First person perspective

This article explains the camera perspective in computer games. For more meanings, see first-person perspective .

First person view in a first person shooter , here from the game Nexuiz

First person view in an adventure game , here from The Stanley Parable

The first-person or first-person perspective (of Latin ego = I, Eng. First-person view or a first-person perspective , just FPV or FPP) is the name for a camera perspective in a computer game , in which the representation of the game world through the eyes Game piece takes place. This camera perspective enables a high degree of immersion , since the player apparently takes the position of the character himself instead of controlling it from outside. The corresponding setting in a film is called a point-of-view shot .

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Usually nothing of the character itself, or only the weapon and the arms, can be seen. In some 3D games, when you look down you can also see the feet and lower part of the body.

In games with 2D graphics, adventures in the style of Myst use the first person perspective. In the field of 3D games for the PC , the first person shooter pioneered the implementation of the first person perspective. Since Quake (1996), mouse and keyboard control has been established, whereby the viewing direction - which at the same time defines the target direction by the crosshairs in the middle of the screen - can be moved freely in all directions with the mouse ( free mouse look ), and the movement of the character takes place via individually configurable keys (mostly WASD ). This control scheme was later adopted by other computer game genres. In the area of console games , separate control schemes have been developed for the first-person perspective, which are tailored to the use of a controller .

The first person view is also available in some 3D role-playing games and adventures such as Morrowind . Early examples are Akalabeth and Wizardry , where the first-person view was technically realized using very simple vectors . In role-playing games, however, the third-person perspective is more often the standard perspective , because special movements and fighting with edged weapons can be better implemented in this. With the help of such special movements as climbing, shackling, pulling and pushing, more complex puzzles and skills can be implemented in action adventures. In contrast, the first-person perspective is better suited for precise aiming with ranged weapons, which is why some games allow both the first-person perspective and the third-person view (e.g. Star Wars: Jedi Knight from Part 2).

Even in game hybrids from the field of virtual reality, it is often possible to switch to a first-person perspective. An early example of this is VRML .

See also

• Isometric perspective in computer games

Web links

• When Seams Fall Apart. Video Game Space and the Player. Article by Laurie Taylor on perspective in computer games (Game Studies. Volume 3, Issue 2, December 2003)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ First-person viewpoint 'is most immersive' ( Memento from December 11, 2014 in the Internet Archive ), Bioshock developer Ken Levine on the first person perspective (February 24, 2011)
2. ^ The WASD System (February 22, 2010 article)
3. ↑ Evolution of Windows games ( Memento of the original from November 5, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. : free mouse look as standard setting since Quake II (1997) 
4. ↑ First-Person Control Design for Dual Analog Stick Controllers , article by Kevin Ng, Gamasutra , July 14, 2004