Video games usually come in two dimensions: you have your typical 2D side-scrollers or, more commonly, your typical 3D adventures. You rarely see a game that goes beyond those dimensions, since, you know, we live in the third dimension. Why, then, a Minecraft clone exists in 4D?
At first glance, 4D miner just seems like Minecraft. You are dropped into an infinite, procedurally generated world tasked with mining the terrain to survive as long as possible. So far Minecraft. That is, until you move your mouse scroll wheel around and shit starts appearing out of nowhere.
Every time you scroll 4D miner, your world changes dramatically. The elements that are right in front of you disappear, while others reveal themselves. Terrain you thought was solid opens up to reveal hills and holes, as cave walls part into deep chasms. The thing is, none of those things really change. From a 4D perspective, whatever you see while scrolling is actually there at all times. We just can’t see it, because we’re limited to our 3D view of the world.
Imagine a two-dimensional being, like Mario in the original Super Mario Bros. They can see left, right, up and down, but are limited to this 2D view of the world. If you place them in 3D, they won’t be able to see the extra dimension of space. Instead, they would see a 2D cross-section of our 3D space, which would reveal only part of the world we see in its entirety. Move this cross-section, and they see a different view of the space, while some of the elements from their original perspective “disappear”. All the while we see everything they see, and the world as it is.
If this explanation doesn’t make sense to you, I completely understand. This stuff is complicated, and it’s much easier to explain visually. Take a look at 4D miner demo videowhich effectively illustrates this concept:
A 4D game, like 4D miner, takes this concept and turns it on us. Now, were 2D being, except we are living a 3D cross-section of a 4D world. To a 4D observer, the world appears completely normal, with all trees, caves, lava flows, and bodies of water visible at all times. However, we can only see what our current cross section allows: when you scroll, you move that cross section and reveal a different slice of the 4D world.
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This mechanism adds another dimension to the Minecraft exploration that we all know so well. Rather than just scavenging for supplies, you must dive through various planes of the fourth dimension. You might think nothing fell when you mined a tree, but scroll through 4D space and you might find a tree branch that was previously hidden.
Likewise, you will find cave-diving is much more complex than in Minecraft. In order to find the cave entrances, you’ll likely have to scroll through the fourth dimension and keep scrolling once inside. Otherwise, you will miss items, paths, lava, and enemies.
Oh, yes: the enemies. In this game, your enemies are 4D beings, which means you might not even see them if you’re not in their proper perspective. You can’t see their full shape either: you can cycle through planes to see different sides of enemies, but their full silhouette will still be hidden in 4D space that you can’t see. The first enemy you seem to encounter is a 4D arachnid called a hyperspider. If the concept of a spider lurking in another dimension triggers your arachnophobia, I won’t blame you.
As you play, you will be able to create tools that will help you navigate this 4D world. 4D glasses, for example, reveal the outlines of objects and enemies that you wouldn’t have seen from your current vantage point. Suddenly those spiders aren’t so scary anymore. You can also create a 4D compass to help you track your current location and to better visualize your 3D cross section of the 4D world.
You will need these tools because doing anything in 4D miner it’s much more complicated than in 3D Minecraft. Even something as simple as building a shelter becomes a challenge, as you quickly realize that your 3D crafting skills don’t account for all the 4D walls you need to put up. Your first shelter will be full of gaping 4D holes if you’re not careful. Suddenly the spiders become scary again.
4D miner is currently available for free as a demo on Steam, with an official release scheduled for November. It won’t be the first 4D game to hit the market, but, according to this Wikipedia listthis is the first 4D game of 2022, and only the third released since 2020. As limited as these types of games are, they are still fascinating to play. Another one interesting concept is 4D Toys, which lets you play with different shapes in 4D space. As 4D mineryou’re limited to your 3D cross section, so you’ll see these toys change shape and disappear as you move them around.
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