Projects in VR: the Delta3D open source game engine

Abstract

Game engines have so much in common that we have to wonder if they should actually be a commodity and they should be. That advanced feature that makes one game engine different from all the rest is part of the reason why game engines and visual simulation tools cost so much. Furthermore, most game engines have a unique development pipeline associated with them. The way content is developed and integrated is specific to that engine, implying limited (if any) portability and reuse. This business model is perfectly appropriate for the entertainment industry where having the latest graphics features can make or break a title, but to the training community, the model simply does not work. Delta3D is actually a thin, unifying layer that sits atop many open source game engines we might already use. It has a high-level, cross-platform (Win32 and Linux) C++ API designed with programmers in mind to soften the learning curve, but always makes lower levels of abstraction available to the developer. Programmers can develop content through the level editor - they can write Python script to the Delta3D API or to the underlying tools directly. Delta3D uses the standard Lesser GNU Public License (LGPL). It's completely modular and allows a best-of-breed approach whereby any module can be swapped out if a better option becomes available.