Going for mo-cap? Don't jump the gun

As part of a new Gamasutra feature on tips for performance capture, Rebellion's Zsolt Avery-Tierney says that waiting for Sniper Elite V2's motion capture sessions made the difference in efficiency. When making Sniper Elite V2, Rebellion Developments waited until the game reached first pass standard before turning to motion capture. "This allowed us to fully explore the style of the animations and react quickly to the evolving design and code requirements as the project progressed," says lead animator Zsolt Avery-Tierney. This meant time and money wasn't wasted on collecting redundant or incompatible motion capture data and that the team entered the shoot with a clear idea of what they wanted. "Everything in Sniper Elite V2 that we gained from our actors was initially defined and designed by our animators. This not only served better communication on the day but also ensured our animators retained ownership and remained devoted to the final delivery," he explains. Another benefit was that because the content was already well defined, Rebellion could tell its mo-cap studio its exact prop requirements and measurements in advance: "This maximized time usage on the day, drastically reduced asset waste, and relieved the third pass burden on the animation team." The full feature, in which Bungie, Creative Assembly, and more share their tips for motion and performance capture, is live now on Gamasutra.