SimCity

SimCity 2013 - as realistic as the screenshots?

As some of you might know, a new rendition of SimCity is coming out on March the 5th. After a momentary hype from the exclusively released beta, people are starting to see how detailed this age old simulation game has come.

Without sounding like an old man (unsuccessfully), when I was a young boy, SimCity was pretty awesome if a bit simplistic. I remember little black rectangles ('cars') marching along streets and thinking they were ants. In SimCity 3000, cars were already moving around with more automation - car crashes, traffic jams (tut tut, Mr Mayor), you name it - and by the time SimCity 4 came out, there were mini-game missions where you had to drive to different places, a great test of how extensive your road network had become. Graphics were also much more polished.

Screenshots from this latest Simcity promise not only a much more insightful urban simulation, but graphics to be reckoned with. The producers seem to have upped their game  (excuse the pun), allowing different conditions to be shown atmospherically and in perspective (I think) - take an industrial town for example, you can't beat the smog to tell you there's air pollution.

A plethora of architectural forms beckons toward the urbanism of today - terraced housing, skyrise apartments, a range of medium rise. Strangely, towns in the screenshots seem oddly familiar, as if it wasn't a scene taken from a game, but from a real town with its own character. Urban design is really taking off these days and it's not only about the practical stuff. A sense of place is crucial to urban schemes and I'd be interested to see how a game with a limited palette of predefined items can make it seem like this is happening.

Of course, urban design in real life isn't really like SimCity. Although it is more entertainment oriented, there is a lot to be taken from this approach in our understanding of cities (see my blog about laypeople's understanding of architecture). Real urban design/planning is a lot of analysis and space creation - you have to have an in-depth understanding of people and society to create spaces for them. Games like this are completely out of context of course, no boundaries, a sandpit for creativity. So go wild!

Hand

What is this tiny device that is hailed to be the next big thing in computing? It's the Leap Motion, a gadget designed to be a human interface tool (ie like a mouse helps you do stuff in the computer) but in 3D. Feels as if we are leaping from one dimension to the other in technology - the mouse has had a long slow evolution, touch screens are now growing rapidly and then now, something that seems to come from science fiction.

What's even better, and much more productive on a proactive creative front, is that they have a software developers kit (SDK) that allows those inclined to do so to explore the possibilities offered by this device. A new way of interacting with electronics has already started showing some great uses - controlling a quadrotor, for instance. That's right, fly a thing with the sensitive control of your own hand.

It'll be interesting to see where this ends up - we never really see a revolution coming. Who knew that touch screens would be so popular and easily worked into our electronic repertoire? 

Shadows2

 

What better way is there to extrapolate a real life scenario than within a modern gaming environment. Despite the drama spinning of role-playing games, they can act like a simulation of the future human condition. What's more, these days we can already see the emphasis on digital data taking a larger role in society. Presidential campaigns in America have become increasingly data-saavy, with Obama's use of data analysis and Romney's low profile data-mining expedition. Does this mean the vote can be swayed just by aligning with the majority mindset? Is this manipulation or falsity?

See how interconnected and similar the physical world is with the digital world - Top: NASA’s satellite composite image of the earth at night.  Bottom: Eric Fischer’s map of Twitter interaction.

Watch Dogs is a game that follows characters that can exploit the data rich systems that are intertwined with our cities. I once wrote a paper about the urban design theory on the use of Twitter in cities and despite being a study of an emerging and fresh communication network, it seems primitive compared to the world described in Watch Dogs. It might not necessarily be a very different world physically but the dependence on a data network is both a great nod to technological efficiency and a huge amount of real time data waiting to be used for malevolence.

The 'shadow' which this game describes is not a physical shadow. The digital shadow that we all leave behind by writing blogs like this, using social media, filling in forms and even doing a simple Google search can drive anyone to manic paranoia if we think too hard about it. Other than being an exciting game with some awesome gimmicks (like hacking the electric grid from a cellphone), the setting is a very likely future condition that gives us all something to think about.

See the E3 Game Demo showing how personal data, the electricity grid and phone bugging is at one's fingertips. "I know how you think"...

Assassins

Assassin's Creed III is coming out later this year and once again it's ready to trump the last game with various improvements and novelties. When seeing and playing the maiden game of the series, we were impressed, but look at it now!

There has always been an increasing importance on realism in gaming environments especially for actions games of a high console calibre. For continually successful titles such as Assassin's Creed, I'm guessing a lot of the budget goes into the artistic, phenomenal feel of the places you play within. Keeping in mind that the premise of the Assassin's Creed story is that you are reliving a past time to save the world, etc etc, it makes sense to have this emphasis on resemblance.

