What better way to show off your HTML5 prowess than to conjure up an MMOG using the new platform? Mozilla has done just that with the launch of BrowserQuest, an old-school adventure game developed by Little Workshop. Currently the entire internet seemingly wants to check out the new demo, as it's extremely difficult to log on and stay connected.
"BrowserQuest is a tribute to classic video-games with a multiplayer twist," Mozilla reports. "You play as a young warrior driven by the thrill of adventure. No princess to save here, just a dangerous world filled with treasures to discover. And it’s all done in glorious HTML5 and JavaScript."
Powering BrowserQuest are WebSockets, a new technology that enables bi-directional communication between a browser and a server on the web. The MMOG is merely a demo to show how these WebSockets can be used to create a real-time multiplayer game in a single webpage. Even more, because it's HTML5-based, the game can be played in Firefox, Chrome and Safari. With WebSockets enabled, it’s also playable in Opera. Moreover, it’s compatible with iOS devices, as well as tablets and phones running Firefox for Android.
"When you start to play, your browser opens up a WebSocket connection to one of several load-balanced game servers," Mozilla explains. "Each server hosts multiple world instances and handles the player synchronization and game logic within all instances. Because the server code is running on Node.js, both the server and client codebases share a small portion of the same JavaScript source code."
Controls are highly simplistic. Users left-click the mouse to move, attack and pick up items, and press ENTER to chat (you can click on the little cartoon balloon at the bottom right-hand of the screen too). Quests can be accessed by hitting the little chalice button, and characters are automatically saved as you play.
"The mobile versions are more experimental than the desktop experience, which has richer features and performance, but it’s an early glimpse of what kind of games will be coming to the mobile Web in the future," Mozilla reports.
For more information about BrowserQuest, head here. Servers seem to be overloaded, so expect connection issues until the newness wears off.
