This book provides a comprehensive overview of video game technical animation, covering the next generation pipelines that industry developers utilize to create their games. It covers the technical animation workflow from start to finish, looking at both software and hardware, as well as the industry standard processes.
* The first dedicated educational resource on technical animation for video games.
* Contains contemporary technical animation information covering the latest next generation pipelines, software, and processes in an ever-evolving industry.
* An accessible technical animation resource with easy-to-understand principles and educational use cases on how to combine the principles and tools taught in the book.
Matthew Lake is a technical animator working in the video games industry. He started his career producing short movies in the early days of YouTube, leading on to work with the online entertainment network Machinima. Matthew has spent over a decade working on content creation, and after finding a love for interactive storytelling Matthew pursued a career in video games development. After acquiring a Bachelor of arts degree in computer games animation, Matthew went on to work on the multiplayer game Destruction AllStars, a PlayStation 5 exclusive launch title, and most recently worked as the lead technical animator on Fort Solis, a single player narrative game also for the PlayStation 5.
Chapter 1: Technical Animator
Chapter 2: Introduction to Software
Chapter 3: Introduction to Motion Capture Technology
Chapter 4: A Technical Understanding
Chapter 5: Introduction To Maya
Chapter 6: Introduction To Python
Chapter 7: Python For Maya
Chapter 8: Maya-Building a Skeleton
Chapter 9: Maya-Building A Control Rig
Chapter 10: Introduction To Unreal Engine 5
Chapter 11: Unreal-The Skeleton Setup
Chapter 12: Unreal-The Animation Blueprint
Chapter 13: Unreal-The Control Rig Blueprint
Chapter 14: Unreal-Physics Assets
Chapter 15: Unreal-Sequencer Cinematics
Chapter 16: Unreal-Cloth Dynamics
Chapter 17: Unreal-The Optimisation
Chapter 18: Evaluation