Download Idea - DigiPen

Xenowar
GAM 400
Fall 2002
Warren Church
C.J. Clark
Adam Hartman
Michael Smith
G. Damian Witt
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
Table of Contents
TABLE OF CONTENTS ................................................................................................. 2
HIGH CONCEPT ............................................................................................................. 3
BACKGROUND ............................................................................................................... 4
GAMEPLAY ..................................................................................................................... 5
USER INTERFACE ......................................................................................................... 9
ART, SOUND .................................................................................................................. 10
TECHNOLOGY ............................................................................................................. 12
MARKETING ................................................................................................................. 13
RISKS............................................................................................................................... 13
TEAM INFORMATION ................................................................................................ 15
APPENDIX ...................................................................................................................... 17
2
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
High Concept
Idea: 3rd person shooter where the player engages in battles between alien
and robot civilizations over various outdoor terrains.
Summary: When the player starts to play the game Xenowar, they have
the choice of playing as a race of aliens or a troop of war robots. This is
more of an aesthetic choice as the two sides are well balanced. After
selecting a side the player then has to choose a class such as soldier
depending on what weapons and features the player wants during the
game. Then the player starts as their character and is in the 3rd person
view, meaning he can see his character from behind. Then the player runs
around in the 3D environment and tries to avoid being shot at and
destroyed by the opponent team while trying to kill opponent team
members and while trying to complete a specific objective. An example of
the specific objective would be to capture the flag or destroy the enemy
base. There will also be vehicles that the player can jump inside to get
across the terrain quicker to reach his objective. When time runs out or a
certain number of points has reached, this will depend on a choice made
by the person running the server at the beginning of the game, then the
player either wins or loses based on the number of points he has. Then
they can stat all over again and have lots more fun.
Key Features:






Large terrain including cities, forests, artic wastelands and deserts.
Choice of two races that offer different game play mechanics
Player class system.
Hover vehicles for combat and transportation.
Custom support for Q3 Models
Multiple game play modes include: Capture and hold, capture the flag, king of the
hill, and assassination.
Platform








3-D Hardware Accelerator with full Direct3D support
Pentium or AMD 600 MHz
128 MB RAM
A 100% Window 98/2000/XP compatible computer system (including
compatible 32-bit drivers for CD-ROM drive , video card, sound card and
input devices)
25 MB of uncompressed hard disk space for game files (Minimum Install),
plus 45 MB for the Windows swap file
Quad-speed CD-ROM drive (600 K/sec. sustained transfer rate)
100% DirectX 8.0 or higher compatible sound card
100% Microsoft-compatible mouse and driver
3
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
Target Market
Since our game will likely have a Teen rating, the target demographic is anyone
who fits into the teen category and above. It will cater primarily to action-oriented
players who enjoy team oriented or goal oriented gameplay.
Estimated Retail
1.00
1.00
3.00
3.00
2.00
8.00
8.00
25.00
CD Cost
Manual Cost
Box Cost
Marketing
Distribution
Publisher Costs
Profit
Total Cost
Background
Long ago a civilization decided they wanted to live in peace away from the rest of
the universe. They went about doing this by creating a race of military robots to protect
their territory. The robots were given all the space surrounding the civilization to defend
and never let anyone ever pass through. The robots did this so fiercely that all the other
civilizations that were near by got wiped out. This created a void around the robots and
all who knew about them were gone. Many centuries past with the robots just waiting for
another enemy to defend their space from.
Not long ago a young race started to explore depths of interstellar space. They
were hoping to find other races to meet and learn from. Instead all they found were ruins.
They continued to follow the worlds of these ancient space-fairing civilizations. Until
their own ships start to disappear, all in the same general area. In an attempt to find out
what happened to the ship they sent a warship into the area.
The warship arrived in the system where one of the explorer ships was lost. The
first thing they did was to scan the system for any signal from the explorer. They
detected an automated distress signal. They set course and went immediately to the
source. In orbit of one of the planets in the system they found the wreckage of the
explorer. A small beacon transmitting the signal was the only thing that was salvageable.
While amidst the salvage operation they were hit by a barrage of fire from another vessel
coming around from the side of the planet. Next they received a power transmission
saying, “YOU HAVE ENTERED PROTECTED SPACE AND WILL BE
DESTROYED! AND POSSIBLE THREAT FROM YOUR CIVILIZATION WILL BE
ELIMINATED!” The ensuing battle severely damaged both ships causing them to crash
onto the planet.
The now stranded aliens need to defend what’s left of their ship and either repair
it so they can take off again or at least get the interstellar radio working so they can send
a message home to warn them.
4
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
The robots are intent on finishing their mission by completely destroying the
intruders ship and all the survivors. The robots also would like to retrieve any
information on these new enemies and where they came from, so the possible threat can
be eliminated.
GamePlay
When beginning a game the player chooses either the Alien or the Robot races.
Then the player picks from between one of four classes (Soldier, Scout, Sniper or
Support). All game modes are team based, where the player’s opponents are of the other
race. Each game mode is point based, where the team with the most points wins the
match.
When the player chooses single player, all of the other players on their team are
bots (controlled by the game’s AI). By default, teams consist of four players. Based
upon what class the player chooses, the remaining three computer controlled players are
the other classes. The player has the option of having more than four players on their
team. The selected classes for more than four players are randomly chosen, and will be
tuned based upon game play testing. If the player wishes, they may choose what all of
their allies will be. The opposing team will contain the same class ratio as the player’s
team.
Game Modes:
 Deathmatch: In a fight to the finish, each team tries to rack up as many frags
(enemy kills) as possible up to the frag limit and/or time limit. Options can be set
to make this game mode based on frag or time limits as well as setting those
values.

