Glorious Alpha Two Testers!
Alpha Two Realms are now unlocked for Phase II testing!
For our initial launch, testing will begin on Friday, December 20, 2024, at 10 AM Pacific and continue uninterrupted until Monday, January 6, 2025, at 10 AM Pacific. After January 6th, we’ll transition to a schedule of five-day-per-week access for the remainder of Phase II.
You can download the game launcher here and we encourage you to join us on our for the most up to date testing news.
Alpha Two Realms are now unlocked for Phase II testing!
For our initial launch, testing will begin on Friday, December 20, 2024, at 10 AM Pacific and continue uninterrupted until Monday, January 6, 2025, at 10 AM Pacific. After January 6th, we’ll transition to a schedule of five-day-per-week access for the remainder of Phase II.
You can download the game launcher here and we encourage you to join us on our for the most up to date testing news.
Comments
Untrue. You don't need to be some project lead to notice some glaring flaws in production. Making flashy animations isn't super important for pre-alpha combat mechanics. The time would indeed be better spent on something like world design or another static thing that takes time but is unlikely to change drastically before release. Once combat is tested and fine tuned then looking at pretty animations would be a good idea. Otherwise you're just going to replace all your hard work.
Edit to add; you and I do not know if the animations in question were designed in house, are a standard part of UE4, were purchased individually, or were acquired as a part of a package deal that had something else Intrepid wanted. For all we know, it could be that the animations in question were given to a new animator as busy work while other teams got other aspects of the game ready for animation to get to work on.
We don't know that because neither you nor I, nor the OP, are MMO lead developers - even more to the point, we are not the lead developer for Ashes of Creation.
Since we are not MMO lead developers, and since we do not know the origins of the animations the OP has - for absolutely no reason - got something against, we are in no position at all to criticize the people who do a job we do not know the details of.
That is, quite honestly, the end of it.
That would be true if games development was done entirely linearly and only one aspect is worked on at a time. Fortunately for us, that isn't the case. Also, on the topic of animations and combat timing, the timing is entirely dependent on the animations, they go hand in hand. In order to fine-tune the combat timing you need animations to see what timing works and what doesn't.
I think you may be missing the point. I believe op was just saying "best not to jump the gun and finish up animations on placeholder combat". I really don't think it goes deeper than that.
I would that animation comes solely combat timing. Well really polished animation that is.
The OP should not make the assumption that they know better than educated, experienced professionals working in their field.
I work as a 3D generalist, and I dabble in the same line of work. The Devs will understand what I'm speaking about and a lot of this is directed at them while input can be added on by whoever is in here and wants to speak out within the same topic.
Do you feel the Fireball effect and animation is where it should be? Do you like animation-locking if a combat system can drop that if necessary?
I'll comment on this when the game is in late beta.
I don't for a second believe you work in anything at all to do with 3D. If you were indeed in that industry, you would know to not comment on a project that is 3+ years from release.
* They are either blending the first part and two ending animations in UE, which I doubt in this case.
* They first developed one spinning jump for X animation, then needed another similar effect, and used the first work as a basis where 50% of it were deleted and animated again to produce two different point-cache files for UE to read from.
I would like to get a deeper answer on how development is progressed regarding this from them, so I hope some of them can clear stuff out a bit, and show the progress next QA session or something like that. How long time does it take to adjust the speed of combat if nessessary? Do they have to wait for an animator to adjust 100% of one cachefile? Do they reuse one cache-file for the jump segment, and only adjust the "spinning part" in the middle? Do they blend 2 or 3 or 5 animations to build one animation? I don't see any part in the Fireball or the AoE effect animation that makes me think that they blend 3, as the middle part is not "loop-able" to adjust to different timings.
That means that if they want to adjust timings of that specific jump, they have to shorten frames within the cache-file, and that may wreck it since the effects of gravity will look weird if you just speed up or speed down entire animations. Its way better if animations are mostly developed at X coordinates, and then adjusted in the game engine instead of having movements recorded at the same time within the cache file imo.
Well, thanks for stopping by. Have fun in whatever other game you end up playing.
Byeee!
IT'S PRE ALPHA
Remember that I'm talking about the design process to reach balance for combat. When the building blocks of animation is built so that it is tweekable, its easier to reach a point where combat feels fluent and open, and more involving. At the end, some abilities may require a full on movement lock to balance damage for example, and thats easy to adjust to even though it has options to "move-while-channeling" at first, in the way its implemented.
But this type of implementation of animation means that we can press a button before we stand still. Often in MMORPG we are forced to have to stand still before we are even allowed to press a button to start an animation. This is like this because the "idle" animation have the feet placed the same way as frame 1 in the animation used for X ability.
