Unreal 3 Gets Facelift

[Evil Avatar]

Epic Games and OC3 Entertainment send along a Press Release announcing that Epic has licensed OC3's FaceFX technology to create lifelike characters in Unreal engine titles.

Epic Games, world leading developers of cutting-edge computer and video games and the pioneer of the award-winning Unreal Engine, and OC3 Entertainment, a leading provider of facial animation technology, announced today that OC3 Entertainment’s FaceFX product has been licensed for use in Epic Games’ Unreal Engine 3. The agreement means that the FaceFX technology will be available to all Unreal Engine 3 licensees. Epic Games will use the FaceFX product in their upcoming titles Gears of War and Unreal Tournament 2007 to create emotive characters and cinematic-quality dialogue sequences.

“OC3 Entertainment is thrilled to continue working with Epic Games and further solidify our partnership,” said Jamie Redmond, Co-founder and Technical Director of OC3 Entertainment. “Unreal Engine 3 with an integrated version of FaceFX makes for a very powerful next-generation facial animation solution with enormous potential and we are very excited to see what the talented teams using Unreal Engine 3 can produce.”

“Facial animation is of paramount importance to Epic Games and our licensees for the next generation,” said Mark Rein, Vice President and Co-founder of Epic Games. “FaceFX is truly in a league of its own. We are thrilled to be using it in our own development, and we are confident that Unreal Engine licensees will greatly benefit from our relationship with OC3 Entertainment.”

[LilEvilFish]

I would agree with this technology in something like an RPG, but in an FPS? If you're stopping to admire the facial expressions of a marine firing an RPG into a horde of enemies, there's something wrong.

But good that companies are willing to get third party software like this.

[NoName]

Wow, they already had a nice tool that allowed you to put someone's face on a skin (always fun to blow up that boss you don't like).

I dono about stopping to admire the facial expressions, it might just add more atmosphere to the game...

[GodFather]

Anyone know when UT2007 is hitting the shelves next year? Hopefully its at the beginning of the year.

[baz]

I would agree with this technology in something like an RPG, but in an FPS? If you're stopping to admire the facial expressions of a marine firing an RPG into a horde of enemies, there's something wrong.

But good that companies are willing to get third party software like this.

They licenced it for the engine, not a game. Bioware's new RPG (mass effect?) uses the unreal engine 3 and I'm sure they will use it.

[Taco]

There are dozens of games this will work well in. Even FPS games, HL2 used facial expressions to good effect and even Doom3 could of made use of more advanced facial animation.

[LilEvilFish]

They licenced it for the engine, not a game. Bioware's new RPG (mass effect?) uses the unreal engine 3 and I'm sure they will use it.

I know the one you mean. That, I feel, is a good use for it.

Maybe they could engineer it to respond to your voice comms, analysing your voice pattern to determine current anger level from getting "pwned" then changing the expression as a result :D "uhoh that guy looks pissed!"

[raVen]

Realistic facial animations should become crucial in the next-gen... HL2 was, for me, one of the very first games where I started to feel emotionally attached to the characters through their expressions. We need more of that, this seems to be a definate step in the right direction.

[Steve_Erhardt]

I don't mind the thinking behind this, though I tend to believe in an FPS it'll probably get overlooked for the most part. If you're close enough to tell the guy you're shooting at is angry, you got bigger things to worry about than how realistically he furrows his brow. ;)

Cutscenes and RPGs, I think this'll go over much bigger.

[kathode]

There are a ton of games that already use this stuff. Halo 2 used OC3 lipsynching stuff.

[Morrolan]

There are a ton of games that already use this stuff. Halo 2 used OC3 lipsynching stuff.
Uh oh...

Heh. Does anyone have any links to a vid of this program in action? I'd like to see the sorts of animations it would come up with. Between a runtime version of Endorphin (in the works,) and advanced third-party facial animation suites, it's becoming obvious that animation is the new bumpy texture. Normal maps are a thing of the past, baby! Now it's all about fluid, realistic movement.

[insidious]

Will UT2007 be the first Unreal3 Engine game to hit the store shelves? I've seen pictures of random projects in development, and maybe a tech demo and one large flyby movie. I'm itching to see this engine running on all cylinders.

Crap it just dawned on me, Gears of War, right?
/just woke up
//still really, really, excited

[if76]

Great. The unreal engine is like a vine porcelean vase: it looks gorgeous but if you touch it, it falls apart.

[Heretic Machine]

I'm pretty sure Oblivion makes use of this same software...

[Xerxes]

I think Gear of War will beat UT2007 out the gates. But UT 2007 will be the first PC taste of U3.

Any links to this thing in action?

[The Iron Weasel]

I think Gear of War will beat UT2007 out the gates. But UT 2007 will be the first PC taste of U3.

Any links to this thing in action?

UT is due early next year, from what I understand (yeah the lypsynching will be used to GREAT effect there. ;) ). Where as Gears is like november of next year possibly from a recent interview with Cliffy B. (At the mere mention of his name one person on here will say something along the lines of "Cliffy B makes me wet" I destinctly remeber someone saying that)

[Xerxes]

Cliffy B? Wetness? That's crazy... Now Itagaki is another story... I kid I kid...

I didn't know it was pushed backed until November. If thats the case, MS needs to stop putting Gears of War in my face like it's fucking candy but it's a year away. I mean doing shit like that makes it seems like ain't shit else on Xbox 360.

[Parias]

I don't mind the thinking behind this, though I tend to believe in an FPS it'll probably get overlooked for the most part. If you're close enough to tell the guy you're shooting at is angry, you got bigger things to worry about than how realistically he furrows his brow. ;)

If U3 turns out anything like U2 storyline-wise though, then it's not like you'll be shooting every single person you come across. As mentioned, Half-Life 2 was able to use this kind of system to great effect previously, and this specifically applied to friendly NPCs or emotive enemies during the non-combat segments. Sheerly for the immersion factor, a further implementation of this is definitely something I look forward to.