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The Orb of Oculus

 

 

The Orb of Oculus

by Mod Fnord 20-Jan-2010

 

I want to talk about a love of mine: machinima. Before I came to Cambridge, I spent a lot of time with friends creating short films in a game called Quake. Quake Movies, as they were called, were the hot new thing. It all started with a great film called Diary of a Camper by United Ranger Films. The first time I saw it, I was hooked. A film inside my favourite game, with a story and acting - to me that was brilliant. I wanted to be a part of that and make my own films.

 

Strange beginnings

 

It wasn't easy at the beginning. We didn't have any tools to begin with; it was just ingenuity and perseverance, shouting instructions to each other in a university computer lab, trying to make something really good. Soon after, a group of persevering people created Keygrip and Remaic, two pieces of software that allowed the fixed camera in Quake to be moved around. We could set up tracking shots, pan around and watch the action from all angles. We had the final piece we needed to really make good films.

 

Living in Scotland, I was lucky to be close to the action. StrangeCompany.org (a company started by a man called Hugh Hancock and based in Edinburgh) was creating some cracking films. Hugh helped to coin the term machinima; it was a misspelling in an email, but as a way of describing the new art form, it stuck. Hugh also made a website to promote the art form to the world (Machinima.com) and formed the Academy of Machinima Arts and Sciences.

 

I managed to work for a short time for StrangeCompany.org, and Hugh Hancock, before joining Jagex. StrangeCompany.org was the home for a few features. Bloodspell was in the works and has since been released to critical acclaim. It was a terrific place to work and I feel lucky to have been there.

 

Cutting your teeth

 

It wasn't just Scotland that pioneered the machinima explosion. We can't forget Rooster Teeth, who made the brilliant Red vs Blue comedy series with the Halo engine (and are still making videos for Bungie). It helped to break the art form into the mainstream, and they even managed to get themselves a cameo in Halo 3. Another group, called the Ill Clan, managed to get their work onto the TV show CS: NYI as part of a set of episodes dealing with virtual worlds. Their early work was hilarious, but it received exposure on a major TV series. How cool is that?

 

It isn't just the big names that make machinima a great art form, though, it's the small productions that make this an exciting time to be into machinima. Take a moment to go to any video site and search for your favourite game and "machinima". You will find thousands of pieces of content, from PKing videos to fully-featured stories with their own audio work.

 

Why do I like machinima? The reason is accessibility. Anyone with a friend, a computer and an idea can make films in their favorite game. And the game handles all the hard details - costuming is done, sets are done - so all it takes is actors to move the characters, a plot and a dream. What isn't to like?

 

The first machinima competition

 

The popularity of our first machinima competition made it apparent to us that people were really interested in making good quality films with RuneScape. There are some tremendous people working to really push the limits of what you can do with our game. The entries were outstanding, their quality unlike anything I imagined.

 

When Excl and Tehnoobshow came to Jagex to visit, they spoke with us about how they made their films. They have since told us about the limitations and problems as well as how they managed to get around them. It only goes to show exactly how creative the fans of RuneScape are when they want to get their films made.

 

Their visit really motivated us to think about how we could give a little more to those who choose to create their own videos. When I was asked to see what I could do for all the machinima producers out there, I was stoked to say the least. I really wanted to give them some quick and easy tools to really enhance the experience of making their films. I also was a little bit selfish, as I want machinima to get some extra exposure, and I wanted to be a part of the next contest and to give something back to the community.

 

 

Orb of Oculus concept art

 

 

The Orb of Oculus is the start of this. Its an in-game item that we are about to release that can be used to set up some exciting and dynamic shots for your own RuneScape machinima. You will have total control over the camera and can make it maneuver and pan as you see fit. You will have the power to set up your shots, direct your friends and keep them in frame, and make the film you want to make.

 

The big hope is that this tool will inspire all RuneScape players to try their hand at making their own videos. Seeing what can be done right now is a treat, but with the Orb of Oculus, I hope you can make something truly exceptional. Get a video of yourself in a minigame, show off your own house, let people see your rendition of Don Quixote as you tilt at windmills. The world is your oyster, so why not give it a try?

 

What is the future for machinima in Runescape? That answer is up to you. With the new machinima competition about to launch, and this new tool, I know we are all looking forward to seeing what you can do. Perhaps you will be the next machinima pioneer...

 

If you'd like to discuss this blog on the forums, please visit this forum thread.

