Fan Age expedition: Relativity [spoilers]

[Korovev]

Relativity Show Spoiler

On the 46th expedition of the Fan Ages Touring Club we visited Relativity by Karkadann & Tachzusamm. See Minasunda’s video!


Relativity, first released on September 2011, is of course modelled after M.C. Escher’s 1953 lithograph. First conceptualised by Karkadann at the end of 2009, it was then picked up by Tachzusamm in 2011. Using a ton of custom Python and AlcScript scripting to, among other things, trick the camera to stay in the correct orientation, the age uses subworlds for the two perpendicular planes and ‘transporters’ to switch from one plane to another.

Relativity works fairly well with a group (transporters seem to be able to move only one avatar at a time), and it is very amusing to see avatars walking sideways The age at the beginning has floors all in the same colour, but as you walk through a marked doorway the floors for two planes get coloured in blue and red. Around the house there is a large garden, with a few impossible shape statues (you will need to be in 3rd person view to see them) and a gate that can be opened.

There is a small puzzle, but appearently it is not working as intended; there is a sort of console, but it disappears when clicking a button on the wall, and none of us managed to make it appear again.


A recording of the Twitch stream is available.

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Next time (January 10 at 11:00 KIT) we will visit (and try to solve) R’Oshanhnin Korvahkhn. Until then!

(Previous tour: Lohdehvis)

[diafero]

Relativity is one of my favorite ages. I am still amazed that this is even technically possible at all (and the amount of hackery going on behind the scenes is amazing).

I'd say this is the second most technically amazing/ridiculous age I know. Number one is of course the "in-game age editor" that we once experimented with... I wonder if any traces survived of that.

[Chacal]

Relativity is awesome.

[Sirius]

Number one is of course the "in-game age editor" that we once experimented with... I wonder if any traces survived of that.

Oh boy, Tahwah. I remember that one. Far from finished, but was a darn fun idea.

Here are some links, for those who didn't see it yet.
https://mystonline.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=45&t=20575
https://forum.guildofwriters.org/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=4283 (recommend reading the crazy technical explanation on page 2)

It's both funny and a bit sad the amount of hackery going on behind the scene. With today's technology and a proper game engine this would be fairly trivial, but at the time this was revolutionary.


But anyway. Yeah, Relativity is crazy and awesome. It's even crazier when you think at the time everything had to be setup with AlcScript

[diafero]

Yes, Tahwah. I am happy to see that the documentation for this age survived.

[gchaser]

Hi, I'm interested in joining in for the next Fan Age expedition. When is the next one going to occur, and what time would it be starting for me here in Marietta, GA?

Thanks, gchaser......

[Korovev]

The expeditions are every Sunday at 11:00 KI time; I’m not sure what that translates in your local time, but this page should give you an indication.

[gchaser]

Thank you Korovev....!

[Ehren]

Note that there is also one subworld transporter that puts you completely upside-down from your starting orientation by rotating you 180 instead of just 90. From this area you can find a room with a two person sofa whose other half extends to a different plane. To get to the other part of the room there is a puzzle of sorts, this puzzle does work unlike the console thing.

[halmonth]

I have been trying to find this puzzle. I have found the room with the sofa nearby the transporter which shifts perspective 180 degrees. But I can't find anything to do there but sit in sofa. Can you describe a little more what I am looking for?

Also, in the room with the consoles, I am able to get two consoles up and working. But can't figure out much beyond that. Is there any puzzle to solve here?