Good morning all,
I'll be on throughout the day today (work gave me the day off
)
There is a fantastic turn out here for me to feel like I'll have a audience to develop for, so thank you all for your comments and suggestions.
Jagged wrote:Just thought I would add that my "dream" Face-to-Face gaming environment would involve everyone sitting in my front room around a touch surface table (like
Playsurface) while I do occasional DM-stuff via a tablet.
There would probably be beer, as well.
You've nearly hit the "nail on the head" as far as what I'll be putting out this year (provided that I can get the support behind it) though I think you and all the readers are going to like this one
So yes to face to face gaming (and beer) that one of the biggest goals for my project with porting these things into mobile platforms. And the "playsurface is a fantastic way to go about this (if we're not taking this on the road) and will likely port well into a system like that with mobiles being used mainly as a user input (mouse/keyboard) for the main screen. Though I've a way to make this all fit into a small cary-on bag or just in our pockets... How? Well read on readers
First we port the full version to mobile Linux (I'll be testing that after posting this)
Then we grab a "Laser Pico Projector" and hook it up to the "server" or "host" device~
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGjUIsPKu3U
~look it up, get excited and then ask, "why this isn't in all our devices already?" then get excited again because that company has some that should hook into any of our more modern Androids and Ipads/Iphones.
Second we "hang" or mount the Pico Projector so that it's pointed down at a map (grid printed on vinyl) from above, we also point the camera of the "host" device down at it too so that we can go to the third part
Third we use the Android OS side of things and an app similar or identical to this one~
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=frrZbq2LpwI
~and set it up so that it recognizes your miniatures and their location so that it can automatically update the Linux OS that is running the virtual version of the map on Maptools to the changes that happen on your physical game board and send those updates to your "remote" or "guest" users that can be in the same room on their device or states away (makes no difference as to distance so long as it's networked correctly but this will serve the DM greatly as with my experience with many in person games, usually DND 3.5, people end up on their phones anyways and usually end up distracted, this will allow us as DM's to be like "hey look at your phone dude and move your character" either in person or via text or chat
and keep the game rolling)
Forth we then use the inputs from the guest devices to update Maptools that is then projected onto your physical game map with the virtual miniatures side by side with the ones that you've got there already.
Fifth we'll then wrap it all up into an easy user interface that has auto collision detection between the physical and virtual versions of the map.
Then comes the extra features that will be released as free updates:
- Hand and gesture recognition
this will allow us to "click" or "swipe" near a character (virtual or physical) either on the device or on the table top that we're projecting on and watching with your devices' on board camera. And pull up menus or information based on the context of what your action is selecting.
- Voice recognition and transcription
this will allow us to send verbal attack commands to NPC's quickly and open up "war gaming" where each player has their own collection of NPC's to direct. And give a quicker way to fill the chat window with text instead of a keyboard or screen
- Animations/Sprites
then work will begin on making it so that when characters move in real life, then a "ghost" image walks from the place that it started to where it ended up (thus eliminating the question "where am I?" and "where did my partner go?" and "where did my enemy run off to" that get asked whenever the beer flows to freely
) set it on a replay button for those that need it. And for the virtual side of things I'm thinking full animation templates for simple movements and attacks... mainly the spell casters in your party are really going to enjoy this because it'll allow us to see that fire ball rolling around and getting everything suety.
_____
This is what I'll be working on and trying to prototype this year (among other things that I do
) If we can get support up and running for the development/prototyping (such as Kickstarter which I'll be looking into starting with you all if there is enough interested) then we could likely have a
real life working full version of this for those that want to do beta testing and development for under a few hundred dollars for the hardware and less than $20 (probably way less) for the software kit for developing and Free (yes free) for players and those that are of the DIY mentality, though hardware costs will still be hardware costs as far as the Pico is concerned.
All of this being said I'm sure there will be questions as to how to get all this to play happily with the different compoinits and there may even be a nay sayer or two ( I live with one that, I love dearly, that "nay says" these things probably just to make me prove her wrong ;D I'm sure ) and I'll tell ya this, it's going to take me time to build this "Epic Pie" and money and then more time... but all the puzzle pieces are there just sitting there, and have been sitting there for years, its just until recently no one has come forward with the "box" to the puzzle that shows the picture that should have been there all along
so out of an attitude of "well best get on that and make it happen" I'm here to not only describe the picture but also start painting it all in for us like some kind of "Bob Ross" as a hacker
_____
Hope you all enjoyed the dream and that you're all quaking with anticipation; and that I didn't lose any of ya in the ramblings. Because this is going to be one of the sweetest systems to not only game with but there will also be many other fantastic things that I'll be covering to do with this when where not running Maptools that will change many of the things that where once thought possible within our life times (the guide and scripts that I'm doing in the open is just the tip of a very big set of changes I'll be rolling out)... so lets change the way we thought gaming could be done and change the world wile we do it, any help with this is welcome as are comments and any activity you all can bring to make the right people see what's going on is appreciated (currently and in the future)