WHAT IS OMNIVERSE?

Overview

Omniverse is a powerful tool that allows users to create and participate in shared interactive stories over the internet.  The content of the stories can be geared for both dedicated gamers and the casual user seeking online entertainment.  The software allows up to eighteen people to "act" in a story in a manner similar to role playing in a game like Myst but with an important difference.  Each "actor" in the story has his own goals and motivations which may be complementary, opposing, or unrelated to the goals of other characters.  Since the main characters are role played by actual people, rather than the computer, the story's outcome is truly open ended and may be different each time the story is played.

Software Components

There are three primary parts to the software, a brief description of each follows:

OmniPlayer

The Player software allows you to participate as an actor in one of the shared interactive stories.  Integrated with a standard web browser, the OmniPlayer allows the actor to view story information, chat with other characters, and submit actions to the host.  The software also comes with a preview guide and scheduling software to help you select and remember stories that peak your interest.

OmniHost

The Host software allows you to host an Omniverse story. As the host you can choose which participants to allow to act in the story and set the time duration for each round of action. You may also elect to play one or more background characters to heighten everyone's enjoyment of the story.

OmniAuthor

The Authoring tool allows you to modify a story or create a brand new one with drag and drop ease. Most importantly, no coding is required. Easy authoring was a primary goal to encourage a large portion of the online community to try their hand at creating or adding to a story