#31867 - keldon - Wed Dec 15, 2004 2:12 pm
Looking at that thread about what people think about the DS got me thinking about the touch screen. Since it is claimed that the two screens will offer new gaming options I thought we needed a place to discuss them; or at least air our own opinions/ideas.
For a start you can now have flight sims with immediate access to rudders and pedals. You can play war sims in a new light with better control than any mouse could. But these are all obvious ones centred around mice that we have wished for in a console, and aren't exactly new/innovative.
My new concept: Sword of the dan
You are an elite ninja assasin, assigned to attain swords to arm your fellow ninjas. You will first remove a samurai's sword before fighting off a feat of armed and armoured soldiers. After this you have to quickly collect their swords before leaving quickly.
As I have not thought about how to disarm members, or a fun way to collect the swords, the battle against the armoured soldiers is where the gameplay happens. To fight them you must swing your sword along a given path. Failing to follow this path closely enough will result in energy loss, while hitting the wrong target completely may result in death depending on where you hit by accident.
So basically a guy may come from the left while your sword is raised in your right hand. A path from the sword to a target is given and the player will then attempt to follow this line on the screen. Eventually only targets will appear and you have to use your own intelligence based on previous paths given, to detirmine an effortless path to hit them.
#31938 - sgeos - Thu Dec 16, 2004 2:55 am
I'd basically treat the touch screen as a mouse.
-Brendan
#31944 - keldon - Thu Dec 16, 2004 3:26 am
| sgeos wrote: |
I'd basically treat the touch screen as a mouse.
-Brendan |
I almost come to that conclusion myself writing that post. Then again having a touch screen gives you a slight speed and accuracy advantage over a mouse, which is why you can easily have rudders, etc. acting better than if it was a mouse.
I'm sure there are plenty of new challenging things we could do with it. For example take that old "line" game where you shoot at the falling lines. Called "command defence" or something of a similar nature. Anyway mix that with after-burner and you pretty much have "Sword of the dan", which would be no fun on a mouse, not even an optical one.
I see a touchscreen as something in-between a mouse and eyetoy. Or would it be better to put eye-toy on the same level as touchscreen, and the mouse? Whatever way you put it, the eyetoy has given birth to pretty interesting games.
#32019 - OogyBoogy - Fri Dec 17, 2004 8:31 am
| sgeos wrote: |
I'd basically treat the touch screen as a mouse.
-Brendan |
Why not use it as a virtual keyboard? I bet it won't take long before someone ports an Infocom interpreter for the DS.
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#32040 - Lupin - Fri Dec 17, 2004 1:26 pm
Is it possible to detect the force on the touch screen? Maybe that would be usefull for a boxing game :)
A keyboard would be quite nice, i am sure DS linux is going to use it.
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#32050 - Abscissa - Fri Dec 17, 2004 3:39 pm
| Lupin wrote: |
| Is it possible to detect the force on the touch screen? Maybe that would be usefull for a boxing game :) |
Nope, and I'm kind of glad. I can just imagine hundreds of horror stories about styluses (stylii?) deeply embedded in the lower screen. ;)
#32053 - sgeos - Fri Dec 17, 2004 4:04 pm
| OogyBoogy wrote: |
| Why not use it as a virtual keyboard? I bet it won't take long before someone ports an Infocom interpreter for the DS. |
A touch screen is a pointing device. I'm not big on the PDA virtual keyboards, but they beat the old school way of putting in character names.
-Brendan
#32059 - ScottLininger - Fri Dec 17, 2004 5:34 pm
| Lupin wrote: |
| Is it possible to detect the force on the touch screen? Maybe that would be usefull for a boxing game :) |
Not downward force, but you could use an algorithm that determines force based on the period and distance of a given "sweep" motion.
So for a boxing game a short jab could be communicated with a quick upward sweep or tap. A haymaker could be communicated with a slow pull back and then a fast, sweeping arc across the entire touch screen.
Boxing would be a pretty cool DS game, actually... You could show the opponent in the top screen and a top-down view of your boxer on the touch screen.
-Scott
#32077 - sgeos - Sat Dec 18, 2004 12:33 am
| ScottLininger wrote: |
| Boxing would be a pretty cool DS game, actually... You could show the opponent in the top screen and a top-down view of your boxer on the touch screen. |
Punch Out DS?
-Brendan
#32309 - Khantrah - Tue Dec 21, 2004 1:03 am
I really don't see why people say the touchpad gives you more control and accuracy than a mouse. I don't know about the rest of you, but I have yet to be beaten in any PC game by someone using a labtop touchpad, at least not where accuracy or control is an issue.
The touchpad is an enormous improvement over the GBA controls, but better than a mouse? I can't see it.
#32312 - tepples - Tue Dec 21, 2004 1:52 am
Open GIMP or Microsoft Paint. (Or pull up Mario Paint on your Super NES.) Select the pencil tool or the paintbrush tool and try making some clear letters with your mouse. Now do the same thing with paper and pencil (or your Palm PDA). Which letters came out clearer?
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#32316 - sgeos - Tue Dec 21, 2004 2:06 am
| Khantrah wrote: |
| I really don't see why people say the touchpad gives you more control and accuracy than a mouse. |
There is a huge difference between a touch pad and a touch screen. A mouse and a pad? Maybe not so much.
-Brendan
#32336 - 2old4this - Tue Dec 21, 2004 4:35 am
First, I need to find a tiny balloon. It should be the size of a pea. Next,
I'll need to fill the balloon with mineral oil (or proprietary isoelastomer
fluid) using a teeny tiny funnel. After sealing the neck, I would place it
on the touch screen of the DS.
Rolling the balloon left and right would define the X-axis. Moving up and
down would define the Y-axis. By applying finger pressure, the balloon
will deform. The amount of spread is proportional to finger pressure.
This spread, on the surface of the touch screen, can be calculated by
software. This would define the Z-axis.
Another parameter can be derived by measuring the delta, or change,
of time versus size of spread. This would yield finger velocity.
Now, does anyone know where I can find tiny balloons?
#32338 - Dib - Tue Dec 21, 2004 5:01 am
| 2old4this wrote: |
| This spread, on the surface of the touch screen, can be calculated by software. This would define the Z-axis. |
Sorry to burst your bubble, or balloon, or whatever, but no it can't.
#32350 - tepples - Tue Dec 21, 2004 7:32 am
| 2old4this wrote: |
| Now, does anyone know where I can find tiny balloons? |
Balloon Fight for Game Boy Advance. You can get it officially through Animal Crossing, e-reader, or Famicom Mini, or you can get it unofficially through PocketNES.
There is no Z axis on the DS touch screen.
_________________
-- Where is he?
-- Who?
-- You know, the human.
-- I think he moved to Tilwick.