Gordon's first zombie

Black Mesa Archive Suggestion Box
#21

Scripting a scientist NPC getting an animation synchronized with a headcrab animation is as hard as creating an advanced model with super-dynamic animations that is scripted with an extreme “never-seen-before-AI” made from the bottom!

This usually takes about 4-5 months of time (maybe longer) because of that both the scientist and the headcrab most make the animations looks realistic; they have to hit each other in just that spot, keep holding each other in just that places on all frames (this will be really hard to make with the headcrab because of the humans desperate movement with his head) and this must happen at that specific time! On all frames! It is that reason why valve only made one npc that could ragdollize and eat a alive npc in hl2 (the barnacle)!

Also: have you heard about the guy who made the hydra? He put a lot of time into that npc, and when he finally got compliments when his co-workers at valve saw this awesome npc it all ended with “nice work, but how would the player know what killed him when this attacks you?”. A long animations and AI project witch includes the synchronization of two npcs is just a too big risk!

#22

Oh, I got your point. It was stupid.
Seeing a human body with a headcrab on it is different than seeing a headcrab jump onto a human body.

#23

I still remember my first zombie. Now that was a fun summer…

#24

Where exactly is this? If you mean the rebel base housing the airboat at the end of Route Kanal you are incorrect, since you can simply shoot the man being headcrabbed. If you’re talking about Ravenholm you may be getting confused with an apparent “dead” zombie.

#25

This would be something cool to see in HL3 when source engine 2.0 gets released… until then I think it would be something way too complicated to make (plus only valve would be able to dictate how much it takes to get zombiefied as its their IP)

#26

That is probably just a mistake Valve didn’t notice.

#27

He’s talking about Station 6, where you get the Airboat. I can’t confirm about the guy disappearing because I never thought to check, but the Zombie appearing minutes after the shells land does happen.

#28

Maybe the poor guy who was headcrabbed behind the fence just went away after he became a zombie and Gordon just didn’t meet him again.

#29

Wait? does this mean the developers are actually trying to do this? If so, why not create this to be a sequence instead of a scene and make an AI script with a criteria of that the headcrab is at a certain distance from its target and that the target has a certain health. Then script the sequence in here and when it is done, you can script in that both npcs are replaced with a human zombie!

Also: When I posted the previous post, I did not know that your modeling programs may have a specific universal coordinate system?

Easier told: If you have the same program as the developers, have you tried to create two models with a sequence where they react with each other and this can be successful on the first attempt by using the vectors (x/y/z)?

#30

I seem to remember a scene in HL1 where you could see the transformation happening… not sure where this was but it makes me want to play hl1 to see if i can find it…
And i know this is kind of irrelevant because we’re talking about the source engine.

#31

Maybe you’re thinking of the scientist sitting at a wall with a headcrab on his head in “Unforeseen Consequences”, but he didn’t turn into a zombie in that moment.

#32

“Zombification” is probably possible as a scripted sequence, but could be awkward and not worth the time. For instance, take the Gman encounters in HL, specifically when you watched him through a locked door. Something similar could be implemented with headcrabs and npcs.

Another example is in OP4. One of the first events is the zombie sitting up from the MRI and attacking the tech. My idea would be to replace it with scientists trapped in a soundproof lab without power. In a scripted event, they manage to scribble a note saying “restore power!” and hold it up to the glass. However headcrabs spawn and manage to get at least one victim. You could just move on and not care, or stay to watch the mutation and subsequent zombie brutally attack the surviving scientists (which could be awesome to watch while not being able to hear it).

Its still awkward however, especially the mutation process. The scientist zombies look nothing like the scientists, definitely not a mutation that takes a short period of time, but like I said you could just walk by, not wait, and continue on. Perhaps if you prefer you can spawn enemies with Gordon as well. He can fight while the scientists are dealing with their mess. The random headcrab spawning is awkward as well, although that shit happens all the time throughout HL so I guess its accepted.

With a basic setup like that however, forced into a situation where you are separated (at least only temporarily) between glass, you can script pretty much anything the engine allows. I am sure the devs have already made use of scripted events to their maximum potential. I have faith in them, they seem to know what they are doing and have certainly had the years to make it good.

#33

You could have the headcrabbed guy fall behind a counter so you can’t see him and replace him with a zombie that starts in the same basic pose as he fell in. But that would dictate a static mutation time, so that’s out.

#34

That’s the cheap and easy way to go about things. Who hasn’t thought of that already? We’re talking about the hard way (which will not be done).

Besides, HL2 already gave us the time; at least 2 minutes.

#35

What, how did you conclude that?

#36

Actually from what I’ve deduced, it’s almost instant according to HL2.

I went back and played the part with the guy being zombified at Station 6 (d1_canals_05) as mentioned earlier in the topic, and after progressing a little further into the map & like pyro said, a zombie breaks down the wall behind you, creating a very minor shortcut back from where you just were. If you backtrack from there to where the guy was lying on the floor with the headcrab on him, (assuming you didn’t kill him) you can see that he’s now gone.

I tried again, leaving the instant I saw him hit the ground, avoided all combat & sprinting occasionally, it took me about 10 seconds to get to the trigger point where he showed up. If you consider how slowly the zombies move, that’s probably a negative time. It also raises the question: how the hell did it get through the fence without breaking anything? (yeah, yeah, I know it’s just a minor oversight)

#37

You keep ignoring the fact that you can KILL him and the zombie will still appear.

#38

Yeah, it’s meant to be him, but it doesn’t have to be. That’s why you have the choice to shoot him in the first place.

#39

Sort of relevant to this, it’d be nice to see headcrabs latching on to people via the NPC Dynamic Interaction System. I don’t know how easy that’d be, though.

#40

I think it wouldn’t be far more difficult than the animation with Alyx and the zombie where he tries to give her a hug.

Founded in 2004, Leakfree.org became one of the first online communities dedicated to Valve’s Source engine development. It is more famously known for the formation of Black Mesa: Source under the 'Leakfree Modification Team' handle in September 2004.