Разработчик: Contours
Описание
Founder's Edition
In addition to all features of the full game when it is released, you will have access to special content available to Early Access owners.
- Exclusive compass: Enjoy the world of Virtual-O with this virtual copy of Str8 Compass.
- More to come: On the date of final release any content that is considered exclusive or special will be automatically added to your final game free of charge.
About the Game
Virtual-O is a new game that brings you the adventures of Orienteering without the need of going to faraway places. Nature will be your only enemy as you will try to navigate the Unknown using map and compass. And as you will come to realize, environment itself can be a really formidable opponent on its own.What is orienteering
Orienteering is a sport in which the athletes use a map and a compass to navigate between checkpoints - called controls - in diverse and unfamiliar terrain.The history of orienteering began in the late 19th century in Sweden, where it originated from military training. The actual term "orienteering" was first used in 1886 at the Swedish Military Academy Karlberg and referred to the crossing of unknown land with the aid of a map and a compass.
As an athlete you must navigate through the entire course from start to finish, visiting all the controls in order. To win, you must successfully decide on the fastest routes between controls, and do so quickly. Choosing an inefficient route can cost you valuable seconds, or even minutes. And you must execute your plan, running through the terrain while using your map reading skills to keep your bearings..
Orienteering can be a lifesaving skill
Getting lost in the wilderness can put you in a life threatening situation. Knowing how to navigate with a map and a compass is not only cool; such skills can and often do save lives.
Realistic simulation
The main objective for Virtual-O is to create a full featured orienteering/navigation simulator that will be accessible for all people – from novice to top level – to improve their navigational skills. It should be sufficiently realistic to provide useful practice even for elite orienteers. Key points include:- Realistic running speed model. All features of the terrain affect your running speed in a realistic manner, making the route choice an important decision
- Full day and night cycle
- Living and breathing environment
- Realistic simulation of compass and map
- Virtual terrains made from laser scans and orienteering maps of real world terrains
State of the art real world terrains
Worlds in Virtual-O are generated from real orienteering maps. They are among the most detailed of any type of map. Here are some features of the rocky map seen in the trailer:- Terrain is created from laser scanned data of the area (LIDAR)
- All objects in the terrain (trees, bushes, rocks, paths etc.) are generated based on the input orienteering map.
- Contains over 45 000 trees and bushes
New challenges
As your navigation skill improves, you can try new challenges:- Night orienteering
- Create your own courses
- Train without a compass
- Special training with limited map (for instance using only contours for navigation)
Easy to learn?
Orienteering is a wonderful sport. But mastering the required skills is not easy. Virtual-O is prepared to help you. You can start with a tutorial or use the provided system of map assistants that will help you handle the map and keep your bearings while taking your first steps into the world of orienteering. It's a system similar to driving assistants in formula/car simulations. You can disable these when you feel you are ready.Virtual-O supports three different game speed modes to satisfy all levels of players
Press or read something that was written about Virtual-O
References
1. History of orienteering wiki
Поддерживаемые языки: english
Системные требования
Windows
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS *: 64-bit Windows 7, 64-bit Windows 8 (8.1) or 64-bit Windows 10
- Processor: Intel CPU Core i5-2500K 3.3GHz / AMD CPU Phenom II X4 940
- Memory: 6 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GPU GeForce GTX 660 / AMD GPU Radeon HD 7870
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS *: 64-bit Windows 7, 64-bit Windows 8 (8.1) or 64-bit Windows 10
- Processor: Intel CPU Core i7 3770 3.4 GHz / AMD CPU AMD FX-8350 4 GHz
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: Nvidia GPU GeForce GTX 770 / AMD GPU Radeon R9 290
Mac
Linux
Отзывы пользователей
good for not being finished. There is 4 maps wihte many different courses. Recomended!
Very good practice for map exersise and compass handeling.
Hope they could create new maps. Maybe Estonian or Finnish.
really good game, but it is a bit sad that they are not uploading more maps
Unfortunately the game is abandoned, so I can't recommend to buy it, unless activity starts again in the development.
It is very sad because even as an early access stage it is very nice (but not worth the current price (>50 CDN!! ). So with more work it would be an awesome simulator.
Again, very very sad.
I was eager to play this game since I first saw it, but did not have powerful computer. Finally got one, spent some time hoping for Christmas discounts without any result. Hardly managed to talk myself into spending 40 euros, and game was instant disappointment. It looks good, controls are more or less OK, but it feels too easy. In Suunnistussimulaattori i was making same mistakes as in real life, but here it's more about figuring what type of land cover I see.
Some suggestions if it will be improved in future: city sprints, denser forests, map auto rotates at every control point, mass start events with bots or even a story mode about going from OPEN groups to Elite.
super fun game. its not wort 39 Dolars but its still a super fun game i would rekomend it. in som of the maps in spain you cant win the game but remember that the game its in erly axes. the game graficks its like in the forest. i would ragtit like 9/10 very good game
This is a wonderful tool for working on orienteering skills, particularly compass work and learning symbology. The maps feel great and look beautiful, and the way the terrain affects your movements and creates an ability to genuinely feel lost creates a sincere immersion that is needed for this sort of game. There's a good amount of routes and the course builder allows for creative setup of controls anywhere in the map. More maps would be great, but imo what this needs is more people making routes.
