How Intergrated Could Games Become

[JKF]

I assume many on here play a wide variety of games; I actually only play a couple, but...

What if in Farming Simulator you grew crops, transported them to the airport in Euro Truck 2, loaded them on to a flight in X-Plane or FSX, transferred them to the Space Shuttle, delivered them to the IIS then loaded them on to a Cobra for delivery to Lave where you would have a Gears of War element to get them past rebels for final delivery to the refugees; phew

I wonder if games makers will ever allow for integration with other games, or are there some out there now? What game combinations would be good to see?

Will Zoo Tycoon be a place to see strange fauna and flora on alien worlds?

 

[[VR] Shadowman]

I've thought along similar lines too. The mind boggles at the possibilities! It kinda reminds me of the Red Dwarf AR game, because it would be more of a virtual world than a "game" itself.

 

[Variform]

That is exactly what I have been thinking about for many years.

An integrated gaming universe. You mentioned some 'hops' from one genre into another and some specific franchises.

My idea is something like discussed on Lave Radio. In my design you would have a networked, integrated structure of some sort that is neutral to specific franchises, that can be inserted into it. In the same way you have a game engine that can be used for different games.

This structure allows for the connections in a game universe, such as the Elite Universe between game genres.

That is to say, as you approach a world in your ship, you enter into a space station. The game automatically loads into RAM your 3D engine, preferably as seamlessly as possible. As you enter you find yourself in a 3D shooter. The story can be anything, like pirates took over the station and you arrived just in time to get into trouble.

You might play the 3d Shooter then for a while and get the option to command a unit down on the planet. Now use this terminal at the station Operations Room to direct our units on the planet because the pirates are taking over a mining facility.

As you login to that console your interface changes to an RTS game where you fight the pirates. Once you destroyed them, you return to the 3D shooter station scene and walk back to your ship and from there on go on. Or perhaps you can choose not to play that battle in an RTS style but to transport down and enter into one of the RTYS vehicles, replacing an AI or NPC and play a 3D mech warrior or some tank or ride some hover bike as you kick pirate peg legs.

This whole integration is a layer on top of an existing global infrastructure, meaning that any franchise can layer on top of it their own universe. So what this infrastructure is I can't really say, I am no programmer. But it seems to me it has network components, can spin off instanced zones, is modular and upgradeable on the fly and has an advanced communication relay system etc. So that as you fly your space ship, you can discuss matters with your friends with one still fighting 3D style in a station and another doing the RTS approach. And even the RTS gamer might give orders to the players in their vehicles on the surface.

But the idea of hopping from one franchise to another breaks immersion. That is, you play ED and enter the station to find yourself battling WOW orcs. I wouldn't like that.

 

[Slawkenbergius]

I did think about whether one day Elite should have Farming Simulator, Spacetrucking Simulator (my favourite), a futuristic racing game, etc. all embedded into the main game.

Realistically, I think it might actually be a bit limiting though, and the games would probably sell better as individual packages rather than as add-ons. I guess you could sell Spacetrucking Simulator as a standalone package, and import limited functionality from that into Elite. The question is whether, when energy is cheap, would anyone actually ship by spacetruck, or would they just fly everything about.

 

[izzy]

I wonder if games makers will ever allow for integration with other games, or are there some out there now? What game combinations would be good to see?

Will Zoo Tycoon be a place to see strange fauna and flora on alien worlds?

Zoo tycoon is microsoft franchise so I think FD is not very interested by that.
But yes FD can bring many genre in ED

 

[OneoftheLost]

I find the idea has been around as long as gaming! Everyone I talk too has different ideas.

For myself, what if I was flying my Anaconda, and my friends from Mechwarrior called me? They would need a lift, and with a six man team of mechs each around 80 tons or less... then I imagine myself flying them down to the planet and performing a 'hot-drop' and then picking them up after they won their battles.

It certainly is exciting. Who knows? I imagine gaming will really change in the next twenty years.

 

[Commander Mick]

Elite - Dangerous with The Sims or Spore.

 

[Sparticus]

I find the idea has been around as long as gaming! Everyone I talk too has different ideas.

