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WIP
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Welcome to Robert, Andrew and Rebecca's wikispace **

**Research Project: Field Proposal (Amended)**
Andrew Canale Robert Hunter Rebecca Rodrigues **__Assignment Two : Field Proposal__** The goal of this assignment is to examine two virtual worlds and compare their use of vertical space to that of the real world. The online games __Perfect World__ and __Guild Wars__ will be utilized as a major part of this analysis. __Perfect World__ contains a z-axis; this means that the game world has a dimension of vertical depth, allowing the character to jump, fly, and interact with the world on multiple vertical levels, exploring multi-story buildings, cliffs, caves, and floating structures. Like every virtual world, __Guild Wars__ also contains a z-axis but it is limited or curtailed ; characters are confined to a single xy-plane at z=0 (x,y,0); programming glitches restrict the ability to move over or under any given thing (e.g. Bridges, caves).
 * The Hypothesis**

//Ultimately, neither world accurately depicts reality – __Perfect World__ gives the player too much freedom and makes it difficult to navigate or maneuver, while __Guild Wars__ restricts the player to the point where the world seems somehow confined and unrealistic.// **(***Need to discuss th effects of z-axis exploits - eg. changes to the game (code) or gameplay (how users actually interact with it.***)**

The 2-D space in __Guild Wars__ creates limitations for the character because the player cannot climb cliffs, scale buildings or dive underwater. In contrast, __Perfect World__ affords these actions through flight capabilities, but these spaces on the z-axis are not located on the map; thus, the visualizations serve to convey this information through pre-attentive processing. In the real world, a human may gain access to the top of a building by climbing stairs or using an elevator which is accessed through the interior. In Guild Wars, the buildings only serve an aesthetic purpose as one cannot enter or scale the roof. Perfect World allows access to the top of buildings from the exterior only - the buildings are the stairs.

The data will be presented via screen shots, videos, and animated slide shows. Both games will be compared to the real world via media content.


 * Conceptual Links**

This project will draw on several course materials, though given the highly technical and vertices-focused approach; four concepts will be decidedly more prevalent.

__**//Cognitive Cost//**__

The concept of cognitive cost determines how the user consumes images at a glance, particularly in regards to how long it takes and how difficult it is to understand any given image. This is extremely important to the implementation to a vertical axis in a computer game because more information must be consumed in less time - one must make judgments quickly, sometimes while midair. The cognitive cost concept determines how long it takes to determine that a cliff is not an insurmountable peak and that there is something of worth at the top of it; what creatures are villains and where they are in relation to the character; and where and how non-party characters are situated. If any of these messages are not conveyed efficiently, the user can get lost, bored, confused, and ultimately killed, making for an unfortunate or unpleasant game experience.

__**//Sensory Representation//**__ (Second Heuristic, Ware, Lecture 3, Jan 20th)

The cognitive cost concept ties directly into the concept of sensory representation. How does one convey the message that a character controls, or is unable to control, the aspect of vertical movement? How does one communicate the ability to tele-port? How does one learn how to use these unnatural, or virtual, movements by feel and instinct rather than instruction? These experiences are not things to which the average person has access; however, these functionalities and experiences must be conveyed in terms of image and sound and must be processed by the user relatively quickly.


 * This sounds more like affordances (Heuristic 3) than sensory representation...**

>>>>> moving between different domains can be easier without having to go through a process of explanation...
 * Thinking in terms of these three (of the five) advantages provides a second heuristic for assessing the efficacy of techniques of CV
 * Quantity?
 * makes large amounts of data immediately available
 * is this making a lot of data immediately available
 * Macro/Micro?
 * facilitates understanding of both micro-level and macro
 * -level features and patterns
 * Supports theorization
 * encourages analytic thinking
 * hmm, maybe i can scale that wall or climb that tree???

__**//Wayfinding//**__

Wayfinding, then, also becomes relevant to this discussion when creating a virtual world with or without a z-axis accessibility or navigability. Navigation is arguably the most important part of any persistent online world, and it is difficult to control movement on three axes without prior experience in that area.

__Perfect World__’s navigation system is confusing and difficult to use, providing too much options without adequate control, where __Guild Wars__ provides impressive amounts of control, but an unrealistic level of area and path rigidity. As such, way-finding becomes difficult and addled with the addition of a z-axis; is the experience richer with more control or more flexibility? **(***what is this last question about?? may need to remove this***)**

//**__Withering Aura__** **(***which part, space or authenticitt or both?***)**//

Finally, the concept of //withering aura// will be used to highlight how both games fail in their attempt to create an imersive world. Wither involves a loss or elimination of connection to and authenticity of any given experience – it is difficult to perceive either world as “real” (if not realistic) because one cannot navigate the real world in the same way as one can navigate __Perfect World__ or __Guild Wars.__ Clearly, one cannot control their movement in relation to Earth’s vertical depth; however, one cannot immediately stop, run at inhuman speeds, or cross a large continent on foot either. We will determine how the visualizations of both worlds wither the connectivity and hinder the experience of game consumption. **(***Not sure what this last part means***)**

Team members will not follow a rigid set of roles and duties, rather, each team member will be responsible for contributing to the assignment as a whole.
 * Roles and Assignments**

Andrew Canale will be involved with researching aspects of way-finding systems for vertical spaces as they exist in //the real world// in contrast to those in virtual spaces. He will be involved in the development and presentation of the material.

Robert Hunter has had previous experience in both game worlds, and is more suited to drawing comparisons, assessing limitations, and dispelling illusions of computer visualization within both games. He will be responsible for gathering the bulk of the in-game media, having more access to the worlds in addition to editing the final product.

Rebecca Rodrigues has a firm understanding of the readings and lecture materials, and will be primarily involved in making connections between the games and the concepts presented in the course material. She will be involved in critically discussing the games in relation to theory.

The deliverables shall likely include **a small written report**, an animated slide show presentation, one or two edited videos from the given game worlds, in addition to a stock folder of images from the other presentation materials. As far as tutorial materials are concerned, our group lacks the technical skill and expertise to create a usable website for this assignment, and will include a link to a personalized wikispace rather than dabble in cascading style sheets.
 * Deliverables**


 * FEEDBACK** from Kevin

This page is to be reserved for feedback from the course instructor.

semantic concern - both have z axes, but guild wars has a severely curtailed z axis.

We're missing **the lineage of history -** **//z axis exploits//.** Look at the way a lack of a strong z axis changed behaviour in an online world. gameplay changes, bugs, innovations, etc. "Wall jumping", the bridge thing, dain exploit, arathi basin exploit. <-- these (except for the bridge thing) are WoW exploits

Note that the way we manipulate the z axis changes the way we experience the worlds.