That being said, the big con here is the silence of the developer over the past year. There was mention on the website of an OCAD converter of sorts for users to create maps, as that was the direction he was wanting to go and be able to focus on improving the gameplay. I believe if anything can supercharge this game and take it to soaring heights, it is that converter being released. I have emailed the developer to find out the status of this. Here's to hoping it emerges, because I would absolutely love to pour hundreds of hours into this. It is that good.
Should you buy this?
If you think you want it, then I say yeah, with the caveat that you will likely find yourself wishing for what everyone on here is looking for.
If you are an orienteer yourself, I think this should be a no-brainer purchase as a tool for practicing when you are unable to outside. It's a fantastic way to keep the skills sharp.
Dont have much time into it yet but I know I am already going to love it. It BADLY needs an open mode though, so theres no time challenge. Just let us explore the areas freely. Once it has that it will be brilliant.
Very good simulation of an actual orienteering challenge and makes a good, realistic trainer for orienteerers.
Wish there were more map to choose, but i understand it is a lot of work for the developper.
I have been a keen orienteer for over 30 years. This game is the closest you can get to donning a pair of o-shoes & a compass during the current lockdown due to CV19.
The representation is very good, including the drift whilst attempting to run on a compass bearing and the general ability to get lost/disorientated in a forest.
Thoroughly recommended to any orienteer or to someone who would like to get an understanding of the sport from their armchair.
I hope that additional maps &/or the ability to upload OCAD maps will be made available in future editions. Some UK forests or areas of open moorland would be good to see.
YES It is very good but I think the game has been abandoned by the designer. I left a suggestion for the game early December but had no response.
The 40€ price is pretty high, but I assume this sort of game doesn't have a big audience, so the developers must fund the project somehow. I bought it during a sale for 20€, and I'm still not sure that it was worth it in terms of value, but I happily support the developers. The game did a very good job of recreating Catching Features in a newer engine, and there are some great new features too. I think the game can actually be a really good practice for beginner orienteers, as it isn't too different from irl orienteering. Unfortunately there are only 4 proper maps in the game right now, but at least those are quite big and exciting. You also have the ability to set courses, and try other players' courses, which is a relly nice feature. I hope the game will be further developed, as it can be a great tool for coaches. I'm not sure if it'll be able to attract non-orineteers, but that's just a matter of marketing.
Really fun and enjoyable game! Altough it would be great to see some more maps added and also more frequent updates. Keep up the good work!
I do not recommend this game to anyone, orienteers or not.
In fact, it makes we want to go back to catching features.
The developer has made 4 maps so far, and only 2 of them are decent in my opinion.
Ths sprint map is just a bunch of fences everywhere in a maze - not even like real sprint orienteering.
The game has a lot of bugs, and for some reason when running in a straight line you will slowly turn to the left or right?! This is very annoying for me. The developer hasn't updated the game since April, and if making your own maps is not a feature then I would expect there to be more maps in the game or at least more frequently updated.
Trust me this is not worth the price it is at currently.
Virtual-o is the best, most realistic and enjoyable orienteering simulator that is made! I have almost only positive feedback from the game after over 50 played hours. The gaming experience is a lot more like real orienteering than it is in Catching features and in Suunnistussimulaattori (those two are also orienteering simulators).
Virtual-o i still an “early access” game, and that is true but not the entire truth. It is already totally ready for gaming! Some adjustments will be done in the future to the game that will make the gaming experience even better that it is.
The biggest “fear” for new and potential buyers are definitely that there is only 3 maps available at the moment. I can tell you from my own experience that it is not a problem! There is so many different ways to use the maps, the biggest thing is that there is a lot of different courses made on each map and anyone can do now courses whenever they want. Another thing that makes the gaming experience more diverse is that you can use different types of the same map (regular, less details and brown).
There are more maps already under work so if there is someone that aren't willing to buy the game just for 3 maps, one can buy the game in a while when there is more maps to play with. (You should not do that because you can buy the game now and you will get the new maps and features as soon as they are made, you can also get them in a beta mode and be a part of developing the new maps and features)
I can recommend the game for everyone that are interested in orienteering or want to try orienteering!
tl;dr : Buy this game if you are orienteering fan. Buy this game if you want to try orienteering and you don't mind the higher price. Wait if you want a complete game with lot of content.
If you're an orienteering fan this game is a must buy for you. If not but you like reading the map and want to try orienteering in comfort of your home you will like this game. Graphics are suprisingly good for such a niche game, and running feels very realistic.
Just be aware that the game is still in early access and as of now does have only two maps, but they are very well done. And there are plenty of courses availlable for the maps, so you will have plenty of hours of fun and the course editor is easy to use, so you can make your own courses easilly.
The developer is very good at listening to the community and implementing requested features.
