[TuxKart-devel] Thoughts on Kart Models.

[Steve B. <sjb...@ai...>]

(Cross-posted to HP Game of The Month - because I don't think everyone
is over here yet).

Someone posted a new BSOD-kart model to that forum...here were my
comments:

caleb256 wrote:

 > ok I have made a bsod needs to be textured (can't find his texture :/ )
 > http://berty.dyndns.org/~caleb/tuxkart/bosd.ac
 > http://berty.dyndns.org/~caleb/tuxkart/bosd.blend

As I said before, Karts are pretty much only seen from the rear end. It
is UTTERLY imperative that artists think about that as they work.

This kart looks *identical* (because it is) to Grumbel's 'tuxkart4' - but
with a different driver. I don't think that's going to work. The four (or
hopefully many more) Karts have to be distinctive from the rear so you can
tell who is who. My original kart models - although crude and almost identical
vehicles - had the virtue that they showed off the driver very well - and
since the drivers were all very different, it was extremely easy to see who
was who from behind. Grumbel's kart has Tux sitting much lower (more like
a real GoKart than a cartoon-style thing) - which is OK so long as the other
karts are *WAY* different so we can tell who's who.

This kart has a *tiny* BSOD figure - whom you quite literally cannot see at
all from behind.

Here is what I would build for a BSOD kart - I'd like to see a model of a
classic beige-box desk-side PC with CD-ROMs for wheels and the CD drive tray
opened up to make the seat-back. Take some liberties with real PC design by
putting the computer on it's side - it doesn't have to be a literally correct
portrayal - so long as it has recognisable elements of a PC, that's how people
will see it. However, turning things around allows the back panel of the to be
on the back of the Kart where we can see it. Plan to have some cables trailing
out fluttering in the breeze as though they were ripped away from whatever they
were connected to as the *evil* BSOD absconded with someone's PC. The CD-ROM
wheels can have 'TuxKart 1.0.0 Backup: 27th July 2005" textured onto them like
it was hand-written in magic marker.

This fits the bill for what we need:

1) It's DISTINCTIVE from the rear...you can quite easily tell who it is even
    when he's just a dozen pixels across out in the distance.

2) It's INTERESTING from the rear - fluttering cables, maybe with some animated
    sparks coming out of them. Perhaps some flashing LED's and a spinning power
    supply fan with little vortices coming out of it. Think: "Pointless eye-candy".

3) It's FUNNY/SILLY/CUTE - this is a fun game - not a serious/realistic game.
    Think of outrageous things to make Karts out of. A computer on wheels is just
    fine for this genre.

4) It fits the established CHARACTER of the 'person' driving it. BSOD is The Evil
    Blue-screen-of-death -- the antipathy and arch-enemy of Tux. Stealing someone's
    computer and turning it into a GoKart is exactly the kind of nasty thing we'd
    expect him to do...so that's what he has to be doing.

5) It opens up the possibilities for 'special' attacks and defences - like if you
    try to rear-end BSOD, you get electrocuted by the sparks from the trailing
    cables.  He could shoot CD-ROMs as weapons and get huge speedups from driving
    over nVidia chips in the road on his own special levels. The players will
    understand why this is immediately if the kart is a computer on wheels. If it's
    a regular GoKart driven by what looks like a grey cube - it won't make *ANY*
    sense at all.

(I'm sorry to come over as negative on these contributions - I'm really VERY
appreciative of everyone's efforts - they are all food for thought - but it's no
good just to say "Wow - really good" and then quietly dump the graphic later -
because that doesn't achieve ANYTHING.)

---------------------------- Steve Baker -------------------------
HomeEmail: <sjb...@ai...>    WorkEmail: <sj...@li...>
HomePage : http://www.sjbaker.org
Projects : http://plib.sf.net    http://tuxaqfh.sf.net
            http://tuxkart.sf.net http://prettypoly.sf.net
-----BEGIN GEEK CODE BLOCK-----
GCS d-- s:+ a+ C++++$ UL+++$ P--- L++++$ E--- W+++ N o+ K? w--- !O M-
V-- PS++ PE- Y-- PGP-- t+ 5 X R+++ tv b++ DI++ D G+ e++ h--(-) r+++ y++++
-----END GEEK CODE BLOCK-----