Batman dishes out justice to those deemed evil although he’s not morally perfect himself, soyou wouldn’t think he’d be the best choice for the switch over to the Lego universe butSurprisingly, Lego Batman holds up quite well in a family-friendly way.
The best thing about Lego Batman is that the script is not tied into any comic book or movie storyline. The developer, Traveller’s Tales, created there own concept for this game in which all the villains have broken out of Arkham asylum at the same time and are now roaming the streetsof Gotham city concocting acts of super-villainy to unleash against the people of Gotham.
Its a ridiculously simple storyline, but thats good because It leads to Lego Batman’s best mechanic, theres a huge variety of characters is available to use, and this game will stretch beyond household names like the Penguin and The Joker and allow you to experience fighting and playing as lesser known villains such as Hush, Killer Croc and The Mad Hatter. What sets this title apart from the others in the Lego series is that the game features two interlocked storylines.
While you can foil crime with Batman and Robin, you can then go back and relive the episode through the villains perspective, letting you control a huge array of baddies, each with their own unique powers. From the penguins penguin bomb to scarecrows scare gas, each bad guy is as fun to command as batman and robin, and you’ll likely find yourself loving the villains more than the heroes.
It’s not that Batman and Robin are lazy though, but they have to solve problems in a different way. While the baddies may be able to get across an acid lake simply by walking across it, the hero’s have no superpowers of their own, so they must rely on suits to get the job done. Batman may get around shiny objects by using his demolition suit to blow open a new path, or Robin could use his magnetic suit to climb a metal wall in order to flip a previously unreachable switch. Both have a variety of suits to choose from in order to get the job done, and you’re always given the right set of tools in order to accomplish any task. This is an all round family game however it does have one main problem which is the camera.
3D development software is software used to develop 3d imagery. There are several 3D software packages available, some are listed below:-
3D Studio Max
Animation Master
Blender
Cinema 4D
LightWave
Maya
MilkShape 3D
Modo
Softimage|XSI
Silo
trueSpace
ZBrush
Pro/ENGINEER
SolidWorks
Catia
Some free modelers available via the Internet include:
Anim8or
Art of Illusion
AutoQ3D
Blender
Quake 2 Modeler
Google SketchUp
TopMod
Wings 3D
Zanoza Modeler
I will focus on 3DSMAX, MAYA and AutoCad.
3DSMAX is 3D modelling software developed by autodesk, currently it is in its 10th version called 3DS MAX 2008.
It is mostly used by video game developers, TV commercial studios and Architectural Studios. It is also used for Movie Effects.
Above: Interface of 3Ds Max 2008, rendered model of living room, rendered model of car and rendered model of a gun
Maya is a 3D modelling Software originally developed by Alias Systems Corporation, but now owned by Autodesk. Maya is mainly used in the Film and TV Industry. Maya Models were used in several films including Jurassic Park, The Abyss and Terminator 2: Judgement Day. The 3 different tolls that make up Maya are Alias Studio for modeling, Softimage for animation, and PhotoRealistic RenderMan for rendering This T-Rex was made by using the 3 tools that make up Maya For the film Jurassic park This Water person Was made in by using the 3 tools that make up Maya for the film: The Abyss The Shape shifting T-1000 From the film Terminator 2:Judgement Day was made by using the 3 tools that make up Maya.
Maya and 3DSMAX have some comparisons as they are both used in Games Design, but Maya is best suited for the Film industry.
AutoCAD is 2d and 3d modelling software It is mainly used for architectural modelling, and for modelling things such as Public spaces and plumbing pipelines.
AutoCAD is generally not used for making 3d Models, it is aimed at a different market than that of Maya and 3DSMAX
Computer graphics formally began in 1963 with the work of Sutherland.
In his classic thesis, he showed that a computer could be used for interactive design of line drawings on a simple CRT display (cathode-ray tube display) and a few auxiliary input controls. Other people had already connected CRTs to computers in the 50’s to generate very simple output displays however it was not until Sutherland developed his system for man-machine interactive picture generation that people became aware of computer graphics full potential.
The realization of the potential however was slow to develop. There were three major barriers. The first major barrier was the then high cost of computing. It was quickly discovered that computer graphics, especially if it were to be interactive would be beyond the computers capacity in both processing and memory size. During the sixties, the cost of meeting these demands could only be justified for research purposes in a few universities and large industrial research labs.
The second barrier was a lack of understanding of the intricacies of picture generating software that would be needed for an effective computer graphics system. It was learned that someone had to develop a data structure that would mimic the often barely realised but visually obvious relationships inherent in a 2D picture.
