A slower speed of light
A Slower Speed of Light is
a first-person game
prototype in which players navigate a 3D space while picking up orbs
that reduce the speed of light in increments. Custom-built, open-source
relativistic graphics code allows the speed of light in the game to
approach the player’s own maximum walking speed. Visual effects of
special relativity gradually become apparent to the player, increasing
the challenge of gameplay. These effects, rendered in realtime to vertex
accuracy, include the Doppler effect (red- and blue-shifting of visible
light, and the shifting of infrared and ultraviolet light into the
visible spectrum); the searchlight effect (increased brightness in the
direction of travel); time dilation (differences in the perceived
passage of time from the player and the outside world); Lorentz
transformation (warping of space at near-light speeds); and the runtime
effect (the ability to see objects as they were in the past, due to the
travel time of light). Players can choose to share their mastery and
experience of the game through Twitter. A Slower Speed of Light combines
accessible gameplay and a fantasy setting with theoretical and
computational physics research to deliver an engaging and pedagogically
rich experience.