Animation assignments

[oDDity]

Can't you read Sparhawk? I said TWICE that it would be for regular guards to salute their superior officers, which is perfectly realsitic. I wasn't suggesting we should have spiders saluting every time they walk past a belcher.

 

If you guys are all going to start animating now, then do different models. There's no point everyone working on the city watch guard, since I'm doing a complete set for him, and they can mostly be shared with the other regular guard types.

We need female ones, some builder ones, some for the elite guards types, some archer ones, some for the general public, etc

All of those sets need not only some specific animations of their own forthe specific group, but even individual charcaters.

I see 5 animators looking for something to do here now, so those groups could all have their own sets of the basic anims like walking and idles as well.

What have all your animators been doing in the 18 months since I've been away? There's currently about 6 usable animations in the game as far as I can see.

[sparhawk]

Can't you read Sparhawk? I said TWICE that it would be for regular guards to salute their superior officers, which is perfectly realsitic. I wasn't suggesting we should have spiders saluting every time they walk past a belcher.

 

I didn't know that you are the type of guy who has to be spoonfed. Obviously I'm talking about guard AI, but even if a guard AI does this all the time it looks simply cheesy. As if telling the same joke all over again and again.

[oDDity]

If you had a city watch captain patrolling around a building, and so he was passing the same city guard repeatedly, then it would not make sense to see a salute every time, but that's the point of setting up the random parameter in the s/r, so you would have quite a low chance of ever seeing a salute.

The salute would also have an appropriate bark, such as 'good evening, sir', 'good evening, my lord/lady' etc.

However, I can modify that one from a salute into a 'standing up straight' animation. It would make sense for a slouching guard (and their default idle posture is a slouch) to stand up straight every time a superior comes near.

It'd also be great to time it to a bark from a superior saying 'you there! stop slouching!', and then he straightens up to attention.

This sort of arbitrary interaction between the AI is essential to breath life into the world, otherwise they're just bots patroling around.

[Crispy]

Also why does the current walkcycle in-game moves away from it's original starting point?

I believe the origin needs to be animated moving, because that determines the walk speed of the character in-game. Walk speed is entirely determined by the animation data. If the character isn't travelling in the animation, then it won't be travelling in-game.

 

The point is, that such a salute is quite s specific reaction. If you have this animation playing each and every time some AI is meeting, each other, it will look just plain stupid.

Yes. I think it would need to be used rarely (i.e. with low probability), for that reason. Otherwise it would start getting stupidly clichéd. (Edit: And oDDity beats me to it. )

[Springheel]

I like the idea of a straighten up animation as well. Some others that might be useful would be some kind of "fuck you" gesture that guards could give nobles as they're walking away. Maybe a simple head bob (just to indicate recognition) as well.

[oDDity]

Yes, there's lots of little mannerisms that could be included randomly in the s/r system, none of which you would see very often. (though the lack of real fingers on the guards obviosuly reduces the rude gestures they're capable of by at least 2)

Also there's talking gestures which can be used while the AI are in conversation, though this would have to be for scripted events only. Anyone who's played Gothic will have seen the sort of gestures I'm referring to.

[sparhawk]

The salute would also have an appropriate bark, such as 'good evening, sir', 'good evening, my lord/lady' etc.

However, I can modify that one from a salute into a 'standing up straight' animation. It would make sense for a slouching guard (and their default idle posture is a slouch) to stand up straight every time a superior comes near.

 

Yeah, that sounds better IMO. Of course the salute can be kept, because it can be usefull. I just don't think that it makes sense much in a regular city patrol.

 

It'd also be great to time it to a bark from a superior saying 'you there! stop slouching!', and then he straightens up to attention.

 

Yes. Something like that, if used sparingly, certainly is a good thing to make it more believable.

 

This sort of arbitrary interaction between the AI is essential to breath life into the world, otherwise they're just bots patroling around.

 

With this I agree.

[Domarius]

Well, I bags the noblewoman and any other females that are left after people claim their characters. I've got some reference footage planned for them.