Can SOE confirm a cinematic for Planetside 2?

SuperMorto · 2012-04-16, 05:33 PM

Hi all,

I have just recently seen this cinematic for FireFall, and it immediately made me ask the question, has/or will SOE be doing one for Planetside 2?

This video has been seen 400,000 times, and that's some big numbers. Now personally I don't like FireFall as I have played the beta and I truly believe Planetside 2 will be 200 times better for FPS and MMO gamers in every way.

So, will SOE being doing a cinematic, or will it be an in game trailer, or will it be up to the community to make videos?. Either way I'm cool, but a heads up would be nice so we can get prepared. I'm not sure the budget for PS2 is the same as FF, but I do know you already have won the design race. Now its the advertising war you must win to pull in the users.

I know videos like this are not a representation of game play, but they are good for getting potential users imaginations going, and that at the end of the day is why we play games. To use our imagination.

The FF Video:

**RadarX** · 2012-04-16, 05:34 PM

Every awesome game needs an awesome trailer. PlanetSide 2 will be an awesome game.

Knocky · 2012-04-16, 05:36 PM

Originally Posted by RadarX

Every awesome game needs an awesome trailer. PlanetSide 2 will be an awesome game.

Let me be the first to say....don't waste resources on a once-viewed video. Waste them on loading animations.

sylphaen · 2012-04-16, 05:42 PM

Originally Posted by Knocky

Let me be the first to say....don't waste resources on a once-viewed video. Waste them on loading animations.

Let's hope they make the right choice.

What's the point of CGI? shouldn't the gameplay speak for itself if it's so awesome mr radarx?

Gameplay trailer ? With forgelight, you shoot two birds in one Jackhammer shot ! Time saved, awesome results and time left for loading animations.

kaffis · 2012-04-16, 06:02 PM

Originally Posted by Knocky

Let me be the first to say....don't waste resources on a once-viewed video. Waste them on loading animations.

Okay, this got a LOL from me, followed quickly by a "hell yeah!"

If you make loading animations, that's just one more arsenal for machinima fans to make awesome *in-game* trailers, if you want to look at it from a marketing perspective.

That said, I think once-viewed videos are a powerful marketing tool, too. Especially if they're exciting enough to be thrice-viewed videos or more. This doesn't necessarily require one to call up the CG animators and drop a load of cash, SWTOR style, though. If your gameplay's awesome enough, and you can cut it together with a compelling narration/narrative, that's equally as good, and sometimes better. And definitely more cost-effective.

MrBloodworth · 2012-04-16, 06:05 PM

Originally Posted by Knocky

Let me be the first to say....don't waste resources on a once-viewed video. Waste them on loading animations.

/signed ( I know it would be a different team )

Exit/Enter animations are sorely needed to make this a more solid, grounded game.

NewSith · 2012-04-16, 06:18 PM

Now what kind of cinematic can we suggest?

I suggest 3 cinematics, one per each faction, designed in a timeline manner, pretty much like Brink Intro. The video shall contain the short elaboration of the lore and be concluded with forces gathering in mass launching off for an assault.

The order I suggest is: TR first (as they ARE the lore basically), then NC, then VS. You can later use these videos for faction intros, pretty much like SWTOR did.

kaffis · 2012-04-16, 06:53 PM

Originally Posted by NewSith

Now what kind of cinematic can we suggest?

I would do a cinematic that emphasizes the war-torn gameplay, but from a narrative perspective.

Start with a dark screen, with a short (10-15 second) crash-course intro into Auraxis' situation, narrated by what turns out to be a TR infantryman, as he opens his eyes/looks out of a foxhole, loads his cycler, and vaults out of it to defend a base against an onrushing assault. He shoots at some enemy soldiers, then takes cover behind a barricade. Past the barricade stomps a TR MAX, blasting the hell out of some oncoming Vanguards in a fury of awesome, before a Reaver swoops out of the sky and obliterates the MAX, banking to perform evasive manuevers against incoming defensive fire from the base as it speeds to its next target: a bridge battle with Vanu.

