This document discusses trends in game animation including the rise of social, mobile, and casual games. It explores differences between film and game animation in terms of interactivity, environments, and character AI. Examples are given of notable cutscenes and cinematics. The concept of the "uncanny valley" is examined in relation to improving facial animation technology. Emerging technologies like motion capture and platforms like PlayStation Move and Kinect are discussed as ways to bring real-world movement into games. The document speculates on future directions for game animation including 3D, augmented reality, and blending virtual and real worlds.

1. Adventures in Game Animation: Exploring the Limits of the Possible Jeannie Novak Founder & CEO – Indiespace Lead Author & Series Editor – Game Development Essentials

2. New Ways to Play Social, serious, mobile and casual give birth to new animation techniques . . .

3. The Social Climb: Flash, Facebook & Frenemies

4. “Serious” Fun . . . Serious Business

5. Nomad Culture: Mobile Games

6. The Casual “Renaissance”

7. Virtual World Reboot

8. Online Expansion

9. Trends Stylized DIY – player as co-creator Indie resurgence Artistic skillset Hybridization Simplicity Covert/stealth learning Team integration Real world in three dimensions?

10. Brothers From Another Planet Film vs. game animation . . .

11. Film vs. Game Animation Passivity vs. interactivity Common cause: Captivate viewer/players and involve them in story

12. Film vs. Game AnimationEnvironments Field of vision only No separate environmental objects needed Must work on a 360 degree level – for environment and character POV Interconnected environments must be maintained (what’s beyond the door?) Triggers / scripted events Film Game

13. Film vs. Game AnimationPower Limitations Rendering engine constantly creating output based on angle of camera following player character, data, and environmental features Digital output must keep up with player input Low, medium & high quality models needed (world map, combat sequences & cut-scenes)

14. Film vs. Game AnimationProgramming: AI vs. Scripted Motion Viewed but not interacted with Controlled by animators in “puppet” style Sensitive to user control More “alive” than movie models because they react to stimuli and are capable of learning and storing past behavior Film Game

15. Cut-Scenes

16. Cinematics

17. Modding & Machinima: Changing the Narrative

18. TOP CINEMATICS & CUT-SCENES Red Alert 2 – Intro Metal Gear Solid 4 – Raiden vs. Vamp Final Fantasy X – Sudeki da ne Descent / Freespace – Intro movie Warcraft III – The Death of GromHellscream The Darkness – Jenny’s End Half-Life 2 / Episode 2 – Ending Command & Conquer – Kain Disposes of Seth Final Fantasy VII – Aeris’ Death Portal – Still Alive Suidoken III – Intro Homeworld – Intro / Mothershiplaunch StarCraft – Terran Campaign Ending Twisted Metal Black – Mr Grimm ArTonelico: Melody of Elemia – All Sorts of Awkwardness

19. Showdown atthe “Uncanny Valley” Campfire stories from those who lived to tell the tale . . .

20. Uncanny Valley in the Analog World Bunraku Puppet Humanoid Robot

21. Uncanny Valley Defeat? Bobby Kotick (CEO, Activision) “This has been the Holy Grail in a lot of respects for video games – the ability to have characters on the screen that you can have an emotional connection with. The medium for the last 25 years has been very visceral, interactive, immersive medium – but it was very hard to have characters to actually have empathy towards or an emotional connection with… or that might make you laugh or make you cry; be some catalyst for an emotional reaction… Call Of Duty: Black Ops is the first game where we’ve been able to perfect the facial animation, mouth movement technology so that the lines that are being delivered are believable. The facial animation looks like a real person”

22. Call of Duty: Black Ops Call of Duty: Black Ops

23. Uncanny Valley Defeat . . . ? ? ? Guillaume de Fondaumiere – Co-Founder, Quantic Dream When we showed The Casting everyone agreed it was nice and it really showed that there was a potential for creating virtual actors, but we're still at this frontier where we don't totally suspend disbelief. We still have this uncanny valley to bridge. But today, I can officially announce that there is no uncanny valley any more, not in real-time. Our objective is to make this media a mainstream entertainment form with high creative expectations...To us, the only way to reach the level of quality we were targeting for the animation of our characters was to use Vicon motion capture...Demand has been immediate and we have actually already started to rent the system to high-profile video game and advertising clients. Our new studio is fully installed and is functioning almost every day either for complex full body or facial captures.

24. Heavy Rain

25. The Emily Project: Synthespianism?

26. Level Up . . . Level Down From controllers to real-time “living room mocap” with Move and Kinect . . .

27. Going the Way of the Wii?PlayStation (Sony) Move

28. Living Room MocapMicrosoft Kinect

29. Trends Real world rules Learning by doing  experiential / constructivist Player character customization  self DIY animation (to a point) Move toward less pre-rendered animation

30. The Great Beyond Pushing game animation past high-end PCs, Xbox 360 & PlayStation 3 . . .

31. Mobile

32. Handheld

33. Interface Simplicity

34. Dimensionality: Console & Computer

35. Event Horizon Calling Why black holes and game animation can’t be stopped . . .

36. The New “Wild Wild West” . . . Anijam collaborative creation Customization Virtual studio Player-controlled movement

37. What’s Next? 3D Life: the game (& the platform) Alternate reality Augmented reality ARGs The new hyperreal?