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NASA wants students' help designing tech for the Moon and Mars
NASA is enlisting whatever help it can get to make sure its crewed Moon and Mars missions go smoothly, and that might include help from schools. The agency is running a new round of its Moon to Mars Exploration Systems and Habitation Academic Innovation Challenge (M2M X-Hab if you want a much shorter name) that encourages university students to study and develop spacefaring tech. The challenge will reward work on habitation, vehicles, robotic advance missions, "foundational systems" (think autonomous mission tech and remote manufacturing) and human spaceflight architecture focused on the lunar Gateway.
Bigelow Aerospace plans an inflatable habitat for lunar orbit
Bigelow Aerospace has been working on inflatable space habitats for a while now. The company sent a small inflatable unit to the ISS that added a small living area on the space station and it partnered with United Launch Alliance (ULA) last year on plans to launch its B330 module to Low Earth Orbit. Now, the company has just announced that it will continue the partnership and send another B330 inflatable habitat to Low Lunar Orbit by 2022.
Lucasfilm Games' MMO 'Habitat' source code released
You may know LucasArts for its spread of excellent point-and-click adventure games like Loom or Day of the Tentacle, but do you remember Lucasfilm Games and its massively multiplayer online RPG Habitat that went live in 1986? Probably not. But whether you look back fondly on that year and the short-lived MMO or are simply interested in seeing older nuggets of gaming goodness being preserved, you're in luck. Habitat's source code is now available.
NASA successfully puffs up its inflatable space habitat
Second time's the charm. Following a less-than-successful initial test run, NASA and Bigelow Aerospace have successfully inflated the Bigelow Expandable Activity Module attached to the International Space Station. It took several hours (the team didn't want any movement that could destabilize the station), but the experimental pod now extends nearly 5.6 feet out and 10.6 feet across. That's not the full size (it'll ultimately be 7 feet long), but it's hopefully smooth sailing from here on out.
Sainsbury's puts Argos on its shopping list
For big-name supermarkets and high-street stores, business has been tough as of late. Sainsbury's has seen its UK market share decline following the rise of discount grocery chains like Aldi and Lidl, while Argos has been squeezed by online competitors like Amazon. With profits falling, Sainsbury's has been seeking ways to reverse its fortunes, with Home Retail Group potentially offering one avenue of opportunity. The supermarket giant confirmed today that it tabled a £1 billion bid for the group -- which owns Argos, Homebase and Habitat -- back in November, but was subsequently turned down.
App-controlled habitat grows just about anything in your home
You can already get smart gardening gear and smart aquariums, but wouldn't it be nice if you could get one box that handles just about anything you'd care to grow in or around your home? Jared Wolfe thinks so. His crowdfunded, internet-connected Biopod can nurture many kinds of plants and animals in its automatically controlled habitat. All you have to do is pick the kind of environment you want through a mobile app, and the Biopod can do the rest -- it regulates factors like the humidity, light, temperature and even artificial rainfall. While it won't feed your pets, a built-in camera lets you keep track of what your creatures are doing while you're away.
