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【魔兽世界】特效制作、引擎使用等效果介绍

不是大雕萌妹__ 发表于   2018-11-12 18:16:26
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Luis Aguas, an FX artist from Blizzard, talked about the production of awesome effects for World of Warcraft: Battle for Azeroth, VFX components, techniques and more.

来自暴雪的FX艺术家  路易斯·阿瓜斯(Luis Aguas)谈到了“魔兽世界:艾泽拉斯之战”,VFX组件,技术等等产生的超棒效果。


UPD: We asked Luis to edit the ‘self-taught part intro’ to avoid confusion.

UPD:我们要求路易斯编辑“自学成才的介绍”以避免混淆。



Introduction

介绍


Hello! My name is Luis Aguas. I’m 24 years old and I am a FX Artist from sunny South California. I went to school at The Art Institute of California – Inland Empire for Game Art in 2012 and learned generalist game art development skills, however I learned VFX on my own. I graduated in 2016 and have been at Blizzard since then as an associate FX artist on the World of Warcraft team! 

你好!我的名字是Luis Aguas。我今年24岁,是来自阳光明媚的南加州的FX艺术家。我于2012年在加利福尼亚艺术学院 - 内陆帝国的游戏艺术学校上学,并学习了通才的游戏艺术开发技巧,但我自己学习了VFX。我毕业于2016年,从那时起一直在暴雪,作为魔兽世界团队的助理FX艺术家! 


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Funnily enough, I didn’t specialize in FX, as there was no program for that at my school. I was taught as a generalist and learned a little bit of everything from traditional concept art and 2D animation to 3D character modeling and level design.

有趣的是,我没有专注于FX,因为我的学校没有这方面的计划。我作为一名多面手教授,从传统的概念艺术和2D动画到3D角色建模和关卡设计,学到了一些东西。


It wasn’t until my last quarter in my 2nd year in college that I made the conscious effort to figure out what I wanted to specialize in. I remember talking with friends at a restaurant freaking out about it. I understood how to do a variety of things related to game development; I just wasn’t confident in them.

直到我在大学第二年的最后一个季度,我才有意识地想弄清楚我想要专攻的东西。我记得在一家餐馆里和朋友们谈论它。我理解如何做与游戏开发相关的各种事情; 我对他们没有信心。


Later that same year, a colleague of mine introduced me to “particles” in Unreal Engine 4. And that’s when it clicked. I finally decided, “I can see myself doing that. That looks like fun!” The only problem was not having an industry professor to teach me. So I searched online and found a lot of helpful resources.

同年晚些时候,我的一位同事向我介绍了虚幻引擎4中的 “粒子” 。这就是它点击的时候。我终于决定,“我可以看到自己这样做。这看起来很有趣!“唯一的问题是没有一位行业教授教我。所以我在网上搜索了很多有用的资源。


I didn’t even know that FX artist was a career path. Not only was I learning something new, but I began to understand and break down effects from my favorite games.

我甚至都不知道FX艺术家是一条职业道路。我不仅学到了新东西,而且还开始理解并打破我最喜欢的游戏的效果。


I’ve known about World of Warcraft since 2005 when my older brother bought the game alongside his college friends. We also only had one computer, so my parents told me to just watch him play. It wasn’t until 2010 when I started playing, and I haven’t stopped since then.

我从2005年开始就知道魔兽世界,当时我的哥哥和他的大学朋友一起买了这个游戏。我们也只有一台电脑,所以我的父母告诉我只是看他玩。直到2010年我才开始上场比赛,从那以后我就没有停止过。


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In 2015, I attended my first BlizzCon. There I met a Blizzard senior artist. They took the time to sit down with me and chat about their experiences working at Blizzard. I kept in contact with them over the course of my senior year. Their feedback was what I needed to take my student work to the next level.

2015年,我参加了我的第一个BlizzCon。在那里,我遇到了一位暴雪高级艺术家。他们花时间与我坐下来聊聊他们在暴雪工作的经历。在我大四的时候,我一直与他们保持联系。他们的反馈是我将学生的工作提升到一个新水平所需要的。


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Visual Effect Components

视觉效果组件


There are three key components that make up any visual effect. Shape language/silhouette, motion/timing, and color/value. You will find these core principles in every game. However, their application is what sets them apart.

