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 .txt 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.
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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 are now the primary place to share sand creations and mods. wxSand, Burning Sand, and EnigmaSand were created shortly after, bringing "moddability" to the game. 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 sand games have been developed.
- Burning Sand
- wxSand
- EnigmaSand
- QuickSand
- tehSand
- pyro sand
- Dan-Ball Powder Game
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.
References
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
