Morph targets
Morph targets allow us to create several model variations and interpolate between them, so that we keep all of the benefits of skeletal animation as well as the flexibility of traditional keyframe animation. This allows our characters to blink, breathe, make facial expressions, and other soft motion that would be difficult to simulate using bones.
Here is an example of interpolation between two morph targets (artwork by Ian Wells):
That is creepy as hell. I was expecting it to be an image, and then WAUGH!
I noticed he darkens when he gets angry. Is that intentional?
Oh man, that looks so awesome.
He looks really mean and hungry for rabbit-steak!
I can imagine that in-game, the wolf standing atop a hill in combat stance, ready to claw me to death, while sneering viciously.
Keep up the great work guys!
MacWiggy, that’s texture morping/fading, i’d think. Also, neat-o-matic!
Awesometastic.
Texture morphing/fading! just like real life!
It would appear the light source is moving. Perhaps the footage was taken while the sun was underway?
This is so awesome! The expression looks so intense and realistic! More progress…. cool!
The expression on the wolf’s face moves from calm to rage (bared teeth) mixed with fear (ears pulled back). Was it your intention to show fear?
(A diagram of various mixtures of rage and fear for dogs - should be the same for wolves - is found in the 6th chapter of _On Aggression_ by Konrad Lorenz.)
I didn’t know that; I will talk to Ian about it
@ kkannike : Turner is pretty ferocious. If I was a wolf, I’d be scared too!
That’s great, but how are you going to mix it with skeletal animation?
After skinned meshes change - and so do vertex weights - won’t you need to animate it as a new model?
The short answer is no; the vertices are all blended with the bones based on their skeletal weights, and then blended with each other based on the morph weights. It is already working in many of the recent screenshots; Turner blinks and breathes using morph targets.
Perhaps it could be used to inform the player of a wolf’s health? A wolf would probably be smug, initally, when encountering a rabbit, baring teeth in a show of rage. Then, as its health dropped below a certain level, it would begin to feel fear and pull back its ears.
Where’s the fur? i thought you were doing the whole grass fur thing, Or is it just unpolished for the example?
This screenshot was actually taken before fur was implemented.
i hope these guys come really stocked with a wild look to them. I dont want them to be walkin on their hind legs looking all gentlemanly, i just want a little wild look on them. If u have played bloody roar 3 give him a Yugo look! something wild u know!
you guys have the ideas keep up the good work cuz i have some friends to laff at when they see this game released. They laffed Turner to scorn! Oh p.s give us more weapons plz. not in the sense that all characters have weapons but more or less based on location e.g in a dungeon, castle etc enemies have armor and all are equipped with weapons. Ooh i know i may be going overboard here but will there be an option to use a wolf or any other character being introduced to the game? And um… could Turner have a class type to choose and work with e.g ninja, kung fu master, samurai and special moves with each….. just asking u know since u guys are … u know qualified and stuff?
I would make his lip curl in the back more if I were you, because that would make him seem pretty ticked off at you
(Cupcake laughs in the face of a wolf named Danger & gets mauled to death)
Hey sonida, there was a picture of the new weapons that will be in this game in one of the past blog posts(I think it was Sept. ‘05), things like a samurai sword & such. They were pretty cool. Random fact in a random spot: I like the way you spelled “laff!” I don’t want to have to choose a character type though, because I want to have equal capabilities with everyone else playing the game, but being a wolf would be cool (and Turner IS a ninja, a ninja-bunny to be exact.)