Computer Game and Animation Past, Present, and Future
Computation‐Based
Computer Game and Animation Past, Present, and Future
Has gameplay, a pattern defined though a set of rules Changing objects over time: motion and deformation caused by interaction
Animation has two definitions
• (narrowly) Animation as a graphics application
– 2D cartoon animation
– 2D/3D Animation movies
• (broadly) Animation as a graphics technique
– Producing special effects in movies and games
– Animation movies
– Gaming effect
Graphics Pipeline
• Time is continuous, but computers handle discrete data
Geometry Modeling
Objects
in reference space
Animation
Rendering
Time 0
Frame 0
Time 1
Frame 1
Time n
Frame n
Display
Graphics Pipeline
• I can generate the frames fast! (real‐time)
– Generate one frame and then send it to display immediately
– Such as games
• I CANNOT generate the frames fast… (offline)
– Save the frames into the disk
– Play them back in the future
– Such as movies
Graphics Pipeline
• The data you need to produce at each time?
– Position
– Orientation
– Shape
– Appearance
– Phase change
Computer Animation Perception
• Beta motion
– Appearance of motion from a set of still images
• Flicker
– Failure to achieve beta motion effect
– Frame rate is too low (image update is too slow)
• Motion blur
Frame Rate
• How many images are updated per second? (Frames per second, i.e., FPS)
Movie and TV
24FPS
Film
25FPS
TV in Europe
30FPS
Graphics Research
Game
Some films (Avatar, Standard for 48FPS
the Hobbit)
Action Games
TV in the US, high‐end 60FPS
HDTV
72FPS
Experimental
Can be higher
LCD Display
Standard
Animations in Movies
from
to
For another look at the history of animation, check out
The Art of Animation and Motion Graphics | Off Book | PBS
Early devices
Flipbook Thaumatrop
Zoetrope
Conventional animation
• Stuart Blackton
– Humorous Phases of Funny Faces • Winsor McCay
– Gertie the Dinosaur
Conventional Animation production
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Storyboard: the proposal
Model sheet: consistency
Animatic: storyboard with timing
Key frames & in‐betweens
Test shot
Pencil tests
Inking: drawings onto cells
Painting: coloring in
Sound: voice, body, special effects, background
Story Dept.
Modern Computer Animation Production
Art Dept.
Modeling Dept.
Lighting Dept.
Animation Dept.
Rendering Dept.
The first Feature‐length Computer‐
animated Film?
Made by Pixar, released by Walt Disney
Sometimes, the movie is not solely made of animations…
Special Effects
The old way to create Special effects
• Time consuming
• Not reusable
• Expensive?
Computer Generated Special Effects
(CGI: Computer Generated Imagery)
• Real‐world data capture (these exist in the real world)
• Animation (those do not exist in the real world)
• Composition: merging these two together
Computer Generated Special Effects
(CGI: Computer Generated Imagery)
• ILM Demo
Leading Animation/Visual Effect Studios
Your goal is to get the Academy SciTech Award!!! Computer game history eras
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First games, consoles
Video game crash of 1983
8 and 16 bit eras
32 and 64 bit eras
Current era
For more on the history of games, check out
The Video Game Revolution | PBS
Computer games today
• Multiple platforms
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PC
Consoles
Tablets
Smart phones
• Multiple audiences
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Hardcore
Casual
Online
Motion control
How game companies make money?
• Make a game, sell it...
• Free to play, but pay to win…
– Many mobile games
• Subscription (MMORPG games)
– New content
– Uncertainty
Game development process
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Concept
Design document
Prototype
Production
– Design, Levels
– Programming
– Art, Audio
• Testing
• Deployment
• Maintenance
Read more at:
http://vgsales.wikia.com/wiki/Video_game_costs
http://www.forbes.com/2006/12/19/ps3‐xbox360‐costs‐tech‐cx_rr_game06_1219expensivegames.html
http://www.newgamernation.com/wp‐content/uploads/2011/05/game‐cost.jpg
(Data from Forbes 2006 study)
Types of game programming
• Game engine
– Modeling and rendering
– Animation
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Artificial Intelligence
Sound
Game logic / scripts
User Interfaces
Networking
Databases
Development tools
Systems/Parallel programming