The Future is 3D

I remember one of my first experiences with virtual reality was in Atlantic City during the winter in a mall.  No one was there because it was the off season, but there was still a hand full of people clustered around this black pod which contained a seat.  Inside was someone wearing a futuristic helmet that looked like something out of an 80s sci fi movie.  My dad, ever the one for indulging my interest in technology, encouraged me to get in and I was transported to the most opposite experience possible; a WW I biplane pilot.  I was flying, attempting to take out my enemy, and my father encouraged me to look around.  I was fixated on my target until they were destroyed, at which point I looked around and was simultaneously amazed and frustrated.  The world was around me, but just out of reach.  I tried to peak over the edge, but the harness kept my head from pointing too far down.  If I turned too fast, I had to wait for my virtual head to catch up.  Still it was a sight to behold.  The other experience (I can't remember which one was first) was a first person shooter.  I was fighting against maybe one other person shooting giant balls out of a gun that looked like it was made out of Duplos (except without those high resolution round pins).  It was kind of like playing a virtual reality FPS of the original Adventure for the 2600.  I was standing, using a controller to move around, and it was awesome.  The next few times time I saw both of those units, they were down and I never got to experience it again.

Since then I have always been fascinated by 3D in all forms.  From comic books that used 3D glasses to the Virtual Boy (which I currently have a working one).  Those of you who know my work at the Otakon Photo Suite know that we even did 3D photos one year which, aside from being a pain the butt, came out amazingly!  Of course there is my obsession with 3D printing as well, but that is another story.  Let's keep this virtual shall we?

So what about 3D for my kids?  Well even though the 3DS has made it super easy, I take the warnings from Nintendo seriously (no 3D for kids below 7 years old to avoid damaging eye development).  Now I probably won't wait that long (I'm tempted to introduce G to the 3D feature now that she is 5) but even so, for the time being 3D is definitely something that is mostly a personal experience.  I like gaming together, especially with my kids, so the more I can keep that bridge open, the better.

But then there is the Oculus.  It honestly is not an overstatement to say that using the Oculus Rift is a life changing experience.  I'm sure I could write a years worth of posts just on just the Oculus, but I will keep it short for now and focus on two of the demos that I tried.  The rest, I'm sure, will come in a later post.

1) Tuscany:  Everyone who has tried the Oculus has tried Tuscany from what I can tell by comments on the internet.  It is just what it sounds like.  You are in a villa in Tuscany.  There is a lake.  A tree.  A house.  After experiencing it I really want to just watch a bunch of different people try this out and see what others do.  Why?  I just went under the tree and just looked up.

One of my favorite things to do is to look up into the sky through the branches of the trees.  Maybe it was because of this cold, cold winter, but when I started out and saw the tree, I knew I wanted to look at the sky through the branches.  There were no leaves, the branches didn't sway, but I felt peace.  I explored things a bit more and, while I was disappointed in the view of the lake, I felt like I was there.

Sure it was fake. It looked fake.  The resolution was mediocre and the pixel density was so low there is a "screen door" effect, but it was bright and fast.  When I moved my head, my vision moved.  I could scan with my eyes.  Things were there...I was there, in full vivid 3D.  Everything matched the depth I expected (unlike the 3DS which looks best when the 3D is exaggerated) and with the minimal tether of what is essentially a USB cable, I felt nothing holding me back.

As an aside, I don't know where Jill went (I didn't pay much attention when she tried it), but I did hear her lamenting "I just want to put my feet up!"  The real world foot rest wasn't there while the virtual one was.

2) The Mute:  On the complete other side of the spectrum I played a game called Asunder: Earthbound where I was an escape convict called the Mute.  I was on a plane in what seemed like the 1940s and had interactions with my fellow passengers using only nodding and single button clicks while looking at something (look at the chair in front of you, click, and you kick the chair).  Again the graphics where nothing to write home about, but I felt completely there.  The buzz of the engines.  The awkward conversations with my neighbor.  Trying to avoid eye contact with the annoying girl I threw peanuts at.  But then I was caught.  They recognized me.  The guy in front of me whose chair I kicked was revealed to have a gun and his hand reached above the seat, twisting around in an impossible way that in retrospect just looked like sloppy programming and should have been ridiculous.  Instead my heart raced.  I frantically clicked to see if I could do anything but I just sat there helplessly and watched the gun as I was shot, in the face, 3 times.  With each shot, I felt the area where the goggles touched my face burn.  Almost as if my body, expecting to be shot, needed a sensation to match my virtual death.  I had to come out to reality, to enjoy the fact that I was alive, but my desire to succeed in the game put me back in a few minutes later.  Again I died, twice more, and that was enough.  I never ask for hints in games, but I couldn't take getting shot again and I asked my friend for help (he couldn't figure out why I kept dying, but later on I found out I forgot to turn out the light so I wouldn't be so easily recognized).

