Navigation
This experiment builds on the results of the last one by giving a set “goal” – to find your way from the starting point to the Castle at the top of the hill. This experiment is also depending on recognition of familiar objects; the goal is not immediately visible from the starting point, so you’re required to locate it first and then head in its direction. This time, the environment has been built using the Unity game engine, meaning that collision is now incorporated into the model.
The instructions are as follows:
- Download the appropriate version for your OS:-
- Windows .exe file (this is in a zip file – the exe. file and the data folder must be kept together in order for it to work)
- Open the app/.exe and you’ll be asked to set your resolution and level and detail. Unless you want to go hunting for the screen resolution settings, I strongly advise that you keep Windowed Mode checked.
- The controls are the same as any first-person-shooter: WASD keys for movement, and the mouse to look around. You can press Space to jump, but please do not attempt to jump the river, you are not going to get back out again. The bridge has been provided for a reason.
Upon loading, you start here:
Your mission is to locate and get to the Castle on the hill (any resemblance to a castle on a rock that may be near my place of study is purely coincidental). Because it is initially hidden from view, you need to move forward and look around to locate it. In the event of getting hopelessly lost, I have a map to help you get your bearings.
Once you’ve done that, please answer the following, and give reasons as to why if you can:-
- Was it easy to locate the castle or difficult?
- Was it easy or difficult to go through the city to get to it, or did you find a more easily navigated route? (state if you needed to use the map)
- If you found going through the city difficult, why was it harder to navigate?
- The buildings in the city centre are very tall and close together, did this affect your mood whilst going through it?
There are also two additional goals. The first is to locate the watermill, which looks like this:
If you found it, was it easy or hard and why?
The second is to find the five Blacksmith houses that are dotted around the city, which look like this:
How many did you find? Were they easy to find or difficult? Why?
Dragons and Uni 
Hi Blue,
1. It was easy to locate it.
2. It was easy, first I passed the bridge then ran a bit on the left and then I could already see the Castle(I didn’t use the map).
3. –
4. Yes, I felt cramped and had the urge to get an overview.
– It was also easy to find the watermill because it was pretty close to the starting point.
– I found three or four of the Blacksmith houses(I am not sure if I double counted one of it), but it wasn’t that easy to find them because they’re small and relatively similar to the other houses. Also, most of them were actually in the city and not outside like the Castle and the Windmill. So you couldn’t get easily an overview except for getting on the hill which didn’t help too much, because I wasn’t able to distinguish properly from great distance.
I hope that helps a bit.
Kind regards,
blub
I really enjoyed that. I found the castle relatively quickly. I think that it might help that I have an adventurous personality and so took a lot of turns, leading me to a big hill. Once I had seen it, I out two and two together, and thought that the castle was probably on the hill. I looked up, and discovered that I was right. Once I had seen it, it was a simple matter of reaching it.
Dog
UPDATE: Upon redoing it for fun, I fell into the river. It actually helped when trying to find the water wheel.
Dog
Finding the castle wasn’t too difficult, once I’d worked out what I was doing. As soon as I found my way through the village, it was quite obvious, though that wasn’t as easy as I’d anticipated.
The watermill was easy to find, I just looked by the river.
The blacksmiths weren’t very difficult to find though it was hard to know whether I’d found all of them, as they all look the same.
1.Was it easy to locate the castle or difficult?
It was easy. Wander around until you see a castle, then walk towards it!
2.Was it easy or difficult to go through the city to get to it, or did you find a more easily navigated route? (state if you needed to use the map)
Easy.
3.If you found going through the city difficult, why was it harder to navigate?
It is not difficult exactly, but it is easy to get lost. The reason being that there are many buildings which look the same, and fixed landmarks like the castle or watermill are usually out of view. I also found myself leaving the path and walking between the buildings which is a sure way to lose your bearings.
4.The buildings in the city centre are very tall and close together, did this affect your mood whilst going through it?
Not too much, because it still feels like a small place with river and open fields not far away. It would be different in a larger community.
One more observation: on starting the simulation I felt strongly drawn to cross the bridge; I think bridges tend to have that affect.
I found the watermill easily and several blacksmith houses; however I am not sure if I found all the blacksmith houses since they all look the same and I could not be bothered to make a map and tick them off.
Interesting project by the way.
Tim
1. It was fairly easy. I did not need to retrace any steps.
2. I found the city path to be easy enough. I didn’t really even think intentionally about my direction and I ended up at the castle.
3. n/a
4. It did not. I was focused on finding the objective, thus the buildings did not affect my mood.
Watermill:
It appeared to be hard hard until I realized that, being a watermill, it would be on the river. At that point, I simply followed the water.
Blacksmiths:
I found all five Blacksmiths (I’m fairly sure), but it was not easy. Unlike the watermill, there was no obvious landmark and the buildings are similar to those surrounding them. I was almost ready to give up when I found the last two.