Space is Gorgeous – PA Should be Too

Discussion in 'Planetary Annihilation General Discussion' started by brianpurkiss, January 30, 2014.

  1. superouman

    superouman Post Master General

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    Last edited: February 1, 2014
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  2. lokiCML

    lokiCML Post Master General

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  3. brianpurkiss

    brianpurkiss Post Master General

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    Things like this would be so awesome.

    If you ever have the opportunity, try and get way out into the country on a clear sky. You can see the milky way. It's like a blue field across the sky. So amazing.
  4. superouman

    superouman Post Master General

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    I thought about the impact of different skyboxes on the ability for players to read the game. I am wondering if it will be fine if the skybox is filled by a large number of stars like in the center of the milly way, it may be harder to keep track of orbital units in orbit around a planet.
  5. brianpurkiss

    brianpurkiss Post Master General

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    Brightly colored strategic icons are very easy to follow.
  6. superouman

    superouman Post Master General

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    I hope so. We will be able to test it when DeathbyDenim will release his utility to change skyboxes more easily.
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  7. emraldis

    emraldis Post Master General

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    I think that it would be a pretty amazing addition to add procedurally generated skyboxes, with "biomes" of their own, and an editing option in the system editor. Biomes would include things like :

    -Nebula
    -Galactic core
    -Galactic arm
    -Galactic Edge
    -Nearby a stellar phenomena

    The skybox editor could adjust the star around which the system orbits as well perhaps having things like:

    -Black hole:
    -Neutron star/Pulsar
    -Normal star
    -Red/Blue giant star
    -Young star
    -Binary Pair of two of the above, in an appropriate combination

    A procedural skybox/Star generation system with "biomes" would probably be really useful for the aesthetic of galactic war games. For example, if you are fighting in the galactic core, why would the stars in the skybox be sparse? Also, you'd be more likely to encounter older star systems in the galactic core than at the fringes of space, young stars in a nebula, etc. etc.
  8. vyolin

    vyolin Well-Known Member

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    I think the skyboxes should adhere to the general style of PA and in my opinion EVE-style backgrounds don't gel with it at all because they are too heterogenous in form and color. This here on the other hand, very delicious!
  9. brianpurkiss

    brianpurkiss Post Master General

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    I agree that the PA backgrounds need to be more inline with the PA style.

    Was just using those as examples/inspiration.
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  10. abubaba

    abubaba Well-Known Member

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    http://joshparnell.com/blog/tag/procedural-nebulae/

    This guy (Josh Parnell) is making a space sim called Limit Theory.. pretty much everything about the game is procedural, including the nebulae. Not really PA style visually either but fascinating stuff in any case.

    edit:
    Last edited: February 4, 2014
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  11. comham

    comham Active Member

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    I like reading about procedural systems being used in videogames but the only worthwhile and big-picture implementation I've seen so far is Dwarf Fortress.

    I think some uses of procedural generation (eg game worlds) need two things to be worthwhile; being finite (pre-generated assets as opposed to being done on the fly) and repetition of the generated assets. That might sound paradoxical, but imo when something is procedural and infinite nothing feels real, it's like gas. I need to know there's a reasonable end to something before I can enjoy exploring it. And repetition is important because you develop a bond with whatever was generated, like the area around your spawn in minecraft or terraria, you start thinking of it like a real place.
  12. theflow

    theflow New Member

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    Some galaxy star shader code run within the chrome browser:

    shadertoy.com/view/4dfGDM
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  13. brianpurkiss

    brianpurkiss Post Master General

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    That's pretty awesome.

    Clickable link for the lazy: https://www.shadertoy.com/view/4dfGDM
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  14. LavaSnake

    LavaSnake Post Master General

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    Wow. That is quite awesome!
  15. cptconundrum

    cptconundrum Post Master General

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  16. brianpurkiss

    brianpurkiss Post Master General

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  17. bmb

    bmb Well-Known Member

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    I for one like the way the game looks and would not appreciate an overhaul towards deviantish garish space vistas.
  18. cwarner7264

    cwarner7264 Moderator Alumni

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    You're not looking at the bigger picture here. http://i.imgur.com/i9Cn2ou.jpg
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  19. ikickasss

    ikickasss Active Member

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    With RTS in my 0pinion gameplay is more important for me.
  20. totalannihilation

    totalannihilation Active Member

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    wow, such system, much space

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