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Demands of Conan’s Hyborian World Created Special Challenges for Funcom & SpeedTree®RT
Company: IDV
Date: 15 Oct 2008
COLUMBIA, SC – How do you capture the feel of a vast, brutal world that stretches from palm-lined oases to a jungle of beasts and monsters?
At Funcom, which released the MMORPG* Age of Conan - Hyborian Adventures in May, a key to the game’s fantastic environments has been the trees and plants wrought by SpeedTree®RT.
“In every land we created for the game, we faced a series of crucial decisions about the foliage,” said Pål Frogner Hansen, Project Director for Conan. “How many trees should we place? What species make the most sense where? Where do we want the trees to be something the player can use tactically, such as for cover or to fire weapons from?”
In striving to be true to the fantasy world created by writer Robert E. Howard, the Conan team chose foliage presentations that ensured a dramatic, immersive experience for the game’s players.
“We custom modeled a number of trees to match Robert Howard’s dark vision,” said Mr. Hansen. “SpeedTree made it easy for our artists to experiment with tree shapes, textures, root structure and more, quickly scrolling through extensive variations until they achieved just the right look and feel.”
Added Mr. Hansen, “If Conan himself could walk among the trees we’ve created for him, we think he’d be right at home.”
ABOUT FUNCOM - Funcom is an independent developer and publisher of online games for PC, consoles and mobile platforms. Funcom has provided outstanding entertainment since 1993 and continues to expand its track-record of 24 released games to date. Recent successes include ‘The Longest Journey’ and ‘Anarchy Online’. For corporate information please visit www.funcom.com. For information about Funcom games visit www.anarchy-online.com , www.dreamfall.com or www.ageofconan.com .
SpeedTreeRT, winner of the 2005 Front Line Award for middleware, delivers highly realistic trees and plants, with adjustable wind effects, user-configurable and seamless LOD transitions, and an included library of hundreds of tree, plant and marine models representing more than 200 core species. SpeedTreeRT includes SpeedTreeCAD, a Windows application used to create and edit animated trees in real-time.
Interactive Data Visualization, Inc. (IDV) develops software products with a focus on real-time three dimensional applications for the game development, visual simulation, engineering visualization, and animation industries. IDV, a privately held corporation, was founded in 1999 in Columbia, South Carolina. For more information about IDV, visit www.idvinc.com.
*Massively multi-player online role-playing game
At Funcom, which released the MMORPG* Age of Conan - Hyborian Adventures in May, a key to the game’s fantastic environments has been the trees and plants wrought by SpeedTree®RT.
“In every land we created for the game, we faced a series of crucial decisions about the foliage,” said Pål Frogner Hansen, Project Director for Conan. “How many trees should we place? What species make the most sense where? Where do we want the trees to be something the player can use tactically, such as for cover or to fire weapons from?”
In striving to be true to the fantasy world created by writer Robert E. Howard, the Conan team chose foliage presentations that ensured a dramatic, immersive experience for the game’s players.
“We custom modeled a number of trees to match Robert Howard’s dark vision,” said Mr. Hansen. “SpeedTree made it easy for our artists to experiment with tree shapes, textures, root structure and more, quickly scrolling through extensive variations until they achieved just the right look and feel.”
Added Mr. Hansen, “If Conan himself could walk among the trees we’ve created for him, we think he’d be right at home.”
ABOUT FUNCOM - Funcom is an independent developer and publisher of online games for PC, consoles and mobile platforms. Funcom has provided outstanding entertainment since 1993 and continues to expand its track-record of 24 released games to date. Recent successes include ‘The Longest Journey’ and ‘Anarchy Online’. For corporate information please visit www.funcom.com. For information about Funcom games visit www.anarchy-online.com , www.dreamfall.com or www.ageofconan.com .
SpeedTreeRT, winner of the 2005 Front Line Award for middleware, delivers highly realistic trees and plants, with adjustable wind effects, user-configurable and seamless LOD transitions, and an included library of hundreds of tree, plant and marine models representing more than 200 core species. SpeedTreeRT includes SpeedTreeCAD, a Windows application used to create and edit animated trees in real-time.
Interactive Data Visualization, Inc. (IDV) develops software products with a focus on real-time three dimensional applications for the game development, visual simulation, engineering visualization, and animation industries. IDV, a privately held corporation, was founded in 1999 in Columbia, South Carolina. For more information about IDV, visit www.idvinc.com.
*Massively multi-player online role-playing game
Related Resources:
News: SpeedTreeRT New Licensing Agreements #8
Game: Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures (PC)
News: SpeedTreeRT New Licensing Agreements #8
Game: Age of Conan: Hyborian Adventures (PC)
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