MilkShape, fragMotion and Bone Order
by Wesley Howe · in Artist Corner · 12/20/2007 (8:12 pm) · 3 replies
I'm hoping someone knows this answer and can save me some research time.
The program fragMotion will import and export MilkShape files. But, the index order of the joints is not the same as in the original file. The names, positions, rotations and parenting for all the joints is correct, the animations play, but the order of the joints is different by the time you get back to MilkShape.
I know on The Sims 3 that the index order is important to that game engine, not for the animation parts but for the mesh rendering portion. So what I am wondering is "Does this matter to the Torque engine?"
fragMotion would be nice (at least for me) to include in my toolkit. Has anyone done a fragMotion->MilkShape-Torque cycle successfully?
<* Wes *>
The program fragMotion will import and export MilkShape files. But, the index order of the joints is not the same as in the original file. The names, positions, rotations and parenting for all the joints is correct, the animations play, but the order of the joints is different by the time you get back to MilkShape.
I know on The Sims 3 that the index order is important to that game engine, not for the animation parts but for the mesh rendering portion. So what I am wondering is "Does this matter to the Torque engine?"
fragMotion would be nice (at least for me) to include in my toolkit. Has anyone done a fragMotion->MilkShape-Torque cycle successfully?
<* Wes *>
About the author
#2
You are way ahead of me, I am just starting with Torque. I got all excited today when I got another mesh I had together with a root animation to replace kork in the TGEA demo. Other than my making the character about 4 inches tall by accident, it was easier than I anticipated.
I couldn't use fragMotion in the pipeline for SIms 2 stuff because of the bone order, which is really an odd thing about The Sims 2 scenegraph construction.
<* Wes *>
12/20/2007 (8:37 pm)
Thank you, Alan.You are way ahead of me, I am just starting with Torque. I got all excited today when I got another mesh I had together with a root animation to replace kork in the TGEA demo. Other than my making the character about 4 inches tall by accident, it was easier than I anticipated.
I couldn't use fragMotion in the pipeline for SIms 2 stuff because of the bone order, which is really an odd thing about The Sims 2 scenegraph construction.
<* Wes *>
#3
I've noticed a difference in index list as well[ms3d gives you them, well, in a list you can't edit], but not had it do anything borkworthy yet...as long as my hierarchy is the same, ie, Parent to Child, and rotations were indentical.
12/20/2007 (10:14 pm)
Never had any trouble going fragMOTION--Ms3d--DTSPlus! I've noticed a difference in index list as well[ms3d gives you them, well, in a list you can't edit], but not had it do anything borkworthy yet...as long as my hierarchy is the same, ie, Parent to Child, and rotations were indentical.
Torque Owner Alan James
Really Really Good Things Studio
I've actually done .X > fragMotion > Milkshape > Torque without any major problems at all. You can take a look at an example workflow in this thread:
www.garagegames.com/mg/forums/result.thread.php?qt=69654
If you want to know how crazy I've gotten with trying exporting/importing...I've gone from 3D World Studio (.map) into DeleD 3D Editor, out as a .OBJ int to Lightray3D from there (resaved as an .OBJ because DeleD was doing some weird things with the .map to .OBJ) out to Milkshape and from there out using DTSPlus into a Torque .DTS...just because I could...=)