Space Invaders 2006

(A new update will be done by 2006.8)

Author:

Evan Barba, Kuan Huang(aka Hawk)

Description:

Keywords:

Outdoor projection, Video game, Architecture, Motion capture

Screenshots:

Projection On the Wall	Player	Behind the Scene

Video:

Online: Youtube
Original: spaceinvaders2006.mov (19MB, QuickTime 7 required.)

Background:

Space Invaders 2006 is a collaborative project done by Computer Science Department and Interactive Telecommunications Program. The idea of playing video game in public space is originally from "Vmob" research group that we are invovled in. In the past one year, some testings and experiements were conducted within NYU campus. For our thesis projects, we decided to put together all the experience and lessons that we learned from previous testings and make an outdoor playable video game in three months.

Process:

Since it's a thesis project, the most critical thing is that I need to have a working demo to present in the last week of school. So finding a location is the first step.

Location:

The Arc in Washington Square Park	Under the Arc	Bobst library in the day	Bobst library in the evening	Plaza of Tisch Hall	Tisch Hall

As an NYU student, I have the access to most facilities in school. Initially, I was interested in doing a projection onto the Arc in Washington Square Park. The game could be a car racing game, or spiderman. But there are some technical issues that I can't solve in a short time:
- I am not allowed to climb high to mount a camera onto one of the light stands in the park.
- I need an at least 30 meters long power strip to get power supply from a building across the street.
- There are some drug dealers hanging around the park after 9PM. It is kind of scary if I carry a laptop, a projector, a video camera at that time.
- Too much ambient lights in that space which is bad for large-scale projection.

My second target is the Bobst Library which almost turns out to be the final spot.

Spot A: The play ground; The second-floor balcony of NYU student center.
   

Spot B: The projection place; NYU Bobst library.
      

Why is it a perfect spot?
- The balcony is a 15 meters long and 4 meters wide space which is a decent size for a video game playground.
- Very safe to set up my laptop, projector and video camera; And also very easy to get power supply.
- Enough users for testing. Between 6PM and 11PM, there are lots of students events going on in that building.
- An artist did a public projection last year in the same spot.
- Public exposure. The Washington Square Park is only one block away where there are always quite a few people hanging around before 10PM if the weather is good.
- I also like the shape of this building. The columns and windows on the wall make it look like many grids which is reminds me of some interfaces of video games.

Time:

7PM -- 10PM When the sky is dark enough for people to see the projection on the building.

Game Concept Development:

Then what the game would be looked like is the next big question. Before stepping into game development process, I feel this game should have some specific characteristic:
- The game shouldn't take more than 30 seconds for players to understand the goal and control of it.
- It could be an existed classic game that many people are already familiar with.
- The interface of the game should be designed in a way that fits the interface of the architecture.
- Ideally, the content of the game could be integrated into the context of the space.
- Whether there is any possibility that the architecture could response to the performance of the game player?
- No device required such as joystick or cell phone. Everybody can play.

Idea A: Pacman
The rows and columns of the wall of the library look like the tracks in this game. Wouldn't it be cool if people are playing PACMAN game on a building, controlling those characters moving along the lines between windows and escaping from being hunted by the monsters. But there are two technical problems that I couldn't solve so far:
- First, the interface of the game is a big challenge. Because the game characters are moving along the X,Y axis on the wall while the users in the real world are moving along the Z axis. I don't think this is a very natural interface unless the game is designed in a 3D interface.
- Second, this game requires a pretty big play ground and the balcony seems to be too small for it. Also, the camera should be able to cover a large area. It's a big techinical problem for me.

Idea B: Calligraffiti
How about drawing graffiti onto the building? Actually, this concept is not really a game. It's more like an art work. This idea doesn't require a big play ground but still has an interface issue. How could people draw the graffiti and look at the building at the same time? Initially, I was thinking of setting up a "canvas" on the balcony where people can draw the graffiti. (check my sketch) But it still doesn't solve the problem. The second solution was to use a strong spotlight as the sprayer to shoot onto the building. By this way, people can look at the building and draw the graffiti. For some technical reason, it hasn't been tried yet.

Idea C: Space Invaders*
That is the most developed concept that I am working on right now. Basically, the invaders come out of the wall cracks and move down to the ground. The player is controlling an aircraft to shoot down the those invaders. The way that people play with the game is to move left or right to control the motion of the aircraft. Whenever the player jumps, the aircraft shoots out a bullet.

Technology:

Tools: VC++, OpenGL, OpenCV

This game is in good shape on the computer. But the interface probably needs to be tweaked to fit the architecture after the first round testing.

Testing:

First round testing is scheduled on April 6th. Time: 8PM
Testing goals:
- Does the whole system work smooth? Is there any techinical problem need to be solved? How is the game interface? Does it fit the shape of architecture?
- How is the game level and speed? Too difficult/easy or too fast/slow?
- How is the projection?
- How are people engaged into this game? Are they bored with this game very quick? Is the execise too much for a player?

Second round testing:

Acknowledgement:

Evan Barba, student from Computer Science Department, has been working with me in the past three months on this project. This project couldn't have been done without his help.
Chris Bregler, professor from Computer Science Department, has been helping us on this project.
Special thanks to Interactive Telecommunications Program and Computer Science Department for giving all the assistances.