The Dig Remake

[metzman]

I'm a huge Dig fan, got the game, the full soundtrack and play it again once in a while. I loved it so much because you sometimes really feel in another word because of the sounds and excelent design of the alien planet. Now I always imagine a remake of the game. With a very detailed and epic 3D enviroment and high poly cell shaded characters. A bit like the 3d myst but then as an Lucas Arts adventure, so in first person. A Game where you could just spend time relaxing and enjoying a full living 3d Alien world with ofcource the original soundtrack or maybe redone by an orchestra. And maybe besides the puzzels a lot of interactivity with the enviroment. So you could basicly "go there" and just wander off in this world while listening to the "birds" and licht rumbles of a far away thunderstorm. And ofcource a more expanded world with more puzzels that take adantage of the 3d enviroment. And maybe directed by Steven Spielberg himself ...or is that too much wishing?

 

What do you think?

[VampireNaomi]

By puzzles that take advantage of 3D, you don't mean box puzzles, right? Not that I really minded them, but to most people they still cause nightmares.

 

I don't know what I think about the idea of a remake. On one hand I am really curious to see what The Dig would look like in 3D, but on other hand I feel like acting like a raving purist with "Oh noes! A remake would like totally ruin the glory of the original!!1" attitude...

 

Nah, bring it on. It wouldn't hurt.

[metzman]

nah, no box puzzles . But more like when aming lichtbeams with a lens you can turn it in three dimensions and maybe some more dynamic puzzles with the tram system, that kinda stuff. And the "Ruin the" or "not faithful to" the original is always the fear of gamers, but when your doing a remake the motivation of the team will be higher than with a original game I think, it would be a more "personal" game to the creators...if people of the original would work on it that is. As Long as it stays an adventure game and had no realtime action elements or "box puzzles". Just an amazing looking 3d virtual planet adventure game .

[Manny C]

i reckon if they remade it, id advise to keep the gameplay style, FPS would ruin the cinematic style of the original, you know what they say "if it aint broke..."

[cocytan]

hmmm, 'remake'?

 

i saw a version of doom2 redone in direct 3D the other day (and i daresay doom2 is on no level anywhere near the dig, quality wise) however, i couldn't help notice the lack of 'creepiness' in the monsters.... since before, when they were all pixelated, it added some sort of flavour to them, to the game's overall feel.... now, it's just like "oh that's what really look like... meh". bang. dead. i wasn't feeling the creepiness. the only things left from the original were the sound effects... they still get to me :S

 

anyway, my point is (and maybe i'm just being a purist here.... well, i know i am!), even though the dig doesn't have creepy monsters (well, sort of but not like that), it's still got a certain feel to it that's been so ingrained into our minds, my mind at least, that any deviation from that would just be ... weird.

 

so therefore, i would vote *no* for a 'remake' of the original... *hell yes* for perhaps a continuation?

 

oh, and wouldn't it be cool as a (well done) movie? i can picture that, since most of the game is quite movie-like anyways... (it's funny, i can handle it remade as a movie, but not as a game..... :s )

 

[Manny C]

i reckon they could definately recreate that sense of alien natural beauty with a 3D engine (just look at halo), but alot of the atmosphere comes in the sound design, the views arent crap without that awesome, perfectly crafted ambience. I reckon a remake would be entirely acheivable technologically, but im just sayin they'd have to be very careful in terms of how they'd execute the game. definately not first person, i always got the feeling that the camera views were like, from the perspective of the aliens in space time six, you cant recreate that with first person. its easily acheivable in 3D games to have that sort of panoramic, cinematic view, just look at the new prince of persia games.

[TogaMario]

I program in a middleware language called BlitzBasic and I've made a map-editor and lightmapper for my own purposes, and I also do 3d art/animation. If I ever found myself at home on sick-leave for a month or two, I'm taking a swing at The Dig 3D Curious on everyone's thoughts of this, what could a developer bring to 3d adverture games that is lacking? Quest for Glory 5, Leisure Suit Larry 8, etc have all been falling short (in my opinion) on conquering a genre which I think should still be as strong as ever. I tried making a 2D sequel way back when, but my drawing skills weren't up to snuff, so I ended up going to college for digital art and dumping Dig 2.

 

If I ever get the twinkle in my eye again, I'd love to know what you guys wanted to see (game function-wise). I like the idea of a toned down "Metroid Prime" first-person experience for a "The Dig 3D" It promotes exploration, a type of inventory and use system conducive to adventure games, and certainly makes you feel more involved. The downside is that the players of a first-person game expect to have a weapon in-hand and ammo readouts and monsters coming from all directions, but who's to say it couldn't be fun without all that? Thoughts?

[metzman]

Hi there,

 

It's been a while (2 years) but I'd like to revamp this topic again, hopefully the people who reacted are still connected to this Lucas Arts Forum.

 

@TogoMario:

Are you still working on that Blitzbasic thing? Or have your interests since 2006 changed dramatically and lose the "twinkles" ?

 

I think the remake is still a good idea. A Metroid Prime style 3D would be a good idea, but I'd say we shoulden't try to imitate a style.

 

"The downside is that the players of a first-person game expect to have a weapon in-hand and ammo readouts and monsters coming from all directions, but who's to say it couldn't be fun without all that?" -TogoMario

 

That is my thought exactly. It should be something fresh and new, a first person perspective in a 3d world but because you will be coming back at the same locations a few times as The Dig like many adventure games takes place in one big location with backtracking and such, you can increase the detail of the world. Unlike other 3D titles where there are locations u see only ones and the level designer won't take more time to place detailed enviroments with clutter/rubble/small decorations then nessesary. With a project like this u could spend hours on just the circular "hub" room where all the doors are and the generator room. Creating small cracks in the rock formations and the energy plants ect ect.

 

Gameplay wise.. anyone should take a look at how the game Penumbra Overture works. I think The Dig remake would benefit from the same kind of interface and physics system. Where your mouse is your hand which you can manipulate the world and objects with. I can see a redone version of the "rodent trap" puzzle where u'd have to physically create the simple trap by moving the objects around. How's that for a "twinkle"?

[Manny C]

Wow.. this is my first post in like 2 years.. (i got a girlfriend and she didnt like computer games).

 

Anyway, I still stand by my initial comment that the game should remain in some form of third person. I think the ability to model the environments in 3D would give the game no excuse NOT to use a movable camera to create the "view from the aliens perspective" I discussed earlier. Stylistically, I think that was very important. Not just that, but Boston is his own character, rich with his own sense of wit, loyalty to his crew and so on (this richness of game character is one of the great victims of adventure games' descent into obscurity, but that's a discussion for another day) and while the player is guiding him, they are not HIM, so I think you should be able to see him at all times. After all, the game is based on a film idea concocted by Steven Spielberg, and I'm pretty sure the original game was designed with that in mind. 1st person would kill the cinematic feel as well as the ominous "someone is watching" feel.