[MUD-Dev] Re: Alternate UOL's

["Koster, Raph" <rkoster#origin,ea.com>]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: D. B. Brown [mailto:dbrown1#stny,lrun.com]
> Sent: Wednesday, August 05, 1998 4:53 PM
> To: mud-dev#kanga,nu
> Subject: [MUD-Dev] Re: Alternate UOL's 
> From my analysis, 3D is really the only way for a small group to go.
> Yes, the engine will take more time to complete, but with wonders such
> as OpenGL and related APIs, the base tools are availible.

You're not going to have a viable 3d engine with 3d meshes for figures
unless you spend at least two years developing it. Consider the basic
problem: you need to support 30-40 fully animated 3d figures moving on
screen at once, in a 3d environment, ideally all with distinct meshes,
art, and equipment.

This is an extremely non-trivial problem for a 3d engine. There's a
reason why folks like 989 Studios (formerly Sony Interactive, makers of
EverQuest) have been working on it for so long--and are requiring 3d
acceleration--and still only show 5-6 people at once.

-Raph