The more I design, the more it seems like I’m doing an overhaul rather than an extension. Here is an overview of what has changed thus far.
- The character models will be attached to a bone system, increasing the speed and smoothness of the game
- Character models will be completely updated to use linear textures and blend in with the background
- The level editor will have dozens of new functions to speed up level creation as well as provide better graphics
- The collision system will be updated to allow dynamic objects and attaching to dynamic objects
- The combat system will be completely reworked
- The camera system will be reworked to quickly produce camera placement and allow use of special cameras
- The cinema system will be reworked and recycled to produce dramatic cinematic play
From there on, is simply a list of new gameplay elements and elements that need to be reworked. I don’t think I was planning to push myself that far, but I’ve seen the quality went into some other upcoming Xbox-Live games. Although these games are developed in teams I can’t help but pale in comparison. This subpar stature is bringing out another side of me, which strangely enough, I’m enjoying.
I honestly thought you had bones/joints in your character models – it seems you successfully make things look good even without high-tech.
About the bones, does that mean the previous animations are all vertex data, possibly stored per fixed steps in time?
Nope, all the models were simply a bunch of quadrants rotated and oriented through the cpu. I tried to mimic bones without actually using them.
Previously animations where simply a collection of rotations stored in frames. That probably wont change that much but I will make sure I get more control over the speed and timing of the animation.
I think I understand, timing can be easier e.g. with some kind of “key” frames, when it’s possible to more freely interpolate between a pair of such frames. So it may even be possible to have a slightly new animation pose on each displayed point in time.
In the game when you carried a small rock it was in Felix’s animated paw, so on a conceptual level you probably programmed bones (though I realize it may be in the character studio). Cool with some custom approaches.
Well the time control is more of an inside thing. If I wanted to play an animation for exactly 1 second I couldn’t. I was using key frames and, for collision reasons, I forced the animation to stop at certain points causing it to play longer than it should. It can be a bit of a nightmare when you want things synchronized but somehow it all worked out.
Conceptually yeah, I guess I did sort of make bones, but this time I will be able to bend the quadrants! The first change anyone will notice will probably be the spine.