Joystiq links to this clever, paper and ink space shooter game called SketchFighter 4000 developed by Ambrosia. No need to rush to download it for your Tablet PC though, currently the game only supports the Mac.
Joystiq describes the game as:
"SketchFighter 4000 Alpha redefines "retro" by bringing together the imaginative pen and paper sketches from your youth with a killer resolution independent OpenGL graphics engine. SketchFighter also boasts a unique synthesis of exploration and action game play, which has you alternately blasting cute little lady bugs into oblivion and then puzzling your way through the hand-drawn challenges presented to you."
If you have a Mac, it's well worth trying out. The program also includes an editor so you can create your own hand-drawn space worlds. Actually to save your creations you'll need to register the product, which is only $19.
Interestingly Michael Parekh and David Pogue of NYT have been talking about another paper and ink style Flash game called, LineRider. LineRider is a bit like Physics Illustrator for the Tablet, you can draw various shapes and simulate their movement using real-world physics behind the scenes. Turns out there are quite a few LineRider videos on YouTube.
I've seen quite a few hand-drawn, flip-book style animations on YouTube too. Some are done on a computer. Some are done with actual paper and pen. Either way, they can be fun to watch.
I think Michael's right when he points out that this might be the beginning of a new generation of pen and paper style games. A few, like LineRider, will be Flash-based, which is ideal for the web. I hope we'll see more apps like SketchFighter too.
So what about the Tablet PC? Actually, when it comes to games like this, the Tablet PC SDK doesn't really have that much to offer. Should it? I think so. Artistic line styles should be easy to create or select from in the SDK. Ink should be renderable on the Internet, whatever platform is used to view it. As the Tablet PC--and probably most importantly the UMPC--mature as platforms, we'll see SDKs evolve along these lines.
In the meantime, try out SketchFighter. It's worth it.
Posted by Loren at December 2, 2006 09:11 AM