Hello everyone!
I have been thinking of this idea for some time…I posted it orginially at Anim8or.org, and I wonder what you guys have to say about it.
A 3D MMORPG-like Community.
Basically, 3D world based of the worlds of Anim8or/ReAnim8ed/Eylsiun, where users can roam and interact in a interactive enviroment with custom or stock built 3D meshes, using IRC style chat, via keyboard and text bubbles, for starters, and voice sometime in the future.
This world would not be available for everyone, understandably, especially dial-up/slow PC users. Let me explain how this would work when finially complete, since i’m not much of a programmer:
(Miranda is a new user).
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Miranda wants to join the 3D community. She goes to the ReAnim8ed webportal, and downloads the ReAnim8ed3D Client Software (~55MB).
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Once the download is complete, she installs the application, and loads into the world. At first, she is presented with a 2D GUI, where she must sign up into the 3D community. Similar to signing up here.
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Once signed in, she is presented with the “World Assistance and Monitoring Center”…also a 2D GUI featuring:
- A phpbb style board where she can interact with the world administrators when she needs help, and can’t access the 3d world yet. Also serves as a area to fall back on should the 3D world fail for some reason.
- A status center where she can check up on the real time status of the server and the game.
- A Welcome Presentation, where she would be introduced on how to enter the 3D community, as well as on the rules and regulations.
Miranda would then click to view the Welcome Presentation.
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The presentation would explain to Miranda the processes of how to create her own mesh for use in the world, as well as how the world’s “society” works. She would also be directed to the area on her HD were the documentation and template files for creating her character so that she could refer to them.
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Miranda would load up Anim8or, Blender, Wings3D, Lightwave, or whichever, to build her character, following a skeleton template, and a list of guidelines that she must adhear to. (like accepable model sizes, content, texture sizes, formats, etc. I will explain the 3D content later).
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Once her character is finished, she would return to the client software, and upload her mesh into the system. The Admin staff will evaluate the mesh, and if it passes inspection, will be loaded into the game. Her account will then be “attacted” to the mesh, and she will be admitted into the world.
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Once in the game, Miranda would be presented with a user CP that’s similar to a standard PHPBB CP, but in addition, she will be able to make edits to her appearance. For example, she would be allowed to have 3 meshes she can choose from, as well as slots for 10 different items or objects, as well as changing the appearance of her text bubble.
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Once she’s all set, she would be ready to interact with the 3D community in real time!
Models/Meshes
The game engine could work primarily on .an8, .blend, or some altogether new format of models. The max polycount of these models would be determined by the game engine. Also, there would be a set minimum and maximum height and size, as well as limits to how revealing, or what textures a character could display (no nudity, no pro-Nazi slogans, no fundamentalist dogma, etc, etc.) Also, the Client software would ship with a template skeleton setup that each character would use. Advanced users can customize or add more bones to that setup, engine permitting. There would also be a set texture map format and size.
There will also be several defined animation states.
3 Stationary
Walking
Running
Kneeling
Jumping
2 Specialty Poses
3 Aux Poses
The basic poses could be automatically provided if the user chooses not to animate their own. Those who do will have to follow set animation lengths and content rules (no sexual advances…no Nazi salutes…etc…)
Once the model and it’s animations are done, the files would be uploaded to the system. Admins would evaluate the content, and if it passes the technical and content based rules, would be allowed into the game.
The World
The “Diamond City” would be similar to a large city. The different “boards” here on the standard forum would equal to different “buildings” in Diamond City. There could also be “apartments” or “subdivisions”, where members could “live”, and where they would start off when they load into the world.
There could also be interactive games members could play…they could also watch streamed videos from WIPs, or static image WIPs, or view rotating 3D WIP models, where one could interactively make crits and demonstrate modeling techinques.
(“Clubs”, theaters, and etc come to mind…)
Also don’t forget weather effects.
And that’s just the beginning. Several secondary worlds could also be added on in addition to the primary Diamond City.
That’s pretty much the idea. I posted it here since more or less similar to a game. It was received pretty well at Anim8or as a great idea, however, not many had the skills to attempt to pull this off. However, this could be a great open source project overall. Just tell me what you think!
Thanks
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Wow, sounds like something I would love to try out.
It doesn’t allow you to load in models/animations from other .blend files. So only whatever is included in the .blend or .exe is all you have.