Enter 1998 December/ENTER12_1.iso/os2/Simblob/Data/simblob.hlp

OS/2 Help File | 1998-03-22 | 8.9 KB | 146 lines

ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 1. Controls ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

I have attempted to make the game use custom mouse settings that you have set
in the properties page of the "Mouse Object". However, I have not extensively
tested it, and the notes here assume the default left-handed mouse settings.
Let me know if you have problems with the game's use of the mouse.

 World Map A LMB click changes the view to be centered wherever you clicked.
           You can also drag with the LMB to move the view, but this may be
           slow on some systems.

 Toolbar   LMB click allows you to choose the tool to use. Most of the tools
           let you build something, and are collectively called the build
           tools.

 Map View

           Build Tools    LMB click or drag draws the currently selected
                          toolbar item. If you are drawing roads, canals,
                          bridges, or walls, you can drag from one point to
                          another, and a line will be drawn between those
                          points. If you are erasing, or drawing trees, fires,
                          or gates, then dragging will draw "freehand". The
                          item will not be drawn immediately, but instead a
                          black or green hexagon will be drawn at that
                          location, and a blob will go to that location to
                          build whatever you wanted.

                          Using Ctrl with the LMB will use the Eraser instead
                          of the toolbar selection. Using Shift with the LMB
                          will draw straight instead of freehand, or freehand
                          instead of straight.

                          RMB click does different things in different
                          versions; it is a convenient place for me to put test
                          code.

           Blob Tool      The blob tool lets you create and move blobs. RMB
                          drag moves a blob from one place to another. LMB
                          click creates a blob and sends him to the point at
                          which you clicked.

           Select Tool    The select tool (not yet finished) displays
                          information about a selected object. At present, it
                          simply displays information about the object
                          underneath the mouse pointer.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 2. BlobCity ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

SimBlob is the name of a project I started in 1994, to produce a game that
would let me experiment with various things I was learning at school. In
particular, I wanted to experiment with bitmap graphics, multithreaded
programming, user interfaces, and cellular automata. SimBlob started out as a
strategy game for OS/2 with simulation of the environment and economy affecting
your quest to conquer neighboring towns. The setting is an early (green) Mars,
with blobs being the most intelligent life form on the planet. The original
plan turned out to be too ambitious for me, given that I spend much of my time
on projects and I will soon be starting on my Ph.D. thesis.

The current plan is for the SimBlob project to include two (or more) simpler
games instead of one very complex one. The games will share the basic map
structure (a hexagonal grid map), environmental simulation (water flow,
erosion, fires, tree growth, etc.), and user interface. The first game,
BlobCity, is a single player game where you are playing against the
environment. In it you try to build a town in a world that has fires, floods,
volcanos, and so on. The SimBlob project also includes a second game, which
will have less city building and more resource management. This game has not
yet been designed. I have written several possibilities for games that could
fit into the SimBlob project; they are listed on the web page. The blobs might
live in a large city; they might be building a town to compete with other
towns; they might have towns already, and want you to link them together with
trade; or they might be seeking to take advantage of the natural resources on
Mars. I am starting to write up a design document for The Silver Kingdoms,
which is my current favorite choice for a second game; I will post that
document here soon. Comments and suggestions are appreciated.

For the latest information about BlobCity, visit the web page at
http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~amitp/games.html


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 3. Playing ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

At present, the game is playable, although it's not complete. (The main problem
is lack of documentation and the inability to save and load games, IMO.) The
play in BlobCity is "Blobs vs.  Nature" (single player) instead of "Blobs vs.
Blobs" (human player vs. computer players), which is planned for the second
SimBlob game. Like SimCity, there is no predetermined goal; instead you set
your own goals. You are building a town and seek to conquer the elements. Try
to build your towns to withstand floods, yet be near sources of water. Try to
build your towns to withstand fires, yet be near forests. Try to achieve
600,000 population without auto-build mode. Try to have more food than people
in your town.

Other things to try:

   1. If you want to create irrigation channels, start at a water source on a
      mountain. Build a walled channel that slopes gently downwards. Along this
      channel, build gates. Outside the channel, starting from each gate, build
      a trench. This trench will receive some water from the main channel, but
      due to the gate, will not take all of the water. Note: This works better
      if you can put several water sources inside the walled channel.

   2. To protect against fires, put fire watchtowers in spaces that the blobs
      aren't going to build in anyway. For example, a common road pattern is a
      hexagon with seven spaces inside; with this, only six will be used by the
      blobs, and the middle hex can be filled with a watchtower.

   3. To protect against floods, either build flood trenches that will catch
      and divert flooding, or place trenches in open spots that blobs don't
      build in. The first solution will keep flooding from occuring; the second
      solution will drain water away if your town does get flooding.

   4. To get the most from a water source, force the water go go down a gentle
      slope. On a steep slope, water will flow faster, and your river or
      channel will be shorter, so fewer farms will benefit.

   5. Build a village and turn on Auto-Build mode. You can watch the builder
      blobs go crazy trying to extend the village.


ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ 4. Simulation ΓòÉΓòÉΓòÉ

Farms and houses will be created automatically around roads; the blobs will
only move into a hex adjacent to a road. (They will not move in next to a
bridge.) If you have Auto Build Mode on, then roads and bridges will be created
and extended automatically.

Anything that needs to be built will be marked with a hexagon, and then a
builder blob will go there to build it.

Water will flow downhill. Trenches are 50 feet deep, so water will flow into
them. Walls are 120 feet high, so they block most water. Gates are also 120
feet high, but they allow a small amount of water to pass through. You can use
gates to build spillways or controlled release points on dams; or you can use
them as openings on the sides of an irrigation canal, to let out small amounts
of water to side canals.

Economic, military, and political simulation are not yet in place. I am using
cellular automata and network flow algorithms to determine how many people can
"flow" from certain points (houses) to other points (farms). I am using the
same algorithms for making food "flow" from farms to houses. For now, workers
producing food forms the entire basis for BlobCity's economy. BlobCity will
probably not have any military simulation and is unlikely to have any political
simulation; these two are more likely to be in the second SimBlob game.