Ascottk Tweaked Bow Animations

[ascottk]

Now that I'm more comfortable with maya I decided to take another stab at the bow animations:

http://208.49.149.118/TheDarkMod/models/as...k_bow_anims.zip

Just extract to the darkmod directory.

 

Changes:

• arrowbone renamed to barrel
  
  This is so the arrows will not always shoot from the center of the screen but from where the arrow launches from. Instead of renaming the arrowbone joint on the models, I added

  options -rename arrowbone barrel

  to a def file. So now the bow can be lowered & have the arrow launched from where we want it to. This of course needed a change in all of the arrow defs.
  
  
   
  
  
  Instead of:
  
  

  entityDef attachment_firearrow{
  "inherit"	"ammo_firearrow_small"
  "joint"		"arrowbone"
  
  "frobable"	"0"
  "angles"	"90 0 0"
  "origin"	"34 0 0"
  "noshadows"	"1"
  }

  
  

  we have:
  
  

  entityDef attachment_firearrow
  {
  "inherit"	"ammo_firearrow_small"
  "joint"		"barrel"
  
  "frobable"	"0"
  "angles"	"90 0 0"
  "origin"	"34 0 0"
  "noshadows"	"1"
  }

  
  

• Animations tweaked:
  
  drawback.md5anim
  
  
  fire.md5anim
  
  
   
  
  
  I lowered the bow & you use the arrow tip for aiming.

  
  

The bow draw animation is a lot smoother. One of my previous versions was extremely rough.

[Domarius]

It's customary to render out some preview videos and then use VirtuaDub to compress them using the Xvid codec with the default settings (both of which can be downloaded for free)

 

 

Just remember to export the video at a "normal" size, such as 640x480, or Xvid won't work. I know other "screen sizes" work, like 320x240, 800x600, etc. It may just be that you need to have it at a power of 2, like texture sizes, but I haven't tested this, just been using 640x480.

[OrbWeaver]

Just remember to export the video at a "normal" size, such as 640x480, or Xvid won't work. I know other "screen sizes" work, like 320x240, 800x600, etc. It may just be that you need to have it at a power of 2, like texture sizes, but I haven't tested this, just been using 640x480.

 

I think it has to be a multiple of 8, since MPEG-4 uses 8x8 block sizes. Any screensize should work, but something bizarre like 597x211 probably won't.

[Springheel]

It's customary to render out some preview videos

 

Screenshots or video is nice, but I would hardly call it "customary".

[New Horizon]

Sounds cool ascottk. I'll give them a try asap.

[Ishtvan]

I would think you might as well just put this on CVS. If people decide they liked the old one better, someone can always roll back the version and commit again. Otherwise it gets confusing when we have a .pk4 with files that override the CVS files, people might forget that they have that and wonder why they're not seeing the same thing as other people.

[ascottk]

They are on cvs. Here's a screenshot:

[Ishtvan]

Hmm, I think I like the general feel of the draw animation better. I also like how there is some distance from the tip to your hand that lets you see under the tip for long shots. As to where the arrow is fired from, it makes it rather difficult to aim low-mid range shots because you have to over-correct downwards, so you're aiming some distance above the arrow tip and there is no alignment mark at that level or anything to guide you.

 

To me, it seems more intuitive to have the bow "zeroed" at low to mid distances and have to aim up for long shots, rather than have it zeroed for long shots and have to aim down most of the time. Is it possible to just translate the whole thing up to re-zero it?

[ascottk]

Hmm, I think I like the general feel of the draw animation better. I also like how there is some distance from the tip to your hand that lets you see under the tip for long shots. As to where the arrow is fired from, it makes it rather difficult to aim low-mid range shots because you have to over-correct downwards, so you're aiming some distance above the arrow tip and there is no alignment mark at that level or anything to guide you.

 

To me, it seems more intuitive to have the bow "zeroed" at low to mid distances and have to aim up for long shots, rather than have it zeroed for long shots and have to aim down most of the time. Is it possible to just translate the whole thing up to re-zero it?

