WIP Digging up an old project: AT-RT vehicle

[minilogoguy18]

Something I modeled years ago but stopped working on for reasons I really can't remember. Started it back up, modeling is of course done, UV mapping 50% or more and I redid the skeleton setup for the feet and the rig. I also scrapped the walk cycle I had before around the old rig as well as a death animation, new walk cycle was quickly remade though in like 10 mins, only real animation work is an exhaggerated run cycle, turn left and turn right. While there are a few more they are all super simple will only take a minute or 2 each to make.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cj_06AKWaFo

 

I don't really consider it a finished walk cycle, it can be tweaked easily and while it is sort of static it's also a mechanical walker and not a person who would have much more fluid movement.

[MagSul]

I'd definitely be keeping that in my Base, get crackin'!

[minilogoguy18]

Yeah, kinda struggling with the turning left and right animations, hard to picture when the model in doesn't actually rotate in the program, the game engine takes care of that part so you don't animate it actually turning, just the motion of it kinda doing it still, check out the atst in modview to see what I mean, it's kinda weird.

 

I don't wanna be lame like Raven did with the at-st and just use a sped up walk cycle as the run, this thing is smaller and faster so it needs a separate run and run start animation.

[CrimsonStrife]

I vaguely remember when you first started on this I think....I recall seeing screenshots on the models WIP.

[minilogoguy18]

Yeah, you could probably dig the old thread up on GF.

 

Both the turn left and turn right animations are done, might just do a death animation and that will be enough for it to work in game and take a break from animating to do some texturing.

[minilogoguy18]

I'm both double posting and bumping my own topic...

 

 

Just finished UV mapping, got some more inspiration, been too busy lately to do any modding but wanna get this one moving along. Also has the above mentinoed animation sequences finished, still really want to make an exhaggerated run cycle rather than speeding up the walk cycle and passing it off as a run. These were light, small and fast so I want to emphasize on that.

[2MT350]

I'm both double posting and bumping my own topic...

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=30GD25un0XQ&feature=related

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MfOk_ACGCFg

 

hehehehehe

[minilogoguy18]

Was bored with texturing so I decided to throw it in game, hard to figure out how I'm going to do this since if I use the VH_WALKER class the rideranim line in the .veh file doesn't work resulting in just showing the player floating above the walker in the jump-crouch position. Switching it though to the VH_ANIMAL class like a tauntaun let the rideranim work so it would show the animation but it wouldn't show the same one as what the swoop uses, BOTH_VS_IDLE but rather BOTH_VT_IDLE and none of the animations play.

 

EDIT: Changed the walk cycle some per some suggestions on GF

 

 

Definitely needs an exhaggertaed run cycle since the class is being set as a VH_ANIMAL since the VH_WALKER wont let me have a riderAnim, the player just floats above the walker in the jump animation. The run animation will be like when you hit alt attack with the tauntaun and get a speed boost.

[ChalklYne]

pretty incredible man. my next task is walk cycles. his weight shifting is pretty dope man i gotta say. u did amazing on this thing so far man. sux about the animation thing. i was lookin at it too and cant figure it out either any other way. badass tho man

[Milamber]

Few comments on the animation, stuff that I think looks odd etc:

• no weight to the steps (let the main body have some follow through?) check out the atst here:
  
  
• the main body is too level, let it shake some/tilt a little on the down steps?
  
• slow walk (I haven't been reading stuff in detail here sorry, so if this is something you been doing on purpose up to this point sorry xD)
  
• the hips don't have any height alterations which a normal walk would have, again, I know it's a robotic vehicle, but stuff that looks closer to real life is what looks right, when it's not the same we all go "hmmm something is off, but I'm not sure what". That being said though, I'm not sure if it would look good on that particular vehicle, since it doesn't have much of a hip joint to move around, but you could try?
  

That's the problems I notice as of right now. Hope it helps and it's not bothering ya xD

[Mog]

It looks pretty good as far as I'm concerned.

[minilogoguy18]

Few comments on the animation, stuff that I think looks odd etc:

• no weight to the steps (let the main body have some follow through?) check out the atst here:
  
  
• the main body is too level, let it shake some/tilt a little on the down steps?
  
• slow walk (I haven't been reading stuff in detail here sorry, so if this is something you been doing on purpose up to this point sorry xD)
  
• the hips don't have any height alterations which a normal walk would have, again, I know it's a robotic vehicle, but stuff that looks closer to real life is what looks right, when it's not the same we all go "hmmm something is off, but I'm not sure what". That being said though, I'm not sure if it would look good on that particular vehicle, since it doesn't have much of a hip joint to move around, but you could try?
  

That's the problems I notice as of right now. Hope it helps and it's not bothering ya xD

 

 

*For this I think I can just keep the main body bone up longer if that makes sense.

*I think I may have to add an extra bone for this one, the thing is that this model really doesn't have hips, the head doesn't swivel like the at-st.

*It just seems slow there cause it's playing in the viewport, the fps in game is different.

*Same as second.

 

I'll consider adding another bone if it doesn't affect the animations that are already made, shouldn't though.

 

Also, this animation may seem slow but it's only going to be used when walking (Shift+W or in reverse), it's standing in now for the regular run but sped up, will make a separate run, was too eager to get it working in game which it actually is having some trouble working the way I want.

[Barricade24]

Looks great! I can't wait to see this thing finished.

[minilogoguy18]

Suggested changes

 

 

The weight thing I tried and it didn't work too well, gonna have to play around with that, more concerned atm of finishing the texture and getting a run cycle started since using this animation sped up doesn't look bad but would be much better if it had it's own. Also looks like I may have to make my own rider animation since none of the base animations look good, it'll be a big pk3.

 

I know it's only a small change that took me maybe 10 mins but work has been keeping me busy.

[Tempust85]

Piston work, pelvis rotation, centre of gravity all looks great.

 

I would probably add a little more heavy force for when the feet hit the ground, it looks a bit soft for such a big heavy mech.

[minilogoguy18]

Funny thing about the pistons is that they aren't animated at all, just fancy constraints tied to the couple of nulls that the pistons are weighed to.

[Tempust85]

Yeah, I did something much similar in max with my terminator's pistons.

[minilogoguy18]

Well I'm glad I'm getting some criticism finally since this thread fell nearly to the bottom of the list. Some people get their feelings hurt from crits but I love it, best way to improve.

 

Keep the ideas coming, texture is far from being critiqued though, it's pretty basic, just enough to throw in game and be able to have some depth.

 

Oh yeah, made it have some weight to the steps, was so easy, don't know how I didn't realize the solution earlier, just moved the key frames closer together on the timeline so that the foot coming down would be faster. Don't know if I'll upload another video just for that though, maybe after I get a nice run/trotting animation done.

[Milamber]

Yeah the only thing that stands out for me now on the latest vid was the weight still lacking, which you commented about. And the speed of the animation, which you explained last time.

 

So if you fixed the weight I don't really have more feedback to give not without another vid at least.

[minilogoguy18]

Yeah next animation vid will probably come once I have a run cycle since this walk sped up doesn't look good for a run.

 

Another thing I need to work on besides the texture is a rider animation, the tauntaun or swoop ones don't work at all.

[Shusumi]

This looks so epic I can't wait to see how it turns out

[Barricade24]

Any chance of an update?

[minilogoguy18]

Nothing since it needs another animation sequence, textures finished and also a set of rider animations for the player since the existing tauntaun and swoop ones don't fit. Been too sucked into RE4 and working on 2 character models. Hard to hold my attention to this when it needs quite a bit to make it work right and I don't want to half ass it.

Edited December 12, 2012 by minilogoguy18