Occasionally there are some duels that generate a lot of interest among players. It'd be a lot of fun if an invisible camera (or if bandwidth permits, a set of three cameras) were generated for duels and would be accessable via a station tab or something so players could watch and bet on the players.

In the single camera version, it would be somewhat simple, and try to always keep the two players in frame - it'll back up if the players separate, and will move in when the players get close to each other - it stops at a certain distance (probably about the distance when the players are about 250-300m apart).

In the three camera version, one camera is a "master" camera and stays relatively in the middle between the two players so it can see the whole battlefield. The second and third cameras stay in the 3rd person POV behind the corresponding player (Camera 2 stays behind Player 1, and Camera 3 stays behind Player 2). The spectators can choose which cameras to view from, or select a randomizer function that switches cameras randomly and at random intervals between maybe 5 and 30 seconds.

Spectators have access to a betting function where when they bet, money is deducted from their accounts and placed into a database (one database for Player 1 and one database for Player 2). There's a minimum bet of maybe 1000cr and a maximum of 100,000cr. The winners of the duel win 1000cr x the number of people who bet, and the loser wins 100cr x the number of people who bet. The people who bet on the winners have the pot divvied up and awarded to them based on how much they originally contributed. Basically, the percentage of the pot that they contributed is the percentage of the loser's money they get. If two people bet for Player 1, and they both bet 10000cr, they get the 10000 back, and the pot is split 50/50. If one person bets 1000cr and the other bets 10000cr, the player who bet 1000cr gets 9.1% of the loser's pot, and the player who bet 10000cr gets 90.9% of the loser's pot. But on the other hand, the player who bet 10000cr is risking a lot more on the duel.

[Edit]
I forgot to say that in one duel I had, there was a neutral third player who was trying to comment on 100. It was really bad. I hit my opponent several times and it took between 30-60 seconds for the player to get it onto the channel, and usually it was only a semi-accurate reporting. Heck, it took a probably a half a minute just for him to say that the duel had ended. That's why I think it'd be nice to have live broadcasts.

This would be cool. Hooked into the news system and automatically tracking all duels?

Who hoo ;)

There may be bandwidth issues, but I figure that it's kinda like spectator mode in mainstream FPSs.

this would be really nice

Or even better have cameramen! just copy what the ship sees into a window for others to view.

You could sell Tickets to the match and the cameraman would get the cash!

Imagine 3 different sports channels each with there own cameramen getting the best action on a fight!!!

The career of professional duelist/cameraman would be a cool one!!!

Eh... During one of the duels, there was some guy who kept hovering probably 400m from us and was very distracting because he was just all over the place. Course, I found myself doing that TO a duel, but that was for a different reason.

This is a pretty cool idea. I think that a whole range of little things for entreatment in the bar would be great. The space stations lack any atmosphere, and uniqueness. Perhaps have only a hand full of stations that broadcast the duels, and maybe the races if they get created too. In EVO you could bet at the bar on races. it was pretty much a randomized set of movies showing a race. but it was still something. We need to get a sense of community. a reason for people to get together.

I have one Idea for either a entertainment tab, or just a option it a more robust Bar tab. What if people in the bar could play games? Like board Games or card games. The devs could create a really simple game system similar to Yahoo games. The VO bar could host one or two unique games. These games would kinda be the chess and poker of the VO universe. 3-D chess from Star Trek comes to mind as a game that not only could be fun, but is unique to a franchise. I think if a game similar to Pente or Go Moku would be really fun, and both are pretty simple. the board game would just be for fun, to socialize and of course a record could be kept of players stats. The Card game could be a source of gambling, like duels and races on TV. Also a poker like card game at space ports could grant a "Space Cowboy" feeling.

To create these games would take time from the dev's, and so this might be a great opportunity for other players to contribute. We could have a Game building Contest. have players devise some sort of game in one of two categories. A game for fun, and a game for gambling. once clever, unique, and fun games are chosen, the dev's can code it based on the rules provided. A card game would require a unique deck of cards to be made too. Even pong in the bar would have its charm.

This is a nice idea, and actually I don't think bandwidth would be a problem. They'd just have to make you load the sector that the duel was happening in, then load your own sector when you are done. It would just be rendered as usual, no different than actually being there.

