The thylacine was a carnivorous marsupial in Australia, Tasmania, and New Guinea that thrived for hundreds of years. That is, until it went extinct last century (probably, there's a decent chance small populations still exist, but for the sake of this metaphor, let's ignore that). 3DS Max might be the next thylacine: a unique, interesting thing wiped out by humans. However, 3DS Max won't be incidentally hunted to extinction. It will be destroyed intentionally.
Why would Autodesk want to discontinue 3DS Max? There are actually some good reasons. Autodesk is the parent company of Maya, another 3D modeling program that I've used. Unlike its sister software, though, Maya can run on operating systems other than Windows. This makes it possible for Mac and Linux users to run it without building a virtual machine or switching operating systems. 3DS Max simply can't gain a wider demographic due to its limited availability for different types of computers. Additionally, the age of the program makes it harder to update than Maya, which has a staff that knows the software better. Lastly, it doesn't make a lot of sense for one company to have two 3D modeling programs - especially when one is more available than the other. Is there any merit to the rumors of discontinuance, though? It seems so. Autodesk has already announced that they are discontinuing the 3DS Max Asset Library. Autodesk got rid of Softimage in 2014. However, 3DS Max still has an active and large community which is full of workers who won't be willing to give up on the software they have trained and made a living on. That being said, as Maya becomes the industry standard, I wouldn't be surprised to see 3DS Max going extinct in the near future. Summary
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Animation is a super popular form of film, game, and art. It's ubiquitous in the modern world because lots of people love it. I also really like animation. Most animations use exaggeration to make them seem more relaxed and less realistic. Sometimes, however, especially in newer video games, graphics are animated but are extremely life like. However, many of these games are meant to look exactly like real life. In Madden 19, a well known football video game released in 2018, football players and coaches look almost as if they were actors in a movie instead of animated characters in a game. Nevertheless, your average animated short film or clip would look ridiculous. Imagine a hyperrealistic Simpsons episode. Imagine how creepy that would be! I strongly dislike anime, but it's not the only kind of animation. There are many different types and genres of including everything from documentaries to comedy shows on television. Animation also lets young children learn and stay interested in a movie, educational video for school, or something completely different. Animation is fun, for kids and adults alike. Also, it allows the audience, however old, to enjoy a film or game without taking it to seriously. Many animated movies like Toy Story and Finding Nemo carry a deep underlying message that is masked with a lighthearted tone so younger audiences can enjoy it. Without animation, today's film industry would be incredibly less successful and society would miss out on all the great animated films of the past eighty years. Entire childhoods would be torn apart and countless hours spent watching cartoons and playing video games would be spent watching reality television shows and playing board games. I am so glad that animation exists and I believe that I couldn't live my life without it.
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Video games use a plethora of different techniques to make them addictive and constantly interesting. One part of game design, however, is for when nobody is not actively playing the game. Idle animations are the animations that play while the user is not actually doing anything in game. These are made and put into the game to enhance the interest of players and add atmosphere to the game environment and the characters. There are many unique idle animations, such as characters taking a nap or eating breakfast with no user interaction at all. To professional game developers, idle animations mean extra effort was put in the game to make it real and something meaningful to remember. Countless numbers of games include idle animations, including the super popular game Fortnite. Recently, Fortnite added an idle animation of your character inspecting his or her gun if you stayed still long enough. It was a clever addition to the game, but it's far from the best idle animation. My favorite is probably one from Rayman 2: The Great Escape. In the animation, the main character, Rayman, stands still for a second and then rips his torso out of his body to dribble it like a basketball. After a few seconds of dribbling, he puts it back where it belongs, inside his chest. I like it so much because it's not too complicated and fancy. I think that an idle animation with too much stuff going on would be really distracting and not be fulfilling its purpose. On the other hand, some level of absurdity is needed to keep it interesting. It wouldn't be much fun without going beyond some boundaries. In conclusion, idle animations keep games interesting and add a special touch to the game. I adore them and hope they live on to the future of gaming.
