Fun with physics: Oblivion's domino effect
by Christopher Grant 
{ May 23rd 2006 at 8:30PM }
Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion employs the same Havok physics engine that's been used to create all those fun Rube Goldberg machines in Half-Life 2, so it's only fitting that a similar contraption's been created in Tamriel and recorded for us all to enjoy. The creators used books (instead of dominos) to create the over 3-minute clip! Crazy!
See also:
Nintendo-themed Goldberg contraption
Fun with physics: a HL2 Rube Goldberg machine
[Via Waxy]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Unlike Me @ May 23rd 2006 8:38PM
OMFG, that was crazy! Awesome vid.
Tull @ May 23rd 2006 8:40PM
ummm.....
Andir @ May 23rd 2006 8:42PM
Love it!
bv @ May 23rd 2006 8:45PM
Wow. That is freakin' sweet. I can't even fathom how long that took to orchestrate. Anyone know how they got those books to stand vertical like that? Is there some kind of editor in the PC version that allows for this kind of thing? I can just imagine tipping over a book on accident and not having saved the million hours put into this. Woe is me and my humble Xbox 360 version :(.
Intangible 360 @ May 23rd 2006 8:46PM
Lol, very inventive and well constructed! Using the Adoring fan was a nice touch as well, I wonder if the book they used was The Lusty Argonian Maid :O
ac @ May 23rd 2006 8:48PM
holy omfgwtflmfaoroflbbq!!!! wow I bet that took a hella lot of time in the CS :-)
bigC24 @ May 23rd 2006 8:52PM
Holy Hell that was amazing.
Amos @ May 23rd 2006 8:52PM
Haha, sweet. That was classic. I have the same question as bv, though. Is that even possible on the Xbox? (and damn, had to take those guys [/girls?] -forever- to set that up...)
iDSX @ May 23rd 2006 9:00PM
Wow, that guy must have a lot of spare time on his hands, but overall it was a fun watch. =)
CYRiX @ May 23rd 2006 9:04PM
i want real news.
Xiath @ May 23rd 2006 9:06PM
@4 if you use the left shoulder button, you can grab and move around items, so if you are careful you can stack up books verticle like that, or if you are too lazy to do something like that, you can play with items on the many scales like I do.
ejflex @ May 23rd 2006 9:15PM
Could someone explain all these oblivion things? I don't understand.. Are they actually in the game.. or are they some sort of Hack? I'm assuming the latter.
James Sorensen @ May 23rd 2006 9:15PM
makes me think how awesome Nirvana in a new Burnout game or something would be :)
Joel @ May 23rd 2006 9:16PM
Dude, cyrix, just leave! Seriously...you are not wanted here.
hoos30 @ May 23rd 2006 9:31PM
Okay, that just made my day. Thanks!
Babylonian (Nick Robinson) @ May 23rd 2006 9:36PM
Very entertaining and ridiculously well-shot. Honestly, that kicked the HL2 videos' asses.
Sylvio @ May 23rd 2006 9:39PM
This is the craziest thing I´ve ever seen, and one of the most funny afterall! There´re LOTS of people with free time! :)
Raymond @ May 23rd 2006 9:42PM
The thing is, these guys started this at launch.
Doc @ May 23rd 2006 9:46PM
Cyrix(#10), if you want real news, then what the hell are you doing on joystiq?! Joystiq is a BLOG, you moron.
Clay @ May 23rd 2006 9:54PM
Rather awesome.
4me @ May 23rd 2006 10:02PM
Now that took an huge amount of free time.
Knoxximus @ May 23rd 2006 10:06PM
Wowie-ZOWie!
Momus @ May 23rd 2006 10:13PM
Could have done with better music, but that was neat.
brian fantana @ May 23rd 2006 10:18PM
Very entertaining. Too bad you can't do cool crap like that with the 360 version.
And using Nirvana made it that much more special.
jaemz @ May 23rd 2006 10:40PM
That was pretty cool... however, I find it funny that even when I am watching a Oblivion video I am looking for nirnroot.
Anyone know how they got the camera to fly around like that?
Imadogg99 @ May 23rd 2006 10:59PM
Probably modded on the PC to be able to do all that stuff? I don't know, I don't play on the PC so I don't know how all this modding stuff works. Nice video though.
I gotta try to play some Oblivion again after stopping after, like, only 25 hours of play (my damn 360 scratched my disc, now whenever I encounter a bad guy it gets unreadable... aargh!).
