Playing games in Second Life

Linden Lab's LR project in Second Life has introduced some new features which will shortly be available more generally, to whit NPCs (non-playing characters), the ability to automate addition of a HUD and the capacity to force teleport avatars to specific locations (in this case if they are killed by rock monsters or other hazards). A demo game has been launched for premium account holders. Further details are available from New World News and the Lab. Some uninformed reportage from yours truly follows.

[CORRECTION: It transpires that the rock monsters are probably not NPC but just scripted prims. 2+2=5]

The HUD feature was requested many moons ago by, among others, Rezzable so it is good to see it surface finally. In the demonstration game the HUD addition is triggered by colliding with a hypergate-type device which at the same time teleports your avatar to the twelve game sims. Once there you visit Tyrah's workshop. As far as I can make out (and remember, I am not a gamer) Tyrah is trying to arrange her evacuation by sending signals via flare cannons and your role is to track down crystals that can be used to make flares.


You then head out to collect the requisite number of differently coloured crystals, all the while attempting to avoid the NPC rock monsters. The HUD keeps track of your score as well as reminding you of the task at hand. Rock monsters are fairly quick but not all that clever so generally you need to be running and, if necessary, get an object between you and them as per the image at the top of the page (note also the crystal under the toadstool). If you get unlucky, you are force-teleported to Resurrection Circles, suggesting that this is not mediated by the standard damage system which would otherwise send the avatar home.

The score is maintained on an out-of-world server so you can take a break and resume play at a later date. It's not clear whether that service is part of the project but crystals of colours other than those required for flares can be traded for credits at the collectors at basecamp (the SL Marketplace is opened but I didn't notice whether any L$ were actually transferred to my account -- remember, this is just a demo).


The sample images were taken without shadows enabled so they are probably not doing the graphics justice. The (not unreasonable) assumption by the Lab is that residents will take these developments forward in some fashion and create experiences that others will want to play. Of course, there are complex combat systems already available for SL (and OpenSim) but, not being an expert, I'm unable to say whether they will have anything significant to gain from these developments. I can, however, imagine that the LR project will be useful in providing a social gaming context for n00bs. My guess, however, is that there will be some significant issues in terms of permissions being handled behind the scenes as being teleported in this fashion would otherwise allow griefing.

OpenSim already has NPCs though I suspect the code will not be interoperable with the SL version at present. The capacity to teleport on collision (and other events such as touch) is, of course, widely implemented via devices such as Hypergates. For me therefore the main feature missing in OpenSim is the ability to automate the addition of a HUD. This presumably involves both server and viewer work but nonetheless would be most welcome in allowing tailored experiences for students to be accessed with minimum friction.