Meat your match with this Tinder-swiping steak
Dating apps are often characterized as 21st century "meat markets" and, thanks to this Dutch art installation, Tinder's getting uncomfortably close the real thing. The piece, appropriately called Tender, was built by four students at Leiden University in the Netherland. It's scheduled to debut at the Habitat art exhibition at Radion Amsterdam next weekend. But don't worry about getting hooked up with cold cuts, the app is actually a Tinder knockoff called 6Tin and that's an instant dealbreaker. [Image Credit: The Ministry of Gifs]
NASA competition pays you to design a 3D-printed habitat
If NASA is going to put humans on Mars and other distant worlds, it's going to need a place for explorers to stay -- and it wants your help building those extraterrestrial homes. The agency has launched the 3D Printed Habitat Challenge, a competition to develop the best artificial housing for space exploration. The first phase of the challenge will award a $50,000 prize based on pure architectural merits, while a second will hand out two $1.1 million prizes for those who figure out how to manufacture individual components and whole shelters from "indigenous materials," such as rocky soil. NASA hopes that the winning ideas will make it possible to settle alien terrain without bringing mountains of Earth-made construction supplies. That would not only let crews pack light, but fix their own abodes if something goes wrong millions of miles from Earth. [Image credit: ESA/Foster + Partners]
The Game Archaeologist: The return of Habitat
After over four years of writing for Massively, I've ceased to be surprised by how bizarre and unexpected this industry can be. However, if you had told me a few weeks ago that, of all things, Habitat would be coming back online, I would have laughed mightily in your face. And yet, that's exactly what's happening. The Museum of Arts and Digital Entertainment has taken up the challenge to restore LucasFilm's Habitat to working condition and then, for the first time ever, open this original virtual world up to the internet to play. Museum staff, former Habitat devs, and volunteers have been wrestling with the old code and hardware to make this happen, and I can think of no better topic for this week's column than to look at how this 28-year-old game for the Commodore 64 will emerge blinking in the light of the modern era. I reached out to MADE's director, Alex Handy, to chat about the project and get clarification concerning what steps will need to be taken between now and the moment the switch is thrown to power up Habitat.
A video game museum is rebuilding an MMO designed for the Commodore 64
Thought you were old-school for playing Everquest and Ultima Online? Step back, son: those games are spring chickens next to 1986's premier virtual world: LucasFilm's Habitat. Don't fret if you haven't heard of it -- the Commodore 64-powered online world only lasted for two years and was exclusive to Quantum Link, an ISP that would eventually evolve into America Online. Habitat seems fairly basic by today's standards, but it was a breakthrough in its own era, featuring support for thousands of simultaneous players in a self-governed virtual world. It's gaming history, and Alex Handy, founder and director of the Museum of Art and Digital Entertainment in Oakland, is trying to revive it.
The Daily Grind: Should museums preserve MMOs?
I may be in the vast minority here, but I am keenly interested in the attempt by the Museum of Art and Digital Entertainment to resurrect (for however long) the incredibly ancient Habitat -- and to make it playable by folks today. Usually we consider dead MMOs as just that: dead. Yet we're starting to see more examples of strange resurrections and fan restorations that are reversing the decomposition process. The Habitat story got me thinking about how these games might be saved for the long-term, particularly through special institutions such as museums. Twenty years from now, would you like to see your favorite MMOs restored and run using free museum servers to honor their legacy and to provide a way to revisit old stomping grounds? Is this a pipe dream when we consider issues of rights and IPs and other legal entanglements? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Museum hopes to resurrect Habitat, 'world's first MMO'
So here's a bizarre little piece of MMO news for your Friday morning: This weekend, with the help of Kixeye and Fujitsu, a volunteer-driven, public museum in Oakland, California, hopes to relaunch an antique Lucasfilm game called Habitat, which it's calling the world's first massively multiplayer online game (that part is probably debatable, but let's hear them out). "The Museum of Art and Digital Entertainment (The MADE) will be spending Sunday, September 28th, attempting to resurrect the world's first massively multiplayer online game, Habitat. The project seeks to relaunch the Habitat server on original Stratus Technologies hardware from 1989, and to allow users on the Internet to connect to the game server for free using a Commodore 64 emulator. The MADE is the first videogame museum to attempt such a relaunch. In fact, there has never been an attempt to relaunch a 28 year old, dead MMO before, primarily because MMO's are mostly a phenomenon that has existed only over the last 15 years." According to Wikipedia's curators, Habitat was created in 1985 as the "first attempt at a large-scale commercial virtual community that was graphically based" and is "considered a forerunner of the modern MMORPGs." MADE even claims the game invented the term "Avatar" for use in online games. The 1989-era server hardware it'll run on can today support 10,000 users, says the museum. Massively's very own Game Archaeologist, Justin Olivetti, investigated Habitat's history in a two-part series in 2012. The Game Archaeologist moves into Lucasfilm's Habitat: Part 1 The Game Archaeologist moves into Lucasfilm's Habitat: Part 2
