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  1. #1
    OurJud's Avatar Senior Member
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    First-person height perception?

    I'll start by saying this is not unique to FC5, but as a life-long first-person game fan, it is something that has fascinated me for a long time.

    Does anyone else have moments in these games, especially those of you who enjoy some peaceful wanderings, when you feel as though your character is about three-feet tall?

    I know the basic reason for this, and that is that as a flat image (the 3D being an illusion) we have no true sense of depth, meaning that the floor can often appear much closer than it does in real life. But quite often this happens when I approach an object (a tree, a wall, a spread of flowers) that from a distance appear to be a couple of feet high, and yet when you get up close they're often nearer chest-height.

    The effect is most noticeable when walking through the undergrowth, where shrubs, bushes and flowers that would be no higher than your knees in real life, are actually at eye-level when you get up close.

    I did read a very fascinating article once about first-person perspective in games, in which it was revealed that the camera (which acts as your eyes in first-person games) is in fact positioned on the chest of the third-person model. This had something to do with research showing that players of first-person shooters expect to be able to 'see' their weapon at all times, and that if the camera was positioned on the head of the third-person model, this would not be the case.

    It's a real shame in my opinion, that no developers on the console market have been brave enough to go down the first-person simulation route. I think Arma was probably the first game to do this (in Arma, looking down allows you to see your whole body, from chest to feet, rather than just your feet as in FC5).

    Also the stock 'walking / running with weapon' animation is rather nonsensical in these games, as the same view in the real world would require we hold the gun up across our face when running, when in truth we would hold it around our midriff. But of course this would mean the weapon would fall out of view, which clearly confuses the hard of understanding.
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  2. #2
    I almost posted about this. I agree the height perspective is an issue. This I think is an issue with the developers using the same mechanic as GRW. In that case the issue is evident in ghost war pvp while joining a match in progress or while dead in spectator view. In that case you can’t even see over the brush when the player you are spectating is hiding in brush. In fv5 I noticed that in some places you are barely taller than barrels and tables. It’s only an issue to the picky player but it is frustrating. If this could be fixed I wish it would be. It’s hard to tell the difference sometimes when I’m crouched or standing. I think if we can’t get a prone position This should be fixed. Thanks for the post.
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  3. #3
    I have no problems with first person camera in FC5. Dunia Engine is OK! As for crouching.......I think FC must develop stealth in the future games! Crouching is good, but we must CRAWLING also! Crawling will make us less visible to the enemies, than crouching. We'll be able to crawl closer to the enemies and listen their talk.....may be some secrets or plans. We'll be able to crawl under their vehicles and set explosives. Crawling in the bushes always very cool Frankly speaking, I think some militarization will not be bad for future Far Cry. Of course, it depends on the story.....But imagine Far Cry where we fight against some crazy general who seized power as a result of coup d'état somewhere in exotic country! Fighting against the whole army always cooler than fight against cultists or pirates. I adore to act like saboteur in the games: to destroy well-protected military convoys, to undermine the enemy's infrastructure ...but make it freely in open world game, not in compulsory missions.
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  4. #4
    OurJud's Avatar Senior Member
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    Originally Posted by OPUS2ZERO Go to original post
    I almost posted about this. I agree the height perspective is an issue. This I think is an issue with the developers using the same mechanic as GRW. In that case the issue is evident in ghost war pvp while joining a match in progress or while dead in spectator view. In that case you can’t even see over the brush when the player you are spectating is hiding in brush. In fv5 I noticed that in some places you are barely taller than barrels and tables. It’s only an issue to the picky player but it is frustrating. If this could be fixed I wish it would be. It’s hard to tell the difference sometimes when I’m crouched or standing. I think if we can’t get a prone position This should be fixed. Thanks for the post.
    Well I still maintain it's an issue which effects all games that use a first-person perspective, not just FC5.

    A prone position would add depth to your place in the surrounding, but I'm not sure it would fix the sense that you're sometimes three-feet tall. I think it's probably a very tricky and recognised problem for developers, as the varying scales of objects have to be compensated for. If, for instance, a barrel was correctly scaled when we're stood right next to it, I suspect this would mean it would look tiny from any kind of distance, and people would be saying, "Why are the barrels so tiny in this game?"

    Another area where this height perception of your character is very obvious is when clambering out of the water. As you swim to the shore there's no real sense that you're standing up as you make the transition from water to dry land. The ground doesn't fall away from you as you stand up. It's more like you've crawled out of the water, and remain in a crawl position.

    Or it could be, as the article I was once read says, that the camera is positioned on the chest of the third-person model. Put the camera on the head and all these scale issue may be fixed.
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