Madden NFL 10 Blog: A Deeper Look into PRO-TAK

[seveb]

Re: Madden NFL 10 Blog: A Deeper Look into PRO-TAK

This looks like a HUGE addition, if tuned correctly. Color me impressed.

I wonder if a ball carrier will have the option NOT to fight for every yard. Say I get the first down and then get stood up, just to go down if a gang of guys are coming to light me up/strip me.

[viewtifuljoe71]

Re: Pro-Tak Blog Is Up

Great blog only 6 more days until the next blog.

Yea Ian needs to start giving us nuggets like every other day. I feel like im going through withdrawal syndrome

[sozo]

Re: Madden NFL 10 Blog: A Deeper Look into PRO-TAK

Any chance Pro Tak could do a sled animation like Turner did to Kansas City last year?

This is a great example of what backbreaker was saying a few posts earlier. The defender has the runner wrapped up and then
the other defender trys to fly in with a punishing hit only to whiff and crash into his own player.

Pro-Tak looks great and I hope there are situations that resemble this in the final game.

[N@X_WiZaRD]

Re: Pro-Tak Blog Is Up

Looks good, I'm getting to the point where I might buy Madden just to pay you back for all the work you've done - regardless if the game sucks. Although, I'm not to that point yet, just ALMOST. =)

The gang-tackling looks great. My only complaint is what someone already referenced and that's the noticeably stiffer animation during actual gameplay as opposed to ANT engine where it seems absolutely life-like, but if that's just the compression that's causing the distortion, then that's cool. Anyway, keep it up.

[MCNABB51BOI]

Re: Madden NFL 10 Blog: A Deeper Look into PRO-TAK

only problem i saw in the video was lindale was running way to high ,especially trying to get in the endzone he didnt drop his shoulders or get low to try to get in he just ran chest first and got tackled. maybe they was just trying to make an example of the pro-tak ?

[dave374]

Re: Pro-Tak Blog Is Up

I like the gang tackling a lot more this year than last year. That much is for sure.
It feels a lot more like football.
They certainly have something to build on here.

[buddyhobbs321813]

Re: Pro-Tak Blog Is Up

I like the gang tackling a lot more this year than last year. That much is for sure.
It feels a lot more like football.
They certainly have something to build on here.

of course you like gang tackling better this year because that didnt have it before

[CLEAR17]

Re: Pro-Tak Blog Is Up

This was just so-so for. Cool stuff but it didn't look different than the trailer.
I just want a franchise blog

[SwayGod53]

Re: Madden NFL 10 Blog: A Deeper Look into PRO-TAK

Only thing I didn't like was the Reed/Lendale collison. Looked too stiff, almost like there was a break in the animation before it finished.

Pro-Tak looks solid though Ian nice work man!!

[NYyankz225]

Re: Pro-Tak Blog Is Up

Don't know if it's possible but I think the complaint that people have with some of the tackles is that players are not tackling "through" the player but simply stopping on contact. If a player makes contact with a ball carrier at full speed regardless of his "hit rating" he should go for a big hit not just "stick himself" to the pile. When a ball carrier gets caught up near the line like in the first video it makes sense for everyone to bunch up because they're all close and they can't run for the big hit.

But in open space, the second or third player should almost always go for the big hit, not just add to the pile. Hope that's possible.

Amazing stuff though Ian! As I've said this is easily the greatest technology ever added to a (real) football game.

[Moostache]

Re: Madden NFL 10 Blog: A Deeper Look into PRO-TAK

PRO-TAk looks great with one nagging issue to me...the leg chop of the players who join onto the gang tackle are in perfect sync...there was a similar issue in Madden NFL 2006 on the 360 that made all running animations break down into a creepy looking line dance!

This synchonized leg chopping was in the sizzle trailer and is again in the Dallas - Giants gang tackle example...it is HIGHLY distracting and if these are still being tuned, PLEASE, PLEASE, PLEASE do anything that can be done to make sure that multiple players in on the tackle are not doing the EXACT SAME movements....

If the players who join the gang tackle are forced into a rhythmic leg chop every time, then the whole system will be reviled - no matter how cool it really is in concept or execution. I think PRO-TAK is too cool and too much of a leap forward to have it diminished because of timing issues on the animations of added defenders...I trust that this is known and being looked at but I wanted to reiterate my concerns here...

The Jacobs play did not bother me in the least - it was actually super cool to see on many levels for me...the hit that stopped Lendale White's forward motion looked fine to me...the replay camera was at an angle that makes the hit look like it is from a more exaggerated angle. When the second hit is made - looked like a hit stick animation too - it changed the momentum of the play so that when Reed and Lewis joined in they were able to throw him backwards...all very, very cool stuff - especially throwing guys OUT of the endzone (or away from the goalline) instead of having a canned animation shove the ball carrier INTO the endzone!

The animations of the OL/DL interaction (both normal and modified) looked like an excellent improvement over anything seen previously in Madden or NCAA...I particularly like the way the OT and DE engage, break, re-engage and break and re-engage (hand-fighting and trying to establish leverage) throughout the video. Having the ability to manually steer the block in the modified clip looks like a great way to get pressure into the pocket (while the "normal" run of the clip looks ike a pretty good animation and sequence for the OT to set the edge and form a good pocket)...

Thanks for the details to both Ian and Simon - I am sure you guys realize that the vast majority of responders here are quite happy to get these looks!

[mdurd2817]

Re: Pro-Tak Blog Is Up

I didn't read this entire thread so SIAP anyway did it look like the Ravens had different sock lengths?

[Netherscourge]

Re: Madden NFL 10 Blog: A Deeper Look into PRO-TAK

Moving to a full runtime solution and getting rid of motion capture (like a Havok physics system for example) means handing over full control of your visuals to your code (and away from your artists)…which to us is not an acceptable approach being that we are tasked with creating a true NFL simulation.

Hmmm... is that supposed to be a dig at Backbreaker/Euphoria?

[NoSubs]

Re: Madden NFL 10 Blog: A Deeper Look into PRO-TAK

Looks good. Now that weight is a bigger part of the equation, it needs to be considered in OVR.

All else equal, a linebacker with an extra 25 lbs. will now be a bit more useful. OVR should reflects that.

[DickDalewood]

Re: Madden NFL 10 Blog: A Deeper Look into PRO-TAK

This is some seriously cool stuff.