The Physics-Based Pathfinding System of The Elder Scrolls Online

There was a time when all maps in skim were created by hand. But as the games got more complex, the designers started considering the problem of creating the maps on game maps by hand, because it takes a really long time to draw even a simple map with some features like trees, mountain or water. So they came up with something new-something that could replace the hand-created maps Footprints. Footprints is a mod for The Elder Scrolls: The Warcraft Game that was created by Hexabit.

If you’re thinking that the idea of giving your character a footprint will give players an idea of what the crime scene looks like, you’re right. Footprints can also be used in-game to determine the direction of any player’s journey, to identify the exact location of any treasure or quest item, or to track down someone that you want to find. It adds a level of reality to the game by adding a real-world element to your gameplay, and by providing visual clues that can help the player find the location or person they’re looking for. And if you get tired of just following the trail left by your avatar or getting mired deep in a crime scene with dozens of NPCs and several dozen weapons, or finding yourself trapped in a precarious situation with no way out, you can activate Footprints to play a completely random game scenario, with the footprint you left behind always being there, waiting for you to go find it. Footprints is compatible with both the vanilla game and the latest version of The Elder Scrolls Online.

In fact, Footprints is so well-made and well-designed that it might actually inspire people to start making their own Footprints creations for the game. Whether it’s someone creating a new quest based on their footprints or someone creating a new minigame, Footprints has something for everyone. And really, who knows? Perhaps someday all footpaths will be made with particles of human skin rather than steel.