Most online games are built in Flash. Of all the rich media plug-ins Flash the highest penetration rate amongst web users and if you want to create a viral game with maximum possible reach it isn't just the sensible option, it's the only option.
But if you want to build high quality browser games there is a new kid on the block that is quietly gaining traction among digital developers like us: Unity 3D.
Built by a Danish company, the application has a native 3D environment which talks directly to the hardware in your computer. This results in something way more powerful than anything Flash can currently muster even with the help of Papervision, the ongoing open source project being developed by the finest AS3 programmers in the world.
This week's game of the week was built in Unity 3D (you can test how far out of the loop you are by whether or not you need to download the plugin) by DADIU, The National Academy of Digital Interactive Entertainment in Denmark, which educates students in the creation and production of games. And if this IS what the DADIU students can come up with at the start of their careers, it just makes you wonder what they will be capable of in the future.
The game itself, 'A Mazing Monk', is a 3D puzzler where you play a Buddhist monk trying to collect enough Karma to open the doorway to the next level. While this sounds rather average (for a Monk game) it isn't - as the game is set on a cube made up of several smaller cubes that you have to rotate in order to collect Karma. Some of the cubes feature evil soldiers who will happily gun down the monk if they have a clear path to reach him. Think Pac-Man set on a Rubiks Cube and you're there.
While it's not a very long game (just three levels), the design, playability and peaceful message of the game are well worth a small chunk of your afternoon. If you fancy playing a game, and if you're in the industry, it's probably time to raise your game if the next wave of developers are producing stuff like this.
Game of the Week:
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