Getting my CD4 animation to run in place....

[mrcamper99]

"edit: that's CS4 Character Studio 4, not CD4"

Getting my CS4 animations to run in place.... How?

I have a 30 frame loop "motion capture" run loop sequence and I have a 30 frame CS4 biped "footstep" walk loop sequence. I need them to run in place like the source UT2k3 anim's and I have no clue how to get the animations to move in place.

They typically travel a bit as they "walk or run". How do you keep them in place?

 

[mrcamper99]

OK, this message board rocks!

My neighbor just saw my post and called me with the answer! I'll post it here in case anyone else may need this info:

[Directly from the Character Studio Help File from In 3DS MAX 5.1 w/ CS4.1........]
Create or select a biped. > Motion panel > Biped rollout > Expand rollout > Modes group > In Place button on In Place flyout >Then Pick the button ...

In Place mode allows you to display biped motion as if it were occurring on a treadmill. Regardless of the distance the biped covers under control of the current motion file, the biped stays within the active viewport when you've turned on In Place Mode.

In Place playback prevents lateral (XY) movement of the biped center of mass during animation playback; vertical motion along the Z-axis is preserved. Biped limbs, footsteps, and center of mass keys can be adjusted in this mode. When the center of mass is moved on the XY axes in this mode, the footsteps move.

Use this feature to view biped playback without requiring a follow camera. In this viewing mode, visible footsteps appear to slide under the biped.

For export to games, this feature is valuable, as many game engines intelligently move the character's center of mass laterally according to game play. In Place mode makes it easy to view, tune, and export animation in a manner that is complementary to game engine playback.

Note: Trajectories do not display using In Place mode.