360°

Ninja Theory's Tameem Antoniades Clarifies Uncharted 2 Comments

SPOnG: "Earlier today we ran a story regarding Ninja Theory main-man Tameem Antoniades' presentation at BAFTA last night. In the interest of transparency and clarity, we are now running a follow-up that clarifies what Tameem said about Uncharted 2's animations."

Stuart57564977d ago

More like Platinum standard, Naughty Dog are the best, you better prove shit if you think you're better.

Keith Olbermann4977d ago

how enslaved performs....who knows..he may have a leg to stand on..maybe.

westy5524976d ago

Well going by the ps3 demo of enslaved, its not great on a graphical standard, mind you the game is fun but aint breaking any records in the looks department. And @ number47 defiantly agree.

nveenio4976d ago

Naughty Dog's animations are top notch. I've played the Enslaved demo, and the animations weren't even close to Uncharted quality. So now we know that the lighting, texturing and animations are all sub-Uncharted.

Someone needs to tell the guys at NT that there's no shame in being sub-Uncharted. They aren't alone.

number474976d ago (Edited 4976d ago )

Their game is rubbish, and even mentioning UC2 has nothing to do with them. They are trying to get some sort of association with greatness as if animation alone -- is why UC2 was epic. No, story/score/gameplay/visuals. In this climate of media dumbastedness, they are well aware of how things are taken out of context. It doesn't even need to be mentioned imo since lots of game devs do motion & face capture, watching the behind the scenes of UC2 you can see they also do face..

NT isn't raising any bars with the unreal engine, or the scope of enslaved.

Another case of a developer with PS3exclusivitus.

Redempteur4976d ago

i agree that's damage control

Pennywise4977d ago

Looks like V-Neck is doing some back peddling!

Dnied4977d ago

Ok can somebody clarify for me:

"However, I am a firm believer in performance capture (capturing face, body and voice simultaneously for multiple actors). It is a technique we pioneered in games with Heavenly Sword working alongside Weta Digital and gives, in my opinion, the most honest representation of human drama."

I thought this IS exactly what ND does? lol this si the second time hes said that, am I crazy? I coulda sworn i watched the making of videos and they were recording voice, acting, animation etc all at once...

DemiseofPandas4977d ago

Yeah the proof is on the blu-ray, I guess he just needs his ego stroked to think he is pioneering something, or to have an iconic character remodeled after himself.

Christopher4977d ago (Edited 4977d ago )

There's no proof of who pioneered what, but it's highly unlikely that one had any effect on the other. I really hate that they're talking all high and mighty, it's just annoying.

Heavenly Sword began development in 2002 and Uncharted in 2004, but that says nothing about when they began recording motion captured scenes.

Personally, I say shut up and prove that you're the best.

@Demise: My response wasn't directed at you. Just to the comment made by Tameem in the article.

DemiseofPandas4977d ago (Edited 4977d ago )

I wasn't saying one pioneered it or the other, just agreeing that he went out of his way to clarify an ill informed statement. The fact is that ND does MoCap with all the actors together, and he claims they do not. I've read many statements by this man, and I do say his ego is showing. The Mocap and facial in Heavenly Sword were great and hold up even to today, but NT has a lot more they need to prove, before making such arrogant statements without knowing all the facts.

@cgoodno I can tell you are well informed poster and I enjoy your comment, I guess I felt my post may have been ambiguous and needed to clarify my own statement further.

Triella4977d ago

They're right with one thing Ninja Theory does actually motion caputres movements but also faces expression at the same time, ND only track movements (and dialogues). But it doesn't necessarily mean what they do is better than what ND did in Uncharted2 by applying faces expressions in postproduction. I think the latter actually gives developper more freedom because they are not bound by the actor's play and can adapt the face expression at will.

Sometimes in Heavenly Sword you got a weird impression the face is affixed separately, I've seen that in the Enslaved demo too when Trip is in the pod, looking at Monkey.

nycredude4976d ago

Whatever happened they must be on a budget cause teh facial expressions in Enslaved doesn't even beat out Heaven Sword's facial expressions.

