HL2's player interactivity and realism

[Runteh]

Games seem to be always striving towards realism, but what in HL2 do you think is possible. In some games for instance, the gun you see infront of you, is the same gun that someone can see you holding (ie its a world model for both first person and 3rd person view).

For example, do you think its possible to jump off a building towards a telephone wire, swing with the crowbar, and hook it round the wire. Thus being able to shimey down it. But instead of this being coded/scripted, it being physically simulated.

With player movement as well. In cs the controls are incredibly simple, and it seems to make the game better. Instead of thinking about pressing a prone key, or sprint key, you are thinking more tactically in terms of movement. Where as some games, there are far too many controls, and you spend half your time working out which button does up your laces :/

I am just curious to where games are going I guess, and to what levels will things such as 'player control' and 'world physics' be altered to create a more realistic game. I believe HL2 has taken the right direction, with more things being physically simulated it allows for things (possibly) such as what I described above, and rather than relying on player movement, it replys on imagination.

As gabe said in an article, "you will see NPC's do things you didnt know you could do and learn from them". This makes be believe the gameplay will be exteamly dynamic.

I know this thread sounds just like the 'physics tricks' thread, but I am looking more deeply at player interactivity, rather than 'physics' as a whole.

I hope you understand where I am coming from :x

 

[moppe]

I can promise that the crowbarthingie will be impossible.

 

[Mechagodzilla]

The crowbar is physically simulated, so it will hit things at the exact same angle at which it swings.

I don't know whether the hook end can be used that way though. If the world model is hooked, then it is entirely possible.

I just wouldn't expect it to be a likely occurence. Melee weapons are often hard enough to use as is, due to the limits of presenting a full frame of view on screen.

They seem to have retained the control style of the first HL, with maybe a few new functions. Most notably, you can give a squad various commands to follow. Valve has stated, though, that the AI is good enough that you don't need to focus on using them.

Also, you can now grasp things in you hands and carry/throw them.

Beyond those things, the controls will likely be exactly the same as HL1.

 

[Sulkdodds]

I don't see why, if you got the angle right, you couldn't do the thing descibed. I can't wait to see what other possibilities will surface come release day. If you can pick things up (which makes sense...you have a gun to pick things up but can't use your hands?) then can you use them as improvised weapons?

 

[Brian Damage]

I wanna toss a half-brick at a Metrocop!

 

[Sulkdodds]

Oh, the possibilities. Holligan-Life 2: Storm over C-17, anyone?

 

[Brian Damage]

Who's Holligan?

 

[RoguePsi]

I can see it now.....

Half-life 2: England fans in Portgual...

 

[CLAYMAN]

I was just watching the barricade bink vid again and I noticed that not all buildings are accessible. This isn't exactly a huge surprise, but you can tell just by looking at the fake windows. i think they would make this much more realistic.

Edit: In the Striders vid, the second strider shoots out some of these windows ... dunno if anyone can do it or just the AI ...

 

[Mechagodzilla]

It'd kind of be hard to have linear storyline if every house in the city was accessible.

I'm sure pretty much only those that contain supplies, enhance the level or provide a path to the next area will be accessible. Anything else would place an unecessary burden on your computer.

 

[CLAYMAN]

It would be hard but they did say in an interview (I believe, I read it somewhere) that they fully expect people to just wander around for hours.


Oh it was the PCGamer article. To be honest, I kinda did expect most buildings to be "built", althought not accessible. Here it kinda looks like a painted box.

 

[Naft]

i dont think you could do what you described, not because of physics impossibilities(as long as the crow bar had a modelled hook it would be fine), but because of the fact that there is probably no way to stop swinging your crowbar midswing, and after the swing you would just pull it back again. if there was a "swing" command, and a "pull back again" command, then sure, it would probably work.

 

[PvtRyan]

i dont think you could do what you described, not because of physics impossibilities(as long as the crow bar had a modelled hook it would be fine), but because of the fact that there is probably no way to stop swinging your crowbar midswing, and after the swing you would just pull it back again. if there was a "swing" command, and a "pull back again" command, then sure, it would probably work.

But it's still an object even if you're not swinging it, so you can use it from an idle position.
I think it's technically possible, but very difficult to perform.

 

[Brian Damage]

It'd be interesting to see if someone manages to do it, then puts up a vid or something...

 

[shyy]

wouldn;t be possible, your weight will bring you down with the crow bar

 

[Chump]

dl the demo for Trespasser and see a game gone too too far with physics and player interactivity

 

[Dux]

Trespasser paved the way.