Falling-sand game

File:WxSand.PNG

wxSand on Windows XP.

The Falling Sand Games are a series of particle-based computer games which allow the user to place particles of different elements on a canvas. The particles can interact with other particles in various ways, and may be affected by gravity. Many complex effects may be achieved. For example, fire can be made to move upwards, burn elements, and emit smoke. Game physics files (mods) are generally standard ASCII text files which tell the game how to control the particles. Many versions of the Falling Sand Game have been written since its introduction in 2005.

History

The game first appeared as a web-based Java applet on the Dofi-Blog (Japan) in 2005. The Falling Sand Game Forums were created in 2006 and is the primary place to share sand creations and mods. wxSand, Burning Sand, and EnigmaSand were created shortly after Fallingsandgame.com was created, bringing "moddability" to the series of games. Fan-made games such as Pyro Sand 1 and 2, tehSand, and QuickSand were created in the coming years, as well as numerous smaller projects.

List of games

A notable number of games falling sand games have been developed.

• Burning Sand 1 & 2 (Both downloadable)
• wxSand (Downloadable)
• EnigmaSand (Downloadable)
• QuickSand (Downloadable)
• tehSand (Downloadable)
• Pyro Sand (Online)

List of similar games

• Dan Ball's Powder Game (Online)
• Powder Toy (Downloadable)
• Earth Editor (Online)

Features

Although the various sand games have differences, they share many similar characteristics:

Platforms

wxSand is the only downloadable game with a Macintosh version, other than the Java-based EnigmaSand. They may be able to be run in Linux using WINE. The browser games may be played on any computer with Java installed.

Tools

All games have adjustable pen sizes. Some allow the user to select different pen shapes. The pen is generally controlled using the mouse (Etch-a-sketch Sand is an exception).

Sandboxes

Downloadable games also have the ability to save "sandboxes", or images that can be uploaded to image hosting websites and later downloaded and played in the game. BMP, PNG and GIF format are usually used; JPG is not due to its lossy compression.

Modding

"Modding" is the act of creating new physics for the games. The browser-based games are not able to be modded, but most downloadable games are. Mod authors usually share their mods on the forums or wiki.

Physics

Most sand games use very simple physics: particles either fall, rise, or are fixed, and may drift from side to side. The Powder Game is one of the few games with more realistic physics, including wind and pressure.

For most of the downloadable games, each particle is one of its 'element'. The element has attributes that determine how the element will behave. These usually include:

• Gravity -- A number that indicates the probability of or how far a particle will fall. Negative gravities usually indicate rising particles. Zero gravity indicates a solid.
• Slip -- Like gravity, but controls the likeliness or distance it moves sideways. It is sometimes dependent on gravity.
• Density -- Density controls how heavy the element is, like in real life, denser liquids and objects fall under lighter liquids.

Element reactions also occur in the downloadable games, and include explosions, nearby elements reactions, and others. Most of the time gravity will take over.

References

• Powder Game
• PC World
• Falling Sand Game Wiki and Forums