What I think would make the combat way more fluent and interesting is the ability to press buttons while moving. The speed it takes to reach "frame 1" of the next animation frame is up to balance, and it all can be blended nicelly together with VFX and the upper body animation file, while the feet and legs are seperated.
For example:
Old system:
We are running which means we are in a looping animation 30 frame animation, and if we want to use the Fireball skill, we have to let go of WASD keys to let the character slow down to its "idle" animation which is another looping animation while standing still. While in this state, we can trigger the next state of animation by pressing X button (fireball), and off it goes with movement-lock and all.
New system:
While running in the looping run animation, we can whenever we want press the fireball ability button, and the arms will start to conjure up the visibility of that firebal around the staff, in between the hands or whatever. The trigger event to let it go, may be based on X function. If we let it go before the character stands still, it shoots off a fireball with less damage. If we let the character spend its time to stop up and stand still into its "loop-idle" animation it can trigger an "loop-fireball" animation instead which makes the effect bigger and bigger if we want, until we release the fireball with a bigger bang.
This means the ranged combat system is more mimicking how melee combat works, as we the player choose quick casts just like a bow & arrow player can while running, but we may also hold it down long enough to start the "mainloop_fireball" animation. And since we've got building blocks for different stages of animation triggers, we can adjust the time it takes for the character to stand still, and how fast the VFX cache runs through its animation linked to this.
The system is more procedural and easier for developers that controls balance and combat speed in game, and so much work to and from animation will be removed. We can adjust the time it takes to stop and trigger the main animation to 0,5 seconds if we want. Or 3 seconds. Whatever feels best for the game and the combat.
It would be better off if they were labeled as "pre-alpha system", and "system I would like to see without knowing anything at all in terms of details as to what the develoeprs want for their combat system, yet I have an opinion on it anyway".
Alter the labels to that, and I'd have no problems.
100%! Which is why this segment is important to think about while developing such a large game. Thinking about how to streamline the process is important.
They may be buying animation sets and implement them like they are, but so much time can be saved if they dissect the animations and split them out in parts, and implement them through layer-blending in UE. That means all of that can be changed by some number values in the game engine instead of having to adjust the animations to make it fit a new timing, if the old one didn't work.
There are ways to seperate out upper body and lower body animations and blend them. The more segmentet it is, the easier it is to mix and match different animations to form completely new abilities later, since they are since start building a "building-block" type animation library. Just the same as for models, and textures where they utilize the latest gen technology to build the world.
Its time to up the game and utilize the latest development for animation too, and how to implement them in UE. I also feel "animation-lock" is outdated. The same "feel" and penalty of animation-lock is perfectly achieved by tweaking the building blocks of different animations that blends together. They can start out trying a 30 frame + 30 frame + 30 frame speed of Fireball, and tweak it ingame to 15+30+15 if the want by cutting N'th frame in the upper body animation cache, while the feet stops within the first 30 frames.
This would mean the character spends 1 second to stop and do the ability, while the hands spends 2 seconds to build up the effect, while reaching "animation-lock" at the end before it can be released.
To me, this would feel way better than most combat systems out there, as you can press and start channeling abilities while you are in movement. Just like melee and bow&arrow combat can.
I don't make games, I make VFX and animate towards film and online courses towards the maritime industry. The tools used are the same. I use 3ds max, and unreal engine for VR related stuff.
And you are 100% wrong. If there is a time to bring up the fundamentals of the game, its now! Not 1 months before release where they are not able to make such deep adjustments to the game. I'm talking about how the entire system should be implemented and developed, plus streamlined. I may be wrong ,and the devs are in the right direction, but I express my concerns now, so that they can take whatever input I have and see if its feasable or even possible for them to do so. If they were to adjust how to implement animation and VFX, its now. Not in 2+ years, as thats too late.
Constructive feedback is welcomed by them, they've said so themselves! If you don't like my adjustments and reasons to think why it would be better then thats fine. Speak your truth and be done with it.
I'm not saying me feedback is 100% proven and right, but I hope its read and thought about in a meeting somewhere at their office if they do.
Which means this is the time for such feedback, not in 1-2-3 years. Making animations and VFX takes a lot of time and development. Making that system as robust as it can be will save them thousands upon thousands of hours later.
The people making this game have shipped MMO's before. Even if you work in 3D, which I still doubt, you have not shipped an MMO. As such, they know exponentially more than you do about what they are doing.
Again, you seem to be forgetting that they are 3+ years away from relase. The animations they have in place now are place holders in almost all cases. They don't have the full combat systems under the animations even fully detailed yet, let alone implemented.
The Devs are smart people, they won't be hurt by some constructive criticism and critical questions. As I've said before, they even welcome it! What you are doing now isn't really helpful. If you do this towards every somewhat critical question in here, you just scare away people that may give the devs some valuable input.
No previous MMO have been perfect. This game can be. It has the potential to become one of the best, if not the best MMO ever produced. But for me, it all depends on how the combat feels and how it flows.