What impresses me is that all of these highly complex environments are based on real historical settings outside of any living person's real experience. Calling upon a tonne of research and a vivid dose of imagination, the game creators take on this challenge. Now, with the new AnvilNext (hope it's a developer's inside joke because it's not a catchy name..) game engine, apparently they're taking weather conditions, landscaping and atmospherics to the next level. They'll need a lot of that in colonial America - past Assassin's Creed games focussed on the Middle East, Florence and the ancient lands of Rome in it's heyday - filthy rich with elaborate, historically primed architecture and cities. Baby Colonial America wasn't even on the map yet.

Remember that this isn't the third game per se - Assassin's Creed II had two subsequent continuations. That they are breaking out this third official game with the snazzy new game engine also starts a new chapter of the narrative. Cue the new continent and miles more for gamers to explore... and virtually kill people in a variety of creative ways. Welcome to the Un-United States of America.

Gridlock

Nike, being the dynamic sports enterprise that it is, has sparked many initiatives that are effectively pushing out their brand and also the agenda of sport/an active population. Nike Gamechangers, a grant for sport initiatives all over the world, has received a flock of proposals and in due course, some really great projects will hopefully come to fruition. In London, there was a fun programme that has has engaged with a whole range of participants and the urban environment itself. This is GRID.

The idea is London becomes a board game for two weeks. The fancy triangular grid maps itself among the neighbourhoods and communities, where 'runners' can trace their activity to gain points. The video below shows the Boys vs Girl effect of Day 3 into the challenge, and from it, some interesting data can be drawn.

In architecture, urban design and planning, mapping is used extensively to represent a variety of layers in our cities. Never were maps as fun as this, nor did it have the attraction of a personal challenge. This form of mapping, the dynamic diagram, involves the psyche of a niche population, geography, and a funky digital representation to show us a slice of a common physical activity.

Flutter

After the posts about gaming and how the creative artists behind those worlds craft the details of virtual reality, I thought it might be fun to write about a playful approach to virtual reality within our real world environment.

iButterfly from DentsuAsia on Vimeo.

iButterfly allows iPhone users to use their devices to 'capture' virtual butterflies. Each butterfly is unique, and what's more, it acts as an involved way of promoting a product - each butterfly contains a e-voucher for some store.

Is this a small step into the world of surrounded virtually appendaged life? Although only visible on the screens of the iPhone, dependent on the area of use, these virtual butterflies are everywhere in a sense. It is merely our choice to not use the app to connect with this quirky method of advertising, sort of like turning off the television to a long infomercial.

Accomplice

Admittedly, I don't post much from the realm of theatre, mostly because I don't patronise the theatres so much after a few key disastrous 'performances'. But conceptually, I found something magnificent and it is something that really excites me - so much that I would even want to New York or where ever to experience it.

Accomplice is, by the definition of the makers, "part game, part theatre, part tour". Yes, I use British spelling.

So, from what I gather, you travel in this multifaceted tour/performance experience, and actually get to make use of the labyrinthine nature of foreign ground. Adventurous you might think! But no, it's all staged - actors placed at certain places involved you and guide you within this tour. Which is cool nonetheless. Tours are one of the most banal forms of travel I have ever had to struggle with. They make fresh views into well-worn speeches, scenery into a product. Accomplice is still this, but with a twist and the factor of guided involvement which, needless to say, is really what a travel spot needs sometimes.

And is this a moment of theatre's evolution. Street theatre but not quite. What you get to do in video games but in real life? Life is often said to be a performance, and cities are now the stage.

Virtual

Treehouse by Horia Dociu.

I came across this fascinating piece of Guild Wars computer art by Horia Dociu and so I visited his blog. It was just one cool thing after the other, from the posts, to the texture and simple layout. I looked through the whole long page's worth of content.


This isn't the first time I've been intrigued by computer art. Something about those Photoshoppy textures and dots give a whole new meaning to the graphics. Whereas video gaming splices you into virtual worlds, computer renderings and 'paintings' are a window into those worlds, fuelled by your imagination. Pictures like these are not merely thousands of words, they can initiate ideas, invoke the far reaches of the imagination - the only limit being you own mind.

Accept

Damian Seeto

How Video Gaming can be more Accepted in Wider Society

Much can be said about the annual profits earned in the gaming industry. Despite the whole world being in a global recession the U.S sales of video games grew 19 percent in 2008 to a record $22 billion. However in terms of actual market penetration the industry still plays second fiddle to the likes of movies and music.

