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Project Lucid - Let's make it happen!
What the eff is Project Lucid?
I'll start with the basics. Project Lucid is the project (by MaDE Studio (me)) which will give birth to a video game (PC and PS4) which is centered around the idea of lucid dreaming. It is set inside one big universe in which players can freely mingle with each other, explore and even change.
I have been referring to the game's genre as "MMO Sandbox", because technically that's what it is. However, the more I think about it, the more I think that this is more than just a game (Still an MMO Sandbox though, I hereby lay claim on that term. MMOS?... back me up here, guys?).
So if it's not a game, what the eff is it *really*?
There will be no set storyline, no set style of gameplay, not even a set world. Instead, I wish to build a universe which has rules (just like our universe does, but the rules will be nothing alike). It is within this universe that players will be able to play games, created either from their own imagination, from the imagination of others, or from what the universe throws at them.
Let me explain. Players aren't the only ones creating content (by creating content I mean building things, creating stories, and also changing the dream world). The game will create a lot of content itself (somewhat like the procedural generation that happens in Minecraft and No Man's Sky, but not quite. I will cover this another day for those interested). And I don't mean just the terrain. I mean everything, right down to the storylines and the music. This is stuff that I've always wanted to do, but the game No Man's Sky (coming this August) has set a new benchmark in game development which I intend to follow and then surpass. What an inspirational game it is, you need to check it out if you haven't already (just watch any few videos about it on YouTube, you'll get the idea).
So it IS a game, but it also isn't at the same time. The way I like to think of it is, it's a "game platform". It is a platform which allows games to be played. Or just call it a "universe". Heck, call it a "game" I don't care! I'm just getting too deep into the terminology...
Tell me more cool stuff
1) Virtual Reality. I already have it set up working with Oculus Rift. No idea if it works with the HTC Vive or other VR headsets. I will test this though and I will ensure that the game works smoothly with and without VR right from the beginning.
2) Leap Motion hand tracking. I also already have this set up and working too (so cool) whereby having the device plugged in allows you to see your hands in the game world. So far the only real function they have is knocking things over. I will build on this over time, it's an experimental part of the project (there will be plenty of experimental bits by the way).
3) AIPCs (Artificially Intelligent Player Characters). I was actually planning on keeping this largely a secret at first, but I went ahead and told DV staff about it because I couldn't help myself. Now I've decided I will make this plan known, because it is actually going to become a large part of it, so it really should be considered right from the start.
AIPC, there's another term I had to make up because there's no other quick way to say "Deep Neural Network/machine learning program that connects to the server and plays the game". Well I think you've got the idea by now. The AIPC program will learn from everything it can. A newborn AIPC will do a whole load of random stuff, and over time will learn to do things properly in the game based on the various forms of feedback it will get, and they will each form their own unique personality based on what it has learned.
There's so much I could say about my AIPC idea, so I will cover this in more detail another day too.
4) Story creation. Yeah I already sorta mentioned this. But I just want to return to it because it's probably the most ambitious part of the whole project. Out of all the crazy shit I want to do with Project Lucid, I believe this will be the most challenging to implement. I want to develop a system which generates stories. With the basic system in place, stories could be created by players or randomly generated by the computer.
Stories could come in many shapes and sizes. You may be walking through the woods when suddenly a boy runs at you with a knife, then he stops and says "
Well what do you need me for then?
At the moment I am developing the game myself using Unreal Engine 4. It's going slowly but surely as I am very busy, but I always make time for it. Right from the start, I knew I would involve the community in some way, and I have finally reached the stage where I can start doing that.
Here are a few things I will be looking out for:
1) Developers. If you have experience with UE4 and want to help out, let me know down below! If you are a game developer and you want to help, but don't have experience with UE4, also speak up. In fact, even if you are none of these things but you are looking to get into game development, you speak up too. A massive part of what my business is about is helping others, so I will do my best for you!
2) Decision making. During development, there will be many decisions to be made. Sometimes these decisions can be difficult and it is hard to know what the people will actually want. So when I come across these situations, I will post a thread with a poll asking for your opinions. When these times come, each vote will be extremely helpful, and the discussion which spurs from it would be even more valuable.
3) Constructive critisism. At every point in development, from now and beyond, I will need your thoughts on how things are looking. There's not much for you to see at this point, but I am spewing out the game design to you all for you to tear apart and help make it perfect! The problem at this point is that I haven't explained absolutely everything. I have tried to fit as much of the important stuff in, although I may have forgotten things because my memory is terrible. However, you will find much of the information I missed will come out because people will say things that will trigger me to respond with said infos.
4) Ideas. I am very open to ideas, and I invite you all to have fun thinking about ideas and sharing them with the rest of us, but I won't just take on any old idea. It must fit my vision for the game. I have explained that vision as best I can, and hopefully you will get a feel of what I'm going for. I expect ideas to become better and better over time. Who knows, maybe you'll come up with an idea that doesn't get used, but has potention in itself, then you can make it happen! If that happens, I'd be more than happy to give any help and advice that I can. Let's make each other's dreams come true, because that's what it's all about.
5) Spreading the word when the time comes. Feel free to tell people now, but there will come a time when the game will really need more eyes on. For now, I'm keeping it to a small circle (you guys get in there first, of course. DV means so much to me you wouldn't believe) and I'll gradually expand the network until eventually I just want every gamer on the planet to know about it.
Again, I am aware that this is an extremely ambitious plan. But am I right in thinking that I came to the right place? The one place you can dream big and you are respected for it?
Discuss! Am I going in the right direction?
I will be posting more in-depth infos and progress updates, in the form of forum posts and also YT videos. So keep your eyes peeled!