Lombax4976d ago

Actually ND only does body Mo-Cap. They animate all the facial movements by hand.

solidjun54977d ago

Well, the previous article had a sensationalist headline. I mean, once you read the whole article, he was talking about different techniques used for motion capture and he used Uncharted as a reference point. I really don't see the point of clarifying.

Malice-Flare4977d ago

everything needs to be crystal clear, and even with that, it is the idiots calling themselves "bloggers" or "journalists" that do the misconstruing...

Cloudberry4977d ago

.
But the net sometimes (if not, most) taken things out of the context (misleading, or fake even, etc).

So, it's not surprising if the source subject clarified it.

And yes, I agree with your quote:

"he was talking about different techniques used for motion capture and he used Uncharted as a reference point."

SPOnG4977d ago (Edited 4977d ago )

Hi there, Tim from SPOnG here.

The point of clarifying was the make sure that our readers and the people we write about are treated fairly. Tameem took the time to contact us - politely. We responded to him. He was happy to provide a quote. We were able to process the audio and run that so that the readership could have the actual detail there.

I thought it was a better all concerned to run a right of reply for reasons of clarity and fairness. Especially given Tameem's final comment in this story.

Cheers
Tim

Baka-akaB4977d ago

The problem is more than the headline . Like said above , he is insistent and adamant that they use a technique naughty dog doesnt , when it has been stated and proven via documentaries , that naughty dog did in fact use it .

Even with a clarification , that still make little sense

CoxMulder4976d ago

ND didn't capture facial expressions (& hands) though, check this vid:

http://www.youtube.com/watc...

relevant part at 3:30 min

Regarding Enslaved, I think it's pretty disappointing that the Heavenly Sword cutscenes still have the edge over Enslaved. The game being 3 years old and all..

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4976d ago
ActionBastard4977d ago

Why does he look like Dante? And he's the game director. Hmmm...

solidjun54977d ago

I thought the exact same thing when I saw the video in the other article that defended the change. I was like, "you know...he looks like Dante. Did they really have a 100 concept arts or just took a picture of this guy and said, 'let's do this!'."

ActionBastard4977d ago

It's between him and K.D Lang as the inspiration for the new Dante.

andron4976d ago

i have also noticed the similarities. They sure took their time designing the new Dante, he just took his own face and made it younger..

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320°

Ninja Theory trends on X as gamers fear for studio following Tango Gameworks closure

Following the closure of 4 studios, many are now worried for the future of Ninja Theory once Hellblade 2 is released.

Read Full Story >>
videogamer.com
Sonic18815d ago (Edited 5d ago )

How is it going to sell well when it's also releasing on gamepass 🤔

Sephiroushin5d ago

Meant better to sell the studio and not closing it 🤦🏻 not to sell more games….
and games are sold anyways, you can buy it on xbox (not recommended if you got gamepass) but many pc gamers prefer to buy on steam than deal with the xbox app or pc gamepass!

On a side note to OP, the sales of studios wont happen though, especially when they want to retain the IPs, and well nobody is gonna buy a studios without its IPs; the other publishers that want a certain dev from the studio that are closing on their team can try to grab them as soon as they see they notice of the studio.

RaidenBlack4d ago (Edited 4d ago )

@Sephiroushin
Well hypothetically speaking, Ninja Theory can be sold to Sony at a lower rate sans the Hellblade IP.
Sony can then welcome them to work on the Heavenly Sword IP, which they still own.
Will be a nice proposition for Sony who can continue to offer a God of War-like hack n slash in their portfolio via Heavenly Sword 2, whilst Cory Barlog & co. decides to take a break from the God of War IP & venture some other genres.
On top of that, Ninja Theory was also interested in a sequel to Enslaved: Odyssey to the West and such Sony can come to a deal with Namco Bandai regarding the Enslaved IP.

badz1494d ago

selling the studio wouldn't be an attractive offer unless they come with their IPs. MS wants to keep these IPs, so even if MS is selling just the studio, no one would wants them

Lightning775d ago

Because they're next come next year. HB2 won't hit some impossible metric within MS so they're getting axed in 2025. Leave gaming now MS.