有三个关键组件构成任何视觉效果。形状语言/轮廓,动作/定时和颜色/值。你会在每场比赛中找到这些核心原则。但是,它们的应用使它们与众不同。


It’s how to differentiate styles. Hand-painted vs. stylized vs. realistic. All there are types of visual effects, yet they are executed differently. The exaggerated shapes and explosive timing of stylized effect have a heavy silhouette-driven aspect to them, while realistic effects mimic what we see in real life.

这是如何区分风格。手绘与风格化与现实。所有类型的视觉效果,但它们执行不同。夸张的形状和风格化效果的爆炸性时机具有沉重的轮廓驱动方面,而逼真的效果模仿我们在现实生活中看到的。


The painterly style that we created on World of Warcraft is heavily influenced by the world in which they exist in. The quality of the brush strokes and craftsmanship are just as important as clear shape language and sharp timing. And that’s just the first half of what creates a World of Warcraft effect. The technical side is also important. They go hand in hand during production. Think of it like a blacksmith and a warrior in an RPG. One knows how to create the sword, and the other knows how to use the sword. Now put them together, and you have an FX artist.

我们在“魔兽世界”中创作的绘画风格深受其所在世界的影响。画笔笔触和工艺的质量与清晰的形状语言和清晰的时机一样重要。这只是创造魔兽世界效果的前半部分。技术方面也很重要。它们在生产过程中齐头并进。可以把它想象成一个RPG中的铁匠和战士。一个人知道如何制造剑,另一个人知道如何使用剑。现在把它们放在一起,你有一个FX艺术家。



Visual effects can turn into a rabbit hole very, VERY quickly. Every piece is vital in achieving a polished result. From the flash at the start to the sparkles you sprinkle at the end during the polish time. Yet the three core principles remain the same. Shape, timing, and color.

视觉效果非常非常迅速地变成兔子洞。每件作品都是实现精美结果的关键。从开始时的闪光到闪光时间,你会在抛光时间内喷洒。然而,三个核心原则保持不变。形状,时间和颜色。


Beams Production

梁生产


   


These channel effects are composed of three different parts. The first is a channeled effect on the player’s hand as they are casting it. The second is the beam itself. And the third is the impact that is channeled on the target.

这些通道效果由三个不同的部分组成。第一个是玩家手上的通道效果。第二个是梁本身。第三是对目标的影响。


   


The effect on the player’s hand and on the target are like each other in order to establish a visual connection between the caster and the target. Now each part is further broken down into multiple parts, which I will go further in-depth on when I talk about the Drustvar magic, as the same technique is used to create visual effects. Layers!

对玩家的手和目标的影响彼此相似,以便在施法者和目标之间建立视觉连接。现在每个部分进一步细分为多个部分,当我谈论Drustvar魔法时,我将进一步深入讨论,因为同样的技术用于创建视觉效果。图层!


Layers in VFX

VFX中的图层


   


The Drustvar witch magic was created by Senior FX Artist Sarah Carmody and later expanded on by me and other members of the team. The visual development for this look first began with a couple of emitters that focused on the harsh pitch black with cyan blue accents. As the foundation for this visual was already established, I simply had to create a suite of visuals that fit their purpose.

Drustvar巫术魔术由高级FX艺术家Sarah Carmody创作 ,后来由我和团队的其他成员扩展。这种外观的视觉开发首先从几个发射器开始,这些发射器专注于带有青色蓝色调的黑色黑色。由于这个视觉的基础已经建立,我只需创建一套符合其目的的视觉效果。


Whether our goal is to make a magical barrier to block a road or a pathway, a portal to summon in and out of, a shield to protect from damage, or a giant whirlpool of dark nasty magic, we first start with the visual’s purpose and then move onto its creation.

无论我们的目标是制造阻挡道路或路径的神奇障碍,召唤进出的门户,保护免受损害的盾牌,还是黑暗恶劣魔法的巨大漩涡,我们首先要从视觉的目的开始,然后进入它的创作。


When you say “layers,” most digital artists will think about Photoshop and how their layers system stack on top of one another. Visual effects use a similar system of layers in the form of emitters and render priority. This system works with geometry and emitters within the same scene, 1 being the base, 2 going on top of that, then 3, 4, and so on.

