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We've been lucky enough to check out a lot of the titles
that Discreet has released lately, and we recently got the chance to check
out Character Studio 4 - a top notch program for 3ds Max that delivers
amazing performance for 3D character animation in film, video game development,
and for web/interactive entertainment.
Brief Description of Technology
Character Studio 4 is the latest release of Discreet's character
animation software, and is an extension to 3ds max. Graphic animators
and artists can create and edit complex character animations using intuitive,
highly evolved techniques that simplify the more time-consuming tasks
of character animation. Some of the new features:
- Quaternion function curves: You can animate characters
with an easy-to-read function curve system that eliminates difficulties
associated with traditional Gimbal lock. Character Studio 4 is breaking
new ground by allowing the resulting animations to be represented with
accurate curves.
- Nonlinear Animation Mixer: Offers a constraint-based
Animation Mixer that provides users with the flexibility to blend motion
files smoothly, which is a great way to make the most out of existing
motion libraries or blend motion capture and keyframed elements.
- Saving 3ds max IK/bones into .bip files: You can now
load and save 3ds max IK animations along with the Biped file, keeping
all animation data in a central location and making character management
much easier.
- 3ds max controllers: The powerful controller subsystem
available in 3ds max is now able to drive character motion on the Biped
system as well. Add anything from nervous twitches to rickety old bones,
or blend random algorithms into character motions for even more "lifelike"
actions.
- Animation Analyzer and Fixer: The Animation
Fixer provides you an analysis of any animation on a Biped for the purpose
of checking minute discontinuities. The Animation Fixer then suggests
a number of approaches for fixing any annoying animation "pops"
that occur. This helpful option enables the system to tweak the data in
a way that maintains the tangents and provides absolutely smooth motions.
- Biped props: Biped has added three systemic prop objects
that can be animated like 3ds max objects, allowing for animation to switch
an object's point of origin, such as juggling objects or switching a weapon
from one hand to another. Prop objects can also be animated across coordinate
systems, for example placing a prop down in a scene and then picking it
up again with a different character.
- Biped figures: With a new look, the "Skeleton"
figure, Biped 4 has significant enhancements that are geared to make the
animation process even easier. The option to start with any custom character
types gives you easier ways of getting your
So there's definitely a long list of benefits to upgrading from the old
version. The addition of all the new qualities, and all the existing features
of the program equate this !
Practical Uses of 3DS Max 5
Starting with character studio is as simple as drag and click. Your IK
chain and constraints are handled for you automatically with this
highly productive approach to quickly creating characters. And yet
the system remains fully flexible so you can adjust almost any
character parameter even after complex animations have been
applied.
Some great features include the "Crowd tools" :
- Handles large groups of biped and non-terrestrial creatures
- Includes integrated, scriptable behavioral system
- Scattering tool for cloning, distributing, and orienting delegates
randomly across a surface or within a volume to set up initial
conditions
Lets now forget "Motion flow editing":
- Map out the animations and probabilities of available character
motions for any given crowd simulation
- Share motion flow networks between large numbers of characters
- One-click unification of motion flow scripts into standard Biped
Animation files
Who Would Use Character Studio 4
Character Studio 4 is for professional 3D artists or serious hobbyists
using 3ds Max in the fields of game development or even for film. Studios
who require an extremely high volume of quality keyframed or Motion Capture
animation will find this product to be the perfect add on to 3ds max.
Performance
There are a ton of tutorials included and anyone with some
3ds Max experience (check out our review of that product right
here) will have no trouble diving right into the powerful animation
features and character motion abilities of this great piece of software.
Studios will find the new features to be robust and powerful, curtailing
the redundancies that other character animation solutions might offer.
There is over 300 predefined motions included with Character Studio 4
... ranging from everything you could possibly thinking of - jumping,
running, falling, karate kicks, the two-steps, and even one for quadruped
motion jumping (click here to view
the animation example).
Being a run-of-the-mill goon when it comes to 3D animation,
I personally didn't find the controls obtrusive or difficult and the step-by-step
tutorials were fantastic for a neophyte like me to run through. Discreet
did a great job putting together a fantastic package that high-level master
users can pick apart with glee, and hobbyists animators will find entertaining
and easy to use.
Value
No doubt about it - if you're are an existing user of CS3,
then upgrading to 4 should be a forgone conclusion. The major difference
being the functionality in the area of non linear animation, as Discreet
puts it, "a dynamics-based animation mixer helps artists maintain
a natural look to their NLA results by helping the character keep its
Balance throughout the transitions (this is an industry first)."
Character Studio 4 is a true production-level and production-ready system
that allows animators of all levels to quickly create a dynamically-driven
bipedal animation rig that can easily be scaled to match the physique
of any character being represented. There are so many great features thrown
in here, my personal favorite was the dynamic crowd animation tools, that
you could seriously spend the rest of your life animating quite happily.
Conclusion / Overall impressions
If you're a user of 3ds max right now and are dying to get into character
animation, then's its a simple no-brainer to spend the money and get this
wonderful software solution. Character Studio 4 builds on the successes
of the previous editions with powerful new features that will make animators
everywhere salivate. Throughout this program you'll find industry-firsts
for animation, as well as easy-to-use processes that make animation much
less of a headache that is has been in the past.
CS4 brings further advances in animation technique that makes for a very
easy and efficient work-flow ... so anyone with a high-volume data creation
need, such as Film makers or video game artists, will find the additional
NLA capabilities, Animation Analysis and Fixer, Motion Capture Tools,
Crowd Capabilities, and improved integration with 3ds max to be an extremely
productive experience.
Discreet has found the perfect compliment to 3ds Max in
Character Studio 4 and animators everywhere are definitely encouraged
to invest in this software. CS4 comes with a ready-to-use library of over
300 predefined motions - cutting the cost on expensive third-party solutions.
Character Studio 4 is the best character animation solution we've come
across - bar none.
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10 / 10 |
OVERALL SCORE
98%
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10 / 10 |
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9 / 10 |
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10 / 10 |
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10 / 10 |
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9.8 / 10 |
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