I found some gorgeous, huge trees in Magnussen Park. I love evergreens. They're my favorite kinds of trees. So, naturally, I spent a LOT of time in the park. I tried to find the "wind-channeling pipe sculpture" from which the musical band Sound Garden took its name, but I think access is still restricted because of 9/11.
On the way there, I caught sight of a really cool, Art Deco-feeling gate. I love the light at the top. I think I'll use something like that in the game as a visual indicator of an entryway, or to guide a player's route.
By the gate, I noticed leaves on the ground. It's details like this that make a landscape more realistic. At least, in autumn. Should I change up the landscape in the game depending on the time of year? Should I change deciduous trees from green to orange?
I found this coffee shop in Lynwood. I love how it looks. It's like a... I don't know, a lighthouse.
I also saw some other cool architecture, like this apartment building, or these houses. I love the green vine above the porch, and the landscaping.
But wait a minute, if I recreated these things in the game, sure, the game would look like the Pacific Northwest, but I'd also be recreating the ways by which people move around. For example, players would have to open a virtual door. Players would have to enter a building to see inside it. Players would have to wind their way around paths in a manicured landscape.
Why, if I have the tools of a virtual environment at my disposal, would I force people to do the mundane tasks of everyday real life? In SecondLife/SpotOn3D, players can fly. It's easier and faster to lift off the ground in a straight line than to enter a building and walk up a flight of stairs. Why have sealed buildings when there's no rain or cold weather to trouble my players? Why have windows when there's so much to see outside, so just omit the wall altogether. If Emeralda was a first-person shooter game or a similar genre, then yeah, I would provide walls and buildings, for cover and extra challenge. But this is an explorer's game. Let freedom reign!
But wait a minute, if I recreated these things in the game, sure, the game would look like the Pacific Northwest, but I'd also be recreating the ways by which people move around. For example, players would have to open a virtual door. Players would have to enter a building to see inside it. Players would have to wind their way around paths in a manicured landscape.
Why, if I have the tools of a virtual environment at my disposal, would I force people to do the mundane tasks of everyday real life? In SecondLife/SpotOn3D, players can fly. It's easier and faster to lift off the ground in a straight line than to enter a building and walk up a flight of stairs. Why have sealed buildings when there's no rain or cold weather to trouble my players? Why have windows when there's so much to see outside, so just omit the wall altogether. If Emeralda was a first-person shooter game or a similar genre, then yeah, I would provide walls and buildings, for cover and extra challenge. But this is an explorer's game. Let freedom reign!
I've watched some cooking shows that were filmed outside. They were all in Scandanvia, filmed outside on cold beaches, farms, and even on the ice somewhere near the north pole. Perhaps walls aren't necessary.
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