Just an Ordinary Day - Game Invaders: The Theory and Understanding of Computer Games - page 84

Chapter 7
Just an Ordinary Day
It's just an ordinary day. You're walking down a street near the middle of town.
There is absolutely no one else around, or so it seems. Suddenly bullets ricochet off
the walls and sidewalk around you. First things fi rst; you need to fi nd cover: down
some steps, behind a low wall, down an alley? You're crouching down behind a low
wall out of harm's way for the moment. Not too badly hurt, health looks okay. Where
is the shooting coming from? You use the path of the incoming bullets and tracers
to fi nd out where your attacker is. You can just about make out someone way up
above you on a parapet. You check that you've got enough weapons and ammo.
You've got to plan your way out of this. Fighting back from down here is not going
to be easy. You can't stay where you are. You need a safe vantage point. You need
to get this guy.
Later on in this ordinary day you're scuba diving, trying to fi nd your way into
some sort of underwater building, but more of that later. Later still in this ordinary
day you are driving through town on the wrong side of the road, way above the
speed limit. You notice a line of police cars blocking the road in front of you and
you also notice a psychotic looking police car in your rear view mirror. You can't
turn round because the police in your mirror will ram you and that will probably
be the end of it. Your attention is drawn to a small gap between two of the police
cars ahead. You might be able to get through without too much damage to your
car. That's the only option. Make for the gap and hope your driving is good enough
to get you through. You just planned your way out of this. It's turning into quite
a day!
No surprise, the shooting incident is from an FPS or shoot - ' em - up . It ' s SinCity,
a death match (DM) level from Ritual Entertainment's Sin. Being an FPS DM
level, this is a fi rst person, multiplayer level with guns and ammo, health and
power - ups fl oating around just above the fl oor. Being a DM level the setting is
constrained, not to say claustrophobic; you really can't run and you really can't
hide. Bullets and ricochets naturally attract your attention, as do a few moving
pixels which signify an opponent at some distance. Keeping well armed and up
high are good tactics and the major activity is the fi refi ghts. The pace is determined