当你说“图层”时,大多数数字艺术家会想到Photoshop以及他们的图层系统如何叠加在一起。视觉效果使用类似的发射器形式的层系统并呈现优先级。该系统适用于同一场景中的几何体和发射体,1为基础,2为顶部,3为4,依此类推。


Regarding these effects and layering, I put the darkest parts behind everything and the brighter parts in front. This creates a contrast that makes the visuals pop.

关于这些效果和分层,我把最黑暗的部分放在所有东西后面,更亮的部分放在前面。这会产生一种对比度,使视觉效果流行。


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Lastly, the bits. Bits are like the “sprinkles on a cupcake.” They are the last layer and go on top of everything. This ranges from sparks at the end of an explosion, dust that’s left behind by an impact, or in this case, black pieces of magic floating in and out of existence.

最后,位。比特就像“洒在蛋糕上”。它们是最后一层,并且是最重要的。其范围包括爆炸结束时的火花,撞击留下的灰尘,或者在这种情况下,黑色的魔法浮动存在和不存在。


Splashes

飞溅


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Everything in my demo reel was created using 3ds Max and Photoshop. I begin with an alpha mask and figure out what general shape of the effect I am working on, then create textures to complement the substance of it—in this case, liquid gold. This effect is only two textures.

我的演示卷轴中的所有内容都是使用3ds Max和Photoshop 创建的。我从一个alpha蒙版开始,弄清楚我正在研究的效果的一般形状,然后创建纹理以补充它的实质 - 在这种情况下,液体金。这个效果只有两个纹理。


The real magic is in our particle editor and in the dissolve parameters, also known as alpha crushing or erosion.

真正的魔力在于我们的粒子编辑器和溶解参数,也称为α破碎或侵蚀。


   


A lot of our new disease, nature, and nasty green, vile visuals used this technique to achieve a harsher, crispier, sharper, thicker look to the particles without having to dip too far into the procedural technicality of effects.

我们的许多新疾病,自然和令人讨厌的绿色,卑鄙的视觉效果都使用这种技术来实现更坚固,更清晰,更清晰,更厚实的颗粒外观,而不必过分深入到效果的程序技术性。


Timing

定时


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Timing is the one thing that will make your audience go “wow!” or “hmm, that’s okay, I guess.” The way I approach this part of the production is to play whatever effect I am working on and play it over and over. And then play it once more, and over and over. After staring at something for so long, you start to notice a “hitch” in certain areas and can pinpoint where timing can be tighter.

时间是一两件事,这将使你的观众去“哇!”或者“嗯,没关系,我猜。”我的方法生产的这部分的方式是玩什么影响我的工作,并一遍又一遍地播放。然后再次播放,一遍又一遍。在长时间盯着某个东西后,你会开始注意到某些区域出现“故障”,并且可以确定时间可以更紧密。


After that, I look at each part of the effect piece by piece and isolate different elements. I like to think of visual effects as a play. You have a beginning, a middle, and an end, and each part has elements that inform the next. This creates a structure where emitters have a cause and effect in relation to one another.

之后,我逐个看一下效果的每个部分,并隔离不同的元素。我喜欢将视觉效果视为一种游戏。你有一个开头,一个中间和一个结尾,每个部分都有通知下一个的元素。这产生了一种结构,其中发射器相互之间具有因果关系。


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However, when you are working with a boss and their sweet animations (like a swipe or an attack), I take the time to study our animation team’s work by opening their file and synching up my effects to their work.

然而,当你与老板和他们的甜蜜动画(如滑动或攻击)合作时,我会花时间研究我们的动画团队的工作,打开他们的文件并将我的效果同步到他们的工作中。


Another thing to keep in mind with timing is mood, atmosphere, and context. What will a player experience when they see visuals on screen? It’s something I ask myself and put myself in their shoes to figure out how impacting something needs to be or how subtle and gentle it should feel.

时间安排另外要考虑的是情绪,氛围和背景。当玩家在屏幕上看到视觉效果时会有什么样的体验?这是我问自己的事情,并把自己放在自己的鞋子里,弄清楚需要做出什么样的影响,或者应该感受到多么微妙和温柔。


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There is a running joke in the office about how loud and extra my effects are. It’s become something that my team knows me by. That’s mainly because I’m a huge anime fan and take inspiration from the shows I watch. So, I tend to start at the extreme of the spectrum and go overboard. Take things to 11 and then dial it back. My day to day workflow is very much problem solving and establishing a hierarchy of visual appeal.