Even though Virtual-O is only in Early Access at this point, the playability is already great, time just flies while playing. The graphics effects are awesome, especially when also turning on night/fog etc. It is possible to set your own courses on the existing maps as well, as well as playing somebody else's course. For active orienteers, I can clearly see how this can improve their orienteering in real life as well (I know it will improve mine!), in particular when it comes to map memory.
The main limit at this point is the availability of maps (there are only two). However, these two maps are quite extensive (and in particular the Czech one is hard), so I have many hours of play left before I know these to well (the availability of maps, and knowing them too well after a while, is a problem in "real" orienteering as well). Some features are hard to see (in particular ISOM 509 Narrow Ride, as well as controls in pits), but in general, the terrain rendering reflects the maps extremely well.
For players with no previous exposure to orienteering, of course there is a learning curve in learning the map symbols. I recommend using very easy courses that mostly follow trails at first (again just like a beginner would take up real-life orienteering). A suggestion would be to add some simpler maps, like urban orienteering sprint maps, but of course these would require additional rendering features.
I can strongly recommend getting and playing Virtual-O. I am not particularly fond of most computer games (just too boring after a while), but this one I know I will spend many hours with.
So... this game for me is fantastic
I think it is successor after Catching Features :)
Positive +
Graphics awesome work
For orienteer people it is good training
Early access
And main thing: daily updates from author, he is doing on this every day. Make updates very often and he listen to players and others.
Negative -
I think prize could be better
There are two maps, but it is in early access (others are coming)
Keep going on this good work.
Sadly the people thinks this is jsut walking simulator or survival ......
Orienteering is good sport and in game?! Wow...
Our family have been orienteering for about 4 years in Sweden.
First impression of the game after about 2 days.
Gameplay: Great fun to discuss tecnique with the kids. Adults on our level will certainly be able to benefit from the game. Running the game at default high graphic setting seems to run fairly smooth on my laptop (Intel i7-3632QM, 12GB, Geforce GT 640M LE @1600X900).
Looking forward to maps from Sweden for more accurate training.
Course builder: Very intuitive and fast to create courses. Great way to develop your course building skills and get immediate feedback. Would like a better overview of choices when setting the control definitions? Would it be possible from the nearby object to offer standard choices?
Good thing:
-Really good grafic that you can't compere with other O-simulators.
-It has not been any bugs or wronge with the game for me.
Missing in the game:
-A map converter, so it's possible to run in more places.
-Be possible to run in more contries. (Heard that is comming).
-Split-time results, so it is easier to see in seconds the different for the route-choises.
Bad things:
-The slopes isn't always fitted to the height-curves.
After all this is an Early Access, so I think it's going to bee much more changes in the game to it's complited. In the begining the price seem a little bit high, but with some after thinking, it's not a very high-requsted game. So thats affects the price.
So I recomend the game if you like orienteering, because it's the best orienteering simulater I had play qualitatively!
Virtual-O is still in it's early stages, but I do want to write a review on the game in Early Access. However some of the negative things I write here are hopefully gone within the next weeks and months.
To start with the postitive feedback. This game is the best game in the world for orienteteerers to train on their tecnique. Old games like catching features, can't compare to the realistic terrains and map handling of this game. The graffic is outstanding compared to old games of the same genre. So for the people that can't get enough of orienteering, this game is a must buy.
For me as both a hobby orienteerer and gamer, this game is perfect. but if I was only one of this things, I wouldn't recommend it, atleast for now.
The reasons for this is that there are only two maps, and without the possibility to create your own terrain from your own maps, you will pretty soon feel that you have "completed" the game. I'm sure that the developer will get more terrains out soon, but the game isn't going to be really excellent untill you can run on your own maps. For example in your own home town. So the avarage orienteerer aren't really going to be completely satisfied with the game as it is right now.
If I was only a gamer, this game would be so hard to learn properly. If you like a big challenge, maybe you would like it. And you would learn a pretty important skill to have in life. How to get from A to B using a map.
However, for most gamers this is not a game to buy, and I know that wasn't the intesions of the developer either. But I do personally belive that when the game is developed to it's final state. It has some potential to get some none orienteerers in to the game. But then there will have to be a course for beginners to orienteering that will learn you the basics of the sport. As of now, this isn't really a part of the game. At least not good enough.
To end on a positive note. I do feel like I'm actually running orienteering while playing this game. That's how realistic it is. And that is why I recommend the game.
I personally are going to play the game untill it's stops being developed. And if it in it's final stage are awsome. I'm probably gonna play it for decades.
Tutorial works but none of tha maps (2) seem to. I am an adventure racer/gamer and am hoping this will be fixed and I will give feedback to help make it work. Right now I can do nothing but the start tutorial. Game crashes is I try to load on of the two maps.
update: the maps are now loading and things seem to be running smooth. Thanks to the prompt responce from Contours (DEV) for really caring about the what people have to say. I am looking forward to seeing it evolve.
Дополнительная информация
| Разработчик | Contours |
| Платформы | Windows |
| Ограничение возраста | Нет |
| Дата релиза | 01.02.2025 |
| Отзывы пользователей | 90% положительных (49) |