In-Depth Information

Build A World

In-depth information

1. Basic idea

2. Online functions and clod servers

3. Power

4. Natural dangers

5. Physics

6. Game Modes

7. Sound

8. Where do we want to take this project?

9. Technical information

10. The education Project

Build A World combines high quality graphics with the sandbox construction genre. You enter a brand new world with modern tools, and with the ability to make modern machines, buildings and other constructions. An online game run by the new self-developed BAW engine. A modern construction game set in a modern world.

1. Basic idea

Players start in an auto generated world, where only nature exists. The basic idea is to harness and refine natural resources such as iron, rock, sand, copper, steel, gold, coal, lava, bauxite etc., and use it to manufacture building blocks made of wood, concrete, bricks, asphalt, glass, plastic, steel, explosives and detonators, lights, batteries, pumps, lamps, computers, small electronics etc.

With the large collection of building blocks, there is no limit as to what the player can build; from small houses and villages with farms and fields, to mega cities, factories, airports, windmills, underwater cities, castles, bridges, stadiums, theme parks, the seven wonders and whatever else, the players imagination allows.

Different vehicles will be added in the next versions, like boats, planes, cars, trains, rockets, space shuttles etc.

The world is randomly generated each time and endless in all directions. Each world comes with a huge amount of natural resources to find and collect. Your job, as a world builder, is to refine and manufacture these resources into building materials for constructing machines, houses and any other sort of constructions. Some of these machines and constructions already exist as blueprints in the game, and just need to be assembled, but a lot is up to players’ imagination.

The whole construction section is supported by another key feature, the Online Models Library, which allows the players to save constructions and models, and exchange models with other players, and use them in other games. If you construct a house for example, and fill it with furniture, kitchen appliances etc., the Models Library allows you to save the not only the house itself, but also what has been put inside. In this example, it will be possible to build whole cities without having to construct every house brick by brick.

2. Online functions and clod servers The online function is one of the key features of the game. Players have, in addition to LAN servers, their own online server, so that it is possible to invite other players into your world, or join theirs. With one click, each player has his or her own cloud server to run their world in. No complex firewall rules to setup, no having to leave the computer on at all times and no slow internet connections impacting the game play. Not to mention expensive hosting options and complex setups.

3. Power

Besides natural resources, electricity is a key part of the games 'economy'. To keep everything running in the world, players must construct power sources like wind turbines, solar cells, oil pumps- and rigs, and even nuclear power plants. There is a pollution damage factor build in, so that the cleaner the power source, the less pollution and damage to the environment. Build A World currently has the first version of its intelligent renewable energy electricity generation running, which is a great feature and very unique.

4. Natural dangers

Build A World is set in the natural world, and is inhabited by wild animals like sharks, bears, wolves, alligators, snakes and so forth. The BAW world will in time be filled with all kinds of animals like birds, cows, horses, fish, rabbits, lions, tigers, whales and so on.

Another challenge is dealing with randomly occurring natural disasters like volcanoes, earthquakes and forest fires. Other natural occurrences will be added over time. The regions in the world is also inspired by the real world – including Europe, Asia, The Americas and The Poles. In there you will find different deserts, jungles mountains, oceans etc.

5. Physics

BAW offers real physics and a fully modifiable and destructible world. If a tree is cut down, it will fall, if a part of a mountain is drilled, it will crash down. Gravity. Just like the real world.

6. Game Modes

Build A World will offer different game modes; Creative mode, which is just the player and the natural world, or Conflict mode, in which players can work together or fight each other for land, resources and constructions with numerous weapons. You can also play team vs. team of clan vs. clan.

7. Sound

The sound effects and music in BAW are high quality made by Merv from the band Eat Static. The sound engine is 3D, so the user can hear from where in the world the sound is coming from. Also it is possible to, for example, close a door when inside a house, and the user won't be able to hear the wind or birds outside. When you walk into a tunnel, you can actually hear where the tunnel opening is. The sound system is totally flexible and will work with any type of construction you have made.

8. Where do we want to take this project? The real world equals real challenges, and the aim is to make Build a World as close to the real world as possible, with as many of the real world phenomenons, mechanics and wonders in the game as possible.

Over time Build A World will be filled with all sorts of animals like fish, birds, gorillas, horses, cows, elephants, lions and so on. It will also be possible to capture wild animals and put them in your own Zoo, or tame them by feeding them.

Farming and animal household has been a big request from our testers, so will want to add a full farming aspect, where players can grow crops and harvest. Of course influenced by the effects of the weather and seasons.

The current power systems in BAW are very flexible and easy to use. The user is able to connect power-producing machines, and power-consuming machines or blocks by just attaching power lines between them. Entire power systems can be interconnected, or disconnected on the fly. We want to expand this system with even more machines and constructions that interact with the world. We want players to be able to build a fully working metropolis, with power plants, electricity, infrastructure and a sky line, that is visible from far away.

As for movement and transport in the world, in time we will be adding user- defined, energy consuming vehicles like trains, planes, boats, hot-air balloons submarines, rockets, space shuttles and many more.

As for gaming modes, we are working on teammode and clanmode, which will enable two or more players to share inventory, constructions, tools etc. This will be especially interesting in team vs. team mode, or clan vs. clan game modes.

On top of the real world goal, we are adding 'future technologies'. Technologies that are not quite invented yet, but could be possible in the next 100 years. Like a Force Field Generator. Some things are just to much fun not to have!

9. Technical information

To simulate the real world, we are working hard to integrate technology, that produces visual light effects the same way the real world works. The new lightning system is using 'Spherical Harmonics Irradiance Transfer' for support of huge amounts of lights and global illumination. The aim here is have believable, realtime, real world lights and shadows. Some of this technology will run directly on the GPU for maximum speed performance. Graphically and technologically, we want to take it as far as possible to make the world look as good as possible, and in time we plan to make it possible, to run the game on high end gaming consoles like the PS4 and next generation XBOX.

Build a world is currently made for windows and Linux, and will be available for Mac in May this year.

The game is written in C++ with the 3D library Irrlicht and OpenGL. We have expanded Irrlicht quite a bit. The gameserver is also written in C++, and the backend in Java

10. The education Project

We are currently working with a dedicated team of schoolteachers, in order to developed a set of lessons to be used as an educational tool. The educational part will be tested in chosen schools in Denmark, and when it works, it will be offered free of charge to any school, who wishes to use it. The idea, that a large, “normal” game uses its basic form to create an educational side to be used in schools