After these two experiences and many more, I walked away desperately wanting an Oculus for myself.  For $300 for the development kit, who could say no?  But then, in the haze of light headedness that felt halfway between drunk and a dream (which followed me for the next day) I realized that I would be sucked into this virtual world way more than I can afford to at this time in my life.

And so I decided to wait, living with the virtual 3D of my Virtual Boy and my 3DS until there comes a point where the Oculus or similar device can be used for something productive, like easier 3D modeling, or remote presence.  And then another friend reminded me, Star Citizen will support the Oculus.  Looks like I will be getting lost in space after all. 

Touching on touch screen gaming

When I was growing up, the idea of directly interacting with what was on the screen was amazing.  I'm not talking about using a controller like a remote control for my virtual avatar, but the idea of pointing with something to the screen (a pen, a gun, etc) and seeing that the TV knew where you were pointing and responded.  For whatever reason, that was the thing that made gaming real to me.

The "game" I remember the most was one where a maroon light pen was used to draw.  I remember my dad and brother working on other things with it (I can't quite remember exactly what, I think my dad was programming some game that tracked the pen but I'm not sure), but really the ability to paint on the black canvas of the TV was amazing to me.  Sure it had the same result as using crayons, in fact it was less effective than crayons because back in that day you couldn't even save the drawing (or if you could, the cost would be huge) but it was just fun.  I fumbled, I scribbled, I tapped on the TV too hard so my dad thought I would break the screen.  Reaching up to the screen so high above was hard for my little arms, but I loved every second of it.  I loved it so much, that even when the system was off, I loved that light pen with the curled cord and played with it.  I now know that it was little more than a photo resistor and a good timing connection, but back then it was magic.

I now look at my children and wonder what they think when they use a tablet.  I had a slight glimpse into this when, back before A was born, I was reading G one of those Little Mr books.  On the back, there are pictures of all the other Mr and Mrs characters to advertise the other books for sale.  In my youth I would look at them and imagine what their stories would be, but my daughter did something different.  She tapped a Mr and then opened the book again.  Looking confused she closed the book, looked at the back, tapped a Mr, and opened it again.  It dawned on me that she was trying to press the icon for a different story and load up new pages.  Maybe that will happen one day, but not yet, so I had to explain to my disappointed 2 year old that this was the only story and she would have to pick up another book from the shelf.

Now my 3 year old son remembers our 4 digit unlock password for our tablet after having been told it once on a car trip.  Both A and G flick and swipe Sonic through randomly generated stages.  They both drop blocks in seemingly random places in Cubify for me to print their creations in 3D.  Instead of waiting for an infomercial to stop before their favorite show comes on they have never experienced such a thing and instead flip through an endless array of shows on Netflix.  An endless stream of diversions all made infinitely more possible because of them being able to touch.

And still, every now and then, both the kids pull out an app that is just a black canvas where they can draw vibrant colors, sometimes with sound effects and rainbow lines.  They fumble, and scribble, and tap on the screen.  At those times, I think I know exactly what they are thinking.

Spreading to a new generation...

So both my kids have started to seriously play games now.  A (the 3 year old) definitely prefers classic games, with Mario and PacMan being his favorites at the moment.  My mom insists that A is better at PacMan than her, although I have not seen her play so I don't know if that is just grandmother speak for being impressed.  Frankly I am impressed that A not only dodged a few goombas, but navigated over pipes and chasams, killed a goomba or two, and managed to make it to the half way spawn point.  I really need to go through my NES collection to see if I can find something that isn't "Nintendo hard."

G (the 5 year old) on the other hand seems to prefer the 3D games.  This is odd to me, since I feel like there is a huge leap in the ability to understand using a controller when you shift from 2D to 3D.  I originally started her off way back when Skyward Sword came out, and she certainly had trouble with going where she wanted to go (in fact, both of them were shouting out the solutions to the puzzles when I was playing, sometimes faster than I could figure it out).  Fast forward to today (just two and a half years later) and G is playing Super Mario 3D World right along side me. Once she even beat my score and got the crown (which she promptly lost on the next stage).

