The Nexus of Art and Science

Physics as a Game Mechanic, Games as a Physics Mechanic

                Games have been around for some time now but obviously not nearly as long as physics. In the same way that physics is applied to and exaggerated in film and animation it makes sense games and game worlds would eventually make use of physics as well. What makes games unique compared to the former mediums is that games can make use of physics simulations in real time. Physics engines and simulations in games can be rendered in real time with dynamic results. In terms of true production animation or cinema, real time physics would make no sense at all. A film is generally the same film each and every time it is observed. Games though on the other hand are usually dynamic. Even though some experiences can be linear exact progression through a game is almost always in the hands of the player. This is where physics in games is a big selling point. When a game can accurately reproduce physics in its game world the sense of realism and immersion is heightened for the player. These systems of course have to work very precisely with a lot of processing power or else lose their sense of immersion. In the same way a phys dev team might develop physics for a movie whether it is a truly realistic depiction of physics or an exaggeration the same applies to games. These game engines need to work in a lot more situations though as they have to function dynamically in real time. Now while certainly not the first physic engine Valve using Source implemented physics in games in ways that were more acute than ever before. Valve and its use of physics has what I would consider a major milestone for the implementation of physics in videogames, not only as a background element but bringing physics to the forefront as a gameplay element.

                Valve is a game studio that has been around for quite some time. One of their best known and most acclaimed titles is Half Life. In the second installment of Half Life there are a few extremely prominent uses of physics. Very early in the game the player is presented with a straightforward physics problem, place bricks on one side of a lever arm to raise themselves to the next area. While quaint today this was the first time many videogame players saw physics in the form of a puzzle take center stage in a high profile videogame ostensibly about killing aliens. The beauty of its implementation though is that the puzzle is dynamic and occurring in real time. If it were a scripted event placing the blocks in a certain area would suffice but because of the fidelity of the Source engine the puzzle is relatively true at least to Newtonian physics. The blocks must be placed exactly on the lever arm and can be prone to falling off and so on.  Later in the game a similar puzzle is encountered this time making use of pulley arms as a weight puzzle to raise a ramp. The puzzles react to player interaction in real time and give for lack of a better word a sense of physics. This is important and it is truly a rea time physics puzzle and not a scripted puzzle as stated earlier. Half Life goes on to implement physics in other interesting ways as the puzzles can become more intricate with the introduction of the gravity gun. Later on Valve would go on to publish Portal, a game stripped of conventional shooter ideas and much more reliant on being a true puzzle game. Portal makes use of ideas such as conservation of momentum as a game mechanic. Probably one of the most widely known and recognized portal puzzle has to do with building enough momentum from perpetually falling to launch oneself over a large chasm. Because the physics in these games is presented as a foreground element rather than a background element, players get to experience at least to some degree a realistic representation of dynamic physics they can actually play and interact with. This is not to say physics must be at the forefront of all games. A game like Max Payne has implemented dynamic physics to body ragdolls to create a dynamic and cinematic experience when shooting people in the face. This use of physics is a lot more common though in almost all games today and not nearly as compelling. Many games have buildings that can blow up dynamically or people that can die dynamically. However without any input from the player a building blowing up slightly differently or a dead body slumping over slightly differently can become run of the mill. Physics is at its best when it is well developed and at the forefront of a gaming experience.

                As far as I know Valve has one of the best dev to fan relationships in the industry. They constantly interact with their community in interesting productive ways. This goes beyond games as entertainment and treats games as a learning tool as well. One of the more interesting ways Valve has given to the community is Teach With Portals. Teach With Portals is free version of Portal than has been tailored to teach students physics. There are a variety of physics and even math problems for students to encounter. Various schools have made use of Teach With Portals as a supplement to classic physics instruction. This is all made possible by the Source Engine which can accurately render physics such as acceleration and weight. Portal has come full circle and is now being used to educate people. In sense physics implementation at a time was at the behest of gaming. Physics was a tool of game development, first as a background element and slowly became a foreground element. Now games have become of use to physics as a means to help people engage with how physics and our work works. Much like how Portal is a game about well portals it is fitting Portal the game be a portal into learning physics.

                Games have come quite a long way since their inception. Even Pong can be considered a physics simulation in a rudimentary sense. Programs like Source Engine though have brought physics into gaming and pushed it more into the forefront of gaming as a whole. It takes a lot of steps along the way. A game developer might put a lot a stock in spectacle and scripted set pieces that may make limited use of physics if any at all. This is a practice that was incredibly overused five years ago and now borderlines on being droll. Games like Portal and Half Life however have proved that physics can be used to great effect at the forefront of gaming. These are arguably two of gaming’s most iconic entries of the 2000s. Many games have come since but these two games championed physics mechanics in the most unique ways known to games at the time. In turn these games have impacted the social perception of physics by shaping the experience of all those who play them and also being used as tools to teach physics in a more straightforward way. Not bad for games ostensibly about shooting guns at things.