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Community => Adventure Related Talk & Chat => Topic started by: BunnyShoggoth on Sat 12/03/2016 23:38:58

Title: A Lucas-style game about quantum physics?
Post by: BunnyShoggoth on Sat 12/03/2016 23:38:58
A few days ago I stumbled upon a very interesting platformer game called "Schrodinger's cat: Raiders of the Lost Quark"; its intro trailer gives a very LucasArts-ish vibe, reminding of stuff like DOTT or Psychonauts.

[embed=425,349]<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/3PMNYWFAEGw?rel=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>[/embed]

This made me think that the themes of quantum physics and cosmology, which are rapidly becoming popular in all sorts of media (books, movies, etc., like R. A. Wilson's "Schrodinger's Cat" trilogy), are still mostly ignored in adventure genre. I believe all this weirdness about Schrodinger's cats, multiple realities, all sorts of quirky particles and their interactions, etc. would make excellent basis for a wacky DOTT-style adventure game (maybe something like particles growing to marcoscopic size and becoming sentient like Green and Purple Tentacle).

(https://i.ytimg.com/vi/8xix592oj48/mqdefault.jpg)

Other physical concepts, like those from cosmology, could be employed as well. The lore of King's Quest is already using the idea of "pocket universes", and it could also be possible to include things like holographic principle and AdS/CFT. This could make an interesting plot not only for a sci-fi game, but also for games like King's Quest and Torin's Passage, with the main characters discovering that they're just bits of information on a two-dimensional surface, and this explains all the strange things/magic of their world.

What do you think?

(https://encrypted-tbn3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTUUcGgpxeHNv-b3nk0-BtTPFx8MMILW36YJy6Xt6gMSMRUD5lQ)
Title: Re: A Lucas-style game about quantum physics?
Post by: SilverSpook on Sun 13/03/2016 08:28:26
For OROW, Creamy and I made a game about quantum physics called Dislocation (http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/site/games/game/1962/)

(http://www.adventuregamestudio.co.uk/images/games/1962_1.png)

The game I am presently working on, Neofeud (http://www.indiedb.com/games/neofeud), also involves a whole lot of mind-bending quantum physics, cosmology, consciousness science, and the like.

(http://media.indiedb.com/cache/images/games/1/36/35501/thumb_620x2000/output_JWwzL7.gif)

This craft, for example, is meant to be a form of 'quantech' device that utilizes consciousness itself, in particular the observer effect to affect the 'probability' of the wave-function collapse.  I can't go much more into detail without spoilering everyone with key plotpoints, but let's just say, I'm operating on your wavelength.  ;)
Title: Re: A Lucas-style game about quantum physics?
Post by: moloko on Sun 13/03/2016 11:12:11
This is most definitely a topic I tried incorporating in Ponderabilia , and the script I'm writing for PB2 will most likely follow the same path. All ideas are welcome!
Title: Re: A Lucas-style game about quantum physics?
Post by: BunnyShoggoth on Fri 18/03/2016 22:55:26
Thank you, I really enjoyed Dislocation :)
Spoiler
The use of "observer effect" in quantum teleportation is ingenious
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However, what I have in mind is more surreal/mind-bending (with cartoonish surrealism like DOTT/Psychonauts and/or David-Lynchian like Mulholland Drive).
Title: Re: A Lucas-style game about quantum physics?
Post by: SilverSpook on Sat 19/03/2016 01:27:18
Yeah, I wouldn't quite call Neofeud cartoonish.  More science fictional if anything. :)
Title: Re: A Lucas-style game about quantum physics?
Post by: BunnyShoggoth on Thu 05/10/2017 17:20:21
By the way, there's now an official quantum-themed videogame contest at an Australian research center:

https://www.uq.edu.au/news/article/2017/09/national-competition-quantum-physics-game-designers
Title: Re: A Lucas-style game about quantum physics?
Post by: Mr Underhill on Thu 05/10/2017 19:02:17
I just came in to say that I love the nickname BunnyShoggoth.
Title: Re: A Lucas-style game about quantum physics?
Post by: BunnyShoggoth on Fri 06/10/2017 19:21:28
Thank you! It comes from The Illuminatus! :)
Spoiler
I believe that Bugs Bunny is no longer the shoggoth symbol for Hollywood Illuminati, now Roger Rabbit is :wink:
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