God of Camera

It may seem hard to believe (or maybe the change was so seamless, we never noticed it coming until it was over), but games didn't always have the robust, dynamic systems they do today. In the earlier days, all the action was contained to a single screen (oh yeah, we didn't even have scrolling). Eventually, scrolling was integrated and when we finally got to 3D games, we had the camera usually following the player. The player would have the option to rotate the camera, or zoom in and out - but the camera was (usually) ALWAYS focused on the player. This all changed, however, with a game known as God of War. God of War broke the mold for the camera; it wasn't just about the character anymore. It was the character and the environment together, creating a more artistic, almost movie-like experience. Not every game adopted this exact style after, but the system they used has become extremely popular in modern games. Instead of focal points on characters, developers place nodes throughout the level with various weights on them. As the character approaches the node, the camera interpolates according.

Above is the result of using node traversal for the camera.

A game that I have been playing recently that uses this technique extremely well is Remember Me. It has a third person camera similar to that of Dead Space, with this shaky vibe that persists throughout the game to add to the feelings of confusion and disorientation. There's always sweet GUI overlays everywhere and the way the text is used and interacts with the camera is phenomenal. The amount of nodes there are for each cut-scene and interspersed within the levels keeps everything looking fresh, even while platforming. It also (kind of) hints toward where you should go next, which can be beneficial when you're avoiding security drones on the fly. Below is the into sequence to the game and it perfectly sets the mood for the game and camera. The real fun starts after 2:34.

In the first few moments of in-game cinematic, you can see just how many different nodes and triggers there are. What's nice is that even while this is going on, there are still moments where you can rotate the camera and look around while the events are happening. The first time you get to move the camera is really neat as well: instead of just slapping some text on screen, they give the movement purpose. After holding the camera to look at the robot, you get your "eyes scanned." This is a neat way at adding interactivity to the game while also setting the tale. What's also neat is the way the camera bobs as you awkwardly stumble forward. Since your "memory has been deleted," the camera even does little glitch things as you progress (keep in mind that everyone in this world has a brain computer thing, which is why you can see floating images everywhere). Later on the game, there's also a shaky-cam effect that the camera will occasionally perform, presumably some random "jitter" variable that is used.

When you end up escaping the death of the memory wiping chair, there's this awesome sequence where the camera pulls back as you escape a robot bent on stopping you. Whenever the robot breaks something and causes you to stumble, however, the camera zooms back in on the character until she's gained her balance, then it recedes back to its old distance. This sequence gives a clearer idea on how the camera is implemented into the game. While the camera is linked to the main character, it isn't necessarily focused on her. (Note that the camera is actually very slightly to the right of the girl). When the camera rotates, we can see that it does rotate around the main character, but it always keeps her slightly to the left. This means that there is a node that follows the main character that the camera can swap to and from as necessary based on the triggers in the world. For example, in the robot sequence, when the camera pans back, it has a focus on the whole hall. When it shakes, it goes in-between the event node and the character node and does the wiggle effect based on the trigger of the main character losing her balance. At the end of the hall, you can see it actually snap back to the character.

Such a robust camera system allows for a more cinematic gaming experience; arguably a "vastly greater and more involved one." While I won't disagree, I will say that the feel of a game should be the top priority in deciding your system of camera. In a 2D game, I don't know if I would necessarily want a node traversal system for my camera (mind you, it wouldn't be a bad idea!) since I may be able to accomplish the same effects without having to implement it. 3D is a whole 'nother can of worms which I don't want to open... today anyway. 

So yes, Remember Me is a fantastic emotional and visually appealing game, which decent combat and some nice platforming/puzzles. I would even go as far as to argue that the camera system is what made me enjoy the game. If the camera didn't respond the way it did, or simply rotated around the character instead of interacting with the game world and leaving the character slightly off center, I may have not enjoyed the game. I'm sure these things were taken into account as the game was created, and maybe at one time the character was center. Its these little things in the camera system that we take for granted, but I won't anymore. I hope that all my camera systems are one day, just as awesome as these.