Summary
- Hungarian indie studio, Elder Games, employed an at-home mocap setup.
- Hundreds of animations performed by the studio’s founder and his wife.
- Arrives today on Xbox Series X|S.
Hey, I’m Ede Tarsoly, the Founder of Elder Games. I’ve been the vision keeper and main developer on my roguelite FPS Soulslinger: Envoy of Death – and what may surprise you, I’ve also been one of the two motion capture actors in it as well. In the game, all the male characters are played by me, while all the female characters are played by my wife. Today, I’d like to tell you about our setup, our process and how we were able to create custom animations with a mocap setup as an indie developer.
How my Childhood Curiosity Became my Studio’s Strength
I’ve been fascinated with motion capture ever since I was a kid, I always watched the extras on DVDs. The behind-the-scenes stuff was sometimes more exciting to me than the films themselves. I saw motion capture first being used in “The Lord of the Rings” and I knew right away that I really wanted to do this sort of stuff. However, the setup that needed to be involved was unattainable for a very long time. I continued watching a lot of content about the topic, and my passion never really faded away.
By the time the technology had become more available, and I finally had the opportunity to buy a motion capture suit, thanks to my publisher Headup, I was prepared. I’d basically been preparing for this my whole life!
We use a setup, where you put straps around your wrists and your head, and wear a suit on top, that marks every joint with a sensor. The gloves are put on separately and are much more sensitive.
Through a custom router all the data is fed into the computer. In a nutshell, as soon as you move, there’s a real-time representation of you on the screen that moves with you. I hit record, and it immediately captures the motions.
From Weeks of Preparation to One Day of Performance
The preparation phase always takes the longest. I usually know six months in advance what’s likely coming up, unless things change during development. It’s “develop, develop, develop” until a cutscene comes up, and I’ll do nothing else for two or three weeks except that one cutscene. Then it’s back to development, which is of course still the biggest part of my work. We’re still making a game, not a movie.
Especially for longer prerendered cinematics, I need to know well in advance. The 3D models, scripts voice lines all need to be ready.
Our writer, Michelle Clough, creates a very detailed script right out of the gate. She usually adds little notes like “make this cool,” which then is up to the voice actors and me. It’s always a collaborative effort, where we try to come up with something to make the script shine.
I usually choreograph an entire scene from start to finish. For example, I’ll note that a character comes in from the right while another comes from the left, so I have to walk a certain number of meters. Practicing the movements before recording usually takes three to four very intense days, repeating it over and over until it’s perfect. For example, the intro scene of the pirate character – I could tell you the entire conversation of it by heart, I’ve listened to it so many times – is an uncut two-minute scene that needed to be meticulously prepared, down to the last motion.
But it’s not just the script and stage directions that need to be good to go. One thing I learned early on from the extras of old Disney DVDs, is to send the script to the voice actors, record their performances, and then animate to the voice performance afterwards. That way, actors can perform freely instead of lip-syncing to pre-made animations. The actors already embody the characters so well, that listening to their recordings on loop while performing really inspired my motions during mocap.
Additionally, I also developed a distinct motion style for each character. The villain is very upright and calculated. The main character is closer to my natural movement. The pirate is very animated and expressive. I’m not an actor, but I try to make each character as unique as possible. Zombies and skeletons are my favorite though, with their twisted, exaggerated motions.
After all the preparation and practice, recording day is just one day. Thanks to all the preparation, I usually have the perfect recording after two or three takes. Then, I import everything into Unreal. From there, it’s about placing the camera and characters, which usually takes another two days.
Making the Invisible Visible
During motion capture, weight matters. If you pretend to hold a gun, the motion feels artificial. This is why I worked with a metallic replica of the revolver in the game. It’s heavy, so when you move with it, your body compensates naturally, and the motion looks real. Another character has a huge knife, so we tried to find something in the house that matched it and ended up using a big bread knife.
For the scenes where props can’t help you, we had to be creative to make non-existent things exist. For example, there was a scene where a spell pulls the character backwards. My wife tied ropes around my arms and pulled me while I resisted. In mocap, it looks like magic pulling the character. In another instance, for a floating enemy, I simply stacked boxes and acted on top of them.
We also did some stunts. I put a mattress on the ground for scenes where a spell knocks the character back. As it turns out: falling looks quite silly until you try to do it correctly. Of course, you instinctively try to protect yourself, but that looks bad in-game. While the end result looks great in the game, I don’t think I’d recommend this method to anyone – and I probably wouldn’t do it again!
Doing It for the Game
Overall, even while it takes a lot of time, effort and organizing, I really did enjoy every second of it, because it is something I deeply care about. A lot of people ask how I can do so much programming, writing, choreographing, and acting and I always just tell them: “It’s easy, because it’s for my game.”
I’ve only used my setup for Soulslinger: Envoy of Death so far but having a remote capture kit has already influenced what kinds of projects I’m thinking about next. It’s a strength of our studio, and I really want to plan even more projects around it. I’m so excited that Soulslinger: Envoy of Death is finally launching on Xbox Series X|S today. It is truly a work of passion, from the code to the self-recorded animations. I hope you will enjoy my wild west roguelite FPS experience and have as much fun with the game as we had creating it
Soulslinger: Envoy of Death
Headup
$19.99
DEATH IS CALLING – WILL YOU ANSWER?
Become an Envoy of Death, able to unleash the incredible powers that will make you the most dangerous soul in Limbo. Upgrade your character’s abilities to become the ultimate Soulslinger and take on thrilling challenges in a bloody war against the criminal cartel of the afterlife!
MEET STRAY SOULS AND MAKE ALLIES OR ENEMIES
Step into the rich and immersive world of Haven, filled with mysterious NPCs who hold the secrets to its dark history. Be wary of the allies and enemies you make as every encounter might shape your journey ahead. In this mesmerizing western-fantasy world, you will experience a tale of despair, loss, and one man’s obsession with cheating death itself.
CRAFT YOUR WEAPONS AND RISE TO VICTORY
Forge your own destiny with every run by crafting powerful weapons and unlocking permanent upgrades in Haven. Grow stronger with every new challenge and become an incredibly deadly gunslinger. Get ready for a fast-paced rogue-like FPS experience you won’t ever forget!
KEY FEATURES:
• Fast-paced, story-driven roguelike FPS set in random sequences of rooms built in a unique western-fantasy world
• Customize Soulslinger through a deep upgrade system
• Experience a tightly written story filled with loyal allies and charismatic villains. The story adapts to what you do in the roguelike gameplay
• Tons of gun fodder creeps that attack in waves, spiced up by challenging elite mobs
