Cosplayer with No Game Experience Was Lead Facial Animator for ME: Andromeda?

Megalith

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Gamers are being accused of harassing a woman online for botching the animations for the newest Mass Effect game, and this article is supposedly the catalyst for that drama. BioWare’s GM has tweeted an image claiming that she was “misidentified” and this is all a misunderstanding, but screencaps of the employee’s social media accounts would suggest she had some role in the studio’s poorly received effort.

…the game looks completely whack, which is sad given the prestige associated with the Mass Effect series. The first two are a couple of my favorite games ever, and I liked the third one as well (except for the mind-numbingly stupid ending that we should all pretend never happened). But Andromeda looks like cancer. I kinda wanna play it now just to laugh my ass off. I’m not paying for it, though, so we’ll see if it gets pirated anytime soon. How did the facial animations end up so ass, though? Well, maybe it has something to do with the fact that an inexperienced cosplayer was chosen to be the “Lead Facial Animator” on this project. While so does have some background in art, there’s zilch on her résumé when it comes to, ya know, making video games.
 
Who knows who to believe at this point. EA/BW is doing damage control either way.

 
I honestly don't get the hate on the animations granted they aren't great but I played the early access demo on Origin and not once did I think these animations are so terrible they ruin the game and I need to launch personal attacks on the supposed lead animator.
 
She had 3 social media accounts where she claimed to be "lead facial animator", so either she lied or EA is lying.

My guess is that she was contracted as a motion capture model and in her mind that was a "facial animator" position.
 
Really the main problem is the bug eyes most of the characters have if they just fix the eye lids so every character doesn't have a 1000 mile stare it would fix not everything but a whole lot
 
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There was something going around that the rigging system for animation wasn't overhauled from past games; leading to some of the oddities, but this more than one animator's issue. Like ME3, I'm betting QC and resources were limited, along with some rough deadlines set by EA.
 
It's just not the facial expressions that apparently stink...


The way politics and "Equality" have snaked their way into this game is pretty horrible.
c5xhs7gw8ae5tii-e1487874486848.jpg


It's hard to find a direct comparison of Jayde Rossi. and I've been looking at her very pictures for the last hour trying... ...for science.

Anyways, from what i've been hearing the staff for the game wasn't hired for their talent - but their gender or race. *sigh*
 
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I honestly don't get the hate on the animations granted they aren't great but I played the early access demo on Origin and not once did I think these animations are so terrible they ruin the game and I need to launch personal attacks on the supposed lead animator.

Because gamers are the angriest, most bitter bunch of people on earth. I mean, I honestly can't remember the last game that didn't get tons of hate the last few years. That's the thing nowadays. Find something to hate, find someone to blame for that thing you hate the harass the ever luvin' shit out of them on social media.
 
I get the general idea, but I don't see why not having specific experience would preclude someone from being able to identify good animation.

Is a "lead" not the same as a "manager"? Manager's do not have to know how to do the job, they only need to be able identify that a job is being done well or not well. The manager says "do good work" and the grunts make it happen.

It's not rocket surgery. It's video games. I'm sure there is enough cluster fucking and tom foolery to go around. But it works somehow. Look at some of the early music composers of video games. They knew fuck all about traditional music composition.....but they could overlap a square and sine wave like you wouldn't believe.
 
Hey, I'm stupid, so maybe somebody can link me to evidence, but I'm looking at this like a judge and this is what I see:

-She has a resume claiming to be a lead facial animator at EA
-Bioware is owned by EA, their level of independence is not something known to me

I can't find her in the damn credits:

Now maybe I missed something, there are a lot of credits, but here's what I do see:

In-game animators: her name's not there
Technical animators: her name's not there
Director of Art and Animation: Neil Thompson

So these leads me to one of two conclusions:

1. She DID animate this and I just missed it in the credits, in which case Bioware is full of shit.

2. She did NOT animate this because she's not in the fucking credits, in which case the internet is full of shit.

Unless I missed it (by all means, timestamp it in the video), I have to go with #2 on this one. Why is EVIDENCE for claims such a hard thing these days?
 
Hey, I'm stupid, so maybe somebody can link me to evidence, but I'm looking at this like a judge and this is what I see:

-She has a resume claiming to be a lead facial animator at EA
-Bioware is owned by EA, their level of independence is not something known to me

I can't find her in the damn credits:

Now maybe I missed something, there are a lot of credits, but here's what I do see:

In-game animators: her name's not there
Technical animators: her name's not there
Director of Art and Animation: Neil Thompson

So these leads me to one of two conclusions:

1. She DID animate this and I just missed it in the credits, in which case Bioware is full of shit.

2. She did NOT animate this because she's not in the fucking credits, in which case the internet is full of shit.

Unless I missed it (by all means, timestamp it in the video), I have to go with #2 on this one. Why is EVIDENCE for claims such a hard thing these days?

