Cell Shading : Amiga's next holy grail?

[KingTutt]

ign.com[/url] are in the process of running a poll for the most eagerly anticipated titles, across all platforms for 2003/4.

Apparently Legend of Zelda beat Doom III by more than 15 places to reach number one. As everyone knows, Doom III has been touted as the be all and end all of 3d gaming. It is revered to be the standard setter for years to come. But how come a Nintendo title based on heavy cell shading technology makes the cut and by such a large margin?

Who knows? but it gave me an excellent idea. Would cell shading 2.5D games give the Amiga a distinct feel. Bringing back the Zool series or Turrican series under cell shading would be fun and different. Cell shading if done right.. can yield amazing results. As seen with the latest Zelda installment. And being not as demanding graphically, cell shading may be the holy grail for Amiga, to set it apart from run of the mill PC 3d titles.

If amiga were to whole heartedly embrace cell shading, it could capitalise on the fact that very few cell shaded games have been made successes. Cell shaded games would work superbly for restoring old classics to their former glory, without the compromises in gameplay 3D games bring. As many are aware, Amiga games have an incredible gap to fill technologically. 10 years to be exact. Cell shading is a good stopgap for games that would be almost unrecognizable if done in 3D from the word go.

Some games I believe would benefit from the Cell shading treatment are:
New Zealand Story
Lemmings (ala 2.5D side view-esque style)
Rainbow Islands
International Karate +
James Pond series
PP Hammer
RickDangerous (and mainly other cartoonishly drawn Amiga titles)

I would for one love to see a fully cell shaded Superfrog or Marble madness too. For those of you who haven't yet seen Nintendo's latest Zelda masterpeice. Click here[/url]. Some have attested to Zelda being akin to a big budget Disney film, with all the bells and whistles.

I'm not sure how much more difficult cell shading is to code than 3D, but given cell shading doesn't have nearly as much frantic development as OpenGL or Direct3D, its safe to assume, that games written today in high res cell shading will still look very aesthetically appealing 10 years from now, as opposed to a horribly aged OpenGL title. Not to mention the lower specs required to run a cell shaded title without the constant frame drops synonymous with 3D pc gaming.

Looking into my crystal ball, It wouldn't be too far fetched to assume a strong movement towards Amiga gaming on the premise of very outstandingly made, nostalgia inspired cell_shaded_titles(which would Amiga exclusives). This would also bring more game developers, wanting to try their hand at making a successful cell shaded game. But without the risks of making a big budget console release. Amiga could in the first short years, become a sort of testing the waters platform, which would aid it in the long run as it attracts more projects while establishing itself more and more.

Not everything has to center around 3D you know, Amiga can again lead gaming into a new direction. And focus on gameplay over graphics, not that gfx on cell shading are a pushover, far from that in fact. It just seems to me that gameplay was much more important in the 80s, 90s as it is now. Cell shading being an almost perfected art doesn't need improving, therefore gameplay can take precedence again! Allowing developers to focus on the game and lessen the distraction of bleedin edge 3D.

So who's with me for a Cell shaded Space Ace!!

[KingTutt]

odin wrote:
Got a link explaining it a bit more in-depth?

Odin, think of Dragons Lair and Space Ace on the Amiga. But on a whole new level as far as interactivity goes.

And yes, cell shading uses 3D models but renders(shades) the surfaces using high res sprites, making the whole experience reminiscent of a well animated Disney film.

@Hammer.
True, I agree that A1 coupled with an ATi 8500 or above will eat up a gamecube, but I was thinking more or less in terms of the financial & technical viability of cell shading vs 3d games.

Everyone knows that to rival Doom 3, you will require huge levels of investment. But a cell shaded game, seems more attainable, due to its lower graphical requirements. I say lower not by quality but by the means of the cell shading art, which doesn't require bleedin edge technology to run.

Like I stated already, I can see many old classics getting a new lease on life with a cell shaded remasters.

Cell shading combines the best elements of 3D gaming physics, without the enormous strains of massive 3D texture maps ie Doom III. Instead it replaces it with aesthetically pleasing cartoon rendered high res sprites. To give the overall impression of a real time animated cartoon.

I'm pretty sure this technology is a little more flexible and workable, than reinventing the wheel with every 3D engine revision that games like Half-Life 2 generate.

In a reduced market size which is Amiga, I think this tech offers the best opportunity in providing low budget titles that are still new, original and ultimately competitive with todays games. It also provides a vehicle, which has the potential to allow a new generation of creative minds to embrace the Amiga platform once again.

[KingTutt]

Thanks for the link CodeSmith. Some real good reading there.

I know that alot of mathematical computations take place with cell shading, and yes it is not any less sophisticated than normal 3D. But my arguement, is that you could essentially use the same engine, many times over and just add newer flashier anime textures for different games. On the other hand, this method would work against a 3D rendered title. How many times can you use the Quake3 engine before it starts to show its age.

I think cell shading hides its age really well. And being less intensive on a gfx standpoint, it makes for really appealing development. Especially on a platform like Amiga, which is starved on good h/w and good cash flow.

My real focus behind all this, was that a game like Zelda has managed to stir more interest than Doom3. This poll was done by over 600,000 ign registered members. So its quite a bold statement. In light of this, it really raises the question of gfx over gameplay. I am a firm believer that Amiga can still strive in the games market, if it uses every possible device to its advantage. Cell shading is just one of those devices.

:: EDIT :: Another Doom3 vs Zelda link[/url]

[KingTutt]

Finally, someone who agrees with me.

[KingTutt]

As I mentioned before, cel shading could be treated as a nice gap filler technology until we can make fully rendered 3D games, without breaking the bank(hence amiga's need for pc ports). Just nice to see there are wonderful alternatives out there, that do not require a whole render farm to run.

Again, I can't stress enough how much harder it is to do an original fully fledged 3D game that can hold its own against say..Half-Life 2, as opposed to some amiga developers having a little fun with cel-shading and still putting together a respectable title.

Anyone up for a Lotus sequel ala Auto Modelista?

[KingTutt]

Eh Karlos, yes both use 3D models. But using flat color texture maps are going to be a little easier to render on a A1-SE@G3-600Mhz than say C&C:Generals, no? Which is my point all along.

[KingTutt]

I wonder if a proper and tactful implementation of cel-shading in amiga classic remakes ie Rickdangerous or Superfrog, could herald a revival of interest in ol skool type gaming of past gaming hits.