NASA's MMO Video Game To Have A Linux Port?

[phoronix]

Phoronix: NASA's MMO Video Game To Have A Linux Port?

The latest mission for NASA, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, is not to put man on Mars or revisit the Moon, but to develop a video game. NASA is working with three game studios now to develop their very own massively multi-player online game...

http://www.phoronix.com/vr.php?view=NzA4NA

[Vadi]

"considered" - "Yeah, we use Linux, it helps us, but to make games for it? Lol."

Meanwhile, at least Celetania (http://www.celetania.com/) had a linux version from day one (woah!).

[Danyul]

We have been tipped off that it is indeed being considered.

That almost the same as me considering to buy a Kawasaki ZX14 and building a computer that can store my music and unify all the other systems in the bike displaying it in a skinable readout on an LCD screen in place of the gauges........but it will more than likely not happen in the forseeable future.

And I don't think I would pay a subscription to play it as it sounds like there's no aliens, zombies or other mindless NPCs to interact with or blast away.

I know it's aimed at high school aged kids but seriously all this will be is something that they can play in school to reduce the teachers workload of actually teaching.

Things like this are the reasons I did things like write a BASIC program that imitates the sound of the fire alarm and gets our class evacuated 20 mins before lunch while everyone else stayed in.

[d2kx]

Anyone knows what engine Star Wars - The Old Republic uses?

[Michael]

Anyone knows what engine Star Wars - The Old Republic uses?

Doesn't that use the Odyssey Engine?

[d2kx]

Doesn't that use the Odyssey Engine?

Are you sure? I haven't found any kind of information about it yet. Would be too good if it was going to be released for Linux, too. I expect it to become the second biggest MMOG after World of Warcraft, but it's still a while...

[sc3252]

I will put this on my short list of games NOT to play. Since I can only imagine how boring it is going to be.:(

[bulletxt]

"A space game won't appeal to all Linux gamers, but at least it's not yet another first-person shooter and it will be a modern-day game."

Ah, you can say that loud! You should do a topic talking about this... we are sick and tired of FPS games for Linux!!! That's the only thing we have and we don't even have the best ones out there on the market..

[deanjo]

Are you sure? I haven't found any kind of information about it yet. Would be too good if it was going to be released for Linux, too. I expect it to become the second biggest MMOG after World of Warcraft, but it's still a while...

Are you sure your not thinking of Star Wars Galaxies? Knights of the Old Republic wasn't a MMO at all. (and yes KotOR used the odyssey engine.)

From an interview when Galaxies was being developed...

Saromus: Does Star Wars Galaxies use a Licensed Game Engine or does it have a Proprietary Engine?

Bogafett: The SWG engine was written from scratch. There was no tech available to handle what SWG provides for both the client/server.
http://swg.stratics.com/content/?Cat=264&uid=1259

[EarthMind]

A non-profit organisation creating an MMORPG with a monthly based paid subscription...?

[d2kx]

Are you sure your not thinking of Star Wars Galaxies? Knights of the Old Republic wasn't a MMO at all. (and yes KotOR used the odyssey engine.)

From an interview when Galaxies was being developed...

http://swg.stratics.com/content/?Cat=264&uid=1259

I am not talking about KotOR, nor am I talking about SW: Galaxies. I am talking about SW: ToR which is due to be released in 2010 or so and probably the biggest MMOG title in development right now.

http://www.swtor.com/

[deanjo]

Oh forgot about that. That uses the Heroengine.
Star Wars: The Old Republic to Use HeroEngine


Efficient game engine will expedite development process.


by Jimmy Thang (http://pc.ign.com/email.html)


December 10, 2008 - Star Wars: The Old Republic (http://pc.ign.com/objects/816/816935.html), BioWare's upcoming MMO based on the Star Wars license, will use Simutronic's HeroEngine. Simutronics is known as one of the leading creators of online game development platforms.

The company's HeroEngine "provides a complete technology solution for MMO developers, which takes years off time to market by providing a streamlined creative pipeline and a complete toolset in an integrated turnkey solution," read an official statement.

"Our goal was to partner with a platform developer that knows online gaming and virtual world development, and the team at Simutronics has an excellent track record in that respect," said Gordon Walton, Co-studio Director at BioWare. He added, "Their HeroEngine was specifically created for building MMOGs and it allows for a great amount of flexibility in the way our entire team collaborates."

According to the official statement, "The unique collaborative design platform of the HeroEngine allows for development in real-time, enabling teams in different geographic locales to build the world and play the game live on the server simultaneously. Updates and changes to the game environment are instantaneous, negating the need for nightly builds and code crunching, which significantly reduces the notoriously long MMOG development cycle."

"The team at BioWare is creating an incredible experience, and we're honored that they've selected our tool to help them build this epic world," said David Whatley, Simutronics' Chief Executive Office and HeroEngine Chief Designer. "We've invested years of experience and our passion for virtual world entertainment into developing HeroEngine, and we're confident that fans and online gaming enthusiasts alike will be happy with the finished product."

[Svartalf]

Doesn't that use the Odyssey Engine?

I think you're probably thinking KotOR on that one. I think they were asking about the MMO that's about to come out that's themed along the same lines as the world of KotOR.

Rumor has it that they're doing it with an off-the-shelf MMO engine instead of rolling their own- if so, the rumor has them using Simutronics' HeroEngine.