Welcome to Hephaestus

1. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Welcome to Hephaestus

2. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002

3. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 What is Hephaestus? The planet Hephaestus resides in the Alpha Centauri star system, orbiting Rigel Kentaurus (Alpha 1 Cen), one of the closest stars to Earth and remarkably similar to Earth's sun. Generations of space exploration have only been able to find this one planet, barely capable of supporting life. Argo-class evacuation ships full of colonists are already en route. They will die if Hephaestus is not habitable in 5 years!

4. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Why Hephaestus? Hephaestus is the name of the Greek God of craftsmen and artisans, famed for his engineering skills and work ethic. Among other things, he created Zeus' thunderbolts, Poseidon's trident and two robots of silver and gold. His Roman name is Vulcan, the God of volcanic fire, appropriate for the seismic and magmatic instability of the planet. Greek names sound way cooler than 'Planet 2076 UA'.

5. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Send in the Robots! Only small inorganic machines and data can travel faster-than-light in this era, and the planet needs terraforming to support human life. Hephaestus has plentiful mineral resources, which can compensate for the limitations of faster-than-light travel. Every nation and corporation is sending its own robots ahead of the human exodus.

6. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Planetary Multiplayer Role-playing Don't just choose your avatar...create it using gears, batteries, bearings, structures and innovative design. With cooperation, ingenuity and ruthless determination, exploit the riches of Hephaestus and out-think the competition!

7. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Educational Content AP and Freshman Physics, US FIRST engineering Energy, mass, force, friction, gravity, design Targeted at high-school and early college gamers but content may be accessible to a larger audience.

8. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Community-Based Constructionist Constructivist and goal-based activity. Players can set their own goals. Game mechanics reward thoughtful design, articulation and cooperation, not trial-and-error. It must be fun! Realism is secondary. Compromises in game reality must be clearly stated and must improve gameplay. Players are constantly engaged in the action, unlike other 'design-then-watch' robot games.

9. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Designing down to the gear

10. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Exploration

11. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Mining Scenario

12. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Bridge Building

13. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Bridge Building

14. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Design Workshop

15. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Competition

16. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 Safety Nets

17. CMS Research Summit February 8, 2002 For more information Contact...