办公室里有一个关于我的影响有多大和多大的笑话。这已成为我的团队了解我的事情。这主要是因为我是一个巨大的动漫迷,并从我观看的节目中获取灵感。所以,我倾向于从频谱的极端开始并且过火。把东西拿到11然后再拨回来。我的日常工作流程非常需要解决问题,并建立了视觉吸引力的层次结构。


The saying “less is more” is something that is very much true, especially as an FX Artist. But my job not only consists of creating something pretty to look at or cast. Visual communication is something I always keep in mind. The way an element functions should have a purpose in the effect.

“少即是多”的说法非常真实,特别是作为外汇艺术家。但我的工作不仅包括创造一些漂亮的东西来观看或演员。视觉传达是我始终牢记的事情。元素的运作方式应该具有效果。


   


It’s how I establish a coherent look. When I have an effect that has a lot going on, I take a step back and analyze what does the player needs to know.  (Does this hurt? Should I stand in this? Will this heal me?) Visual communication starts during the conceptual phase and keeps things in check so that I don’t end up having an effect whose purpose was to heal but looks like it’s doing damage.

这就是我如何建立一个连贯的外观。当我的效果有很多时,我退后一步,分析玩家需要知道什么。(这会伤害吗?我应该站在这吗?这会治愈我吗?)视觉沟通在概念阶段开始并对事情进行检查,以便我最终不会产生影响,其目的是治愈但看起来正在做损伤。


Testing Effects

测试效果


   

   


What does it look like if 10 players cast this ability? How does this affect performance? Can you cast these multiple times in a row? Will the player see a precast if this is a proc and becomes instant cast? There are many factors that come into play and each scenario is valid. Our tools allow us to test these various use cases.

如果有10名球员投出这种能力,那会是什么样子?这对性能有何影响?你能连续多次投射这些吗?如果这是一个触发并且变成即时演员,玩家是否会看到预制?有许多因素可以发挥作用,每种情况都是有效的。我们的工具允许我们测试这些不同的用例。


Just having these questions in the back of my mind really helps with making visuals coherent.

只是在我的脑海中提出这些问题确实有助于使视觉效果连贯。


Keeping Balance

保持平衡


Lastly, I often take screenshots of my effects and in Photoshop greyscale them to check out how my values are doing. The same rules of illustration can be applied to a visual effect.

最后,我经常拍摄我的效果的截图,并在Photoshop中使用灰度来查看我的值是如何做的。相同的图示规则可以应用于视觉效果。


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Sure, effects are real-time and moving, but screen space and economy of visual weight is very much something to consider.

当然,效果是实时和移动的,但屏幕空间和视觉重量的经济性是非常值得考虑的事情。


This technique helps me keep things from not getting overwhelming to the player or stealing the spotlight. Stealing the spotlight is something that really becomes noticeable when effects are put into context. However, communication and collaboration are key to success when working with a large team.

这项技术可以帮助我避免让玩家不知所措或者偷走聚光灯。当效果被置于上下文中时,窃取聚光灯是非常明显的。但是,与大型团队合作时,沟通和协作是成功的关键。


Summary

摘要


Being an FX artist is like being a witch or a sorcerer. I get to create magic. And share that magic with millions of players all over the world. From problem-solving to painting ribbons and missiles, to creating high fantasy visuals, working on this project has been a lot of fun. Blizzard is a place where I can truly shine, and the freedom to be myself and express myself through effects.

作为FX艺术家就像是女巫或巫师。我开始创造魔法。并与全世界数百万玩家分享这种魔力。从解决问题到绘制彩带和导弹,再到创造高幻想的视觉效果,在这个项目上工作已经非常有趣。暴雪是一个我可以真正发光的地方,也是我自己通过效果表达自己的自由。


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评论(6)
房诗鹭
既然做翻译就认真做,这是对原作者的的尊重,就别拿机翻出来丢人,真的。
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1962天前
红烧克里斯
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不同意你的看法,机翻对于我来说有总比没有强~
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1962天前
不是大雕萌妹__
英语4级没过,全靠机翻.......看得懂原文的大佬可以忽略我的翻译~~~
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1963天前
cokey
wow的特效也越来越有自己风格了
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1963天前
毛利小舞娘
https://80.lv/articles/world-of-warcraft-vfx-overview-from-luis-aguas/
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1964天前
毛利小舞娘
突然觉得机翻有长进了
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1964天前
没有更多啦~
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