Capture and hold: Each team traverses the terrain to find capture points where,
after 10 seconds of holding that location, the team gains a point. The holding
points will be predefined based upon the selected map. Similar to deathmatch, a
team wins when the point limit and/or time limit is reached.

Capture the flag: As the name suggests, the player traverses the map to the
opposing enemy base, grabs their flag and tries to make it back to the home base
in one piece. The team gains a point when this happens, except for when the
opposing team is holding your team’s flag. The team with the most points upon
reaching the point or time limit

Assassination: Each team has one team member that they must protect. The goal
is to defend your leader and to kill the enemy leader. The team with the most
enemy leader kills win.
5
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
Game Flow
Start
Game
Spawn
Go to objective.
Example: Capture flag
Achieve
Objective
Kill Enemies
Get Killed
Get Points
Lose
Win
Input Design
The game is controlled using the keyboard and mouse. By default, the keyboard keys
will be used to move the player around (forward, backward, strafing left and right, and
turning left and right). By default, mouse movement will be used for turning, and
looking up and down. The following table describes the default layout for input.
Action
Move Forward
Move Backward
Strafe Left
Strafe Right
Turn Left
Turn Right
Primary Fire
Secondary Fire
Jump
Crouch
Keyboard
W
S
A
D
Left Arrow
Right Arrow
Ctrl
Alt
Space bar
C
Mouse
Left movement
Right movement
Left button
Right button
6
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
Player Design
Player Description
Players can choose between one of the following two types of characters: Robots and
Aliens.
Robots: Mechanical characters use futuristic weapons such as plasma guns and missiles
to attack and defend. Movement is more restricted but they are generally more powerful
and can be fast. The following table describes the robot classes:
Type
Soldier
Health
High
Armor
High
Speed
Medium
Jump Strength
Medium
Scout
Medium
Low
Fast
Very High
Sniper
Low
Low
Medium
High
Support
(Medic)
Very High
Very High
Low
Low
Weapons
Plasma Gun
Assault Rifle
Grenade Launcher
Silenced Weapon
Flash grenade
Sniper Rifle
9 mm Sidearm
Cluster Missiles
Chain Gun
Repair/Refit Kit
-
Aliens: Alien humanoid creatures that use psionic powers to create fireballs, magic
missiles and other forms of generated energy to attack and defend. Movement is less
restricted but they are slightly less powerful because they are not made out of metal
as the Robots are.
- The alien classes will be:
Type
Health
Armor
Speed
Jump Strength Weapons
Soldier
High
High
Medium Medium
Psychic Blast
Sonic Wave
Egg Gun (mortar)
Scout
Medium
Low
Fast
Very High
Silenced Weapon
Acid spray
(blinding)
Sniper
Low
Low
Medium High
Long range mental
projection
HCl Acid
Support
Very High Very High Low
Low
Plasma Rain
(Medic)
Needles
Healing Touch
Inventory
- Players will not have a traditional inventory. Instead they will carry set weapons with
limited ammo or a certain amount of psionic powers for aliens. Medic characters will
have set numbers of ammo or psionic powers that they can give out to other players
of their type that can run out. Bots will play a medic character during single player, so
7
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
that players can heal themselves in the field. Healing other characters when they are
running low on health or ammo will be part of the healing character’s AI. Players can
also go to their base to refill their weapon ammo.
In game UI
- Health: Shows the amount of current health that the player has.
- Ammo(for robots): Shows the amount of current ammo that the currently selected
gun has.
- Psionic Power(for aliens): Shows the amount of current psionic energy the character
has left.
Enemy Design
Enemy Descriptions
- Enemy description is the same as the player description.
Other Design
Elements
- Vehicles: Players can get into and use hover vehicles that each have weapons on
