Re: gesturing

i like the concept of gestures, one simple way to make the concept of=20
firing weapons more realistic is simply to remove the 'crosshair' that=20
every game uses.

operation flashpoint used the idea of the aiming reticle and iron=20
crosshairs that a soldier is provided with, this can be integrated with=20
a skill-based system (either actual statistics or something like=20
gestures as you have mentioned) and provide a much more realistic design.

realism as a design goal isn't a panacea of course, but this at least=20
forces players to get away from traditional game skills (ie moving a dot=20
onto a target and clicking the mouse, something a 4 year old can learn)=20
instead forcing them to recognize properties inherent in a specific=20
weapon for example (ak-47 tends to pull up and to the right) and adjust=20
skills accordingly.

counter-strike does this to a certain extend, players that learn a=20
weapons' spray pattern can adjust for it as they are firing, much like a=20
  weapons expert can.

certain weapons are inherently simpler to fire (mp5 for example) but=20
don't do as much damage, balancing things out for an inexperienced gamer.

just an idea.  i'd love to hear about your experimentation with gestures=20
- i just started teaching game design at a local college and am looking=20
for examples like this for new approaches to common genre's (fps for=20
example).

cheers
mike w
www.gekidodesigns.com



Brett Bibby wrote:
> Hello,
> We are making something of an FPS-style game for consoles and the conve=
rsation about speed is something that we have been wrestling with in our =
own game because it is targeted at a wide range of people.  Basically the=
 "problem" we would like to solve is aiming, and we want to solve it by r=
emoving it as much as possible. I put problem in quotes because we have h=
ad heated arguments that PFS games are pretty much about aiming, and once=
 you take that out of the equation it is no longer an FPS.  So, I'm not l=
ooking for people to convince me aiming can be done in such and such way,=
 instead I would like alternative game design advice that doesn't factor =
in aiming at all.
>=20
> Our current proposed solution is to move the "game" from aiming to firi=
ng of the weapon.  We hope to do this with gestures.  This has been done =
to some extent on the PC in games like Black and White, and also there wa=
s a demo at the experimental game workshop at GDC.
>=20
> What I envision is a system where the firing of the weapon is done with=
 the analog stick such that the more accurately you reproduce the gesture=
, the better your "shot" is.  For example, let's say we want to snipe som=
ebody with a rifle. I see my target in my scope and the crosshairs are mo=
ving about just like a normal FPS.  Instead of using the analog stick to =
aim the crosshair at my target, I perfom a "fire" gesture, say a simple c=
lockwise spiral inward.  If I do it 90% or better correctly I get a heads=
hot, 60-90% I get a body shot and 40-60% I get a legshot, less than 40% m=
isses (but I still see some sort of shot fired).  While I complete the ge=
sture the scope locks onto (stops moving) the part of the body I hit so I=
 can see my result.  The advantage is that you can perform the action as =
slowly or quickly as you want, and we reward the hardcore people who will=
 take the time to learn the gestures well, while not punishing the casual=
 gamer.  The amount of time to do a gest
ure would be tweaked such that it will be on par with the time to aim (as=
suming average console gamer) so the other mechanics should be able to be=
 balanced normally.
>=20
> What do people think of this idea?
> Flaws?  Suggestions?
> Should the player be able to train the game with the motion they want f=
or a given gesture or should they be required to replicate one of our cho=
osing?
> Are there any console game using gestures?
> Are there other game mechanics that can be used in place of aiming besi=
des gesturing?
>=20
> Thanks,
> Brett
>=20
>=20
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>=20
>=20


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