L.A. Noire Tech Previews from Gizmodo & Telegraph

The MotionScan technology behind LA Noire's hyper-realistic faces is as much a marvel of technological process as it is impeccable design. Recently, several journalists worldwide had the opportunity to visit the studio of Depth Analysis, the sister company to Team Bondi and the creators of the MotionScan technology. To compliment the release of last week's video, "The Technology Behind Performance", The Daily Telegraph and Gizmodo wrote about their experiences with the technology, and on the process that brings these characters to life. Here are a few choice excerpts:

"The woman I'm speaking to is lying. I don't need to listen to what she's saying; I can tell from her body language that she is unnerved by my questions. Her body is slightly turned away from me, her arms are folded and she is nervously chewing her bottom lip. Most telling, however, is the look in her eyes and the way that she refuses to make eye contact. The woman I'm referring to, however, isn't real. She's a computer generated representation of an actress playing a character in an upcoming video game called L A Noire. The technology being used to display her face captures every detail; every line and every facial tick. Not only is it an incredible piece of work, it has an immersive effect on the player. In no time at all, I've begun to think of this collection of pixels as a living, breathing person."

Read more from The Daily Telegraph

"From the moment Rockstar unveiled their trailer for upcoming detective thriller, L.A. Noire from Aussie developers Team Bondi, we've known that the bar for motion capture in video games has not only been raised, but sent through the roof. Animators have been flirting with the edge of the uncanny valley for years, but now using some incredibly intelligent and advanced technology, the guys from Team Bondi have created the 21st century version of Pinocchio, turning digital game characters into realistic, animated people."

Read more from Gizmodo


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