious in terms of specifications in order to blur the lines
between reality and virtual reality perfectly.
My favourite mixed-reality HW has
to be the Asus Windows MR headset (HC102)
Looks like something from the
future, doesn’t it?
At less than 400g (according to
Asus’ website), it is by far one of the lighter MR headsets and it features a design
that is ergonomic and elegant. One can simply just flip up the visor and take a
short breather when required; a plus for usability and user safety. However,
the best part of this headset is the fact that it is cheaper than most of its
competitors such as Samsung as well as an easy setup that doesn’t require too
much horsepower on your computer.
This makes it affordable and
available to the average consumer who just wants to get in on the action whilst
getting the same refresh rates and sufficient visuals that a MR headset needs.
As you can see from my choices, I
am particularly fond of companies that go out of their way to create something
unique, comfortable and affordable for consumers. Sure, my favourites don’t
provide the most graphically intense visuals or the best possible experience. However,
what is important to gamers and consumers is the illusion of a virtual/mixed
world that seems real enough to get you in on the action.
Author: Darren Sim A0136233N
Images are sourced from Google or the products’ respective websites.