Brandon @ May 23rd 2006 11:08PM
Your comments: Doc is right Cyrix. Joystiq is a blog, not a news site. Blogs have the right to state opinions, or basically write whatever they want. It doesn't have to be newsworthy unlike a real news site. Try gamespot, ign, or something similiar if you want "news."
In the mean time, you can enjoy Joystiq for its opinions and fun entries. Also, if you don't want to watch a video about domino effects in Oblivion, don't do it and don't read it. Let the rest of us enjoy it by not leaving useless comments.
sethdonut @ May 23rd 2006 11:44PM
Damn, this was surprisingly well done. I really hope there will be more Oblivion Rube Goldberg machines in the future.
Ethan Thomas @ May 24th 2006 12:37AM
That video was amazing. I'm thinking that this was done via hack right? Or am I wrong? If it's possible to do that on the 360 version, all I can say is...it took those guys FOREVER to do. Serious props though. Loved it.
KerB @ May 24th 2006 12:51AM
Brilliant. Simply brilliant.
MosquitoControl @ May 24th 2006 12:52AM
Surprising.
I've found the physics in Oblivion mostly lacking.
Sometimes they really wow you.
Often they leave you wanting and show how incompletely implemented they are.
I've seen dropped swords spin on end for hours at a time quite often.
I've kicked heavy armor around like a soccer ball.
And there's the whole issue with tables. The items on them are sitting there without any physics applied until you touch them. Pick up a spoon and watch everything on the table settle, falling a few virtual inches.
deathneo @ May 24th 2006 1:08AM
Wow! that was some awesome mod. I wonder if he's gonna release it so the public can make some awesome Rube Goldberg machines and claim bragging rights for the best one?
mikemil828 @ May 24th 2006 1:09AM
>>I'm thinking that this was done via hack right?>>
No, wasn't a hack, what they did was use the Construction Set to put down the traps and stuff and tested it in game to see if it worked or not. This sort of thing will be impossible to do with the x360 version
canebi @ May 24th 2006 1:17AM
Am I the only one that finds it sad that this many people are wow'd by ingame dominos...
WOW! he used physics!
Sigh...
Solstice @ May 24th 2006 4:03AM
Canebi, I think a good portion of the 'wow factor' is just how much time it would take to construct a contraption of that magnitude.
Plus, thats the first time i've ever seen dominos done with swords, log traps, morning stars, and giant pearls. ;)
rudimentalist @ May 24th 2006 4:15AM
I'm confused how some of the events were triggered, such as the guy busting out of the um, barrel things, how did that happen? I guess I'd understand better if I played the game.
las6 @ May 24th 2006 5:03AM
rudimentalist (35), when you see a sword in the video, look carefully and you'll usually also see a rope stretched out. This is an in-game trap mechanism. When the rope goes out, it triggers a trap... usually a spiked ball comes swinging from the ceiling. That, or a huge lumber or something else.
Cloud @ May 24th 2006 6:11AM
This just goes to show you how advanced this physics engine is.
Ianc02 @ May 24th 2006 6:57AM
Completely brilliant but how much time? Wow, cool music as well i guess. Nice job.
Adam @ May 24th 2006 7:02AM
Game Devs take note: a physics engine is an awesome tool with limitless applications, not a bullet-point on the back of a box.
Here's hoping Wii gets a chance to exeriment with physics, now we have a control method as advanced as our modelling systems (I'm looking at you Elebits).
TKLink @ May 24th 2006 7:06AM
@35
He used traps to make that guy go throguh the barrel, I'm pretty sure.
That was really cool though. I couldn't imagine setting that up. Ever.
boots @ May 24th 2006 9:03AM
The video is nice but did anyone notice how swords don't make full contact with the books? And the rag dolls are kind of ugly. Making rain aside, this game seems to have some great physics.
jron @ May 24th 2006 9:06AM
CYRiX, STFU!
Kinmar @ May 24th 2006 10:26AM
Here is another one very similar but i like how they used the rotating brooms in this one :-)
http://www.gamevideos.com/video/id/3894
mikemil828 @ May 24th 2006 1:38PM
>>I'm confused how some of the events were triggered, such as the guy busting out of the um, barrel things, how did that happen?>>
Look closely, he was hit by one of those swinging log traps
dragonseth @ May 25th 2006 12:44PM
@44 Wow, that one is nice too. I wonder where he got the gigantic books though. Apparently the Adoring Fan humor is popular. :D
This video is amazing, I never expected the physics engine for this game to be that good. But, then again, a lot of 360 games have surprised me, as well as new PC games.
evilfireninja @ May 26th 2006 10:13PM
LOL that was great. BUT U HAVE WAY TOO MUCH TIME