Friday, May 30, 2008

Sonic-BOOOM!!

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Check out the power of AUDIO! Include some PFX (these are faked with geometry btw) and a bit of camera shake, and an attack that was ok now feels much more powerful. Because I play a healthy (or maybe not so healthy) amount of combat games, I need my attack moves to be super-charged.

First, here's one with no sound effects or any other trimmings other than a simple "woosh". It's ok, but it could be much more.




Now...here's that same attack in full effect!



As animators, we do your best to make our attack anims look as powerful as we can with exaggerated poses and timing, but without the right sound effects and particles to go along with it, those attacks will never max out. I know this is obvious, but I just wanted to point out that personally, I like my games’ SFX and PFX to be cranked up beyond what would be appropriate for a film.
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HERE'S ANOTHER EXAMPLE:

Pay particular attention to the last attack. The animation isn’t very exaggerated, it’s basically the “One-inch Punch”—2 poses, and no overlap. But because you get a huge explosion effect with it, along with a quick camera blur and an over-the-top hit-react, boy does that move feel good to pull off in the game. (Not sure why the compression on this one is so bad when I uploaded it)



This game is God Hand btw. Although it recieved mixed reviews, I actually think it’s a good game if you’re into fighting games. It’s quite quirky and humorous, but it actually has some pretty good combat mechanics.
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And of course, I always have to come back to good ol’ DMC.





WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THEIR PFX:

-----They’re exaggerated—some draw more attention than the actual poses.
-----They’re graphic—bold shapes and hard edges—not just “soft” pixie dust.
-----Each of the special ones are hand crafted—they aren’t just trails that automatically flow off the sword.


WHAT I LIKE ABOUT THEIR SFX:

-----They’re cranked up—sword swings for special moves aren't just “wooshes”. They sound as if they’re already slicing through metal, even though it’s just air.
-----Dante’s sliding stab sounds like his sword just slammed into a stone wall—again, even when nothing’s there.
-----Characters exert powerful attack "shouts"
-----Finally, notice that weird squeaky sound when Vergil does the spinning vertical kick. It doesn’t make sense when you think about it, but it’s a very nice touch.
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So why am I posting all of this? Because I want to make sure those anims we sweat to create for our games get support before that final review months down the line—before we have to change it or try something else because it “doesn’t feel powerful enough.” Also, when I’m slicin’ through demons with my trusty sword, I want to feel like the ultimate badass!

Oh...and don’t forget controller rumble!

Thursday, May 15, 2008

Aliens!



Some bug hit me hard the other day (no pun intended, well...maybe just a little), and I had to call in sick--no fun at all. The good part was that it gave me time to edit these old clips together.

Locomotion for these critters was a bit tricky since they only had three legs. Don't look too closely as there was a lot of cheating involved.

Oh, and be careful--some clips may not be suitable for children!

Saturday, May 10, 2008

Prince of Persia Music Videos




Here's a duet featuring the Prince and Lara using clips from the games. I hope I'm not the only one who finds this amusing:)

-----Unless otherwise noted, YouTube videos that I'll occasionally post are ones that I've found through a bit of surfin'. Just wanted to make sure credit goes to the folks that created them:)

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I dig this song--it's the one that plays during the ending credits in Sands of Time. The clips in the video are from all 3 games. Hopefully it'll give you a better idea for the flavor of the series.

Thursday, May 8, 2008

Prince of Persia: Next-Gen!




Ahhh! One of my favorite franchises will be back later this year!

When Prince Of Persia: The Sands of Time came out 5 years ago, I was instantly hooked. Not only did this game have beautiful art direction, it had some very satisfying and innovative gameplay mechanics, as well as interesting characters that pushed the story along.

To top it all off, when this game came out, it set a new bar for animation within a video-game, esp. regarding how the player character moved and transitioned from animation to animation in actual game-play. My friends and I would often refer back to this game for inspiration.
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Incase you're not familiar with this series, here are some links.

Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
Prince of Persia: The Warrir Within
Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones

If you've never played any of the PoP's, and you want to give it a shot, I'd recommend playing the first one first (Sands of Time).

Oh--and I hear they're planning to make a movie based off of this game! Man, I'd kill to be able to work on that!

Saturday, May 3, 2008

Minnie




A portrait for a friend.