Both Pigeon and Shock's ideas seem great--shock, if you posted a contest on the "Community Project" board, asking for one entertainment and one gambling game, I would definitely rack my brain for ideas.

This is a fantastic idea. I'd love to see it implemented in some way.

nice idea!

I don't know if adding games within games would necessarily be a good idea. There's the risk that the game within a game might become more popular than the game itself and there'd be tons of players who only stay in the stations and never come out.

I think all the games/gambling options within the station should be related to Vendetta. Duel betting, race betting, that kind of thing - something that requires other players to be involved in, but isn't so entertaining that it takes away from time spent actually out in space playing Vendetta.

I was thinking that the games would be like Frogger--if you're bored, you'd stop by the station, and play for a while. But could you really play frogger for an hour or more?

I like the spectator idea.

My only addition would be that duels are only broadcasted from 1 sector. So if you wanted a public duel you would go to that sector and duel.

Then have betting and other stuff.

It would be easily done(sort of) if you click the view duel button you would load the sector and be able to see whats happening but not move around or effect anything. When the duel is over you load your current sector. If you get tired mid duel there could be a simple command like /duel return or something like that to bring you back.

smittens: if you wanted to play frogger, couldn't you just quit Vendetta and play frogger?

Durgia: I personally think that having a "dueling sector" takes all the fun away from it. On top of people having to look at the same sector backgrounds for each and every fight, you can't simply have a duel against passing players. You have to go to special sectors, and it'd almost make it too much of a hassle than is probably necessary to actually GET to the sector. What if two players in Deneb decided to have a duel but then had to go to Odia to duel? I'd personally say that's too much trouble and kill the person right there.

CP, in responce to Durgia: Maybe there could be two dueling sectors in each of UIT, Itani, Serco, and Grey space?

CP, in responce to me: I could just quit and play frogger. But I've played frogger. I want to play a game that I've never played before (mainly because I don't have anywhere near the talent to program it :D)

I understand CrippledPidgeon's point to some extent. We certainly wouldn't want to over shadow the actual Vendetta game, or pull people away from it, but we want to add to it. Mini games within games can be cool. and SIMPLE ones that you can just play for a few minutes is all I was thinking about.

Right now the bar is a stagnant place were few go, I don't even spend much time in the stations at all. And These Stations (if they were real) would be the areas were groups were formed, assaults planed. and maybe even fights started.

My idea was for an original game, devised by the players and in a sense "given" to the Vendetta Universe. Who ever devised the game or contributed would get some sort of credit, but be donating, or licensing the game for free. The game would be unique and also could be a story point to the game. It would be like what the game of poker was to the "Old West", a part of the mythology and the universe's culture. FF did this well, sometimes went over board though. Blitzball from X, that annoying card game from IIIV, and the chocobo racing in IIV.

I will take simittens advice and make a "Community Post" for a mini Game Developing project with a set of guidelines, IF a dev speaks up and would be open to the idea, and would use the game that either the fans like, or the dev's like. and meld it into the Vendetta Universe.

I am already thinking about playing cards or game pieces using the Galactic Trade Standard Alphabet

http://www.vendetta-online.com/manual/app_gts.html

Any way we can help add depth and contribute to this universe, the more fun we will have, the more people will jump on, and the more growth the game will have.

GTS playing cards and/or other games would rule! I keep meaning to dedicate time to learning GTS, but haven't gotten around to it yet, and this might help quite a bit.

The problem with GTS cards that I see is that I have, multiple times, tried to learn GTS, and always fail (albiet I never try *that* hard, but I still can't remember anything more than "ship"). Maybe it would then have a "select your language" before you play, and then the numbers or whatever appear like that too?

The best of both worlds would have english as well as a the GTS alpha bet, maybe even a third alphabet on cards to show that many cultures play these games.

Regardless, The GTS alphabet will not be necessary for playing the game. it will simply be used in addition to english or as simply a unifying graphic design quality to tie into the VO universe.

Instead of hearts, spades, clubs, and diamonds. you would use the GTS symbols. That kind of thing.

I don't want to overshadow CP's idea for Duel TV either, That is a great idea. The bars should have every thing in the space stations that we think about having in bars or saloons . Games, Sports on TV and Gambling.