Requirements from the Tech Team:
A few game engine features the design team would like to see implemented.
• Normal Mapping
• Motion blur
• Streamlining level loads by Elevators and sets of stairs (this is how we switch between levels)
• 10,000 polys per room, this excludes static meshes and models. (to be determined by how good the engine becomes)
• Dynamic Lighting
• Grain/Noise filter? To make it look old.
- Dynamic sound, basically sound where you will be able to determine the direction of where the sound has come from through stereo speakers, this could be done by changing and sound level in each speaker depending on the angle the player is standing relative to the sound node.
Camera
1st and 3rd person camera. The player has control over the camera in 3rd person view mode, giving the choice of switching between first person view or a 3rd person chasing cam. This is a fixed distance camera (No zooming in or out) following the same collision detection as the player; for example the camera cannot go through walls but the player can also rotate the camera around the model. The camera will adopt the movement of the recent silent hill games.
Camera Modes: Modes change depending on weapon equipped/in use:
Melee: Default angle; 3rd person: offset to the right of the character. (like gears of war)
Fire arms: Zoomed in over the right shoulder, showing a crosshair and allowing the player to move at the same time as they shoot or aim. Movement of player will slow down when in this mode
First person: Enables the player to view the environment from the fixed position of the character.
Motion Blur: When character looks around e.g. up, down, left or right, camera blurs slightly to give a nice realistic effect and including Character running (if character is going to run)
Level Streaming and Loading
Elevators: Loads the next level when in them. The game elevators can only move either one level up or down.
Stairs: When character/player walks onto a set of stairs to go up or down, a small (locked camera) animation of the player walking the stairs plays, triggers a level load/new floor to be streamed into the game world (Metal Gear Solid 2 feature).
Doors: Some doors can also be another form of floor streaming. Again, having an small (locked camera) animation of the character opening the door can play.
Lighting
Dynamic lighting: Give the texture and the atmosphere to have a more realistic effect however the ship is low on power therefore there will be lights flickering and many dark areas..
HUD
Health: Health is indicated colour Red by a percentage out of 100% shown at the bottom left of the game screen. However it is only shown when the player takes damage and the timer will fade away after a certain amount. The Health indication will stay visible to the player when the characters health is below 25%.
Current weapon: Equipped weapon and the amount of ammo left, is located at the bottom right of the screen.
Audio
Music
Music theme will start up when enemy enters into an area where the character is.
Music dies out when there is no action – and startle music is used for ambushes or new enemies appearing.
Sound Effect
Sound effect should take place with any collision such as;
- Gun shot
- Pull out gun
- Reload gun
- Put gun away
- Character breathing when low on HP
- Character breathing after running
- Character take damage (sound painful)
- Characters voice once healed
- Characters foot steps
- Characters hitting into objects, such as; table wood sliding on floor
- Enemies attack
- Enemies breathing
- Enemies weird sound making i.e. pain sound and screaming
- Enemies foot steps
- Boat scratching sound due to weathering and mould
- Items and general other debris falling/hitting sounds.
Inventory
Starts off with a handgun and later in the game the player will obtain other weapons.
All of which will be kept in the back pack that he has that will magically like on other games be able to work like the T.A.R.D.I.S. (look it up if you dont watch dr who)
Start point for the player
In the story the player falls from the elevator to the engine room. He (Deacon) had passed out for some time after the shock and a hard fall. As he woke up he sees the squad leader sat up on a wall barely alive. After he asks you to do some basic exercises like look up, down, left and right (so the game can set the camera to either be inverted or not). He then tells you that he has been trying to get radio contact but think that the signal may be jammed. He then as his last order before he dies tells you to get off this ship alive and tell the world what has really been going on. He then throws his gun about halfway between you and him (this is where we can have the player learn how to move and pick up an item, and of course shoot a gun. Set the looking controls (invert y axis)). You will also notice a glowing blue item on his person, upon inspecting the squad leader this will open up his PDA what will be readable.
Now Deacon assumes he is the only person left alive within the group and has to get off the ship alive to get help, but first he must get to the main deck to see whether the signal is being jammed and if so, how to stop it.
From here the player can start to play.
Weapons and general pick-ups glow a faded blue? – Colour can be changed if need be
Health System
There are no health packs within the game. The player must find first aid boxes (attached to walls, etc) in various rooms to replenish health. This means the player may need to do a bit of exploration, rather than go form point A to B.
Enemies