them to attack and defend and a certain amount of health before they can be
destroyed. Vehicles movement is the most restricted but protects the player from
damage while the player’s character is inside the vehicle. While the player is in the
vehicle they cannot fire their gun but can fire the vehicles gun unless the vehicle runs
out of ammo. Vehicles replenish ammo after a certain period of time. Vehicles once
destroyed, are forever destroyed and cannot be used at all.
In-game Options
The in game options will be the same set of options found in the main menu.
Pressing the escape key will access the in game option menu. These options include
video, sound, controls and player settings. The options are described in further detail in
the User Interface Option menu section.
Level Design
The levels will consist of huge open out door areas that resemble landscapes that
could exist on other planets. There are will be two bases, one for each team, on opposite
sides of the map. There will be other objects scattered throughout the level such as rocks
and trees that will be will be obstacles for the players to get around to get to the
opponents base. The edge of the maps will have mountainous areas around them to keep
the players from going off the edge of the map.
8
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
User Interface
User Flow
The following flow chart describes how the player navigates the game.
Run Xenowar
Main Menu
Single Player
Multiplayer
Game Mode
Select
Server/Client
Setup & Game
Mode Select
Game Play
Game Play
Player Settings
Options
Video Settings
Quit
Display Credits
Control Settings
Sound Settings
Exit Xenowar
Note: All menus lead back to the main menu, where the user can exit the program.
Main Menu
This is where the player can choose to play a single or multi- player game, set
video options, see the credits of the game or quit. All menus will be mouse driven,
clicking on a menu button moves to the respective menu.
Options Menu
This is where the player can adjust Video, sound, controls and player settings.
Video settings include:
 Screen resolution
 Color depth
9
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
Sound settings include:
 Music Volume
 Sound Volume
Control settings include:
 Customize controls
Player settings include:
 Player Name
 Selecting a Model
 Importing .md3 model files
Art, Sound
Art Requirements
-format
- BMP: Primarily used unless CD size constraints prevent the use of large files.
- JPG: Used for compression.
- TGA: Used for compression, but has an alpha channel.
-style
- Futuristic post apocalyptic war zone on an alien planet.
Art List
-Animations
- All character animations in the game will be handled using the MD3 file format used
in Quake 3.
- Frames of animation will be the following:
o Running forward
o Running backward
o Crouching
o Crouching forward
o Crouching backward
o Crouching shooting
o Shooting/running shooting
o Strafeing left and right
o Jumping
o Death animation(s)
-BGs
- Standard textured skybox.
-Textures
- Textures will be in one of the above mentioned formats.
-Fonts
10
GAM 400 Fall 2002
-
Xenowar
Bitmap fonts will be used instead of the standard default computer fonts.
-GUI
- The user interface will use set graphics for all necessary images with a generic
and simple look.
Sound Requirements
-format
For sound effects that are run through our sound system they will all be in
standard Wav file format. Specifically they will all be mono wav files that are in 16-bit
and 22 KHz. They must be in a mono format and not stereo since our sound system will
be using Direct3D to do the 3D effects.
All the music in our game will be in standard mp3 stereo format.
-style
All of the Alien team sounds will be squishy. All of the Robot sounds will be like
things found out of Star Wars or other popular science fiction movies. The music will be
high tempo and fast instead of slow and moody, this is because our game is primarily an
action game so the music should get a person’s adrenaline running.
Sound List
-SFX