The main reasons for this are that in the past, there were not many games for the casual folk to enjoy. As we all know a lot more time, effort and coordination are needed to exploit all the fun provided in video games. Sadly, not all of us have the free time to play 100-plus hours of a Final Fantasy game and others might be overwhelmed with all the buttons presented in front of them. In direct contrast to this, a movie only requires the viewer to sit there and watch – likewise music only requires the use of your ears. Video games can be frustrating if you do not naturally have the hand-eye coordination needed to enjoy them.

It was not until the release of Singstar in 2004 did the modern casual crowd finally cast an eye towards video games on consoles. Karaoke has tortured the ears of many for a very long time but this was the first time the technology allowed for the game to rate your actual performance. So once and for all it told us whether all those wannabes could actually sing or not. Singstar has proven to be very popular with new iterations being added every few months and a whopping 175,000 Singstar microphones now occupying kiwi homes - plus millions more around the world.
Immediately following the release of Singstar is a franchise that is arguably more popular and prominent the world over-that franchise being Guitar Hero. The third game Legends of Rock catapulted the video game industry to new heights. According to Activision, the title is the first game in history to gross more than $1 billion in revenue. With more Guitar Hero titles on the way, and with the recent release of the popular Guitar Hero Metallica it looks as if more people will be rocking for many years to come.

Not all games are aimed for young people or males either. In the USA they have even installed Nintendo Wii’s inside retirement homes. It is used to keep them active without them doing anything too strenuous. Wii Sportsis apparently the most popular game among old folk – in particular, Tennis and Bowling offer many competitive matches across many retirements homes across America.

EA is just one of the many other publishers diving head first into the casual market. The Beatles: Rock Band is sure to be a hit, but they have also released titles like EA Active on the Wii, in competition to Nintendo’s own Wii Fit. We will have to wait and see if, like Wii Sports, these titles will find a home amongst a wider audience.

All of these titles work against the many negative stereotypes that are cast on some gamers. In many cases, they are still perceived as being fat, lazy and unsociable. Fox current affairs show The O’ Reilly Factor even did a story following the release of the Playstation 3 stating that it will encourage more people to become uneducated lonely slobs. We know this is far from the truth and there are a lot of examples that video gaming can actually be helpful, educational and fun with friends and family.

Nintendo’s DS has proven that with its Brain Training series selling millions of copies worldwide. There are many other such titles on the system – even electronic cook books that fit nicely inside the DS, instead of taking up shelf space. On a New Zealand front, Auckland University recently launched a trial of a 3D fantasy game that is supposed to help young people battle against depression. The game acts as a shooting game requiring the player to fire away negative thoughts and also learn how to manage moods. Youthline says the game is helpful to young people especially as they were involved in the development of the game and technology. Hopefully it will be a great tool to communicate to today’s techie teens.

It seems that video gaming is fast becoming a mainstream medium to now rival movies and music. No longer should it be labeled as expensive toys for kids or entertainment for males only. Recent trends show just how much the industry has changed and within time it can become the premier form of entertainment.

Okami

Damian Seeto

There are a lot of video games out there but sadly not many people appreciate the amount of artwork and design that often goes into producing a video game. The Final Fantasy games are a prime example of this however, there was one game I thought that was more artistically beautiful than any I have ever played: that game was Okami.

Although released in 2007 nobody really took notice of this wonderful game, including myself! It was not until earlier this year that I got the opportunity to play this title. Graphically, it is unlike any other game out there. It’s more like a playing inside of a painting than anything.


However, it not only looks like a piece of art it plays like one too. Quite literally I might add. You assume the role of a Japanese God by the name of Amaterasu. She is a creator of life and players can use a tool called the Celestial Brush. This allows you to draw certain objects such as the sun to allow a bud to grow into a tree or make yourself a bridge if the path you are to take is blocked.

It was a breath of fresh air playing this game and was a truly unique experience. Even if you are not usually a gamer you will be impressed with the style and look of the game. Its Japanese ink – art at its finest. Sadly sales of the game did not meet expectations and there will be no sequel.

Damian Seeto will continue to contribute about gaming, creative practice and the thin line between the two.

Contribute

New Contributor: Damian Seeto

Contributing writer Damian Seeto has kindly offered to write about the creative implications of a subject that he is obviously quite passionate about. Electronic gaming has progressed from its roots in white text on a black screen to today's masterpieces of 3D realism, fine tuned physics and immersible playtime.

Damian writes for a range of gaming sites including subjects such as the impact of in-game advertising and reviews of Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood and Fight Night Round 4.

His reviews are featured in the 3 News and The Rock FM websites and Gamefreaks magazine. He is also an avid wrestling fan.