From: lishka@uwslh.slh.wisc.edu (a.k.a. Chri)
Subject: Re: Wargames and Virtual Worlds (Was Re: Questions about BattleTech)
Date: Wed, 1 May 91 15:49:28 GMT
Organization: Wisconsin State Laboratory of Hygiene



cyberoid@milton.u.washington.edu (Bob Jacobson) writes:

>But there was also a concern, which I shared and expressed, that beyond
>any moral questions, such presentations run the risk of distorting, once
>again, public perception of virtual worlds technology.  Having finally
>outlasted the "electronic LSD" phase of press interest, are we now going
>to have to fend off claims that VWT somehow aids and abets warrior
>instincts and is, after all, only returning to the military roots from
>which it sprang -- never to mature into civilian applications?  Of course
>we know that there is more to this than just more weaponry, but do the
>shoot-em-up's -- BattleTech and Virtuality -- help or hinder our field?

I think that VR might first become really popular in arcades and
realtime gaming.  There are many simulators out there, including the
BattleTech and Virtuality game systems, that are on the fringes of VR.
However, not *ALL* of them are destructive.  For example, Atari's
"Hard Drivin'" and "Race Drivin'" car driving simulators simply offer
the player a chance to race around at high speeds and flip the car
over without damaging anything. 

Note that the virtual plane battle is nothing new.  Aircraft
simulators have been on PCs since the Apple II (and probably before),
when the precursor to the SubLogic Flight Simulator showed up.  The
Flight Simulator included a battle mode, where the player fought
against WWI biplanes (this may have not been in the original, but was
in later versions).  VR plane battles are nothing new.
 
>My own inclination is to call these systems devices of the Devil, but
>merely bashing technology doesn't get to the ideas and persuasions that
>leads to such aberrations.  How do you feel about the virtual wargames?

As are all arcade games?  Chess is based on a very stylized form of
battle, but noone seems to complain about it.  There are countless
people out there (and throughout history) who have played board-based
wargames.  And as mentioned above, driving and piloting simulators
have been around for at least a decade on PCs, with varying levels of
realism. 

Just because the popular forms of VR currently seem to be in arcades
does not mean that VR cannot progress beyond this.  However, what will
be needed are ideas and implementations that will be useful and
exciting to a large group of people, not just "computer-weenies" (like
myself ;-) who have read W. Gibson and want to duplicate the
experience in real life.  Contrary to some opinions expressed in this
group, I don't think that the level of realism brought on by fantastic
peripherals that a person straps to their body is going to drive VR
into a popular experience.  Rather, good ideas and implementations on
*available* hardware systems that draw the attention of many people
will make VR profitable, which will likely lead to more research into
VR. 

                                                .oO Chris Oo.

P.S. Even W. Gibson (the VR fiction "king") himself wrote a short
story about an arcade game cowboy.  It appears in _Burning_Chrome_ ...
the last story, I believe. 
-- 
Christopher Lishka 608-262-4485     It is not safe out here.  It is wonderous,
Wisconsin State Lab. of Hygiene     with treasures to satiate desires both
   lishka@uwslh.slh.wisc.edu        subtle and gross.  But it is not for the
   uunet!uwvax!uwslh!lishka         timid. -- Q