There, the Reaver rains fury down upon some Magriders, firing off a final salvo before the lock-on warning spelling his imminent destruction via Scythe causes him to eject, allowing the camera to zoom in on the flight trail of his last barrage of rockets, which land afoul of their target, which we follow into battle against more Vanguards and lightnings, melting a path through their lines...

To face down the original TR engineer, who now sits in a nest of destruction that he's helped build up, along with two squads of his buddies, who lead a counter-charge against the faltering NC lines and the Magrider.

Make it personal, showing off escalating bits of new combat systems and scale as you go, cutting from perspective to perspective to show off all 3 factions, and then bring it back to the original personal story, emphasizing it's about YOU and your friends at the end.

headcrab13 · 2012-04-17, 09:45 AM

Originally Posted by MrBloodworth

Exit/Enter animations are sorely needed to make this a more solid, grounded game.

I agree.

I can't think of any other MMO where there's actually an animation for climbing onto your mount or into a vehicle. I think this will really put PS2 above all its competitors, FPS or otherwise.

That being said, if they have time to do a cinematic also, I'd love to see it and share it around to my friends!

NewSith · 2012-04-17, 09:51 AM

To strengthen the point about cinematics:

DCUO most viewed CINEMATIC:
Justice League (DC Universe) 2012 Trailer [HD] - 18,768,473 views
DCUO most viewed GAMEPLAY VIDEO:
DC Universe Online: Gameplay with HEXAGON PART 1 - 659,602 views

Xyntech · 2012-04-17, 09:51 AM

Originally Posted by headcrab13

I agree.

I can't think of any other MMO where there's actually an animation for climbing onto your mount or into a vehicle. I think this will really put PS2 above all its competitors, FPS or otherwise.

That being said, if they have time to do a cinematic also, I'd love to see it and share it around to my friends!

I haven't played many MMO's, but I was messing around with Lord of the Rings Online a few months back and it had animations for getting into your horse. Of course the horse did just suddenly appear next to you right before you got on it, but there was an animation.

I love animations. It's actually one of the few reasons I used to think the comparisons between Halo and Planetside weren't completely unjustified and that it was one of the few things that both games shared that were legitimately great improvements between them and other games.

It won't ruin Planetside 2 for me without them, but if and when they add them back, it will make me very, very happy.

SniperSteve · 2012-04-16, 06:51 PM

Originally Posted by RadarX

Every awesome game needs an awesome trailer. PlanetSide 2 will be an awesome game.

Well, if you ever need warm bodies for an in-game trailer, look no further...

Tamas · 2012-04-17, 04:53 AM

Originally Posted by RadarX

Every awesome game needs an awesome trailer. PlanetSide 2 will be an awesome game.

Just higher Blur for the trailer/cinematic - while you concentrate on making the game awesome!!!

bigcracker · 2012-04-17, 05:02 AM

Originally Posted by RadarX

Every awesome game needs an awesome trailer. PlanetSide 2 will be an awesome game.

Extremely awesome games could have one for each of the factions they have

basti · 2012-04-17, 09:30 AM

Cinematic trailers dont help you game. It only makes your game look bad. Why? Because you obviously spend loads of time and efford into a cinematic trailer, instead of showing the game itself.

Dont try to sell action and random cuts in a cinematic. Its pointless.

If you have to do a cinemantic, make it a short film. Recap the story of how Humanity found auraxis, show the fleet that went through the wormhole, show the struggle to stay alive, show the fighting on those ships, show how Connery died, show how Auraxis was found and terraformed, show how good life was on Auraxis for a whole lot of years, and show how it all breaks apart and the war starts. Tell a story, and you get fans. Show action just because you can, and all you get is "LOL F2P GAME MUST LOOK CRAP".