Is there a specific name for this kind of shading?

Kyle_butler · Nov 2013

Hi, guys!
I've been watching some trailers in which the characters/backgrounds look like made out of ink or watercolor. Is there a specific name for this technique or any paper where I can find info about it?

Some examples:
[ame="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oO8btmDxB14"]God of War Ascension PS3 Teaser Trailer - YouTube[/ame]

[ame="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U__xp6BkcSk"]Ryse: Son of Rome - The Legend of Damocles - YouTube[/ame]

If I had to guess they are using some particle simulations with animated shaders...

tharle · Nov 2013

i dont think theres a particular name for the effect - the 3 brothers story from the penultimate harry potter is another good example of this kind of effect though.

looks to me like a lot of hand painted textures and backgrounds and then using models as the source emitters for particles. it looks like most of the work done is in the composition software though, it'd be amazing to see a game rendered in real time using this sort of effect but i cant think of a game where it's been done.

haiddasalami · Nov 2013

Check out the stuff for the Naruto fighting games. There was a presentation somewhere on gdc vault.

sprunghunt · Nov 2013

that's usually called "NPR shading"

which stands for "Non Photo Real". There's plenty of information around if you google for that term.

Mambo4 · Nov 2013

tharle wrote: »

it looks like most of the work done is in the composition software though, it'd be amazing to see a game rendered in real time using this sort of effect but i cant think of a game where it's been done.

I was really impressed with the RYSE cut scene when saw it on Xbox One. From what I could tell it looked like it was real time, in engine shaders.

Kyle_butler · Nov 2013

Thanks for the answers!

thartle, great example! I didn't know this one. I don't think it is hand painted... it seems to be some kind of procedural map being driven by expressions to move around and to control the particles.

haiddasalami, couldn't find this presentation... is it still on?

sprunghunt , thank, I'll look into it.

Mambo4, same thing here. Really impressed. Last thing I've seen something similar to that in real time was in Okami.

Anyway, I found this making of which may bring some light to the subject. Still, I'm not a very experienced texture/shading artist. If someone can actually follow what is happening in here, and would be kind enough to share, I'd appreciate.

[ame="

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rBxHh4xklLs"]The Making of Street Fighter IV - YouTube[/ame]

Kyle_butler · Nov 2013

Here is a video from a paper published in 2006.
https://vimeo.com/13949487

tharle · Nov 2013

looking again the ryse trailer might be mostly in game like you say, i've never really used cryengine so i don't know exactly what its capable of but things like the horses dissolving and the ink trail as he falls into death look too good to be in-engine imo.

the street fighter video is really cool, great to see the layers broken down and the way they achieved the effect. is it used in game at all or just for cut scenes?

the watercolour tree is nice when it's static but there's some pretty obvious texture swimming as it rotates through a static texture, nice example though.

haiddasalami · Nov 2013

Here ya go:

http://www.gdcvault.com/play/1014373/PS3-Xbox360-NARUTO-SHIPPUDEN-ULTIMATE Its the powerpoint.

Kyle_butler · Nov 2013

haiddasalami, thank you! This is quite enlightening.

I ended up finding a engine that can do that watercolor effect in realtime, called "aquatree"/"aQtree". However there is very little information about it online. Does anyone know it? Aparently it has been developed by the same creator of Ivy generator, Thomas Luft, and by David Maas and Stefan Habel. If anyone could point me out a direction, I'd appreciatte.

Is there a specific name for this kind of shading?

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