Cube (video game)

Cube
Developer(s)	Wouter van Oortmerssen[1]
Designer(s)	Wouter van Oortmerssen[1]
Composer(s)	Marc A. Pullen[1]
Engine	Cube
Platform(s)	Cross-platform
Release date(s)	2001-2005
Genre(s)	First-person shooter
Mode(s)	Multiplayer, Single-player

Cube is a first-person shooter video game that shares the name of its free and open-source engine (zlib-licensed). The engine and game were developed by Wouter van Oortmerssen.^[2][3][4]

It runs on a variety of operating systems, including Microsoft Windows, Linux, FreeBSD, OS X, AmigaOS 4, AROS, iPhone, Wii and even Pocket PC devices with 3D acceleration such as Dell Axim x50v.^[5] It uses OpenGL and SDL. Cube features both single-player and multiplayer gameplay. The game contains a built-in level editor.

The game was originally released in 2001.^[6] The first release with single-player mode was in January 2002.^[7] The latest update of Cube was released on August 29, 2005. A popular spin-off called AssaultCube was released on November 2006.

Gameplay

A screenshot from the game Cube.

As of the August 29, 2005, release, there are 37 SP (SinglePlayer) maps and 65 DM (DeathMatch) maps, for a total of 102 maps all together.

Multiplayer uses a networked game code (called ENet) and the use of a thick client/thin server model.

Single-player

The single-player game play includes two modes. A plain single-player mode in which items and monsters do not respawn and have a fixed position; and a deathmatch-style mode (where there is a fixed number of monsters, ten per skill level) and items respawn.

Multiplayer

Multiplayer gameplay includes twelve modes:^[8]

• "Free For All": Often used for prewar and setting up teams.
• "Coop Edit": Players can edit a map with others in real time.
• "Free For All": non-teamplay, meant for ffa and duel games.
• "Teamplay": Like Free For All, only allied with those whose team variable is the same as yours.
• "Instagib": All players spawn with full rifle ammo and 1 health. No items are available (non-teamplay and teamplay).
• "Efficiency": all players have 2 ammo packs each with 256 health (non-teamplay and teamplay).
• "Insta Arena": when the player is fragged (killed), he/she stays dead until there's only one player remaining, and then a new round begins; each player only has the rifle and fist (non-teamplay and teamplay).
• "Tactics Arena": Like Insta Arena, but each player randomly gets two out of the four possible weapons (with fist), and two ammo packs each (non-teamplay and teamplay).

Development

Game engine

The Cube engine was designed as an outdoor engine, i.e. it's designed for maps that are outdoors rather than Doom and Quake, which are optimized for indoors. It utilizes a pseudo-3D world model similar to the Doom engine, based on a 2D height map. This imposes some limitations (e.g. no rooms above rooms), but does permit slopes and 3D props, which in turn can be used to make up for most limitations, for example, to create bridges with a passage below.

The engine is based on zero-precompilation philosophy—all map data is interpreted dynamically, with no need to recalculate such as shadowmaps or BSP data. This makes realtime in-game map editing feasible. Cube supports multi-user, realtime map editing.

The engine is compact and relies on simplicity and brute force instead of fine-tuned complexity.^[9]

Further development

• Intel ported the game to OpenGL ES to demonstrate a new mobile 3D chipset at the Game Developers Conference in 2005.^[5][10]
• Cube was used in a computer science course at Brown University 2006.^[11]
• A new game and engine based on Cube, called Cube 2: Sauerbraten, has been developed.
• A free game based on the Cube engine called AssaultCube was released in November 2006.
• A Cube port, intended as a technology demo was submitted to the iPhone in 2008, and was released to the iPhone App Store on November 18.^[12][13]

Reception

Cube was reviewed positively by LinuxDevCenter in 2002^[2] and awarded with the "Happypenguin Award" for "Best Free 3D Action Game" by The Linux Game Tome in 2003.^[14] MacUpdate rated the game's latest release 4.5 stars out of 5.^[15]

See also

• AssaultCube
• Cube 2: Sauerbraten

References

1. "cube". cubeengine.com. Retrieved 2009-02-24.
2. Howard Wen. "Free Frags with Cube: The Linux First-Person Shooter". linuxdevcenter.com. O'Reilly Media. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
3. Barr, Joe. "'Tis the season to frag with Linux". linuxworld.com.au. IDG. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
4. "Cube PC game - Mod DB". moddb.com. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
5. "pda shots". cubeengine.com. Retrieved 2008-11-09.
6. "cube history". cubeengine.com. 2006-01-27. Retrieved 2013-02-17.
7. Spencer, Bill. "CUBE free FPS game guide". Archived from the original on 2008-02-26. Retrieved 2008-11-15.
8. "cube fps game". cubeengine.com. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
9. "Cube Engine Games". cubeengine.com. Retrieved 2008-11-09.
10. "Migration: Porting a Game from PC to handheld" (PPT). Retrieved 2008-11-11.
11. "CS138 Course Description, January - May 2006". cs.brown.edu. Retrieved 2008-11-11.
12. "Cube". fernlightning.com. Retrieved 2008-11-15.
13. arn (October 2008). "‘Cube’ First Person Shooter Coming Soon". toucharcade.com. Touch Arcade. Retrieved 2008-11-15.
14. "And the winners are...". happypenguin.org. Archived from the original on 2012-09-19. Retrieved 2008-11-09.
15. "Cube 2005-08-29 - MacUpdate". macupdate.com. Retrieved 2008-11-09.

External links

• Official Cube home page
• Cube project at SourceForge.net
• Community Cube/Cube 2 mapping and modding site
• Cube in The Linux Game Tome at the Wayback Machine (archived October 11, 2012)