It's almost been a year since James Cameron's Avatar kick-started the 3D revolution, and the movement has continued to gain momentum. Following the launch of 3D televisions and broadcasting services, the technology is no longer confined to cinema screens, marking the beginning of a new era for home entertainment. The gaming industry reaped the rewards of this, harnessing the hardware to achieve unprecedented levels of immersion and realism. Sony has pioneered the medium from the start, introducing extensive 3D support to its PlayStation 3 console through a series of firmware updates and converting a batch of its existing games for use with the tech. During the recent Develop conference in Liverpool, Sony senior director Mick Hocking discussed the implications of this exciting new medium.
Sony launched its first 3D software update for the PS3 back in April, enabling the console to support the technology through HDMI. In September, a second update introduced 3D Blu-ray playback, and photo and MP4 support soon followed. Over 20 of the studio's games are now optimised for the extra dimension, and a host of third-party developers are planning to convert their flagship titles in the same way. Seeing WipEout HD, Super Stardust HD, Killzone 3 and The Fight all running in 3D, it's clear that the benefits of the technology will vary from genre-to-genre. Increasing the player's depth perception impacts on the way speed, distance, scale and proximity information is processed, which has radical gameplay implications.
"You're not only seeing visual information, you're processing the depth information as well," said Hocking. "This can help you to interpret what's going on in each scene. For instance, if we add 3D to any fast-moving game, we immediately enhance the sense of speed, and what better game to show this than our very own WipEout? This was one of the first games we optimised for the technology, and the minute we put it into 3D, it felt faster."
3D is beginning to show its potential in the racing genre, and this is no surprise given that most professional racing drivers are now trained using similar technology. Not only does the additional dimension enhance the sense of speed in arcade titles, it also opens up new possibilities in simulation racers like the recently released Gran Turismo 5. The additional depth information helps players pinpoint the opportune moment to break for a corner or better judge the distance between themselves and an opposing vehicle.
The hardware also has a bearing on height, scale and visual clarity, which all serve to enhance gameplay across a range of genres. Hocking used footage from Shadow Of The Colossus to demonstrate 3D's capacity for scale. The video showed a scene where the protagonist squared off against a screen-filling behemoth, with a palpable sense of awe as the beast loomed over the camera. A clip from MotorStorm 3D Rift was used to showcase the height illusion, giving viewers vertigo as a vehicle plummeted over a cliff edge. Such techniques will no doubt help developers take gaming to the next level; but that's just for starters.
"3D will also help you process what you are looking at. It enhances the clarity of the visual information," Hocking explained. "So this could help in a game where there's a great deal of stuff going on. Your brain can make more sense of it. A good example of this is something like Super Stardust HD, where the longer you play, the more asteroids and power-ups appear, and you've got to navigate your ship between them. We found that in 3D, people are able to better judge the distance between them. Hopefully that means you can last longer and get a higher score."
Gamers are also handed a competitive edge in the sports genre with another dimension to enhance timing and judgement. For instance, in a title like Sega's upcoming Virtua Tennis 4, players will have a better idea of the direction and speed the ball is travelling, thus aiding the delivery of the return serve. More detailed topography is sure to make life easier in titles likeEverybody Golf. Not only will players benefit from more clarity on the driving range, the visible contours on the green should help facilitate the perfect put.
3D isn't the only new tech Sony has invested in recently. PlayStation Move debuted earlier this year, marking the firm's entry into the motion gaming arena, and it's had its finger in the augmented reality pie since the launch of the EyeToy during the previous hardware generation. Combining these technologies with 3D opens up even more new gameplay opportunities, and Sony is investing in software to support these marriages. Playing EyePet Move Edition in 3D, gamers can view themselves on their television screen interacting with the virtual pet with a stereoscopic effect. Elsewhere, The Fight and Tumble harness both Move and 3D to break new ground on the interactivity front.
"Unlike other mediums, we can interact and innovate with 3D in ways that you just can't with things like film and TV," Hocking said. "For instance, we've already combined 3D with our new Move controller, so in a game like The Fight, we can now control the speed, power and direction of our punches outside of the TV, very accurately with the Move controller with a sense of depth perception, of things like speed and distance of our opponent in the TV with 3D. This combination of 3D spatial control and 3D graphics makes for a very unique and compelling way to play the game.
"We can also make some games more accessible with 3D. A game likeTumble here, we want this to feel friendly, a nice entry level product. If you can pick up a block with the Move controller and push it forward, it will move away from you in space. As you pull the block towards you, it will come towards you in space. It's exactly what you expect to happen. It makes the game feel more natural, which is great for bringing new people to this type of experience."
As Hocking asserted throughout his presentation, 3D isn't just about bolstering existing software, it's also about pushing the industry's boundaries and making games more accessible to new audiences. But what does the future hold for the technology? According to the exec, we can expect most major releases to be optimised for the hardware over the coming years, and the tech to see further growth. New techniques are already in gestation, and we can expect Sony to be at the forefront of their development.
"One technique that we are doing some R and D on our labs in the North-West here is a holographic technique. We are tracking the position and orientation of the users head here and altering the 3D relative to that position. It gives you an effect like objects are in the room with you. A pseudo holographic effect. It's profoundly different from normal 3D.
"This is really just the start. We are only just beginning to experiment with what's possible in terms of how we can affect games visually with 3D and how we can affect the gameplay with 3D. We've also got some nice ways of using new interfaces with 3D, and there's some new technologies coming along in the next couple years that are going to further enhance how we can use 3D in games."
Wrapping up the keynote, Hocking reiterated that 3D can improve games both technically and creatively. In closing, he raised the question of which development studio will go on to create gaming's equivalent of Avatar.
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