Trespasser, or my experience of it

[edweird]

I've always been a very vocal supporter of physics in games. That's why I'm here, I suppose. As a kid, I was convinced that physics simulation was the future of gaming, and even tried my hand at coding physics engines back when I spent my free time making dodgy games. Imagine my excitement when, in 1998, the much anticipated Trespasser finally hit the shelves. Finally, a game that took the use of physics seriously enough for gameplay to revolve around it. But was it any good?

I have some very specific memories of playing this game. I remember pushing bits of wood, boxes and chairs onto pursuing predators from a balcony. I remember feeling so vulnerable as I ran, as fast as my slow legs would carry me, from building to building in a town infested with creatures much faster than me. I remember practically holding my breath as I went face to face with a raptor, desperately grabbing for things to throw at it, and somehow managing to push it off a precipice at the last moment, as it came in for the kill. I remember piling up boxes to get somewhere unreachable, just to see what was up there.

Weapons (and certainly ammo) were relatively scarce in this game, and easy to make mistakes with, which really helped create a sense of being there and being helpless.. but what made the experience truly unique was that your foes weren't pre-animated characters.. but rather physically enabled creatures that interacted with the world, and you, in a very physical way. You existed in the same physical environment, though you were slower and weaker, so there was a sense that you needed to use the environment intelligently in order to survive. Anything movable could be a shield, a weapon, a trap, a diversion.. and you were free to do anything you wanted to, to interact with the game in your own way. You often didn't know if an approach would work or get you killed, and there was a certain thrill in taking your chances. My best experiences with this game were when I tried to use the environment against a predator, failed and scrambled away for dear life, or on occasion, prevailed against the odds.

Of course, the game's rough edges are evident, and while they may make the game seem clumsy to play for some people, I always felt that the awkwardness added immersion and authenticity to your struggle. You had to contend with your physical inadequacies, and succeed by planning your moves carefully. There were, of course, various technical bugs in the game too, and there's nothing immersive about getting a blue screen and rebooting your system. The sheer ambition of the developers resulted in them going over budget, and needing more time than they had to finish the product. Unfortunately the game was rushed out with many features cut, and many more left unpolished. I can only imagine how good this game could have been if the developers had more time and resources.

Where I feel this game truly innovated, was in it's procedurally, physically animated creatures. There is a genuine sense that you're interacting with living animals, when they themselves have weight and are contending with the laws of physics in a dynamic environment. The combination of A.I. and physics is an important one, and will without a doubt become increasingly important in the future of gaming. Developers don't seem to have caught on to this (anyone know of any other games that did\do this?), which has been disappointing... but then few developers make the effort to push their format forward nowadays, it's all about re-releasing genre formulas with fresh (but samey) coats of paint. Unfortunately, ambition carries with it far greater risk of failure, and in that sense Trespasser is as much a warning to developers as it might be an inspiration. At least we have Valve (who incidentally have said that Trespasser was a source of inspiration for HL2), Will Wright, and so on, to help push the boundaries from time to time.

Basically, I loved Trespasser, and that it still has an active modding community, despite having not been designed for modding at all, must say something good about it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jurassic_Park:_Trespasser

Share your thoughts\experiences

[Stigern]

Good review.

As for my self I only tried the game 2 days ago :P I had never heard about it before I saw it on these forums.

I tried the game for about 30-40 minutes, and the only thing I could think of was, WOW. Thinking about that the game was released in 1998, and how well the physics and environment are. Its just amazing.

Too bad I never got to test it back in the good ol 1998 days.

[masu]

Nice review, i didn't read so much but anyway i mean that this game had been really much fun on the wii! i got bored of it on pc after an half hour or so because of no saving

[Z3R052]

I havent played the game, but I have to say nice review.

[marvbr]

I have played this game , and i love the Physics !
so bad that the aiming system is a bit confuse.

ps:sorry for my bad english , i am brazilian.

[ericman666]

A while ago I played the game. It was probably the best one I have ever played.

Even the demos were amazing and fun-filled.

[Muntu]

I tried the game few hours ago...
To be honest, it sucked

[samuelk]

I hate dredging up an old thread, but for anyone interested in Trespasser, there's a great post mortem article on the game at Gamasutra:

http://www.gamasutra.com/features/19...spasser_01.htm

The article is 8 years old, but it's an interesting read.
A login is required, but Gamasutra is a great site, and it's worth the registration.

[Lee Buslett]

they need more games with dinosaurs like jurassic park with lots of physics mmmmmmmmmmmmm remade trespasser maby

[Ghos7Soldier]

Originally Posted by Lee Buslett

they need more games with dinosaurs like jurassic park with lots of physics mmmmmmmmmmmmm remade trespasser maby

I can see some jiggle'n going on...

[Pret.Sal]

Never tried of even heard of the game, but your review got me excited, i just love the idea of a free-form game where the only object is to survive, which is acheived through your completely open environment, they really should make more games like this or at least remake the game ur talking about.

[futuramaguy42]

Does anyone know an actual way to get this game. I never saw it in a store or at a yardsale/flea market. It looks pretty cool.

[RIOT]

Is this abandon ware yet?

Can someone host it somewhere?

[samuelk]

You can find it for sale here:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/AS...512156-3557716

There are more options here:

http://trescom.3dactionplanet.gamesp...e=main/buy.htm

[futuramaguy42]

$22 bucks for a game that old.

[Great_Pretender]

Originally Posted by futuramaguy42

$22 bucks for a game that old.

Is rather pricey.
-TGP-

[Squirrel Maul]

Aww, crap. Thought this was abandonware for a second. Oh well.... I found a demo.

[PhysicsEnabled]

The game is worth a million dollars. Im a huge fan of Trespasser, it is a game of pure beauty. Even if i was unfinished. And i have an original case and CD for it too, yay!

[Lee Buslett]

THE FIRST GAME I EVER PLAYED and thats why I am a born physics junky

[samuelk]

I followed the development of Trespasser before it was released, and bought the game on release day. I still have it, and still play it on occasion.

I finished the game two or three times, and despite it's horrible bugs, I still enjoyed it every time.

[Relys]

Nice review! I think I might try this!

[Maltor124]

Beautiful review. I guess I'll download the demo, but I can't expect much in the way of good performance, even if this game is very old.

[samuelk]

Originally Posted by Maltor124

Beautiful review. I guess I'll download the demo, but I can't expect much in the way of good performance, even if this game is very old.

That depends on what you mean by performance.

Framerate-wise, it'll run silky smooth on any PC that was made in the last 6 or 7 years.

But of course not even the best PC can fix the bugs.

Still, if you can get over the most unintuitive part of the controls (controlling Anne's one flailing virtual arm), the demo should be fun to play round with.

[mister.x]

I have done video about it i am lordi80 in youtube
the video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1fy5AR3vcM

[Maltor124]

Nice video, Mister X, but I still don't think I'll get the demo. I'm just too busy lately... I might try the demo another day, though, I suppose.