Actually there's an offset in weapon_arrow.def:

model viewmodel_arrow
{
mesh						models/md5/weapons/shortbow/shortbow.md5mesh
//offset					( 6 3 -3 )
offset						( -10 0 -6.5 )

anim raise 					models/md5/weapons/shortbow/get.md5anim {
	frame	1				sound_weapon snd_bow_unsheath
}
anim idle 					models/md5/weapons/shortbow/idle.md5anim {
	frame 1					object_call ArrowVisible
}
anim lower	 				models/md5/weapons/shortbow/putaway.md5anim
{
	frame 5					sound_weapon snd_bow_sheath
}
anim attack_start			models/md5/weapons/shortbow/drawback.md5anim
{
	frame 22				sound_weapon snd_arrow_draw
}
anim attack 					models/md5/weapons/shortbow/fire.md5anim
{
	frame 1					object_call ArrowVisible
	frame 2					object_call ArrowInvisible
}
anim tired		 			models/md5/weapons/shortbow/tired.md5anim {
	frame 1					object_call ArrowVisible
	frame 14				object_call ArrowInvisible
}
anim cancel		 			models/md5/weapons/shortbow/cancel.md5anim {
	frame 1					object_call ArrowVisible
	frame 14				object_call ArrowInvisible
}
}

I think it can be lowered.

[Domarius]

Screenshots or video is nice, but I would hardly call it "customary".

I wasn't serious, it was just a funny way of suggesting it.

[SneaksieDave]

I'm not sync'd right now, but from the pic, the side-side angle of the arrow looks a bit uncomfortable. Like you're not sighting down the shaft, but instead from the side of the shaft, midway between arm and shaft. Admittedly it's equally strange to look right down the shaft, but it should lean in that direction at least a bit more, I would think. Again, from the pic.

 

It also feels a bit low (I think that's what Ish is saying?), almost like you're pulling it from your chest and lobbing it upward. When sighting a shot with thumb anchored under the jawbone, you really are looking pretty much down the shaft and almost level.

 

As before though, I'm not sure why we're abandoning oDDity's originals - they felt great IMO.

[SneaksieDave]

Sync'd up, further input:

 

These do look quite nice. The only things that feel a bit off are what I assumed from the image, but to a lesser degree than I assumed.

 

Suggestions:

 

1. It feels as though the arrow is being pulled back to the neck, instead of the jaw. This slight difference in height makes it feel like you are in fact lobbing the arrow upward. At a reasonably close range (the width of test_inventory), the arrow just barely flies level with the aiming point (arrow tip). For it to travel that far and not drop at all means we are lobbing it upward. At closer ranges, it strikes higher than you aimed. It'd probably be best to let the player always assume gravity, and that they'll always have to compensate upward (in one direction), as opposed to having to aim low when close and aim high when far - too many variables. Let the impact point always be the aim point or lower, never higher.

 

2. It feels a lot like I have to pull right, because the arrow sticks significantly out to the left. I guess this is probably due to the drawn arrow being a bit too far right from view-center. The result is a feeling (even if not real) of always aiming left, and having to pull right.

 

Summarized: I'd recommend pulling the fully drawn arrow achor spot up and to the left a bit (sighting a bit more "down the arrow").

[Crispy]

I like them (though I'm not at all qualified to comment on the correct way to hold a bow).

 

One little problem I did notice: Hold down the fire button for a brief amount of time (just enough to starting raising the bow but not enough to actually fire it) and then release it. If you time it just right you'll see the arrow float out of the bow briefly just as the bow gets pulled back off-screen (to the bottom-left).

[Ishtvan]

It'd probably be best to let the player always assume gravity, and that they'll always have to compensate upward (in one direction), as opposed to having to aim low when close and aim high when far - too many variables. Let the impact point always be the aim point or lower, never higher.

I agree, that's what I was trying to say earlier. I think the bow tip aiming level should be 'zeroed' at close distances, so that you don't have to aim down for close shots, and do have to aim up for mid-long range shots. This could be an issue with the angle of the barrle joint, if it's angled up a bit, the arrow will of course go up rather than straight out of the bow.