For myself, what if I was flying my Anaconda, and my friends from Mechwarrior called me? They would need a lift, and with a six man team of mechs each around 80 tons or less... then I imagine myself flying them down to the planet and performing a 'hot-drop' and then picking them up after they won their battles.

It certainly is exciting. Who knows? I imagine gaming will really change in the next twenty years.

That would be awesome.

 

[warbaby2]

That would be awesome.

Actually that's what EVE and DUST should have become one day... alas, I think it's still to early for stuff like that... but we could still be around when it's becoming possible.

For now, I'm really hyped for the Occulus Rift, it could be a true "game changer", pardon the pun.

 

[Commander Mick]

GTA Elite - Dangerous

or

GTSS Elite -Dangerous

 

[Sparticus]

For now, I'm really hyped for the Occulus Rift, it could be a true "game changer", pardon the pun.

Me too - I am saving my Pennies for a brand new system to play E.D. on

 

[Lestat]

I think if you try your self you could do something like this. Like play spores until you feel your human then switch to Civ 5 then Elite Dangerous, Then a game like Star Ruler. Which can have about 1,000+ planets depending on how strong your system is.

But I would not mind having a cross over setup so Star citizen and Elite dangerous could do PVP.

 

[Gelbrock]

Runescape, although a fantasy game, is on its way to what you suggest. Many many mini games and different activities you can dive into, some of them very in depth and could take hours (days) of your time.

All count towards your central character.

It just needs a space, racing and strip poker element and its pretty much there.



I just cancelled my account because it shows how much actual playing time you spend on it.

I was on 298 days.......

ooops

 

[Maxeren]

My take on it is games should be immersive, but if they start to ressemble reality too a degree where i could do my everyday job in a game instead of reallife, then it isn't a game anymore.. its a substitute for my reallife.

 

[warbaby2]

While David Braben said the they are not planning to include "mini games" in ships to pass the time of longer space flights, I hope they do for stations etc. I'd love to see some power or betting on zero-G football or something like that...

...and let's not get rid of the "Strip Poker" thought completely here either.

@Maxeren: Agreed, there already is a "second job online", it's called EVE.

 

[Magma]

The only problem with that model is that the continued viability of your own game's playability is inherently dependant on the popularity of all the others. What happens in the OP's example if say... everybody stops playing the farming simulator?

 

[JKF]

The only problem with that model is that the continued viability of your own game's playability is inherently dependant on the popularity of all the others. What happens in the OP's example if say... everybody stops playing the farming simulator?

Not sure the idea is to make a collection of games into a larger game but to allow players to play more parts.

So if you can buy food at a space station then for those that have a farming simulator they could grow food. So one game has a function that allows another game to transfer product, credits, etc. to it. Those that don't want to farm just purchase.

 

[Jenner]

A jack of all trades is a master of none. I think it sounds good on paper (on a screen?) but it wouldn't work out so well in practice. You can throw a few disparate experiences into one title and make it work alright, but if you cram too much stuffing in it's gonna burst.

 

[Variform]

The way I see it that if the farming game loses its playerbase, AI will take over.

But in a way it is what the economy will be like in ED. If there is a famine, food prices go up. Likewise, if no one plays the farm sim you could say the workers are on strike. And it will affect the economy of the space sim.

I think what I talked about would handle these aspects as well. I think it would be an organic entity, where people playing one aspect in the universe leave that to move onto something else. So over time games evolve and die off into the background.

Even games like Bejeweled can in fact impact on the space sim economy. Just link in Bejeweled to a planet or asteroid field and every game played, every hi-score reached enters gems into the asteroid field, to be mined by players etc.

I don't think it is even hard to code. Often it is just a database. And if you see how many things get connected to each other, that is what ICT is.

 

[Komemiute]

All it takes to bind together more games in the same universe is a compatible network protocol. DIS, for example. Or a more modern version of that one.

It's pretty frustrating to realize no modern game developer came up with something like this...

Just imagine, DCS World for planes with a connected DIS protocol at Steel Beasts Pro 3.0 for tanks... Instant win.

But I'm a dreamer...