Algorithms for shading, scan conversion and hidden-line removal were needed and were more complex than first imagined. Even a task as simple as drawing a line on a digitally-oriented display turned out to require complex algorithms
Finally the third barrier was the complexity of both system software and application software was grossly underestimated, many of the early graphics achievements were in fact mere ‘toys’ – impressive but inadequate.
Fortunately time favoured computer graphics. The cost of computing fell year after year. Operating systems were improved and our ability to cope with complex software. Impressive progress was made in the development of algorithms for generating pictures.
Timeline
1960s
Initial experimentation with 3D graphics.
Key Figures Charles Csuri and John Whitney Sr.
1970s
Many animation and rendering algorithms used today were developed in the 1970’s
Image and bump textures developed
Hand and face improvements
First use of 3D CGI in movies
Hand and face animation improvements
First use of 3D CGI in movies.
1980s
Reytracing rendering developed ( raytracing is a CG algorithm used to calculate reflections and refractions of light)
Video became most common output method for animation
‘TRON’ was the first movie with more than 20 mins of digital graphics (1982)
The mid to late 80’s saw a huge growth in the use of digital graphics in movies and advertising.
Luxo Jr. (pixar, 1985) was the first computer-generated animation to be nominated for an academy award
‘tin toy’ (pixar, 1988) was first to win an academy award
Particle system’s animation developed
1990’s and 2000s
Continued growth and use of computer generated graphics in movies and advertising and scientific visualisations
Notable success of 3D CG imagery in ‘Harry potter’ and ‘the lord of the rings’ feature films
Rapid advances in modelling, animating and rendering
Feature length computer generated movies: toy story, a bugs life
To create the illusion of working in 3D space, software packages use the Cartesian Co-ordinate System.
This system was developed in 1637 by the French philosopher and mathematician Rene Descartes, originally in an effort to merge algebra and Euclidean geometry. His work has played an important role in the development of analytic geometry, calculus and cartography. The two axes that commonly define the 2-Dimensional Cartesian system are the X and the Y axes. The point where the X and the Y axis meet is called the Origin.
Early in the 19th century, a third dimension of measurement was added; this axis is called the depth axis. This axis runs at right angles to the xy plane and also extends forever in both directions. This third axis is important for 3D work as it enables us to locate any point in three-dimensional space.
3Ds Max has Viewports, three of these viewports (by default) only show 2 Axis at any given time, these views are called Orthographic views, these are important as they let us see our models in 2-Dimentional views.
George Walton Lucas, Jr, born May 14, 1944 is a four-time Academy Award nominated American film director, producer, and screenwriter famous for his epic Star Wars saga and Indiana Jones films although the Indiana Jones files are collaboration with his friend Steven Spielberg. He is one of American film industry’s most financially successful independent directors and producers.
Lucas co-founded the studio American Zoetrope with Coppola hoping to create a liberating environment for filmmakers. From the financial success of his films American Graffiti (1973) and Star Wars (1977), Lucas was able to set up his own studio, LucasFilm. Skywalker Sound and Industrial Light and Magic, the sound and visual effects subdivisions of LucasFilm, respectively, have become among the most respected firms in their fields. LucasFilm Games, later renamed to Lucas Arts, is highly regarded in the gaming industry.
George lucas probably wasnt the first to use 3d models with chroma screen, but he did use the technique in his highly successfull star wars films, he had highly detailed 3D models which would be rendered on a blue/green background, he would then take this footage and key out the green/blue and put it on a real time background. He also made fully 3dEnvironments that can be seen in the footage below:
here you can see the use of chromascreen in the cockpit and the use of 3D models during the flight. he would also have real models built for some shots.
Lucas’s company LucasFilm has been a leader in developing new film technology in special effects, sound, and computer animation, and because of their expertise its subsidiaries often help produce non-Lucas Film pictures. Lucas film is set to move away from films and more into TV, due to rising budgets.
The following is a list of Current LucasFilm Subsidiaries.
Lucas Digital
Skywalker Sound – post production sound editing
Industrial Light & Magic – special effects
Lucas Licensing - licensing and merchandising
Lucas Learning – educational materials
Lucas Books – book publishing
LucasArts – video and computer games
LucasFilm Animation - animation
Lucas Online - websites
In the four catogories made by John W. Gardner which can be found Here I think that George Lucas fits in to the category of “Adaptors” I think this because He didnt invent the use of 3D models on a Chroma scrren, but he did take the idea and refine it and made it more realistic.
