Faced with the sudden rise in popularity of "Uncharted."
Atari wasn't doing nothing at all.
After a period of preparation, and waiting for the buzz around "Uncharted" to die down a little.
Atari directly announced that the game would have an egg-hunting event.
In the game, players will explore the worlds of earth, fire, water, and air, four different elements, exploring the ruins to find the four elemental swords.
And the first players to find the corresponding egg and complete it in the game will receive a grand prize from Atari.
That is a 1:1 scale elemental sword, and the entire sword will be made of gold and diamonds, with a total value of $50,000.
Although they didn't say it, Atari was clearly not happy.
Isn't it just an egg-hunting event?
Who can't do that!
They'll do it too, and they'll do it better than you!
This news also surprised many players.
If you really want to talk about value, the four swords and four spots are only worth $200,000.
The prize money for some e-sports games is much higher than that.
But the key is that this event is open to all players, which made many players interested.
Along with the promotion of Atari's egg hunt, "Elemental World" also released a gameplay demo video.
And this time, "Elemental World" specially emphasized that this was a gameplay demo, not a recorded demo.
Game trailers are sometimes called game trailers that lie by many players, mainly because some game companies like to play tricks on them.
For example, putting a UI on a demo rendered in the engine.
Also, wasn't we saying that development videos don't represent the final quality, so it's normal to see cutbacks later?
Nebula Games is different. From the beginning until now, Nebula Games has always clearly shown players whether it's a gameplay demo or a game CG animation.
That's why Nebula Games has gained so much trust from players.
Now Atari is openly and loudly emphasizing this, which shows that they are quite confident in their graphics.
In the video released by Atari, players play as a hero leading a team into a pyramid-like ruin.
A dark environment, various bizarre traps, and some beetle-like monsters.
In order to find the earth sword, the main group went deep inside, but they didn't find the earth sword. Instead, they triggered a curse that brought the undead in the ruins back to life.
At the end of the video, the resurrected undead and the various treasures in the ruins were visually stunning.
Then the scene changed, showing forests, oceans, and a fragmented elemental world, all of which made many players cheer. From the visual presentation, it felt no less impressive than Nebula Games' previous "Red Dead Redemption."
'Wow, Atari feels really good this time!'
'Yeah, and Atari said this is actual gameplay!'
'When those endless bugs appeared, I got goosebumps. Will this turn into a horror game with VR immersion?'
'That's what makes it exciting! And isn't there a clear mode?'
'Looking forward to the content later!'
'It feels like Lucas and Nebula Games are being overshadowed here!'
'Yeah, not only is the buzz being overshadowed, but the number of characters too. There are three people participating in the action on Atari's side, while Lucas only seems to have Nathan Drake and Elena!'
......…
Atari used various methods, and Atari took back all the buzz they had lost before.
Countless players were excitedly discussing the relevant content of "Elemental World."
At this time, Lucas was filming.
"For the explosion scene, I need to put high-definition cameras in the center to capture it from all directions."
In the film studio, Lucas was working with his team to record footage of the explosion scene in "Uncharted."
In the past, the explosion scenes in games made by Nebula Games were mostly computer-generated special effects.
They used the models in the game, combined with physics engine effects and special effects production.
But this time, "Uncharted" is different. Lucas plans to film some scenes in real life.
The scene in front of him was a cave setting. The scene Lucas was filming was the moment when Nathan Drake and Sam first found a clue, but then the huge map marker was blown up and collapsed by mercenaries.
The model was not large, but it was very detailed.
All the relevant procedures had been completed. Lucas discussed things with the pyrotechnics team and the lighting crew.
This scene could actually be made using computer graphics, but what Lucas wanted was to show a more prominent sense of realness.
This is of course impossible.
Like the shooting techniques of some big movies, special high-definition cameras and drones were placed in the center of the explosion to capture the scene in the center of the explosion. Then, after post-production adjustments, players could really experience the exciting scene.
After checking all the departments again, Lucas went to the studio next door, where cameras had been set up in all directions.
Lucas sat in front of the monitor, looking at the screen, and couldn't help but sigh.
The money was okay, but the more troublesome thing was the procedures for various departments, because you can't just film an explosion scene whenever you want.
For the third time, he had the team check every link to make sure everything was correct. Then Lucas told the departments to prepare for filming.
The entire shooting used a wired explosion. This was mainly because there are too many communication tools nowadays, which could interfere with the signal and cause accidental explosions. Therefore, compared to wireless remote control, traditional wired control is safer.
After all the cars were driven away, filming officially began.
With the confirmation that all departments were ready, the last second of the countdown ticked down.
Wired detonations were carried out, and a deafening explosion suddenly rang out. Orange-red flames bloomed from the inside.
The special stone ruins instantly disintegrated, and countless fragments flew in all directions. The scorching heat surged around like a tide.
The drone in the center of the explosion also began to fly and film along the preset route.
It looked very scary, but in reality, the pyrotechnics team had very precise control over the power.
The designed ruins were not directly blown to pieces. Instead, they began to break down and collapse in a fragmented form.
"Perfect!"
Looking at the footage taken from all angles, Lucas smiled.
Of course, this footage cannot be used directly in the game.
It still needs to be specially processed in post-production.
For example, processing the sound of the explosion, as well as the performance of subsequent game special effects and physics engine.
Generally, in order to make the explosion scenes more impressive in games, in addition to particle effects, a more common method is camera shaking and haptic feedback. You can also use blurred colors to create a more immersive experience for players.
These methods are basically not used in VR immersion mode, but dynamic integration will still be carried out later.
Simply put, when an explosion occurs in a game, in addition to the rumbling sound and what the player sees, the player must also hear the sounds of birds, insects, or the surrounding environment. Through this dynamic contrast, the power and impact of the explosion can be better emphasized.
In addition to the player's first-person perspective and the actual explosion scene that was just filmed, Lucas and his team need to make it even more beautiful and cool. After all, complete realism is not a good thing.
The same is true not only for explosions, but also for various actions.
For example, in the rock climbing part, Lucas will have his team add more actions to the game to ensure that players have a better experience in this area.
Details, realism, and graphics are the main core of this game.
Of course, not everything is geared towards realism. Anything realistic that affects the smoothness of the game is definitely not going to be added.
For example, reloading bullets and retracting ropes might seem more natural.
But when choosing between realism and smooth gameplay, the latter is more important.
The effect Lucas hopes to achieve is that players won't feel any sense of incongruity in a scene, but these realistic details won't interrupt the smoothness of the game.
(End of this chapter)
---
Read +100 advanced chapters on my patre*n
patr eon.com/GustinaKamiya
Free Tier can read 3 advanced chapters
---