I don't like movement-locked abilities, and I would want this addressed. If you like it, then that's fine, and you may argue why it should be there. But I'm free to address my concerns for the game for it to become my favorite game of all times, just as you are free to do so your selves.
When looking at the current state of combat, I don't like all parts of it. So I try to adress it, and even throw in some help in how I would implement the combat system to streamline it more for easier access to balance and shorter development time. I may be wrong, but I do my best to influence the devs to do what I think is the right decision.
No, as I've said before. I don't. The time to adjust how to implement and produce animations is now! 3 years before release, and not 1 month before it. That would be when its its too late, and they've come too far with implementing the animations into UE. If the combat still doesn't feel right in 2 years, that means someone at the office took the wrong decitions on how to develop and implement animations. Animations are controlling the pace of the game 100%, and wrong animations may make the combat feel slow, clunky and boring. If a feature in the game that we interact with 90% of the time doesn't hit the nail on the head, then forget about all the rest of the game - even though it has so much potential to be the best, I feel 90% of the focus right now, should be to get the combat to feel and perform great. Right now, I don't think they're there. Which is why I'm here addressing it.
What you seam to miss, is I'm addressing how to go forward with balance. I'm asking them to utilize the same techniques they do for world-building towards the animation and combat system. Blend animations way more in the game engine, and ask the animators to deliver more files per animation. That means balance can be done and tweaked for its pace faster, even if the animation isn't 100% correct, and thats fine. That can be fine tuned 6 months before release when the combat system is actually 100% on point.
The point is - the developers have a plan. It is not a plan that tells them exactly where they want to end up, but rather is a plan to gather data that is particular to their company, and develop the game from there. That is what Apoc was, that is what alpha will be.
You are literally asking them to change something that they have no intention at all of not changing, and we are all here telling you that they intend to change it. They have a plan that will give them data that they will then use to decide how to change it, and you have absolutely no insight at all in to what that data is going to say (neither would Intrepid, right now), and so have no place to say what the end result should look like.
You are CLEARLY not a professional in any field. You may work in a specific field (I still doubt it is anything to do with 3D), but you are not a professional. No professional would ever think they have the ability to tell another professional in a different field, genre or industry how to do their job - and would even be reluctant to tell a professional in the same field, genre and industry how to do their job, as they would know that every project has it's own specific set of circumstances that need to be worked around, and without knowing those circumstances in depth, there is no real way to know what that professional should do.
Basically, you are looking at how Ashes looks in a video clip today, and making the assumption that a milti-hundred-million dollar project has no direction.
That is highly offensive to Intrepid as a company - and to Steven in particular - and you are expecting them to them humor you with answers.
Which is why I'm sceptical and are raising my concerns! I see that they have started to produce class specific vidoes to introduce the classes, and they also invited streamers with no NDA to show of the game. This means they obviously think the combat system is a good base, and I agree for a lot of the parts of it, but not for typical "magical" classes that specialize in a casting time. Its time to get rid of old MMO systems when we today have methods where we can get the same effect in better ways and methods. I'm simply asking why they chose to implement some of the animations the way they did, which resulted in the AoE and Fireball spells.
If the developers have a plan, I would like answers to my questions about it. Thats why I'm making this thread, as I obviously don't agree with them on some of their decisions, and I want to help them by putting some ideas into their head for them to discuss further in the office. Its called constructive criticism and they welcome it! They even produce discussions for us to comment on based on their thoughts and development line.
I will bet 100% that the developers welcome my comments above yours when you try to shut down constructive criticism, and are surely just acting like a fanboy defending any and every decision the devs come up with. That's not helpful at all.
You must have some parts of the game you would want to alter to make them better based on your preferred play-style? What are they? Have you ever produced any threads to come with some constructive criticism for the devs to analyze? instead of this discussion, we should discuss the topic at hand. If you don't agree with it, then explain why. You even say so yourself that the devs may not know everything in their progress towards the end goal for this game. So help them! Shutting down people like this isn't helpful. Focus on people that come with criticism without any suggestions for improvement instead, that's way more helpful, to force/help them them to think and come up with better solutions if they have criticisms instead.
I don't think you understand what I've been saying. Its the way of how they reach said balance for the combat system I'm addressing. I'm also questioning why they don't blend animations further, by utilizing smaller blocks of animations to link them together. That would make that process way easier, even though its a bit harder to start with. But when they are building an entire MMO that will live for years, hopefully, its best to build good practices as a base, for any system.
Animation blending is kinda new, and its not been utilized that much in MMO's. There are many ways of introducing layers of animation within the game engine, and I'm asking them to take a deeper look into this.
