S CALE M ODEL G AMES An introduction to a New Type of Gameplay A gameplay for modern scale models Alain Simons - Karsten Pedersen - Hasan Abdulaziz - Davide Melacca
OVERVIEW 1. I NTRODUCTION 2. E XISTING SOLUTIONS 3. P ROPOSED SOLUTION 4. R ESULTS 5. F UTURE DEVELOPMENT S CALE M ODEL G AMES
INTRODUCTION What is the definition of a gameplay? 1:72 1:48 1:25 It is a pattern defined by the game rules Defines how players interact with a game 1:35 1:16 What is the problem to develop a gameplay for scale models? The interaction with existing scale models is very limited for the moment IT DOES NOT GIVE US THE POSSIBILITY TO DEVELOP A MODERN, IMMERSIVE GAMEPLAY What type of gameplay for scale models we want to develop? Action Role Playing Game (RPG) Massive Multiplayer Online role-playing games (MMORPG) Mix of real world experience and virtual reality S CALE M ODEL G AMES
INTRODUCTION Little Wars: first defined gameplay for war games by HG Wells in 1913 A strict definition of rules, time consuming to consult S CALE M ODEL G AMES
INTRODUCTION Our gameplay will be adjusted to modern ages A war scenes as an example: - No horses and/or soldiers. - Use of tanks and other means of modern transport. - Automated, moving objects, no drag by hand. - Less complex rules. S CALE M ODEL G AMES Training algorithm
EXISTING SOLUTIONS ONE OF THE MOST BESPOKE WORDS IN GAMES TODAY = VIRTUAL REALITY Physics simulation using a game engine S CALE M ODEL G AMES
EXISTING SOLUTIONS BUT THERE IS NO TOUCH WITH REALITY. WITH ALL THESE NEW TECHNOLOGIES AROUND CAN´T BE THERE A CONNECTION WITH REALITY? World of Tanks using Virtual Environment Italeri attempt to link their models to it. S CALE M ODEL G AMES
EXISTING SOLUTIONS Current situation scale models Scale models on different scales 1:16 - 1:25 - 1:32 - 1:35 - 1:48 - 1:72 1:25 Current available models on the market are - Kits. - Out of the box models. - Possibility to built-in engines to control movements. - External Radio Control Unit. 1:10 AND TECHNICALLY ADVANCED S CALE M ODEL G AMES
PROPOSED SOLUTION So what is missing to set up our new gameplay? “REMOTE CONTROL Immersive interaction with the scale models PLAYERS HAVE AN OUTSIDE - Controls executed by a player using a computer system VEHICLE EXPERIENCE” - Image streaming from cameras to computer system S CALE M ODEL G AMES Example of a setup for a tank battle
PROPOSED SOLUTION Hardware setup example for a tank controller “INSIDE TANK EXPERIENCE” S CALE M ODEL G AMES
PROPOSED SOLUTION OUR GOAL ADJUSTING EXISTING SCALE MODEL TECHNOLOGY TO CREATE A NEW KIND OF GAMEPLAY Which will be more immersive than current purely Virtual Reality games and great in building up team skills (It is a team play) ENEMY Head Head tank devision tank devision Radio Radio communication communication Tank crew Tank crew Tank crew Tank crew Commander Gunner Driver Commander Gunner Driver Commander Gunner Driver Commander Gunner Driver The novalty of the project is a combination and optimalization of existing technologies to use a new kind of gameplay S CALE M ODEL G AMES
RESULTS IN NEXT PART WE DISCUSS OUR TECHICAL ACHIEVEMENTS TO SUPPORT THE GAMEPLAY STREAMING - CONTROLS S CALE M ODEL G AMES
RESULTS Streaming requirements - Minimal hardware resources. - Supporting majority of browsers. - Now and future, so no plugins. - Supporting many streams at once. - For spectators - Fast (high FPS for players) - Open-source code to give us the flexibility of migrating to alternative hardware as needed. Existing solutions - Apple HTTP Live Streaming (HLS) Poorly supported in older or non-Apple browsers. - RTSP / RTP Poorly supported in many browsers. - Decided on a custom and bespoke system. S CALE M ODEL G AMES
RESULTS Our streaming solution - Hardware encoder in camera provides h.264 - Encode this to MPEG2 with libav. - Stream to central server to distribute it to all connected clients (currently an onboard Raspberry Pi 3). - Javascript running on browser does the decoding and displaying of pixels on HTML5 canvas (based on some of VLC’s C code ported to Javascript). Disadvantages - No hardware decoding so potentially quite slow. Advantages - It works on any browser supporting <canvas> (IE9+). - Fast enough, even for basic smart phones. - Good hooks into processing stream for “markers” ready for implementation of firing system S CALE M ODEL G AMES
RESULTS S CALE M ODEL G AMES
RESULTS Power Management - Conserve as much energy as possible - Tests suggested that the camera was taking majority of energy. ° When the first client connects, the camera stream begins. ° When the last client disconnects, the camera stream sleeps. Scaling up - Raspberry Pi is “overkill” for what we need. - £30 is relatively costly per chip. - Only a basic embedded microcontroller with camera capabilities is needed. - Streaming system written entirely in C with no major dependencies so porting to an embedded system is very possible. S CALE M ODEL G AMES
RESULTS Unconventional Wireless Control Aim: Connect and send/receive data to and from the vehicles wirelessly over a network. Why? We can develop richer features and control compared to conventional radio control vehicles. How? Consumer hardware, Sensors, Open-source platforms, Web and Networking Technologies. S CALE M ODEL G AMES
RESULTS Current Prototype - Client - User interface ° Precise Slider Controls replaces three speed controls. ° No sudden stops. - Communication ° Communication through standardized websockets. ° Easily integrate future web based systems. Current Prototype - On-Board-Server - Websocket Proxy ° Used as access point to core server. - Socket API ° Uses sockets for local connectivity. ° Parses data received. ° Execute commands. S CALE M ODEL G AMES ° Ability to send data back.
RESULTS Current Control Overview - Prototype Future Control System Structure S CALE M ODEL G AMES
RESULTS Future Control System Structure - Benefits of a centralized server ° One access gateway. ° Simple workflow. ° No physical size restrictions. ° Data processing. ° Can create game rules. ° Enhanced features such as radar. S CALE M ODEL G AMES
FUTURE WORK Future improvements and options - Creation of a light and professional version of the gameplay ° Due security reasons in public places. ° Example is shooting system tanks, real bullets versus positioning tracking. - Development of a rubbing joystick for the ligth version ° Very small. ° Using left and right tumb to control a vehicle. - VR headset ° Google Cardboard. - One package control set ° One box that can be used in existing scale models. ° Not only for tanks but also for car racing, air battles, etc. - Final definition of a gameplay for Scale Model Games ° Modern version of H.G. Wells. S CALE M ODEL G AMES
THANKS FOR YOUR ATTENTION S CALE M ODEL G AMES
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