But mah PITCHFORK!
 
*nevermind*
 
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This girl is a close personal friend of mine and incredibly talented *and* capable of the tasks assigned as part of her job, beyond that I don't feel comfortable saying anything more, especially after the extremely awful and personal attacks people have made against her due to misinformation.

So it's supposed to look like shit. Ok, gotcha.

Hey, they have their agenda and statements to be made through this game, I have mine in not buying virtue signalling garbage. Works well.
 
So it's supposed to look like shit. Ok, gotcha.

Hey, they have their agenda and statements to be made through this game, I have mine in not buying virtue signalling garbage. Works well.

I have removed my initial post and will probably not respond to this thread anymore, even BioWare's statement is intentionally vague.
 
Hey, I'm stupid, so maybe somebody can link me to evidence, but I'm looking at this like a judge and this is what I see:

-She has a resume claiming to be a lead facial animator at EA
-Bioware is owned by EA, their level of independence is not something known to me

I can't find her in the damn credits:

Now maybe I missed something, there are a lot of credits, but here's what I do see:

In-game animators: her name's not there
Technical animators: her name's not there
Director of Art and Animation: Neil Thompson

So these leads me to one of two conclusions:

1. She DID animate this and I just missed it in the credits, in which case Bioware is full of shit.

2. She did NOT animate this because she's not in the fucking credits, in which case the internet is full of shit.

Unless I missed it (by all means, timestamp it in the video), I have to go with #2 on this one. Why is EVIDENCE for claims such a hard thing these days?
I've learned that the credits are no way the gospel. I know a lead designer at one of the major studios, and his name never came up in the credits of the game that he had a major role in. So an animator not being in the credits is no proof that they never actually worked on it.

But I already stated in the game's topic, just because someone seems like an amateur superficially, doesn't mean they can't be good at their job. And more.

Edit: This witch hunt is ridiculous, even if she did work on it, and even if she did a shit job, there is no way anyone can pin this on one person. The whole QA department, and all the project leads must have seen the animations, but still went on with releasing the game in this state.
 
I have removed my initial post and will probably not respond to this thread anymore, even BioWare's statement is intentionally vague.

Hey that's fine. I know it's not her fault, I'm not directly hating on her but rather the people that have been in charge of this entire thing the entire time and the way they've gone with the bullshit. I'm just saying what happens when they pull this crap, I don't buy it due to my agenda and ethics. Equality is equality, not gender bias. I keep my money and don't give those companies support.
 
I have removed my initial post and will probably not respond to this thread anymore, even BioWare's statement is intentionally vague.

What do you mean vague, they're flat out saying that she didn't do that job, and up in this thread is a screenshot where she claims she did.
 
It's just not the facial expressions that apparently stink...


The way politics and "Equality" have snaked their way into this game is pretty horrible.

It's hard to find a direct comparison of Jayde Rossi. and I've been looking at her very pictures for the last hour trying... ...for science.

Anyways, from what i've been hearing the staff for the game wasn't hired for their talent - but their gender or race. *sigh*



How in the actual fuck does this shit happen.
 
I own ME 1-3 but haven't played them yet. I got my copies free from Bioware back when COD Black Ops 2 came out. The install media had BO2 Disc 1 and ME3 disc 2, but both discs had BO2 printed on them.
Submitted a pic of me holding up the disc and got my free games.

Rumor has it that about a thousand customers who purchased Call of Duty: Black Ops II for PC today were also treated to a surprise copy of Mass Effect 2. If you were one of the affected, chances are you thought it was a mistake, but we prefer to think that it was an omen, and when the universe talks, you should listen.

If the universe thinks that you should be playing Mass Effect right now, who are we to argue? In fact, we want to help! The first fifty fans affected by this phenomenon to send us a picture holding their special disc 2 will receive a code for a FREE PC copy of Mass Effect Trilogy.

Remember, in order to qualify, YOU must be in the picture, and disc 2 of your Call of Duty: Black Ops II must be visible. Got it? Then send your photo to [email protected] and you could be playing your very own Mass Effect Trilogy in time for the weekend!
http://www.tweaktown.com/news/26738...ps_2_pc_players_affected_by_mishap/index.html
 
He's not white....because.....he's......canadian? (n)

Sounds like he got booted anyways. Too bad. As a fellow fair skinned person I'm ok with people not liking me. I don't think careers should be destroyed JUST because someone has a certain personal opinion.

http://www.oneangrygamer.net/2017/0...e-designer-no-longer-works-for-bioware/26431/

The significance of this news is that a lot of gamers had mentioned that they wouldn’t be purchasing Mass Effect: Andromeda due to Manveer’s tweets, as he made it blatantly known that he did not like white people. His Twitter feed is filled with many crude, insensitive and racist remarks about Caucasians.

