In the world of games 2012, titles like Mass Effect 3, Mobile Suit Gundam Unicorn and Star Wars: The Old Republic all use devices that humans may use to fly, often with a jetpack or similar device. All of these titles are Science Fiction, it is unusual to find a title that uses flying machines in a retro format (possible market niche?!)
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| Jetpack combat in Mass Effect - Jets are attached to the attackers' feet. - (BioWare 2011) |
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| Gundam robots flying (although often in space, they are seen flying in atmosphere too) - (Konami 2011) |
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| A Star Wars bounty hunter using his jetpack - (Lucasarts 2011) |
The use of jetpacks in games as a mode of transportation are an indication of where the world expects that technology to progress to. Although the commercial jetpack is still a fantasy for the everyday person, their increasing use in games and films, as well as the media coverage of actual real life jetpacks being developed, is demonstrating that this technology is becoming much more of a reality.
I have further enforced this point with my research into the present.
The Birdman competition happens August of every year, in which participants try and 'fly' the furthest off of a pier, using man powered contraptions. While most of these are only costumes, some people try to make genuine machines to achieve a decent distance when flying. I stumbled across this event looking at upcoming competitions involving flight for 2012.
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| Flying contraption being set up - (Worthing 2011) |
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| One of the contraptions in use - (Worthing 2011) |
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| And another! - (Worthing 2009) |
The competition holds a certain charm, and while very basic and low-tech, shows that people will try and create a flying contraption in the name of competition (A marketable quality!).
If I create my IP based on anything to do with human flight, then the more promising paths to follow as it stands are using flight in a historical setting, reinforced by the work of Leanardo da Vinci and making it competitive in some way.
Looking to the skies of the year ahead 2012, there is news that China is starting their own manned space program. This apparently has all the current superpowers taking an ever increasing interest in how much of a threat they are. If this trend continues, will there be a habitation zone in the Earths' atmosphere as well as it's surface? - Will there be a whole new world built above our own? Will it have it's own divides and territories like the world below it, or will the scientific minds that create these stations be disinterested in the political affairs of those below?
There are theories that the launch of the American SBL (Space based laser) tests taking place in the coming year could also mark the beginning of a new age of warfare, warfare launched from space. Whether this is a paranoid theory or a genuine concern can only be discovered in time. What is the next step? War was fought on the ground, then the air, then the atmosphere? Will the next terrifying man-made threat appear from another planet? It seems the further we get into space, the more paranoid people get that we will create doomsday devices to blow ourselves up.
The article also goes on to talk about the American policy seeming to be to make it into space with weaponised technology first so that they can have the monopoly on space security and control affairs both on and off world. This seems to be going very much in the way of George Orwell's '1984' - 'Big Brother is watching'.
Looking to the skies of the year ahead 2012, there is news that China is starting their own manned space program. This apparently has all the current superpowers taking an ever increasing interest in how much of a threat they are. If this trend continues, will there be a habitation zone in the Earths' atmosphere as well as it's surface? - Will there be a whole new world built above our own? Will it have it's own divides and territories like the world below it, or will the scientific minds that create these stations be disinterested in the political affairs of those below?
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| Chinese astronaughts - (Chinadaily.com, 2008) |
There are theories that the launch of the American SBL (Space based laser) tests taking place in the coming year could also mark the beginning of a new age of warfare, warfare launched from space. Whether this is a paranoid theory or a genuine concern can only be discovered in time. What is the next step? War was fought on the ground, then the air, then the atmosphere? Will the next terrifying man-made threat appear from another planet? It seems the further we get into space, the more paranoid people get that we will create doomsday devices to blow ourselves up.
The article also goes on to talk about the American policy seeming to be to make it into space with weaponised technology first so that they can have the monopoly on space security and control affairs both on and off world. This seems to be going very much in the way of George Orwell's '1984' - 'Big Brother is watching'.
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