It's awesome to see the unashamed movements when G is trying to get Peach to do her bidding.  The classic "tilt the controller to steer" that we watched our parents attempt to do is amplified in this new world where the control stick is no longer attached to the control buttons, and the Wii-mote nunchuck slowly grows closer to G's mothers face as G tries to get Peach to move a little faster to the right.  I swear she would turn backwards if her head would still be able to still face the TV.

It has been a while since I last posted, and since then we have played through Zelda: Skyward Sword, Pikmin 3, Sonic Generations, and New Super Mario Brothers Wii U (I can't wait until they make that name even longer with New Super Mario Brothers Wii U Two).  In terms of starting we are going through Super Mario 3D World (which is just as good as they say), Ni no Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch (which is beautiful in art and story if not lacking a bit in gameplay), and Zelda: Windwaker HD.  Each of those is worthy of a post in itself and I hope to get into that in the coming weeks.

I will say G and A have started their own games of Pikmin 3 which they love (although they play with a different flavor).  G plays all on her own which is really impressive to see, except when there are enemies at which point she thrusts the controller into my hands and I get to save the day.  A on the other hand just loves sitting in my lap and occasionally pressing the "throw" and "call" buttons.  I can't say I mind.

They're cutting

So I am staying at Tech Shop way too late tonight, but it is worth it to get the game pieces done so I can beta test at lunch tomorrow (showing it to someone here I already found one problem with a design element that got confused for a connection point).  On the bright side everyone here thinks it's a great concept and wants to play.

Quick Update

I am chugging through card designs and wanted to put a little teaser.  There exist 3 types of traces on the pieces: Standard, Unbreakable, and Broken.  Standard looks like your typical electrical circuit, while unbreakable is a multilayer board where the traces are below.  I am still working on the unbreakable pieces but here you see two examples of standard and broken pieces (where the text is messed up and the traces are scratched).  In the final version you will see an homage to my first Dreamcast (which I killed the motherboard with using the wrong screw and making a circular gouge through several traces).  Also, the working name of my gaming company is Pittsburgh Plays Games.  Let's see if you can catch the tongue in cheek reference there (thanks to +Jill Duarte).

Making a game

So +Jill Duarte tends to make a lot of short posts to keep her blog (http://hipstrings.blogspot.com) active, so why don't I try this.  At work I discovered that my coworker +Matthew Gettemy is really into board games.  He introduced me to a ton of neat games and since a) I have access to a laser cutter, and b) the local hipster craft fairs are actively asking "Where are the Pittsburgh game makers?" I decided I would start up making some games.  This started with the idea of making a really pretty Settlers of Catan expansion, but now I am neck deep into a game I call Cirquite.  It is basically an upgrade to the Milton Bradley game Waterworks where you tried to be the first to complete a functioning plumbing system.  I loved this game as a kid because I could play it by myself (I didn't have too many friends who could come over), and there is something satisfying about creating a path (not to mention the neat mini metal wrenches that came with the game).  But no one wants to be a plumber anymore, so I have changed the theme to circuits.  I am starting out with just the same basic piece distribution, but this concept lends itself to expansions quite easily, and being an electrical engineer I hope to be able to make some extra nerdy ways to play (get a bonus if you make an LCR resonator!).  Attached are the first two pieces.  I hope to have a full set ready to cut on Sunday.

Home Improvement

As I brushoff the dust on this blog I realize how much has happened since I last posted.  Not that I had any audience to speak of, but I apologize to myself for the missed posts (and the posts that sit in by draft box that I thought went through). So we come back with the spirit of improvement and attempting to start this thing up again if only for the hope of documenting my life for my children.  On to the post.

I have been reading a book by Bruce Feiler called "The Secrets of Happy Families" which has taken industry standard practices (from all industries) and applied them to home life to see if the concepts for motivating and guiding groups of adults work for families as well.  "But Nik, what does that have to do with video games?" One word, feedback.

