GDC2012: Project Skyline

[Hirazi Blue]

Over at the Area, you can find a video of the presentation about Project Skyline @ the GDC 2012: go there

[Nizar]

I see a bit of ICE workflow (an ice node /compound) in it, or am I wrong?

[Hirazi Blue]

There might be a certain ICE look and feel to it, but Project Skyline isn't ICE AFAIK.
(And an ICE-like workflow is what you get when you start working with nodes.)
Luc-Eric Rousseau posted the following on the Mailing List almost a year ago and I have no doubt that it still rings true:

Skyline is as you describe below. The trees processes matrices and vectors (only), and it runs in the game engine on the xbox, ps3, etc. It's not a particle system, it has no interest on maximizing a multi-core workstation PC and doesn't process batches of points in multiple threads, have a scene graph, do scene queries, etc. It doesn't actually execute in Maya, but in the game engine. It doesn't do anything you need to do offline effects, deforms, modeling, etc. It's not the same kind of "thing" as ICE.

(Quoted from here)
;)

[bottleofram]

Cant shake the feeling that this is what ICE could have been, and maybe it would have been, if only it was made to execute on Autodesk M-- Autodesk Platform, but i guess we will never know.

I know it sounds ridicules... that's until you remember Byungchul Kang's and hchs's work on AI and crowds, Paul Smith's little zombie sim, dwigfor's exploration of ice kinematics, Kai Wolter's joystick drivers etc. etc.

Little bits and peaces of a bigger picture i always felt like it might be the future of ICE. Obviously i know a lot less about project skyline (and game technology in general) than i'd need in order to make sure it would even make sense for ICE to expand in that direction, but i just cant help it - my AD paranoia grew strong and powerful...

[Mathaeus]

maybe I'm an ignorant, but I really couldn't imagine what's a 'future' here, at least in 'artistic' part. Except trying to push a few more Maya seats, as well as tons of problems with crippling a monster 3d app into something different. Some statements simply are not true, like "What previously might have taken up to weeks before artists could validate their work now happens immediately". It happened in few minutes, long time ago, using second class engine...
Animation clip editors, similar to SI animation mixer, also aren't nothing new.
Somehow it reminds to forgotten live linking for editing assets, one was a part of advertising of XSI 5, I think. Small problem was, that simple level editor or so, which already should be done, had same functionality (not that much to be easily shared between 3d app and engine), also *anyone* were able to use them, not only skilled 3d artist.

[Bellsey]

I think you're perhaps missing the what's being shown here.
What Steven is doing here with Skyline is essentially putting together animation move trees and states, using a node based workflow. In a games context you can have many animations that will have to link together. So much work gets done on the code side that its sometimes not easy for animators to see there data until it gets into the game. By using something like Skyline an animator can decide which moves they may want to blend/link to others and they can see things all from within their game engine. It's instant and in realtime and at the same time, you're building the game logic as well.

Skyline may look and feel like its just Maya, but in fact it kinda isn't. Steven is using Maya as the main 3d app, but the idea is that it would be open enough to use Max or Softimage with it as well. Same for the game engine as well, it should be open for people to plug in what they have.

[Daniel Brassard]

Steven is using Maya as the main 3d app, but the idea is that it would be open enough to use Max or Softimage with it as well.

Is Skyline working on Softimage as well or only on Maya at this point in time?

If yes, can we see a quick demo of Skyline on Softimage?

[Mathaeus]

I think you're perhaps missing the what's being shown here.
By using something like Skyline an animator can decide which moves they may want to blend/link to others and they can see things all from within their game engine.

Ah, something like Blender game engine ! Now serious, I meant something like you described, but not inside Maya, of course. To make it clear, as an artist I love the idea, even inside Maya But I heard sooo many arguments from programming fellows, against such integration, when ever I asked... You know, in my artist language, I'll say "I hate this", programmer would say about hundred of magic words, basically meaning is the same...

good luck !

[Bellsey]

to the best of my knowledge its only Maya, but don't read anything into that. As Steven says in his presentation, Skyline isn't an actual product yet, its more of a R&D project.

[luceric]

Some statements simply are not true, like "What previously might have taken up to weeks before artists could validate their work now happens immediately". It happened in few minutes, long time ago, using second class engine...
Animation clip editors, similar to SI animation mixer, also aren't nothing new..

sorry, but you don't understand what this is.. skyline is a way to author and debug procedural animation while they are running live on the xbox or ps3, on any game engine that supports the API. no export, build, and upload to the PS3 cycle to go through and the mixing and blending is on the console. it's not about key frames or modeling and it's not a level editor.

[Mathaeus]

sorry, but you don't understand what this is.. skyline is a way to author and debug procedural animation while they are running live on the xbox or ps3,

so, flying logotypes, then of course I have no clue about it, but it definitively sounds something you're proud of....
Cool software that Maya, wish I would have one.

[luceric]

so, flying logotypes, then

?

[Mathaeus]

so, flying logotypes, then

?

what else could be 'procedural animation'

[luceric]

skyline is a middleware for procedural character animation in a game. not cut scenes, static animation sequencing of premade clips, but modern on-the-fly game motion blending and synthesis where the characters react to the environment, physics, AI and other parameters.