XiNatsuDragnel5d ago

Ninja theory might as well be gone in 2025 at this rate

notachance5d ago

Every xbox studio is in danger now because there’s just no way they’re gonna rake in big money from game sales because of gamepass, even CoD was rumored to not come to gamepass because it would canibalize their sales number.

neutralgamer19924d ago

If they are smart they don’t put COD on GP day one. It’s one of the best selling games on yearly basis

Hofstaderman4d ago

Satya will make sure that doesnt happen. As you rightly put it; why kill the cash cow?

But then again, it is MS after all.....

thesoftware7304d ago

I agree and disagree. They should not put it on GP, but CoD makes real money from the overpriced MTX that people buy for over a year. They also have it all linked up to the Mobile CoD, which will incentivize Twitch spending from consumers.

neutralgamer19924d ago

Software

That’s true but keep in mind COD is the best selling or top 3 selling game every year. So yes micro transactions money is there but so are billions more

They should have tiers of GP subscriptions and the higher end tier received AAA games while everyone else gets them in 60 days

MontyeKristo4d ago

Wouldn't putting it on Gamepass be smarter? Cod is typically played, I believe, for far longer than 6 months.. if you get everyone playing the game for a year, on Gamepass, you've essentially doubled your profit. $10 a month for a year $120 compared to selling the game once for $60.

Not to mention MT's, on top of it. Sell on PS5, PC and Switch, keep it on Gamepass for Xbox and PC. Much smarter in my opinion..

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4d ago
-Foxtrot4d ago

Also if you punish a studio for releasing a great critically acclaimed game which won some awards then what chance does anyone have

Elda4d ago

After this mess, I highly doubt the next installment of COD will be on Gamepass day one. It'll probably land on Gamepass 6 months after release date.

Noskypeno4d ago

Like I said earlier, I wouldn't even mind. There's a good selection of games on GP already, and it gives me time to play my backlog of games while allowing the games that need to sell millions of copies to make a profit a chance to succeed, a win win scenario.

badz1494d ago

not putting CoD on GP is sort of a violation of their own marketing though. they said ALL MS 1st party games will be on GP day 1, not some. CoD is 1st party, so to not put it on GP day 1 would be considered as false marketing.

+ Show (1) more replyLast reply 4d ago
Rynxie5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

Ninja theory games were never big sellers. I could be wrong, but I doubt hellblade 2 will sell millions. I would rather they go independent and make heavenly sword 2.

solideagle5d ago (Edited 5d ago )

heavenly sword is Sony owned IP. this will never happen as original didn't sell enough...

Wikipedia: "In 2008, it was reported that a sequel to Heavenly Sword was in-development at SCE Studio Cambridge, but was canceled due to Sony no longer seeing it as a commercially viable product"

Flewid6384d ago (Edited 4d ago )

I remember. I feel like the amount of time & technology that has passed would make a sequel a big seller now. The game has enough legacy recognition to build hype.

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120°

15 PS3 Games That Would Absolutely Shine as PS5 Remakes

GB: "With this feature, we talk about 15 games on the PS3 that should be remade for the PlayStation 5."

Read Full Story >>
gamingbolt.com
kenpachi33d ago

You left out The Darkness games bring those back

fan_of_gaming32d ago

The head of Nightdive Studios has posted that The Darkness is on their list of games they want to do, so hopefully something comes from that

Yi-Long32d ago

Little Big Planet 1 and 2 deserve a mention, IMO.

Good call on Motorstorm, a game released 2 gens ago but still looks and feels so good. Motorstorm 2 and Motorstorm RC were gems as well. They followed up the Motorstorm games with the brilliant Driveclub, which still manages to put modern racing games to shame. Imagine closing down a studio as talented as that ... (!) Incredible.

A little 'arcade-gem' back then was The Last Guy, a top down 'follow the leader' snake-like game where you had to find and lead survivors to safety during an alien invasion, on terrible looking 'Google-earth' maps. Graphics were poor, even back then, but would love that same gameplay with modern maps and graphics.

