Startup cinematic?

[fabio]

Alternatively you could set up a battle scene rendered in real time using the simulation and graphic engine, but with a scripted moving camera.

[idanwin]

High poly models would obviously be fine for a cinematic - and we can just run the simulation at a very slow rate, then speed it up in post-processing to get picture-perfect frame rates

I can see a scene before my eyes with a priest talking to a crowd in front of a high poly temple ;-) could be nice as well

Maybe we should have a depository for high-poly models that can be used for the startup cinematic (and later campaign cinematics as well, they really get people into the mood of the campaign)

[LordGood]

hmm, I can't model armor very well :/

Edited March 9, 2013 by LordGood

[Jeru]

I suggest the trailer artistically represents somehow that "0 A.D." was a year that never existed. In the usual calendar, one goes from 1 B.C. to 1 A.D. and skips zero. This reflects the historical fiction in the game: Who would have won if all the factions were pitted against each other when each of them was at its prime? (We get this "correction" a lot and people should know that we made this "mistake" on purpose.)

I think the cinematic should also represent economic and even cultural aspects of civilization, such as religion and trade, and not just war.

You also might want to put GNU and Creative Commons logos in the trailer, even in some non-obvious way as an Easter egg.

Perhaps you can find some extra ideas from the thread dedicated to the planned 0 A.D. trailer.

[lilstewie]

I hope you guys make it eventually.

I thought this was cool.

Edited March 9, 2013 by lilstewie

[LordGood]

I dunno what qualifies as high poly armor, I did my best with what sketchup has to offer

on a side note, I finally figured out how to map without seams in SU! Look! wee!

made my own textures in GNU and erryting

Edited March 9, 2013 by LordGood

[idanwin]

I want a penguin warrior (Tux) hidden in the cinematic xD (but without is fine too)

Or maybe there could be this little part at the end where you have a Tux (for Linux), a butterfly (for Windows) and whatever Mac has together to show people that it is multiplatform ... wait ... that seems a bit pointless when the game is already installed ... maybe for the trailer!!! (*dream* *dream* *dream*)

[Lion.Kanzen]

I Vote for the Intro, and Publicity Opensource, or creative Commons mini intros after Wildfire logo.

and we make a Script or Screenplay. Suggest tracending moments in Histori, Hanibbal Crossing Alps, Leonidas

http://en.wikipedia....wiki/Screenplay

@idanwin i like your idea the Crossplataform logos with Creative Commons logos.

Edited March 10, 2013 by Lion.Kanzen

[Pedro Falcão]

The roofs of the Greek temples are full of drawings, why not draw some easter egg tuxes there? hehe! We could also include other symbols on some soldiers' shields... Of course all the fun lies in making them really subtle, so that who is watching just to see the intro will not notice them, but who is really searching for it will. There are already some examples of these things in big commercial games and the fans loved it.

Edited March 10, 2013 by Pedro Falcão

[Lion.Kanzen]

There are already some examples of these things in big commercial games and the fans loved it.

I love Rise of Nation intro, its very stirring. aoe 1 AND aoe Rise of Rome are lovely intros, the music in first is wistful

[Khopesh]

The Wildfire splash-screen (logo) should come first. No matter what. Possibly followed by other company logos (such as the game engine).

These should be included anyway, and the intro trailer should be done once most, if not all, in-game stuff has been done (models and animations for in-game assets).

That's not to say you cannot make a storyboard or animatic (2D and 3D) in the mean time.

As for hidden logos in the trailer. I think it would be better if they just had a splash-screen if they're important (such as the WFG logo, and the game engine, etc). Anything else, such as Windows/Linux logos should be reserved for the credits or as fine-print for promo stuff (to show which operating systems it is available on).

The frozen-time fly-throughs are OK for saving time in development, but most viewers tend not to appreciate them.

Regardless, It would be silly to make assets for this before a storyboard has been made and finalised. That way you know which assets to make and don't end up making something that won't be used.

Also, if you plan to make high-poly cinematics for the capaigns, I would recommending using snippets of these in the games opening cinematic. It would save a lot of time and you'd be able to include various factions and historical events. But I would also open the cinematic with something like this (but done with high-poly assets):

Oh, and maybe create some epic music that builds up to climax. That way the timing of the cinematic can be edited to fit the music - maybe do this after the storyboard, but before the 2D animatic.

Edited March 10, 2013 by Khopesh

[wraitii]

I like the frozen-time approach. It'd have to be done correctly tough. Perhaps similarly to B&W 1: the camera is in outer space, aims for Earth, and as you finally come down enough to see the units, frozen time with some animation to show it and a little music to go with that... And then Unfreeze as the camera gets hit by a catapult rock and crashes to the ground, only to see two units fight it out, and the the 0 AD logo comes in. Just an idea.

