Author: digm520admin

digm520admin / / deflection, deformation, engineering, physics in games, Research, rigid body
May 6th, 2018

Terms and Definitions for Investigating Real-Time Rigid Body Deformations in a Game Environment

Engineering Terms

This is just a list of useful terminology for understanding rigid body deformations in the real world in an effort to translate them into a virtual setting, preferably for games. I am currently looking into research that uses finite element analysis and modeling techniques in order to create physically accurate deformations in real-time in a video game setting.

digm520admin / / Deformable Objects, FEA, Research, Unity
May 5th, 2018

Finite Element Analysis in Games – Deformable Objects

Unity Tools

DefKit – Deformable Bodies Toolkit for Unity [v0.2] – FEM and SBD

Plugin for Unity that uses FEM to deform solid bodies.


Fractuccino – Real time fracturing for Unity

Tool that attempts to allow for real time fracturing of solid objects in Unity. This tool is based on methods that were researched by Matthias Muller, Nuttapong Chentanez, and Tae-Yong Kim in the PhysX team.

Paper Fractuccino is Based on can be found here.

digm520admin / / Tools, Unity
May 3rd, 2018

Unity – ProGrids

Brackeys Tutorial on ProGrids – Youtube

Progrids is a tool that can be obtained for free on the Unity asset store. It allows you to have a grid-system in Unity for constructing your scenes. This can be useful for basic level design and simply keeping items in line with each other.
This can be extremely helpful for prototyping and grayboxing level designs, or even full game creation, especially in a 2D sprite/tile setting.

digm520admin / / Game Design Community, Game Jam, GameDesign
May 2nd, 2018

Game Jams in Ludem Dare

Ludem Dare Site

“Ludum Dare is one of the world’s largest and longest running Game Jam events. Every 4 months, we challenge creators to make a game from scratch in a weekend.”

This site lets users participate in a game jam every 4 months where they create a game based on a theme over one weekend. The users can see others submissions, and it is a competition where submissions are based on multiple categories.

digm520admin / / GameDesign, Procedural Generation, Research, Talks
April 23rd, 2018

Using Procedural Generation Techniques in Game Design Effectively

GDC Talk – Math for Game Programmers: Semi-Procedural Content Pipelines – Squirrel Eiserloh

Link to GDC Vault (May be locked content)

2nd of 6 talks on semi-procedural content generation for games by Squirrel Eiserloh at GDC 2018. In this video he goes over many techniques and how to use them effectively.

  1. Variants:

    Have multiple versions of things. Multiple colors for grass, dirt tiles. Multiple different sounds when running through grass.
    Do I need a tile to be the same forever?
    Whenever possible, let the designer provide multiple alternatives.

  2. Blueprint Definitions:

    Don’t make an orc, create “orcness”. This blueprint has many ranges of values for different characteristics of a character.
    “Do I need an int, or an int range? Do I need a float or a float range?” Use these types of questions for every trait/parameter.
    Whenever possible, let the designer provide number ranges.

  3. Procedural Detailing:

    I paint important parts, algorithms fill in tedious boring labor.
    Example: Unreal fills in grass where designer says to put grass.
    Whenever possible, let the algorithm do the dirty work.

  4. Procedural Brainstorming:

    Use procedural generation to spark creativity.
    Whenever possible, let the algorithm spark your creativity.

  5. Content Injection:

    Inject hand crafted content into procedurally generated content.
    Whenever possible, let the designer inject handmade content into the procedural pipeline.

  6. Stitching:

    Create ways for your things to go together.
    Example: Speleunky – Has many map grid templates with connection points, so they connect in a sensible way.

  7. Template Instantiation:

    Load various copies of things into memory given space allowed.
    Ex: Load instances of rotations or variances into memory.

  8. Content Lists:

    Be a data whore.
    Have huge lists of data to use as names for things. Let content be pulled from these lists.

  9. Mad-Libs:

  10. Abstract Compositions:

    Allow designer to paint out abstract designs, and procedurally generate based on that.
    Ex: Lay out city design with 3 colors depicting residential, commercial, and industrial areas which can then be filled in appropriately.

  11. Constraints

    Say what you want the content to have.
    Ties in well with procedural recipes.
    Creates limits and ranges.

  12. Nested Constraints:

    Be consistent with terminology so that data can string together nicely from large encompassing objects/ideas down to the simplest singular objects that are generated.

  13. Exemplars:

    Human creates “good” content, then algorithm can:
    Make more like this (ex. Markov chains)
    Fill in the missing bits (ex. Wave Function Collapse)

  14. Training:

    Inject human designs into ML processes.
    Genetic algorithms (make a thing, rate it, then do more stuff, keep the best ones)

  15. Outputs as Inputs:

    Anything you generate in general can be an influencer in another thing that is generated.
    Generated content helps create more generated content.

digm520admin / / GameDesign, Physics Engine, physics games, Readings, Research
April 21st, 2018

Exploring Uses of Physics in Gameplay

Physics in Games: A New Gameplay Frontier – from Gamasutra.com

Article by Pascal Luban on Dec. 4th, 2007. This is an older paper explaining some of the possibilities opened up by computers becoming stronger and being able to process physics in games more readily. The author suggests ways of using physics as a core gameplay element as opposed to just some aesthetic element.