Street Fighter 4, once it finally had a full roster, was quite good, but it was always an ugly game, sadly. Imagine bringing that back while using the current SF6 engine.

fan_of_gaming32d ago

Good suggestions, I'd be in for
LittleBigPlanet
LittleBigPlanet 2
Motorstorm: Pacific Rift
Motorstorm: RC

purple10132d ago

God damn I love motorstorm so much

At the time I had a low-mid range sony 40” tv, The latency to the controller was waaaay too high, would to play a modern version

In saying that later I got a 3d lg tv and playing the 3d motorstorm in my bedroom with the environment crumbling around the track, was something special, specially compared to what others were playing at the time, will always remember that

Skuletor32d ago

Some good choices here and Resistance: Fall of Man is my most wanted PS3 remaster/remake. Not sure about their claim it was Sony's answer to Gears of War though.

CrimsonWing6932d ago

I’d rather have sequels than remakes. Look at Dead Space 1 Remake. Would’ve been cooler if we got a new entry and it failed with sales sealing the fate of a sequel rather than just replay the same game and it fail in sales and we never get a new entry.

Remakes are great for things like PS2 and earlier games to really get a crazy new graphical coat, but I think we should ease up on all these remakes and actually do sequels.

fan_of_gaming32d ago

Yeah for sure, sequels would be ideal. But in the current market environment where many big publishers are risk-averse, I'd rather get a remaster or remake that a developer can do on a budget that will be approved, rather than nothing for an IP.

Inverno32d ago

I rather they remaster and port over to PC and current gen all the games permanently stuck on PS360. Those games don't need remakes, they need to be given a chance to live again outside of their confined consoles and then give a few proper sequels. Like Sleeping Dogs, Motor Storm, LA Noir, should get another entry.

fan_of_gaming32d ago

Yeah I'd be fine with remasters of PS3 games too, they don't have to be remakes.

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410°

Former Hellblade Director & Ninja Theory Founder Explains Why He Left The Studio

Former Hellblade director and Ninja Theory co-founder has offered an explanation regarding his departure from the now Microsoft-owned studio.

Read Full Story >>
twistedvoxel.com
XiNatsuDragnel36d ago

I hope he forms a new studio soon

Cacabunga36d ago

It is a good studio.. i really enjoyed their dmc game that i platinumed it.
I did not try hellblade, because it doesnt tell me much.. Enslaved was very mehhh
Heavenly Sword was good not great. Amazing graphics back in the day but so repetitive and not so engaging in the long run.

stoney10136d ago

I really enjoyed Enslaved and Heavenly Sword back in the day. Wish they'd return to that sort of game. Hellblade isn't really for me to be honest. Not saying it's not a good game, I just couldn't get into it.

Popsicle35d ago (Edited 35d ago )

That is fair. I enjoyed Hellblade but can definitely see how it isn’t for everyone.

Would like to see how Heavenly Sword would have turned out if developed today. It’s easy to forget that games like Heavenly Sword were unprecedented and in their infancy.

shinoff218335d ago (Edited 35d ago )

Enslaved has been their favorite game for me. Loved the atmosphere.

1nsomniac35d ago

Heavenly sword was a staggeringly good game!! One of the most memorable of the PS3 generation in my opinion.

Babadook735d ago (Edited 35d ago )

Heavenly sword was good. It had ambitious graphics and as a result the frame rate suffered and as a result the gameplay suffered. But the story was phenomenal. Great acting, especially Andy Serkis as the king.

Jingsing35d ago (Edited 35d ago )

"Microsoft" we all read between the lines. We have seen the exact same thing happen with many of their other acquisitions

InUrFoxHole35d ago

Jesus man! Try reading the article at least.

cthulhucultist35d ago

One thing that pleasantly surprised me, was the Switch port, as back then it was my only console. The graphics were amazing and the artistic design helped a lot to enhance the visuals.I took some really impressive screen shots while playing which I still revisit them from time to time to remind me what a capable developer (QLOC) can achieve with weaker hardware.

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