Widget Baron Online A Multiplayer Simulation Game Karl Koscher Firat Kiyak

Widget Baron Online Multiplayer “tycoon” game based in virtual Seattle Players compete against each other to create the most profitable widget empire Urban environment simulated by UrbanSim  “a simulation model for integrated planning and analysis of urban development“ Urban environment influences game strategies

Current State of Widget Baron Single player game developed over the summer as a research project Players can explore the city, set up widget shops, and vote on urban policies Game mechanics are a bit weak  Multiplayer would dramatically enhance playability  Real competition > simulated competition  Real economic effects

Current State of Widget Baron

Widget Baron Online Target audience: casual gamers Target systems:  Mid-to-high level PCs  Broadband Internet connection Benefits:  Fun for the user  May get players interested in civic issues  May get extra publicity for UrbanSim

Non-goals Not massively-multiplayer (<100) Not designed for hardcore gamers Not an urban planning tool

Requirements simultaneous players Robust economic model Player interactions and communications Playable on mid-level systems Open source Fun!

System Architecture Game server coordinates, simulates economy Simulation cluster runs UrbanSim  May be possible to distribute to players’ machines! File server stores UrbanSim run results Scenario DB maps votes to UrbanSim run data

Lifecycle Plan – Rough Timeline Three weeks for basic architecture  Network communication  Server code Three weeks for refinement  Performance tweaks  Game enhancements Two weeks for beta fixes

Lifecycle Plan Support:  Code maintenance: open source, UrbanSim will maintain code  Servers: UrbanSim will provide  Customer support: Documentation, but that’s it!

Risks A lot of existing C++ code  Some well-documented, others not so much A lot of work  Six weeks is not much time to develop a multiplayer game! Somewhat dependant on UrbanSim  For data from the runs

However… We are starting from a “complete” game Final product would be very polished Opportunity to make a very fun game