Planet-sized video game gets its first release

Jacob Aron, technology reporter

A video game capable of rendering an entire planet in 3D brings a whole new meaning to the phrase "open world". Outerra lets players fly all the way from space down to ground level - zooming in on Cardiff in the UK, or simply soaring over forests and mountain ranges as in the video above.

The game has been under development by a Slovakian-based team for a few years, but the group has recently released a tech demo so that players can try it out for themselves. It uses real-world elevation data to recreate the Earth's landscapes, filling in the details with fractal algorithms that create natural-looking textures.

Developers can also insert their own models and textures by hand, letting them create artificial features like airports or roads, while an in-built Google Maps navigation tool helps players find their favourite locations.

Playing the demo currently consists of just driving around in a truck or flying over the world with a free-roam camera, but the developers hope that interested players will pay $15 for access to future versions with more advanced features.

Source: http://feeds.newscientist.com/c/749/f/10897/s/1d294186/l/0L0Snewscientist0N0Cblogs0Conepercent0C20A120C0A30Cplanet0Esized0Evideo0Egame0Egets0Ei0Bhtml0DDCMP0FOTC0Erss0Gnsref0Fonline0Enews/story01.htm

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