Ok, I''m writing a terrain engine to be used in a racing game, here are very basic details: Meant to be fast-paced and fun - jumps and lots of sliding, possibly powerups (like super mariokart on N64), but still an emphasis on some skill to win. Multiplayer emphasis - including 4player split-screen mode - but probably AI players and championships/tournaments. The first question is about game style - which of these types of levels are more fun: track based, so you are forced to go a certain way. OR able to roam the map freely, the race is from waypoint to waypoint any way you can get there. 2nd question: I need to build a level designer rather than put it off till the last minute, how should I design it best to manipulate a heightmapped landscape (the map will be passed through other software to remove unneeded detail if required afterwards)? I don''t want to have to maniplulate every vertex. Is a brush based system best treating the vertices as pixels - painting on different textures? Not sure how to edit height data easily while still being able to see the colour data. Thanks guys. John 3:16

quote: Original post by d000hg
The first question is about game style - which of these types of levels are more fun:
track based, so you are forced to go a certain way.
OR
able to roam the map freely, the race is from waypoint to waypoint any way you can get there.

Fun is a relative term, what may be to you, may not be to someone else.

Midtown Madness 2 managed to pull off both styles effectively. This vastly improved both the life span of the game and the "fun" element by including a larger demographic of players.

Just a suggestion.

As to your first question, I have to say that I like the ability to freely drive around and get a feel for my car. I''m currently addicted to Midnight Club, which has checkpoints and lots of alleys, glass windows to smash through, and jumps to shorten your trip. It also has a free driving mode, where you can race through traffic without pressure and learn the different handling characteristics for vehicles. It combines practice and free roaming.

I do like track based games, but these games (to me) often feel plagued by perfect AI. Its not very fun to test my reflexes against lightning perfect AI, especially on hairpin turns that seem designed solely to make the player mess up.

As to your second question, I''d recommend posting on the Graphics Programming and Theory board. You''ll probably get a much better (and more on topic) response there.



--------------------
Just waiting for the mothership...

For the first question, I think it would cool if you could add some tracks with both styles. (A track like ranbow road in mario kart 64 except without the borders on the sides would be a good challenge track!)