Definitely not high priority for now but a good cinematic intro can go a long way to make the game memorable. I know I'll remember AOE1's intro forever.

[Lion.Kanzen]

love music in the end of video, the lastv 20 seconds, the Beginning of a Whole Saga.

Edited March 10, 2013 by Lion.Kanzen

[Mythos_Ruler]

The game could at least have the game's logo come up and dissolve away before the menu launches.

Edit: Found it.

[Sighvatr]

I watch the original age of empires cinematic for the music. The music was strange yet very fun to listen too. If Omri Lahav created a remake on some of the original soundtrack of AoE 1, that would be so cool.

[oshron]

what i'd personally recommend, when it comes to a "frozen time" cinematic, is perhaps using a public-domain downloadable CG image generator. you see this kind of thing all over the place, its sometimes used to show comics but i'm sure you could make an entire three-dimensional environment with it and have the camera move through that. it wouldn't even need to look any different, as you could potentially import models from 0ad to the software and position them appropriately

as for content, i'd recommend picking out some key battles and other major events and recreating them with 0ad models to show off the variety of civilizations, units, and so on within the game as well as what could happen in the game by switching around the participants of some famous battles. for instance, it could show the Spartans fighting the Persians at Thermopylae, Alexander invading India, Caesar in Gaul, and then--to throw them for a loop--some Iberians throwing boulders down on Carthaginian elephants as they cross the mountains, Brythonic warriors stalking Ptolemaic gatherers, and maybe a council of the most famous leaders of every civilization meeting in Athens, which then fades to black and the title comes up

[fabio]

I like these two.The first one should require a embedded 2D videoplayer which is currently missing from 0 A.D. however. The latter looks nice, I'd suggest to implement it like a regular scenario replay rather than a recorded pre-rendered 2D video. Size will be much smaller (note that Linux distributions often remove or make optional from their repositories large video or music packages), also it can be updated with no effort when models and textures get updated.

[Thorfinn the Shallow Minded]

I disagree with showing Thermopylae. It was a very one-sided fight. The batte of Mantineia, showing Spartans fighting Athenians and Argives would be preferable. Don't forget a navel battle like Drepena, depicting Romans fighting Carthaginians.

[Zaggy1024]

I like these two.The first one should require a embedded 2D videoplayer which is currently missing from 0 A.D. however. The latter looks nice, I'd suggest to implement it like a regular scenario replay rather than a recorded pre-rendered 2D video. Size will be much smaller (note that Linux distributions often remove or make optional from their repositories large video or music packages), also it can be updated with no effort when models and textures get updated.

The thing about updated models and textures is a good point, but having it be a replay would mean loading times which may or may not be able to be completely masked by a 2D video before it.

[fabio]

The thing about updated models and textures is a good point, but having it be a replay would mean loading times which may or may not be able to be completely masked by a 2D video before it.

Eventually the intro could be played only the first time the game is run. Later it should be skipped, if someone want to see it again it could do with a proper menu item. This way the loading time should not be a problem.

[Khopesh]

it can be updated with no effort when models and textures get updated.

The video shouldn't be made until everything else is anyway, therefore no need to update the models and textures.

[idanwin]

The video shouldn't be made until everything else is anyway, therefore no need to update the models and textures.

I woudn't say it that way. It's just not a priority, but if anyone wants to make some high poly buildings/units for a change, that's a little bit of work that's finished in advance.

[Mythos_Ruler]

I'd throw in the WFG logo for now, then work on a cinematic later.

[idanwin]

I'd throw in the WFG logo for now, then work on a cinematic later.

Sounds good to me.

[oshron]

I disagree with showing Thermopylae. It was a very one-sided fight. The batte of Mantineia, showing Spartans fighting Athenians and Argives would be preferable. Don't forget a navel battle like Drepena, depicting Romans fighting Carthaginians.

true, but Thermopylae is still one of the most famous battles of the Ancient World

jumping off my earlier suggestions, a thought occurs to me. perhaps, instead of focusing on everyone civilization at a given point, each of the six original civs is represented instead: just one of the Hellenic factions, just one of the Celtic ones, the Iberians, the Romans, the Persians, and the Carthaginians in various settings from their most famous historical events: again, the Greek representative could be Thermopylae (or, to give focus only to the Hellenes, it could be the aforementioned Mantineia), the one for Carthage could be Hannibal crossing the Alps, the Celts have Boudicca's rebellions, and--for a bit of drama--the final one shown could be for the Romans and depict Caesar's assassination, with the camera flying into Caesar's eye as the fade to black (or perhaps moving up and out of the building to show a night sky0 and then the title comes up