20 Jan, 2014, ryanhamshire wrote in the 1st comment:
Votes: 0
I've been working on the world details for Tohm, and I hope you all can share some ideas of your own or tell me what you think of what's built so far. All constructive criticism is VERY much appreciated!

Here's a demo video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zd0v2MI-o...

Here's a summary:

1. Weather patterns are region-specific, so weather messages can be more detailed and mention region-specific details like roads, buildings and townspeople in cities, animals and trails in forests, dunes in deserts, etc.

2. Room descriptions can change with season, weather, and time of day, to keep them fresh.

3. In addition to using LOOK to examine world objects (statues, tables, lamps, etc) in more detail, players may also smell and touch objects to get more information.

So, what do you think? How can it be better? Have you had any very positive experiences with world simulation in other games that you would like to share?
20 Jan, 2014, plamzi wrote in the 2nd comment:
Votes: 0
How do these things affect players and NPC's? Are they going to remain cosmetic (in which case, it would be hard to go wrong) or are some of them going to affect gameplay?
20 Jan, 2014, HeZkeZl wrote in the 3rd comment:
Votes: 0
On the mud I code for, we actually simulate storm systems as objects in 2d space. Every area has a location within that plane, so as the systems grow, dissipate, and move, they affect the given areas. This is useful for creating wind speeds and directions that can have game altering effects. In my game, it's mostly relevant for sailing on the wilderness oceans, but can have other implications as well. When simulating in 2d space, players in a town to the east of a storm, might know to expect it to come to them based on wind direction, etc. The storm itself can be split into areas, such as the eye, brunt, and edges, and behave differently when these parts of the storm structure pass over an area. The edges may only create wind, where the brunt of the storm will actually generate rain and lightning, etc.

I like that you take seasons and time into account when describing your storm, it makes for an interesting narrative experience.
24 Jan, 2014, ryanhamshire wrote in the 4th comment:
Votes: 0
@plamzi

Haven't decided yet on any specifics regarding impacts on gameplay - we're not at the point of coding that right now, but I'd like to hear any ideas you have. I keep detailed notes on all feedback. :) Right now, I'm less concerned about "doing it wrong" and more concerned about "missing obvious opportunities for improvement".

@HezkeZl

That's really cool, definitely much more advanced than what we've built so far. I can see maybe doing that in the future - for us right now, locations aren't assigned coordinates so it would be a big leap to implement at the moment. Some of our ideas for gameplay impacts include projectiles missing more often when the wind is blowing hard, reduced visibility on dark nights and during storms, and schools of magic which vary in strength based on weather conditions, location (next to water, underground…), and time of day. Thank you for the compliment about the details in our weather messages. :)
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