Heir’s persistently racist tweets ended up spawning a petition, with some gamers asking for BioWare to fire him for racism.

Things continually escalated as the release of Mass Effect: Andromeda drew near, with the 10-hour free trial and the revelation of the game’s poor quality and the fact that fair-skinned whites couldn’t made in the character creator also made people quite angry. The lead game designer, Ian Soon Frazier, commented on Twitter that they would investigate possibly patching in the ability to make fair-skinned whites and light-skinned Asians in Mass Effect: Andromeda, leading many people to believe that Manveer Heir may have had something to do with it.

At the same time, there were also reports that BioWare may have been filling their ranks with “diversity hires”, which is why the quality of the animation, character models and facial rigging was so low compared to previous games, as revealed by Nick Monroe on Twitter.


According to this video you can make a fair skinned asian. Not an albino and she is probably one of the more unattractive asians out there. But still.

 
He's not white....because.....he's......canadian? (n)

Sounds like he got booted anyways. Too bad. As a fellow fair skinned person I'm ok with people not liking me. I don't think careers should be destroyed JUST because someone has a certain personal opinion.

Whenever you work for a company what you do both while working and while in public reflects on both yourself and your employer. If you are a massive racist douchebag that reflects poorly on any company willing to hire and stand behind you. Especially if you are in a leadership position. Considering his statements on Twitter I rather doubt he'd be a great person to work with if you don't happen to follow his beliefs or happen to be white.
 
Whenever you work for a company what you do both while working and while in public reflects on both yourself and your employer. If you are a massive racist douchebag that reflects poorly on any company willing to hire and stand behind you. Especially if you are in a leadership position. Considering his statements on Twitter I rather doubt he'd be a great person to work with if you don't happen to follow his beliefs or happen to be white.

This, had a friend almost lose his job over some dumb facebook comments on a public page.
 
I hate lazy media, such as gamers abuse lead designer. No, some gamers abuse a potential lead designer, not all gamers. I'd bet my entire life savings and future income that those harrasing her are in no way representative of the majority of gamers ( I would bet the majority of gamers are in the meh catagory).

Nothing easier than painting with a broad sensational brush.
 
These issues have ALWAYS been present in the series. It isn't just in Mass Effect. These issues are present in all three Dragon Age games, Star Wars: The Old Republic MMO, and just about any BioWare game I can think of going back to KOTOR.

So yeah, the animation sucks and the game is far from perfect but A: It's par for the course with BioWare B: The combat and general game play is exceptionally good. Character models are even pretty good in and out of armor for the most part with the heads being the big problem. I agree its an issue and its probably too late for BioWare to do anything about it. We know they won't allocate the time and money into fixing these outstanding issues. They never have before.

Bioware being Bioware.
 
The way politics and "Equality" have snaked their way into this game is pretty horrible.
c5xhs7gw8ae5tii-e1487874486848.jpg


It's hard to find a direct comparison of Jayde Rossi. and I've been looking at her very pictures for the last hour trying... ...for science.

Anyways, from what i've been hearing the staff for the game wasn't hired for their talent - but their gender or race. *sigh*

i found the *REAL* model they used!!

kurt-angle.jpg


same blank stare same lack of emotion.
 
well there goes one of my most-anticipated 2017 game...
mass effect is a game that needs to draw player in, and these animations immersion-breaking, and seeing all this makes your think story telling-dialogues would probably as shiety and inconsistent, this feels like cash grab on the franchise's name.
i haven't really spent time on a game since the witcher 3/GTAV/Darksouls3, and going from that to this ME garbadge...no thanks
have high hopes for cyberpunk though :p
 
Uh so what does the game having poor animation quality have to do with race, equality, or politics like has been suggested in this thread? o_O
 
2. She did NOT animate this because she's not in the fucking credits, in which case the internet is full of shit.

Unless I missed it (by all means, timestamp it in the video), I have to go with #2 on this one. Why is EVIDENCE for claims such a hard thing these days?
Well, the internet isn't full of shit, she's full of shit for lying to the internet. The former employee indicated she was the "Lead Facial Animator for Mass Effect: Andromeda". The screen shot included in the article of her claim is evidence, along with her video of her previous work:
M76 said:
This witch hunt is ridiculous, even if she did work on it, and even if she did a shit job, there is no way anyone can pin this on one person. The whole QA department, and all the project leads must have seen the animations, but still went on with releasing the game in this state.
I don't think anyone is pinning this on her, and they do see it as a systemic failure at EA, allegedly based on hiring people on criteria other than actual skill and qualifications. Wouldn't be the first time a hot female was hired after batting her eyes and being a little flirty, and we've got "kill whitey" Curry Thunder as mentioned above as another champ that I'm sure is a pleasure to work with on this A-Team.
 
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