Looking forward to returning even if briefly to Europe, I will be presenting the below paper (which I just sent off, hopefully complete) for the proceedings of the 8th international conference of the Digital Games Research Association taking place May 14th-17th at Leuphana University Lüneburg. Title: Role-playing and Rituals For Heritage-Oriented Games Abstract: Roles and rituals are essential for creating, situating and maintaining cultural practices. Computer Role-Playing games (CRPGs) and virtual online worlds that appear to simulate different cultures are well known and highly popular. So it might appear that the roles and rituals of traditional cultures are easily ported to computer games. However, I contend that the meaning behind worlds, rituals and roles are not fully explored in these digital games and virtual worlds and that more work needs to be done to create more moving rituals, role enrichment and worldfulness. I will provide examples from The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (Bethesda, 2006, 2011) to reveal some of the difficulties in creating digitally simulated social and cultural worlds, but I will also suggest some design ideas that could improve them in terms of cultural presence and social presence.
Tag Archives: Oblivion
modding games for AI related research, bots, and portraying character behaviours
Here is an abridged answer I just gave to an architectural academic who is interested in using games and game modding and AI (bots) in consideration was something like 3DVIDIA/Virtools, Unity or Unreal.
I hope this is of use to others or if my sourced information is out of date or inaccurate please comment below the post!
I am no AI expert although I too have an AI project I wish to develop: I don’t know 3DVIDIA, I do know Unreal (UT) used to have AI research projects, I don’t know if UDK has easily available AI projects but UDK does look good.
Overall Unity is probably the easiest and their asset store has many content packs and scripts and avatars for purchase (including for AI) and it runs on Mac and PC and quite well on older machines.
You may not need the Professional version, I am not sure.
An introductory summary of difference for level design: http://www.worldofleveldesign.com/categories/level_design_tutorials/what-level-editor-game-engine-should-you-use-how-to-choose.php
A game engine comparison is here: http://fragileearthstudios.com/2011/10/24/comparing-cryengine-and-unreal-and-unity-too/
For heritage settings I have been told UDK (http://www.worldofleveldesign.com/categories/udk/ue3-vs-udk-vs-ut3.php) is very good but I have yet to use it.
Of interest to you: there are tutorials for UDK bots
http://www.worldofleveldesign.com/categories/wold-members-tutorials/petebottomley/udk-01-how-to-spawn-bots-in-kismet.php
https://sites.google.com/site/tessaleetutorials/home/udk-custom-enemy
UDK AI Director:
and project at http://draxov.com/design/ai-director-research/
Free tool: http://www.moddb.com/forum/thread/create-bot-ai-with-pogamut-in-udk-ut2004-ue2-or-defcon
http://www.blackfootstudios.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=5898
UNITY AI research
Wandering AI http://answers.unity3d.com/questions/432027/wandering-ai.html
Robot AI from Mecanim example http://forum.unity3d.com/threads/166633-Mecanim-quot-AI-quot-Free-Sources
AI programming
AI applications (basic overview) http://unitygems.com/ai-applications/
Tutorials in Unity and Basic AI http://devsbuild.it/resources/type/article/unity-basic-artificial-intelligence-part-1
Alternative:
A side project might be to review the new SIMS4 and Sims Societies.
http://tesalliance.org/forums/index.php?/topic/6547-new-artificial-intelligence-mod/
On a more urban design and cinematographic level, one used to be able to link Simcities and the SIMS2 avatars but I have not heard of related urban design or BIM research.
We are also going to look into Skyrim the Crysis/CryTek engine, which may be too powerful / complex for your needs.
I personally will also look into, the earlier version, Oblivion, had very simple scripting tools for avatar interaction and also had good modding tools (but it was not multiplayer, at least not officially).
Skyrim (Creation kit) has built in habits for NPCs, which I believe can be modded/affected, new buildings/settings can be added relatively easily.
http://tesalliance.org/forums/index.php?/topic/6547-new-artificial-intelligence-mod/
SUMMARY
For ease of use, most designers and researchers seem to be using Unity, but UDK (free download for PC) may have some benefits if you find similar AI projects.
If you want to show behaviours and don’t mind or can replace medieval settings, Skyrim may suffice.
For path finding UDK may be good, Unity can do all of it but if you can’t find prebuilt software in the Unity story, you may need to build it from scratch.
Overall, Unity is probably easiest, there plenty of presets/modules, and scripting can be in JavaScript or Python or C# etc. And MiddleVR seems a good for fit for connecting Unity to VR devices and for stereo projection (a video tutorial is here).
reminder: I need book chapter proposals for GAME MODS (ETC Press)
Call For Book Chapters: Game Mod Design Theory and Criticism
This will be both a practical and reflective book on game-mods, designing, playing and evaluating the quality, success and effectiveness of game engines for modding, individual game mod levels, related tools and techniques, and the social and cultural issues related to the design and use of game mods.
The type of book chapter content I am looking for:
· An overview of what is possible and what is commendable or admirable with exemplars.
· Critiques of game mods and game mod/engine technologies (and reviews of mods as creative and critical and reflective extensions of games and game audiences).
· The ethical and social implications using commercial game engines and the content supplied · A comparison of game mod technologies.
· Case studies (Unreal, Source, Panda 3d, Blender 3D, Neverwinter Nights, Marathon, XNA, Oblivion, Cobalt, Crystal Space, WoW, Halo, Far Cry and Crysis etc, Sims, Jedi Academy, Ogre 3D) etc.
· Feature art and aesthetics.
· Machinima features hindered and helped by mods.
· Review of terrible experiences trying to build game mods. · A feature list to help people choose the right game engine for their mod.
· Some sample chapters on how to get started, tips, quick step tutorials as simple 3D, animation, lighting, behaviors, interface customization.
· The social and cultural implications of using and designing game mods (issues with violent content, cultural empathy, copyright, educational issues and so on).
The publisher will be ETC Press, an academic, open source, multimedia, publishing imprint affiliated with the Entertainment Technology Center (ETC) at Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) and in partnership with Lulu.com The book will be published under a Creative Commons license. For more details about ETC Press refer http://www.etc.cmu.edu.
Time Line
· March 18 2011 Please send me a title and 300 word abstract, the earlier the better! Please email your submission to gamemodbook AT gmail DOT com
· March 25 2011 you should have heard back from me.
· June 10 2011 draft chapters to me.
· And after many drafts and checks and proofs later…by the end of 2011 (optimistically speaking), publication!
Editor:
Associate Professor Erik Champion
Auckland School of Design, Albany Village Campus
College of Creative Arts
Massey University
Auckland New Zealand
email: nzerik AT gmail DOT com OR e dot champion AT massey DOT ac DOT nz for general questions.
Send submissions to gamemodbook AT gmail DOT com
multiplayer editors
With the apparent demise of Oblivion Online I feel the need to record a list of interesting multiplayer editors.First in the list is a free multiplayer editor of Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas:
Multi Theft Auto (MTA) is an open-source software project that adds full on-line gaming support to Rockstar North’s Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas PC game, in which this functionality is not originally found. It is the first open-source modification that adds a highly customizable network play element to a commercial closed-source single-player PC game.
There is of course still Warcraft III (Mac and PC) and Oblivion (single player) if you wish to try the multiplayer hacks..
April 29 there may be a multiplayer editor for Dante’s Inferno..
Of course if you have a Playstation III there is always little big planet but I don’t know how unlimiting it is. Unlike of course Crysis that is perhaps too umlimiting.
Most of the above include in-game assets, but if that is not required, unity 3D, shiva or perhaps Esperient Creator are options.
Ear Zow Digital