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- 11 Aug 2006
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http://www.gamesradar.com/us/ps3/ga...001§ionId=1001&pageId=2007050311276378051According to Blade Interactives Pete Jones, games have got to be done differently, its got to change. People are looking at next generation like last generation, but we need a different way of thinking. Weve got to show gamers something different. Not the words youd necessarily expect to come from the head of a studio whose biggest hit has been a Snooker simulator.
But Blade Interactives latest project - Hydrophobia - aims high. Recruiting talent whove worked on Splinter Cell and Fable 2, a genuine astrophysicist, people from the movie biz and letting loose the imagination of a team limited to making baize look brilliant in high-definition, its rare to come across such genuine excitement in a development team.
And while Hydrophobia is a blend of the old and the new, whats new is groundbreaking. A thousand page document fleshes out the backstory of a game influenced from every water-based Hollywood movie from The Poseidon Adventure to Titanic. Youre in control of Kate, an engineer on a massive super ship sailing with the understated handle, Queen of the World. Loosely based on an ill-fated real world project called the Freedom Ship, the Queen of the World is a gargantuan floating city, a ten-deck behemoth with Skyscrapers, shops, casinos, restaurants, golf-courses and even beaches, designed as a haven for the super rich. Since she never sails in territorial waters, its an attractive place for wealthy individuals to dodge taxes, and companies to dodge laws.
Unfortunately, the supposed freedom she brings invites her downfall. A research company called Nano Cell that produces nanobots that purify water incites the wrath of fanatics called Neo-Malthusians. A year into its lifespan the ship comes under attack and Kate is thrust into the role of the reluctant heroine. Plunged down to the bottom deck where a holes been blown through the hull, Kate has to use her body and her brains to survive the sinking ship, help others and get rid of the terrorists. And she aint too handy with guns. Oh, and - heres the twist - shes terrified of water.
But while its unique setting and survival-action-puzzle-fear approach instantly sets it apart from the blockbuster shooters that dominate on 360, its the water itself that is truly revolutionary here. Previously water, like fire, has been a cosmetic benchmark, mere eye candy. Titles like Bioshock and Dark Sector are now beginning to apply some real-world properties to their H20, like the ability to conduct electricity, but Hydrophobia makes all that look primitive. Here water works like water. It is water - a truly 3D liquid, which reacts dynamically to its environment. It flows from source, it bubbles, it gets surfaces wet, it has a current and its persistent. These properties make the water an intrinsic game mechanic; something weve never seen before, and in motion looks stunning.
At its most basic level, the water chases Kate through the ship. Staying alive will mean keeping Kates head above water, searching out air pockets to catch your breath, navigating flooded rooms and corridors to find keys and getting around obstructions. But the water isnt just an obstacle in itself. Objects will float in it making physical hazards; waves can sweep people away, and underwater currents create mini rivers in the ship. And then theres the actual visuals - explosions, bubbles, spray, reflections and refractions that make for dazzling effect as the water sweeps through the ship.
Since Kates a female engineer with a massive terrorist problem on her hands, you wont just have to survive the water (a feat in itself) but learn to control it. Got an enemy guarding the way? Why not remotely open a door, unleashing a forceful wave that brushes them away. You could also use the water to disguise a mine. But our favorite, which demonstrates the options for combining objects youll come across, is this: stuffing a rubber duck full of plastic explosives, you can place it on the water. Set it in the right place, and itll be taken downstream by the current, hopefully towards an enemy. Catch his eye and hell approach it. And the rubber duck will blow his face off.
So the water can be your friend, but its also your enemy, or more specifically, Kates. Whenever shes in real danger her phobia kicks in and the screen will start to blur in monochrome, and operating her will become more difficult and it may even move to first-person mode. By making her safe, and by using judgment to intelligently dispose of enemies and solve puzzles, youll keep her calm and you in control.
And as if her fear, a sinking ship, water throwing objects violently through the boat and a ton of ideologically-driven, ruthless mercenaries werent enough to contend with, something also goes wrong with Nano Cells nanobots. Once theyre released into the watery environment, they begin to group together, become sentient, smarter and dangerous.
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edit: Infos zur engine^^
Blade Interactive, a UK Company which specializes in emergent technologies and original product development, announced yesterday that it has successfully developed a physically accurate real-time fluid dynamics engine for games development.
Dr Huw Lloyd, R & D Director of Blade explains Our HydroEngine is the result of nearly 3 years intensive development work. Lloyd adds Water in games has so far been merely a flat plane with ripple effects and other graphical smoke and mirrors applied to it. The HydroEngine is different in one key respect - the water flows. It looks and behaves exactly like real water. Nothing like this has ever been seen in games before
The HydroEngine will be a centrepiece of an upcoming PlayStation 3 survival adventure game called Hydrophobia. They've also given us a video presentation of the new water technology, which can be seen below.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m4XXds6aFDA&eurl=http://www.psu.com/node/9685