3D character animation software developer NaturalMotion has announced that its new graphically-authorable next-gen animation engine package morpheme has been integrated into Epic Games' Unreal Engine 3, as the company joins Epic's Integrated Partners Program.
The company says morpheme will build on the existing UE3 character system by offering "unique features for constructing very complex animation setups" that, through its morpheme:connect tool, developers can preview and modify in real time through state machines and blend trees.
The company also says that just as with other elements of Unreal Engine, developers can extend morpheme's existing animation nodes to provide functions specific to any particular title. It also notes that future features created by NaturalMotion will be folded into UE3's integrated version.
Said NaturalMotion CEO Torsten Reil, “Unreal Engine 3 is already an inspired game design platform, offering much of the bleeding edge technology developers need. By adding morpheme to Epic’s suite, more studios will be able to take advantage of NaturalMotion’s pioneering animation technology, allowing for a whole new generation of games with astonishingly realistic characters and animations.”