The concept of applying industry concepts to family life instantly resonated with me since I am currently at a transition point in my career where I am moving from directing myself to directing others...not that I wish to direct my family, but I need to find ways to motivate people to do the things they know they are supposed to do.  Here comes video games.  In any game, you are given a goal and a reward.  Today the reward tends to be an achievement, something you can tout to your friends that you completed, but those things are good for a one time goal.  How many times are you going to get 100% completion with no power ups (unless the journey is fun, but that is for another post).  That means achievements are no good for maintenance activities, like cleaning your room.

Now that both my kids are walking, playing, and all around entropy machines, the cleanliness of the house became a big stress point for my wife and I (add the fact that my wife is starting a second business and we just don't have the time our parents had to clean up after us).  When toys start breaking and my feet are encrusted with a layer of clay crumbs something had to change.  Sure I can go through and be a whirlwind of cleaning but that has left me tired, cranky, and with no time to actually spend with the family.  When the messes start again my refresh rate on the clean spell is too long and I quickly get out leveled by my mess monster opponent.  I need a team.  Not only do I need a team, I need a team who are all motivated to reach the same goal as me.

Now something about video games.

My family, particularly my wife and  2.9 year old son, are obsessed with tower defense games (Plants vs Zombies 2 and Kingdom Rush currently).  In any tower defense you must protect your base from a constant onslaught of enemies.  The base always has some ability to take damage, but in the end if you do nothing you lose.  While these games are almost always single player, they represent a team effort with each tower providing their own unique skill.  What if we applied this to room cleaning?  Enter the health bar.

On Monday night Gab and I put together some clear pouches with a set of colored cards: green, orange, red, and black.  This was the room status.  Green is great, we can be proud to show this to guests.  Orange is OK, this doesn't stress out Mommy or Daddy and we could have close friends over.  Red is bad, we need to clean at least to orange some time today.  Black is reserved for rooms that have been red for a full day and means we don't do anything until the room is better.

We went around the house as a family and placed these pockets in every room, starting everything as green (regardless of the room status).  Grading was to occur in the morning, mainly to prevent everyone from stressing about the state when they couldn't do anything about it.  Gab seemed excited.

Come morning we went around to each room and graded it as a family.  We ended up with 4 red rooms (all our bed rooms plus the garage), 9 orange rooms, and no green rooms.  I went to work (late from the added routine) and that was that.

Three things then magically happened. 

First was that after dinner, when I had suggested to Gab that we work on getting the rooms orange, she excitedly went up instead of the normal tantrum.  To put this in perspective, Gab hates to clean.  We even tried changing what we called it because she got a visceral responds against the word "clean" (we ended up calling it "pinky bopping" for some time).  Now that there was a clear marker of room cleanliness status, and a clear goal, now the task was manageable and she was excited to contribute (with some continued reminding).

Second, we got three red rooms into green and one into orange.  On a good weekend day, if I was left alone I might have gotten two rooms green, but this was a weekday afternoon all before bed time!  Shockingly enough, one of the green rooms is now the garage.  We actually even got two orange rooms into green in the morning as well (bathrooms that have normally stayed "orange" all the time.

Third, and most surprising, is that this system affected my wife arguably more than the kids.  And honestly I shouldn't be surprised.  Before the color status, my wife saw the mess but thought she was the only one who cared.   With the family grading together not only did it remove her from isolation, but it also gave her indication that the work would be appreciated, not to mention the desire to get the reward of a green status bar.  The garage would not have gone all the way to green without her help.

So the key elements of the room status:
1) Make it a family activity.  You make the cards together.  You place the cards together with decision as a group.  You grade the rooms together.  It can't come as a decree from on high with no explanation.
2) Grade in the morning but give verbal feedback during the day.  Night time grading will only lead to stress because you know you cant do anything about it but you don't want the black card. Gab went to bed last night knowing that her room would be green when she woke up because we told her and congratulated her.  Come morning she was excited to grade the rooms (and put that extra effort to pick up some dirty laundry to make her bathroom green too).
3) No punishments.  I made the mistake of saying they would get in trouble if the room got black, but then realized that if my room got black, there is no way for me to really get in trouble.  Instead my wife made it positive: black means we come together and fix the problem.

Time will tell if this works, but we are going out tonight for frozen yogurt to celebrate three rooms going from red to green.

As an aside, this whole thing makes sense from an industrial perspective too.  Fabrication plants show improved metrics when those metrics are visible by the workers.  Want to improve yield?  It doesn't help to say "stop breaking so many things!". Show them how much is breaking, and how much one matters.  When you can see solid progress, or failures, you can take action.