Habitat to turn space junk into spaceships on PS4
The resourceful space-junk construction simulator Habitat will craft impromptu space stations on the PS4, in addition to the previously-announced stops on the PC, Mac, Linux and Xbox One. Each version's building date is set to end sometime in 2015, though an Early Access build for PC, Mac and Linux was made available last month. Habitat began as a Kickstarter project in May, scrapping together $64,000 to construct ragtag homes for the human race that double as a defense from enemy space stations. Players build from whatever they can find in space's yawning black chasm, including the shrapnel from freshly-defeated opposing ships. [Image: 4gency]
Habitat finds life on Steam Early Access
Habitat, the Kickstarted space-physics strategy game from 4gency, is now on Steam Early Access for $15 on PC, Mac and Linux, published by Versus Evil. This is the game that lets you fight with the Eiffel Tower in space. Now we all remember. In Habitat, players must use space debris to repair and build their ships, and to create homes for humanity to live in. You're able to create weapons and take out enemy space stations, and then salvage them for parts. It's a blend of strategy, resource management, creativity and zero-gravity physics simulation. Habitat is in Early Access form at the moment, so it's not yet feature complete, but the game currently allows players to manage their teams, fly around procedurally generated space, build ships and weapons out of 40 different items and connectors, and take on those evil space stations. Habitat raised $64,000 of a $50,000 goal on Kickstarter in May, and it's due out in full on PC, Mac, Linux and Xbox One by the end of 2014. [Image: Versus Evil]
Habitat builds with space debris on PC, Mac, Linux, Xbox One
We know you're not used to games handing you responsibility for an entire populace or anything, but Habitat's version of Earth is a collective goner unless you can build a suitable space environment for them. Sounds like something you'd receive support for from the United Nations or something, right? Nope, you're going to have to redefine "resourceful" while you're at it - your sanctuary must be crafted from debris found in Earth's orbit. Now that Habitat has cleared its base funding goal, you can start brainstorming ideas for your creation before it releases on PC, Mac, Linux and Xbox One in the Holiday 2014 window. You can upstage Bob the Builder in two gameplay types: a persistent Sandbox Mode that generates new clusters of clutter for every new game, or a narrative-focused Campaign Mode that pits your efforts against a swarm of nano machines plaguing Earth. All of your creations will be susceptible to rocket physics, which allow you to move your station or turn it into a projectile weapon. Since you'll be building with scraps, you can also piece together the remnants of enemy ships after they're disassembled by your attacks. Habitat's Kickstarter campaign will conclude on May 2, so you can help expand the project's scope by donating if you like the concept so far. Stretch goals include adding tech trees for citizens and engineers, mod support, an asymmetrical Dungeon Master Mode and more. You can check the full list and the associated price tags on Habitat's Kickstarter page. Donating $20 or more to the campaign will grant you a DRM copy of the game for PC, Mac or Linux, but developer 4gency is working with Microsoft to see if they can give away early copies for that platform via Kickstarter. [Image: 4gency]
Build a space base, weapons out of the Eiffel Tower in Habitat
One man's space trash is another man's space station in Habitat, a PC, Mac and Linux game that takes place in the cluttered arena of Earth's orbit, far in humanity's future. Players must use the junk floating around Earth – both manmade and alien – to manufacture a space base and manage its citizens. It's a strategy game with defense elements, since any piece of trash can be used to create kinetic weapons and fight off invading enemies. Any trash – including the Eiffel Tower and Statue of Liberty, apparently. Habitat comes from 4gency, an indie studio founded by Charles Cox, former senior program manager of the Xbox Advanced Technology Group at Microsoft, where he helped launch the Xbox One. In his resignation letter penned in September, Cox offered the following reason for his departure: "There is no question in my mind that the adventure we have been on with Xbox One has been the greatest, most challenging of my career so far, and yet, a dream, nurtured since childhood, looms ever larger ahead of me, demanding I take action: to dive in as full-time founder of my own independent game studio. The time is right, the plan is set, and in true indie fashion, the passion is unstoppable. The parachute, of course, is nonexistent, but those things are overrated." Habitat will be playable at GDC 2014 from March 19 - 21, at GDC Play booth #100 in the North Hall. 4gency plans to launch a Kickstarter in April to fund development of Habitat.
