It’s a real tribute to just what he brings to the project. It kinda makes me feel a little lame being a simple pencil-monkey.

Regardless, if you want to know how to implement a custom rig into the UDK engine… Here’s an insight from someone who figured it out for themselves.

Over to you Paul…

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This is the first major update for Rabbit Heart, an educational game project.

In this video I discuss how I have implemented a custom game type, added a custom character with custom animations through the use of the CAT rigging system in 3DS Max and talk about some small level updates.

I also address the issues of how to set up a custom game class and how to export the character and animations through the .FBX extension.

Rabbit Heart Game Project http://rabbitheartgame.wordpr…

fritzstudio’s channel for the CAT rigging tutorials http://www.youtube.com/user/…

Blender http://www.blender.org/

3DS Max http://www.autodesk.co.uk/ads…

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NB: we will be adding a more in depth transcript with links to useful sites and definitions etc when we get chance…

The large machines that bracket the stage where Ululu discivers the Rabbit Exo-suits for the first time (see my concept art and SketchUp models here)

Here you can see Paul adding basic materials and colours to the “grey modelling”…

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GS

From outside the cave entrance… to stepping down into the vast space filled with experiments and machinery of two strange cultures… one military, one vast and ancient…

Finally as you walk you trigger various power cells, springing machinery into life… the light of day…

…seems very distant now…

“He get’s antsy while waiting for me to produce more designs, which in turn makes him uber-productive.

So he tweets me and says…

Paul - ‘New vid up for Rabbit check it out (See Youtube video below) its the cave area. ‘

Gareth - “…and its awesome. A real sense of scale.

I love how big that David Roberts influenced door looks… Paul wants it even bigger. Big enough for the rabbit warrior suits to emerge from.

The steps with the human scale steps in the middle and the larger Robot steps either side was his idea… which is great. I’m looking forward to walking Ululu into the doorway and hearing the machinery kick into gear Tha-thunk!! Whine… and then the phosphorous light-tubes buzz into life, with some of them fizzing and flickering beneath the layers of dust…

It’s gonna look great.”

You can hear us talking more about the environment design below.

Paul UV Unwrapping the Cave section discussed in the videos here, ready for Gareth to Texture in Photoshop.

A quick screen shot in blender by Paul of the Doorway model, quickly Photoshop’d by Gareth to show Ululu walking up to the cave…

I’m going to let Paul discuss some of the issues surrounding the importing of custom characters into the engine; probably as an addendum to this post at a later date (see bottom of post).

But for the time being here are some of videos of Ululu being animated before import into the UDK engine…

…and finally, running around in the engine.

Next time… we should be seeing her with her toy laser…

Rabbit Heart is an Educational Project, of that there is no doubt.

It is how it began… in a sketchbook (Gareth’s), with some very simple Game Concepts to show 1st year degree students and BTEC yr 2 students looking to create Game oriented Portfolios.

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Since then it has grown in scope, to encompass how to present your course work and project ides on your blog, a repository of the individual elements of game design, and as a quick reference tool for us in the classroom.

These (below) are just a couple of simple image showing how the book might work visually.

click to enlarge

The idea is to have a great looking “coffee table” style Concept Art book that utilises its slightly irregular widescreen format to incorporate side panels with additional information.

These panels would be divided into two types, easily identified through colour.

For example below you can see a burgundy panel on the left and green/grey panel on the right…

click to enlarge

These colour-coded panels would contain notes on “Games Design Projects for Games Tutors” and “How Can I Improve My Games Design Portfolio as a Games Student”.

Allowing tutors new to the area to develop course work and projects for their students, and allowing students to try additional portfolio and project enhancing exercises.

The book will ideally be supported with a disk containing the playable parts of the Game as well as videos and links to the blog etc.

We’ll upload more Design Sheets as we develop the project further, and we will be creating an InDesign project that contains page templates ready to start pulling the book together.

We have been discussing the idea that she can only keep so much in it at a time, meaning the inventory would be small maybe just a few items and something she could carry in her hand. This way at certain points in the game the player would have to make a decision on what to take and what to leave behind… though I have an idea for an easter egg or two that might help with this…

Anyway, here’s Paul showing off Ululu and her new Rucksack.

…and a screenshot.

Plus a speed modelling video by Paul showing his process.

Paul has kindly offered to help me with this:

…and so for me the best way might be to do it this way (who knows, I could change my mind).

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Add to this some of the ideas we have been having about the way we can have some fun with this running and walking when we get around to animating it…

Here are some “animated” thoughts on Ululu’s walking and running…

..and with that… maybe its time to get back to designing that Exo-suit.

Best we get ourselves in gear so we have some fun stuff to show…

…that’s right, look who’s talking at the event.

http://www.platformexpos.com/events/platform-2012/speakers/