Hardware have gotten so good thiese days that a few raytraced particles to support the animation and blend in procedural parts of it is avaliable for them. This system was first seen in for example Assassins creed, where the arms push away people you walk past, and you lean into walls if you go to close to them. I'm not saying this fideility is needed, but the underlying technology should be utilized more, as those systems introduce procedural animations based on states to make it way more fluid, and when combined with combat, it could be a real kick ass system never before seen in MMO's.
If they do a test for this, and it really works, then I bet you they would do the efforts needed to do changes. The ultimate goal here is to produce money for the families of the developers, and let the game live for at least 10+ years. The better the combat system is, the more success the game will have, and it may even attract the esports crowd, like they've addressed somewhat.
Why would I lie?! I work 100% as a 3D generalist, where I specialize in VFX (mostly water and fire simulations) and animation and dabble a bit in UE. My colleague is way better in UE than I am, but I know somewhat what can be done and not. I also understand different processes needed while developing this kinds of stuff, but I'm not experienced in MMO's.
100% wrong! We're interested in each others input, and we always strive to improve. The 3D world is always changing and new and better technologies are coming each year with each update in software.
Why this need to come with ad-hominem attacks towards me as a person, while skipping the topic at hand? I have no reason to lie about this! Why wouild I? Any devs would totally see through me if I spoke 100% bullshit on this, and its mostly them I'm addressing this to.
Don't be ridiculous! I love most of the game, and I love the general direction the devs have for the game. That's the reason I'm here in the first place!
Wrong! He should feel honored that people care so much about his project to hope and dream it can become everything he have envisioned for it! The only reason I'm here is I want this game to be the best it can be, to reach its max potential.
What are your reasons to be here? Licking the devs ass in hopes to get a Beta Key? Come on! Stop with the silly personal agenda against people with some critique, which the devs over and over again say they welcome with open arms if its constructive.
As they have said before, the details of this are commercially sensitive. I have access to all levels of both alpha and beta, and I believe I am the only poster to tell Steven specifically and directly to fuck off.
But sure, I'm here to lick the developers ass to get a beta key.
And their version opf UE4 is highly customized. There are about a half dozen or so MMO's that use UE4, including Blade and Soul and Aion.
2. Of course there are games that is utilizing UE. I can't talk to you if you don't still understand what I'm addressing. The devs will know though what I'm talking about.
They have rewritten large portions of the engine - including completely redoing the network section of it, as well as major alterations to most other aspects.
Essentially, UE4 was a starting point.
However, that isn't what I was talking about in regards to commercially sensitive (the alterations to the game engine are outright IP owned by Intrepid).
Intrepid have a plan. They are going to gather some data, analyze that data, and then make decisions as to how to develop the game based on that data. This includes decisions as to the combat system (in fact, it is mostly in regards to the combat system).
This is what Apoc was, this is what alpha is.
We do not know exactly what data Intrepid are wanting to collect, nor what it is they plan on doing with it - because that information is commercially sensitive.
For all we know, some of the data they are looking at may well be specifically in relation to animation - we don't know because they won't tell us what they are looking at because that is commercially sensitive information.
Even if what they are looking at is not animation related, we do know for a fact that it is combat related. We also know that until all decisions about the combat system are decided, there is no real point in getting in to fine detail about animation - which is why they haven't.
In fact, project management practise would suggest you shouldn't even look at animations until everything before them is decided, let alone start developing them. Any change to an earlier system may well render any work on a later system to be redundant. Yes, and I just gave you the names of two of them so you can look if you want.
You're welcome.
A system designer will make the tools that speed up production of a game. A procedural texturing system for the world to paint maps to mask in different textures. A procedural building system seen in their video, where they can quickly build different shapes of buildigns with a few building blocks of models that links perfectly together.
What I'm talking about is the same thing as this, only for animation in time where balance, feel, speed and fluidity for the combat system isn't finalized.
The system designer builds the tools necessary for the firm to implement quick procedural animation and manually assisted animation to get a whole system. This is no secret, and they wouldn't reveal the code that is utilized for this, but how it looks like as an end result, just like the other tools showcased for world-design.
Do you understand now?
of course, the animations and the entire combat system are still in the development and testing phase. even if oophus criticizes something that may look completely different in a year and the developers have a plan that they follow, that doesn't mean for me that oophus can't give his opinion on it. The developer team must decide for themselves whether this criticism and the suggestions are helpful for the developers or whether they will continue to pursue their own plan, which may already contain the suggestions for improvement mentioned by oophus.
I think it's good that constructive criticism comes in first, whether the criticism comes too early in the development process or criticizes something that is exchanged / improved anyway in the course of further development the developer team has to decide. because only they know exactly what the future plan is.
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The argument that the game is "still far from done" isn't relevant here because we can't directly change the game or know to 100% what the developers want. So we should instead focus on the idea it self and how we feel about it in a theoretical sense.