Hampture underwater colony established for science, leads the way for future hamster space exploration
Animals have had a rough time of it, when it comes to scientific exploration. Look no further than Laika, the first animal to orbit Earth, soon becoming the first animal to die in orbit, not too long after achieving that earlier distinction. The dwarf hamsters that occupy Hampture seem to be considerably happier in their own scientific explorations than the Soviet mutt, at the moment. Bob Averill brought the project to our attention last week on our visit to Portland, Oregon. According to the official blog, the project is an attempt to "learn firsthand what is involved in designing and constructing a complete underwater habitat capable of sustaining complex organisms." It also may well be a gateway to sending the hamsternauts into space via Skystation Mk1. Averill is also looking to turn Hampture into a salable product, though Kickstarter, for one, has apparently balked at the idea. In the meantime, you can check out a streaming feed of the habitat after the break and read up on the making of the project in the source links below.
The Game Archaeologist: Maze War
It's hard to know how far back to go when chronicling the history of early MMOs and their ancestors. After all, the Game Archaeologist has looked at several titles (Air Warrior, Habitat, Neverwinter Nights) that do not fit the modern definition of an MMO yet were bound in blood to the genre nonetheless. So if today's game seems to be somewhat tenuously related to our favorite hobby, I beg your forgiveness in advance, but I do feel it's pertinent to our exploration of this wonderful genre. The game in question is Maze War, and it holds a general's uniform's worth of medals depicting firsts in the infant genre of video games. Most importantly for us, Maze War was the first graphical video game to be networked and allow players to interact and fight each other. You can see why that may tie in to our current situation. While the game itself certainly never attained the complexity of modern shooters or RPGs, its innovation and pioneering certainly make it worthy of examination. So let's dust it off and get to it!
The Daily Grind: Are virtual worlds still important?
As part of the recent Massively Speaking bicentennial, we were reminiscing about the fact that Massively used to have a much heavier focus on virtual worlds. While we still touch on those from time to time, these types of "games" don't seem to be as hot as they once were. Or maybe they are and we're just not seeing it! From Habitat to The Sims Online to Second Life, there have been many attempts at constructing vibrant, community-driven virtual worlds that would draw in players looking to create dual lives that were flashier and more fantastic than their real lives. These games once were heralded as the wave of the future, but it seems as if that wave has since moved on to bashing things with their +4 Clubs of Exquisite Suffering. So what say you: Are virtual worlds still important? Are we trying to return to the concept by embracing sandbox principles? Are they best left to wither and die in the annals of history? Every morning, the Massively bloggers probe the minds of their readers with deep, thought-provoking questions about that most serious of topics: massively online gaming. We crave your opinions, so grab your caffeinated beverage of choice and chime in on today's Daily Grind!
Inkling Habitat interactive e-book publishing platform rolls out to select publishers
It's not another alternative for individual authors looking to self-publish (at least for now), but professional publishers looking to create and distribute interactive e-books now have a new option to consider in the form of Inkling Habitat. Initially available to select publishers in an early adopter program (a broader rollout is planned for later this year), the platform promises to make producing interactive e-books at scale more affordable, with the program itself completely free provided publishers agree to sell their books through Inkling's store. As mocoNews notes, however, Inkling isn't asking publishers for exclusive rights, so they'll also be able to sell them elsewhere if they choose -- the iPad is the initial target platform, with HTML5-based web publishing also planned. The system is also cloud-based, meaning that a group of folks in various locations will be able to collaborate on a single book, something that Inkling hopes will distinguish it further from Apple's own iBooks Author; its CEO even went as far as to use the analogy of Habitat being the Final Cut Pro to iBooks Author's iMovie.