One to two sound effects per a weapon. For example a two sound effect weapon
would be the sound of a rocket launching and the explosion sound when the
rocket hits. Since each class will have a total of two to three weapons and with
four classes for each side (eight total classes) we will need somewhere about 2630 sound effects for weapons.
There will be two sound effects needed for jumping, one for when the player
jumps, and a second from the impact of landing.
We will need one to two sound effects for the footstep sounds. We would use
two sound effects if using just one footstep sound didn’t sound like real walking.
Each race would also require a unique footstep sounds so that means 2-4 sounds.
When a player takes damage they will make some sort of pain or yelp sound (or
beep for the robots). This sound would be different depending on how hurt the
player is. Since each side is a different race we will need two sets of sounds.
Using three to four different pain sounds per a race, we will end up need either
six or eight different pain sound effects.
For the hover vehicles each will need some sort of unique moving sound effect
and with two hover vehicles we will need two different engine sound effects.
Total sound effects needed: 38-43 unique sounds
-music
 Instead of having one music track loop over and over per a level we will have a
playlist of songs that loop. Since we’re using the standard mp3 file format, it will
11
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
be easy to allow players to add their own songs that play during the game. We
chose to have a looping playlist instead of dynamic music since dynamic music
that changes would not fit well in this game.
Estimated total number of music tracks needed: 6-8 would be good, but more would not
hurt us. At a bare minimum we would probably want at least 3-4 music tracks so that the
music does not seem overly repetitive.
-VOX
There will be a voiceover sound effect whenever a team wins, for instance it will
say “Alien Team Wins” or “Alien Team has been Annihilated”. Also when a team takes
the lead over the other one a voiceover will announce that the respective team has lost or
taken the lead.
Technology
Tools
-mapeditors: The maps themselves will be height maps and therefore can be generated in
Photoshop or Microsoft Paint. All of the objects, including trees, bases, way points, etc,
will be placed in the map with a map editor. Since the maps are open terrain, the map
editor will have a top down perspective of the map and all objects can be selected from a
list and placed within the map.
-animation editors: 3D Studio Max with plug-ins, Milkshape.
-sound editor: Sound Recorder
Engines
The graphics engine will use Direct3D. It will have support for terrain, .md3 file loading,
and displaying bitmaps.
The sound engine will use DirectSound. It will have support for 3D sound effects and
.mp3 playback.
The user interface includes mouse driven navigation between menus and movement for in
game. DirectInput will be used to capture keyboard and mouse input.
Installer
The installer will be created using InnoSetup. It will be capable of creating a shortcut on
the desktop and in the start menu. Also, an uninstall shortcut will be in that start menu
group.
12
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
Marketing
Costs
-Develop
5 employees that share hats such as producer and they all do art
at $50,000 per year
7 months in development
+ $50 dollars for marketing
= $145,883.34
-Sequels
Xeno Wars 2: The Spider Monkey Infestation
Because game engine is done, it will take only 5 months in development so:
5 employees that share hats such as producer and they all do art
at $50,000 per year
5 months in development
+ $50 dollars for marketing
= $104,216.67
Risks
Technology



We’ve never worked with Direct 3D before.
We are attempting to use Quake 3 models.
Unsure about good collision detection methods.
Development


We have no artist to assist in making art.
Balancing the two sides and classes.
Team