 

Project: Machinima

Tags: competition, emergent gameplay, graphics, machinima

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I'm not that big on making videos, but this feature does seem very promising. It should be useful to get a better view of those other places you can see in dungeons. Especially that wreck near Zilyana. I hope it wont have too many limitations to prevent that though.

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Oh... oh my god.

This sounds so awesome....

 

At first though I must admit I thought Oculus sounded like something kinky.

 

This caught my attention:

...It’s an in-game item that we are about to release...

So it will be released soon? I hope!

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Will this be available to all players or just members? (I tried checking the RSOF, but it won't load for some reason...)

 

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When I first saw the title, my impression was either A) A quest, B) A new mage equipment, or C) Both of the previous idea. Needless to say I'm surprised after reading through. Hope this thing works out well, though I was wondering if there's a need to create a separate camera-like item instead of building it into the main game menu.

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Pretty much ever since I started playing Runescape, I wanted a feature like this. Whether it was for malicious reasons or not, but I'll keep hush about that. :???:

 

I wonder if they will restrict the camera's capabilities to the general region, as many players would use it to scout out areas far away in PvP instead of for the primary use (creating machinima).

 

If the aforementioned scenario came into play, it may add an interesting new set of strategies into the clan world..

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Doesn't/Wouldn't this make the remote view option on familiars even more useless?

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Doesn't/Wouldn't this make the remote view option on familiars even more useless?

No actually it gives it a use as now you can use Remote View and use it to be ironic, lol :smile:

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Am I the only one completely over machinima in general? <_<

 

Aren't you pretty much over Runescape and Jagex in general? :P

 

I hope this encourages more people to make videos who before thought it was just for people with fancy video software. And it it'll be good for a laugh anyway.

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Am I the only one completely over machinima in general? <_<

 

Aren't you pretty much over Runescape and Jagex in general? :P

 

I hope this encourages more people to make videos who before thought it was just for people with fancy video software. And it it'll be good for a laugh anyway.

 

There'll be a second video making contest I bet, there's more than just videos for this, fake making, Can be used at 99 partys, for fun screenshots, exploring areas perhaps, runescape scenery pictures, low down shots for making people look high and mighty! scaling shots lots more :)

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Now that is just too cool..... :o I cannot wait to see what this thing can do, even though I've never made videos myself ^^

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Am I the only one completely over machinima in general? <_<

 

Aren't you pretty much over Runescape and Jagex in general? :P

 

I hope this encourages more people to make videos who before thought it was just for people with fancy video software. And it it'll be good for a laugh anyway.

No. I still like Slaying and using the money from whips to buy stuff to put into my Treasure Chest in my POH. I still enjoy penguin hunting, questing, skill, etc.

 

But to be fair, it may be just me. I simply never saw the appeal in it all.

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What's with the machinima/clan event stuff? I hope the end of the update year isn't an excuse not to make content updates anymore. I mean, honestly, giving out an item that helps with making youtube movies and calling it an update? That's worse than a quest without storyline :P

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Gotta agree with MHL. First and foremost I pay my membership money to play a game. I want to play content in the game, and hopefully play new content when it is unlocked. Making videos should be supplementary and not an alternative to updating game content.

It's been a hell of a ride.

 

2002-2013

 

 

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FFS, I hate these stupid kiddie humor machinimas that the Runescape Population spits out. Yes, that is including most of you guys on TIF, who make crappy movies with Jokes only the Brain-dead Barnie Lovers would laugh at.

 

I just hope this update didn't waste too much of Jagex' time.

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Will this be available to all players or just members? (I tried checking the RSOF, but it won't load for some reason...)

 

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Looks awesome. I can't wait to see all the different angles we'll get. Could hopefully be used to get some spoilers. :thumbsup:

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What's with the machinima/clan event stuff? I hope the end of the update year isn't an excuse not to make content updates anymore. I mean, honestly, giving out an item that helps with making youtube movies and calling it an update? That's worse than a quest without storyline :P

 

Watch MHL say something about Nomad's Requiem... :rolleyes:

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What's with the machinima/clan event stuff? I hope the end of the update year isn't an excuse not to make content updates anymore. I mean, honestly, giving out an item that helps with making youtube movies and calling it an update? That's worse than a quest without storyline :P

 

Watch MHL say something about Nomad's Requiem... :rolleyes:

Well the last part was a joke as I kinda enjoyed nomad's requiem, but I do think some item you can use to make better videos is complete nonsense. This is a game not an editing program.

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