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Couture, Joel. “What Makes a Great Idle Animation? Devs Share Their Favorites.” Gamasutra: The Art & Business of Making Games, gamasutra.com/view/news/318163/What_makes_a_great_idle_animation_Devs_share_their_favorites.php https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/1025f63355780ce26ff925e9ab4a31f3-650-80.gif Animation is a staple of today's society, but once it was a small factor in the world. It started out very simple with a couple of inventions to mimic motion. Zoetropes are made of pictures spinning inside a drum with a series of slits to look through and see what looked like a brief movie, serving as a basic version of animation. Kineographs, or flip books, are books with a slightly different picture on each page, and when flipped create a sense of motion. As amazing as these two techniques are, however, they are primitive compared to modern society. Gertie the Dinosaur, made in 1914, was arguably the first frame by frame animation ever, incorporating a unique character and a simple plot. It was revolutionary at the time, just like 1928's Steamboat Willie. Steamboat Willie had a plot, characters, and was a frame by frame animation, but it had synchronized sound. If someone fell, a crash would be heard. If someone whistled, whistling would be heard. These films electrified audiences, but animation was still taking its first baby steps. In 1995, Toy Story was released. It was the first full length computer animated film, making way for today's plethora of animation and changing the world forever. Toy Story also gave way to big actors being voices of animated characters and old the world that animated films didn't have to be musicals. Without these films and inventions, we wouldn't recognize the world. In conclusion, animation has come a long way to become what we know today.
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Messer, Lesley. “'Toy Story' Turns 20: How It Changed Animated Films Forever.” ABC News, ABC News Network, 22 Nov. 2015, abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/toy-story-turns-20-changed-animated-films-forever/story?id=35281890 Animation, Film | January 19th. “The Disney Cartoon That Introduced Mickey Mouse & Animation with Sound (1928).” Open Culture, www.openculture.com/2012/01/steamboat_willie_disney_introduces_mickey_mouse.html “Gertie The Dinosaur - Film (Movie) Plot and Review.” Film Reference, www.filmreference.com/Films-Fr-Go/Gertie-the-Dinosaur.html There are four main types of animation, but I prefer 2D Animation.Traditional or Cel Animation is the oldest and simplest type of animation, using clear plastic cels and hand drawn images. Stop Motion involves capturing a picture, moving something slightly and taking another picture. CGI and 3D models of characters are a part of 3D Computer Animation. However, I am most interested in 2D Computer Animation. It is made by creating lots of objects only a little bit apart in Adobe Illustrator, saving lots of pictures with only one object visible and putting the images into Adobe After Effects. Changing the timing and positioning of the pictures in the animation is necessary as well. This type of animation can be extremely tedious, but it is not as tiresome as Traditional and Stop Motion Animation. 3D Animation is cool because it's more realistic, but it comes at the cost of taking the time to pose characters and models. 2D Animation's unrealistic feel can give off a nice vibe, and the production of objects is fairly straightforward. I would not have very much experience in 3D Animation, while I would in 2D Animation because most of the work is in Adobe Illustrator. I have spent the last couple of months in class working with the pen tool, the mesh tool, the direct selection tool, and other tools in Illustrator to ensure my success. Time management and not spending too much time in class messing around will also help me do well in animation. I need to apply my creativity well and focus. In conclusion, I have enjoyed the little I've done in 2D Computer Animation.
Summary
New York Film Academy. “5 Types Of Animation: Finding Inspiration In All Styles.” Student Resources, Alumni | New York Film Academy, 4 Apr. 2018, www.nyfa.edu/student-resources/5-types-of-animation-finding-inspiration-in-all-styles/ |
AuthorHI! I'm a 12th grader and on this page, I will blog about me and what I'm going through, both in Game Design class and in life. There are a mix of required blog posts and personal reflections, which you can sort, among other things, below the disclaimer and archives. DISCLAIMER
The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not represent those of Durham School of the Arts or Durham Public Schools. Archives
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