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> 4D Maze Game

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  The Idea
  In the Maze
> Notes
  Reference

  The Fourth Dimension
> Can You See It?
     |
  The Tesseract
  The Tesseract, Part Two
  The Hexadecachoron
     |
  How Much Space Is There?
  Rotations
  How to Point
  How to Orient Yourself
  Volumes
  Walls Are Opaque
     |
  Some Mathematics
  Bibliography

Can You See It?

When I had the idea for the game, I got all excited … I'd always wanted to be able to visualize four-dimensional objects, and I figured that at last I'd found the key. I'd play the game, and get used to seeing and moving around in a real four-dimensional world, and then one day, all of a sudden, I'd really see it.

That hasn't happened yet, unfortunately. I can move around pretty well, and reorient myself when I get disoriented, and I understand many aspects of the maze world in an abstract way, but I still can't put it all together in my head.

So, I can't give informed advice on how to visualize four-dimensional objects. Nevertheless, I do have some thoughts.

  • Read the rest of the notes. They are the fruit of my attempts to understand what the four-dimensional world is like.
  • Be aware of the three-dimensionality of the retina. Pay particular attention to the in and out directions and to the volumes.
  • Move slowly. I can't recognize the volumes when they're changing quickly, so sometimes I use the motion options to slow things down.
  • Explore a small area in detail. Running around all over the place is fun, I'll admit, but I've never learned anything from it. If you find a place you like, you might want to save the game so you can come back to it.
  • Try different things. (That's why there are lots of options!)

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  See Also

  How Much Space Is There?
  How to Orient Yourself
  Some Mathematics