Although the game revolves around magic and mythical creatures, Skyrim is a game that surely shows hyper realistic geography. In this world, nature here is similar to what we have here on Earth. The topography, the logic regarding the flow of water from high elevations to r lower ones and more can be seen here as the physics of nature are consistent and logical. Aside from nature, human behavior also changes accordingly in this world. Larger settlements are less dependent than smaller ones, given their greater access to resources.
In terms of map content, the map really pleases me as a geographer for several reasons. One of them is that the game included trading routes, waterways and so much more. It expounded on how the world of Skyrim moved due to its topography rather than just put markers and the likes.
In terms of map content, the map really pleases me as a geographer for several reasons. One of them is that the game included trading routes, waterways and so much more. It expounded on how the world of Skyrim moved due to its topography rather than just put markers and the likes.
Warframe is a Massive Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG) where you can travel among planets and explore them freely. Each planet is well-designed as they have their own art style and “identity” and along with that, it’s geographic sense of location. Planets and places are shaped in a way that their terramorphic features define the lifestyle of the creatures and people that live there. This, in a way brings out the hyper realistic geography that I wanted to point out. The landscape of these planets are very distinct. It’s actually amazing that some of the planets were so developed by its environment that you can guess what the origins of things came to be there.
In terms of map content and design, Warframe has to have one of the best maps. The photo above shows the available planets and spaces for exploration and each planet has its own detailed map. The layout is very simple yet is able to guide a player accordingly due to it being informative, yet at the same time easy to read through. Compared to others, this one has a very polished layout and is can be considered as a perfect interactive map for games.
In terms of map content and design, Warframe has to have one of the best maps. The photo above shows the available planets and spaces for exploration and each planet has its own detailed map. The layout is very simple yet is able to guide a player accordingly due to it being informative, yet at the same time easy to read through. Compared to others, this one has a very polished layout and is can be considered as a perfect interactive map for games.
One of the iconic Marvel superheroes had its own game released late this year. Spider Man on PS4 was the superhero game everyone had hoped for and has been already nominated for dozens of awards (some already won). It has a very realistic design wherein the detail put into the surroundings and characters was considered to be the peak of what gaming technology can offer in 2018. The core of the game, or the environment, was based on Manhattan and took several years to copy building by building. It was mentioned that a drone used by the design team had to take several thousand photos of Manhattan to create the most accurate and precise clone of Manhattan to be put into the game. Movements by bystanders and Spiderman himself are very much thought of as the physics behind things were applied.
The interesting part of why I included this game is not because of how real it felt like to roam the streets of a cloned Manhattan as Spiderman but because of the interesting map it offers. At first glance, the map looks as if it was just a layer in ArcGIS for buildings beneath a raster layer of the island of Manhattan. However, the buildings represented in the map are actually in 3D and can be tilted around to see how big a building is in scale and how tall it is compared to other ones.
The interesting part of why I included this game is not because of how real it felt like to roam the streets of a cloned Manhattan as Spiderman but because of the interesting map it offers. At first glance, the map looks as if it was just a layer in ArcGIS for buildings beneath a raster layer of the island of Manhattan. However, the buildings represented in the map are actually in 3D and can be tilted around to see how big a building is in scale and how tall it is compared to other ones.
Fallout 4 won game of the year back in 2015 and for reasons too many to be listed. For one, in relation to hyper realistic geography, Fallout 4 achieves this realism quite well. The gameplay limits the movement of characters in a way similar to that of the real world, the mannerisms of people and culture of societies vary based on the location of people or creatures (which somehow reminds me of the concept of region), spaces and places apply the concept of geographic theories such as the Central Place Theory. Those are only one of the few reasons why the game can be considered hyper realistic both geographically and in design.
The map of the game consists of road networks, passages and buildings. The buildings, despite appearing very close to each other, have their own labels. The placing of the labels is well thought out as there seems to be no overlapping of the icons nor the names provided. To add, some places that can be ventured into have their own designed maps as well. These built-in maps are however somehow more of a floor plan rather than guides, which is understandable as it is in a videogame.
The map of the game consists of road networks, passages and buildings. The buildings, despite appearing very close to each other, have their own labels. The placing of the labels is well thought out as there seems to be no overlapping of the icons nor the names provided. To add, some places that can be ventured into have their own designed maps as well. These built-in maps are however somehow more of a floor plan rather than guides, which is understandable as it is in a videogame.