Lose a team member.
Can’t stand team members by end of semester.
Equipment


No graphics cards on our computers.
We don’t have a method of making 3D models yet.
Competitors


Their games look better.
Game of similar game play comes out first.
13
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
Cost


We all run out of money and can’t print our game documents.
We go broke and can’t pay for school
Schedule


When Metroid Prime comes out, four members of our team will get little work
done.
Bottlenecks cause us to not get work done on time. Such as, if the 3D engine is
not done then no one can test to see if the other parts of the game work and then
nothing gets done.
14
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
Team Information
Company Background
We have the same team as our sophomore and junior year team, but with the addition of
C.J. Past team games include Blackhole and Subterrania.
Designer—Michael Smith
Worked on Subterrania, a side scrolling action adventure game. Implemented the 2D
Graphics engine using DirectDraw to display maps and sprites, sound engine using
DirectSound to play wave files for sound effects and input engine using DirectInput to
capture user input. Also worked on BlackHole, a 3D Space Simulator reusing Sound
engine code and added 3D sound effects. Implemented the game menus and file system
for saving/loading. Reused Input engine with minor changes.
Producer – Warren Church
Warren Church during his Sophomore year worked on Subterrania. He worked
on the AI and made a few of the Deathmatch maps that were found in the game. He was
the product manager and created the box and manual for Subterrania during that time too.
During his Junior year he worked on Blackhole as a producer for one semester. He
worked on a lot of the base level Graphic code that revolved around the OpenGL API and
a lot of the in game user interface like the status bar and the radar. His only wishes are
that Adam would stop complaining that Farscape being cancelled, and that he can’t find a
yoda action figure (Damn you George Lucas!)
Lead Technology – Damian Witt
I worked on Subterrania as the Lead Programmer. I designed and wrote the
Level Editor using GDI, used to make maps and place enemies. I also wrote the file
system for saving and loading the game, and loading the levels and enemy data. And did
all the networking code for multiplayer.
The next project I work on was the 3D Space Sim Black Hole. I worked as the Designer
and Lead Programmer on this project. I worked on the flight control, target selection, and
detecting collision threats for the AI. I designed and wrote the random mission generator.
I also reused the networking code from the previous project with only minor changes.
Lead Artist - C.J. Clark
The last project I worked on was my Junior project NullSpace, a 3D OpenGL
based game where I wrote the particle effect engine and map editor. Using the particle
effect engine I created jet engine flames and a radial circular explosion. The previous
project was Lasers, a 2D game where I wrote the menu tool and math tools that took care
of laser beam updates and laser beam reflections. Prior to that was my sophomore project
The Eighth Amulet, a 2D isometric adventure game where I worked on UI, A*
pathfinding, AI and the credits. My second semester project was Intergalactic, a 2D
15
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
windows game where I worked on player shots which comprised of a double gun, spread
gun, missiles, and lasers. I also wrote item collection code which interfaced with the
inventory management system. My first semester project Face the Odds, was a DOS
based ASCII graphics game where I worked on ASCII cut scenes, game design and
fixing bugs.
During this time I have worked on numerous side projects such as several
different 2D games, none completed but all in working condition. I have also worked on
one 3D game that is still in simple stages of production. Aside from games I have
worked on different technologies that I can use for games such as a height map, currently
an octree for heightmaps and a bug-free 2D rect collision engine.
Lead Animator – Adam Hartman
Adam Hartman is awesome. For the Junior Project, Black Hole, he worked on: 3D
model loading and displaying in Open GL; all the weapon code, including: mouse
aiming, firing and differences in the weapons such as the homing missile; camera
rotations; and enemy artificial intelligence. For the Sophomore Project, Subterrania, he
worked on: the 2D Direct X graphics engine, including displaying sprites, animating and
moving sprites; all shooting enemy artificial intelligence for the aliens at the end of the
game; created ice level of game, which consisted of multiple maps liked together. He also
thinks Farscape should NOT have been canceled.
16
GAM 400 Fall 2002
Xenowar
Appendix
Revisions to this document:
-
17