why character studio?

[eric]

hi guys, i hae been confused lately because i have reached a level where modelling is no longer a problem but rigging is. i am tempted to use character studio but i feel like am taking the easy way out and missing something. what is the advantage of character studio over rigging and animatimf in max? please help.

[martinpe]

Hi Eric,

I had the same problems but after reading the introduction to character studio, I realised it's that way I'd like to go.
In my opinion, choosing the right animation rig type (max bones or biped) is up to you. If you have a mesh that's not quite the human anatomy (an alien for example), then you should go for the bones, because there, you can set the bones exactly the way you like. It's a big harder to learn, but when you do it right, you can create something appropriate for your animation.
If you'd like to use a biped for your mesh, no problem, but just keep in mind, that you have to adjust all biped bones so they fit correctly to your mesh. It's a kind of adjusting work, but then, you don't have to worry about the IK and linking the arms, legs, etc. together.

A big advantage of character studio is the crowd animation option, which you can use to generate mass figures (say something like 100 Agent Smiths fighting one Neo).
Another advantage of character studio is the footstep option. You can set a number of footsteps and your biped follows them.

Hope I was able to help you, otherwise just feel free to ask anytime.