The latest generation of simulation technologies

It's pouring with rain. Suddenly the sirens sound on the oil platform. The supervisor immediately sets out to investigate and identifies a leak in an oil tank. There's a loud explosion and fire breaks out...

This is just one scenario from the Shell Supervisor game developed by TPM. The Anglo-Dutch oil company contacted TPM six months ago. It was regularly being asked about the latest simulation technologies, but didn't have up-to-date information. "Shell wanted to know exactly what is technically feasible and what simulations and games could do for it as a company," Ronald Poelman of the Systems Engineering section explains. "Shell asked us to make a proof of concept. This involves trying to portray many of the options for the final version in a smaller scale version," Poelman continues.

The research team, which includes Harald Warmelink and Daan Groen of Policy, Organisation, Law & Gaming (POLG), used a dual approach. On the one hand the team built a game to demonstrate the options visually. On the other, the team drew up a roadmap: a map of all the technologies available on the market, plus TPM's opinion of them.

Unreal 3
It was clear to Poelman that the game had to be state-of-the-art. "We often hear that so-called fun games are miles ahead of serious games with respect to technology." Groen and his team develop the games which researchers such as Warmelink and Poelman come up with. "It is essential that Shell is given an idea of what this type of world looks like and how it can move within it. We chose Schoonebeek, as all company personnel are familiar with that location," Groen explains. Schoonebeek (municipality of Emmen, Drenthe) is a training facility for Shell employees. Warmelink and Poelman held interviews with Shell personnel on location and  elsewhere in order to make the environment as realistic as possible. Photos, video clips and even maps from Google Earth have also been used. "That's why the game looks so good and so realistic," Poelman says.

Safety
Health, Safety & Environment (HSE) is a major unit within Shell. The company applies a 'goal zero' policy, Warmelink explains. "That basically means zero casualties. This serious game fits in well with this policy. The main character is the supervisor. His job is to guarantee safety location and to call personnel to account. A supervisor has all kinds of roles, many responsibilities and can be deployed in all aspects of the game."

Supervisor comprises three consecutive scenarios. In the first part, the player walks around the location looking for defects: problems which could cause even greater problems at a later date. "A hole in a fence doesn't have many consequences. It's easy to repair," Groen elaborates. "Yet there is also a barrel of chemicals in a hazardous position. If you don't move it, it could get knocked over at some point."

In the second scenario, the player is told there is a truck at the gates with a load of pipes. The supervisor has to ensure that the pipes are unloaded safely. "These steps have to be properly supervised. Yet there are other things going on elsewhere simultaneously that you need to keep an eye on."

In the third phase, everything goes wrong which has not been properly dealt with earlier. Someone trips over the knocked-over barrel of chemicals. If the chemical shower has not yet been repaired, the player has a major problem on his hands. Groen: "Various things can happen. We can also introduce data from outside the game while someone is playing. Take the influence of the weather, for instance. If it's raining, the scene changes and you often have to operate differently. This means the game is different each time. Our primary objective was to show that the technology works. If you can have one person walking around, you can have a hundred."

Feedback
The game takes fifteen minutes. Players receive a summary of items which were or were not properly dealt with. They are also given feedback on what should have been done differently and what they totally overlooked.

The proof of concept has now been completed. This forms a good basis for further developing the game. Poelman: "At the moment we are consulting on the next phase: implementing a pilot within the organisation. Shell wants to see proof of the benefits of this type of game. We can play a major part in this. We are the intermediary; we say what does and doesn't work and demonstrate what is possible."

For Supervisor we applied the technology used in Unreal Tournament 3. This is the latest generation shooting game for XBox360 and Playstation.