So, I just recently completed a basic walk-through on how to create models using the ModTool Pro 7.5 software (available free to Creators Club Premium Members) and how to rig, animate, and texture in a way that allows for proper import into an XNA project with Sunburn.
Is there any interest from users in these forums on such a work-flow? I'm currently passing it along to workers making content for my games. But I'm thinking about adding pictures and turning it into a simple tutorial for others, as well.
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I tried to use ModTool 7.5 for my skinned models, but I had problems with using the models with XNAnimation.
Exported as dotXSI file XNAnimation was not able to process the file and exported as FBX there was a problem when more than one animation take was in the skinned model file.
I currently use ModTool only for my static models and Blender for the skinned ones and would be really happy if someone gets together a working workflow for skinned models (preferably with dotXSI export) done with ModTool and working with XNAnimation.
Lars
The latest version of crosswalk has resolved most of the issues with FBX.
I use softimage2010sp1 as a level editor, and it does it very well.
Hi MadMojo,
MadMojo:Is there any interest from users in these forums on such a work-flow?
Absolutely - we'd love to see articles and documentation like this! I think it will allow more people to get started with XSI ModTool.
Are you thinking about hosting the articles here or on your own site? If you're interested in hosting here I can create a section in the SunBurn Tutorials for them.
Awesome work!
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Laurentius: I tried to use ModTool 7.5 for my skinned models, but I had problems with using the models with XNAnimation. Exported as dotXSI file XNAnimation was not able to process the file and exported as FBX there was a problem when more than one animation take was in the skinned model file. I currently use ModTool only for my static models and Blender for the skinned ones and would be really happy if someone gets together a working workflow for skinned models (preferably with dotXSI export) done with ModTool and working with XNAnimation. Lars
The work-flow I have now is very simple and works with the XNA Skinned Animation sample here on the Sunburn site. It's a very limited set of starter steps designed to get a modeler/animator/texture-artist outputting prototype work as quickly as possible. For more complicated work some research on ModTool may still be preferable. But these steps would at least get you going.
I've heard Crosswalk Export to .FBX can export multiple animations as one Take_001, but that it requires you to manually pass out frames for a specific animation, I believe. I'd have to test that to be certain, though. I've heard this is because it's designed to be used with Motion Builder software to separate out the animation clips to separate parts, but I'm not familiar enough with that process just yet.
JohnK "bobthecbuilder": Hi MadMojo, MadMojo:Is there any interest from users in these forums on such a work-flow? Absolutely - we'd love to see articles and documentation like this! I think it will allow more people to get started with XSI ModTool. Are you thinking about hosting the articles here or on your own site? If you're interested in hosting here I can create a section in the SunBurn Tutorials for them. Awesome work!
Cool. :) I've got a website, but I haven't created an area for tutorials yet. So if you create a section I'll take advantage of it as soon as I finish this tutorial up. What sort of format would be best to design the tutorial in so it will transfer well for hosting? Html, word document, etc...?
MadMojo: The work-flow I have now is very simple and works with the XNA Skinned Animation sample here on the Sunburn site. It's a very limited set of starter steps designed to get a modeler/animator/texture-artist outputting prototype work as quickly as possible. For more complicated work some research on ModTool may still be preferable. But these steps would at least get you going. I've heard Crosswalk Export to .FBX can export multiple animations as one Take_001, but that it requires you to manually pass out frames for a specific animation, I believe. I'd have to test that to be certain, though. I've heard this is because it's designed to be used with Motion Builder software to separate out the animation clips to separate parts, but I'm not familiar enough with that process just yet.
I currently use Blender 2.49 with a modified XNA FBX exporter which exports a skinned FBX model with named animation takes that can be easily played with XNAnimation. It works ok with XNAnimation but has some flaws because in Blender the Z axis is up/down and in XNA it's the Y axis. So the skinned model has to be rotated in XNA and I always have some weired shadowing bugs with sunburn. This is not the problem of sunburn but the bug lies somewhere in the rotated skinned model exported from Blender. I have a description of my problem somewhere in the sunburn forum and never got it to work with all exported models.
Well, if you have a working solution for exporting skinned models with at least two animations using ModTool in combination with XNAnimation I would really like to know how this is done.
MadMojo:What sort of format would be best to design the tutorial in so it will transfer well for hosting? Html, word document, etc...?
Both html and word format will work for us, whichever is easier for you is perfect. If you go with word format please include a zip of the embedded images, so we can upload them along with the text to our docs section.
Thanks again for this awesome resource!
Okay. Just finished this up today.
I'm a bit unsure about the process of posting it myself, is there an e-mail I could send the pictures and Word document to for you to pop it up for me?
Thanks! :)
Awesome! You can reply to one of the email notifications from this thread, put something like "For JohnK" in the body, so it's routed to me.
Thanks for this great work!
Ok it took some time (it's a very thorough tutorial :), but we've posted MadMojo's complete:
Creating Models in SoftImage ModTool Pro tutorial!
Thanks again for this awesome contribution MadMojo!
Have you created an FBX file with multiple animations stored in it ?
GGB
From the "XNA Game Studio" option ModTool Pro 7.5 has a "Manage Animation" window that can be brought up. (Select the model you want to animate before opening.) In this window you can set up different sets of animation. But the Crosswalk exporter only seems to export the currently selected action and not any others. Unfortunately I haven't found a way to export all of the animation actions/takes at the same time.
But, since the FBX can be edited (because I'm exporting to ASCII) I can copy and paste, then rename animation takes from one FBX to another. It only takes a few moments to select and copy an animation take from one model to another. And once that's done, you can play back multiple animations from the single FBX.
A bit of a pain, but at least we can get it done. (It's free, remember!) Just make certain in the Manage Animation window that you've selected the "Action" you want to export with the model, then follow the Crosswalk FBX export instructions in my tutorial and do the copy-paste-rename steps from each of the animations into one FBX model.
I've heard of people automating the process of combining takes into one model, but I haven't done that yet. If you have any problems getting that to work, just let me know. Perhaps it'll be my next (much smaller) tutorial. Heheh. :)
Current Take header:
Takes: { Current: "Idle" Take: "Idle" { FileName: "Take_001.tak" LocalTime: 0,153953860000 ReferenceTime: 0,153953860000.....................................
Where do we past another take ?
After Current ?
Does FileName have to change ??
It's a bit difficult to see because it's not formatted like normal C# in the FBX file. Within the Takes: { } loop there is the current animation take listed, and then each of your other takes in their own loops.
You should place your new animation take below those. And yes, I recommend renaming the FileName. It would probably create a conflict at some point if you kept them all the same name. I renamed each of mine automatically and experienced no issues.
So your Takes: { } loop would include something like:
Current: "Idle"
Take: "Idle" { ...all the data for the take here... }
Take: "Jump" { ...all the data for the take here... }
Take: "Die" { ...all the data for the take here... }
And from within your game project you just call the name of each take like this:
animationPlayer.StartClip(skin.AnimationClips["Jump"]);
using "Jump" instead of "Take 001" in the SkinnedModel example would make your model play the Jump animation over and over. Hope that helps. :)