Fox Sports will use virtual fans created in Unreal Engine to fill empty stadiums in MLB broadcasts

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Marees

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It works by leveraging graphics (created by creative agency Silver Spoon Animation) built in Epic’s Unreal Engine. Unreal Engine is used here for the same reason it’s popular for creating video games or for crafting virtual on-set backgrounds for shows like The Mandalorian. Unlike most film graphics, which have to be rendered in post-production after the fact, Unreal can render in real time, making it far more suited for live television.

https://www.theverge.com/platform/a...-empty-stadiums-mlb?__twitter_impression=true

Fox Sports producers will be able to control things like how full the virtual “crowds” are for a given game, what weather fans are dressed for, and what percentage of the crowd will be home fans versus away, although the company is still figuring out how it’ll make some of those decisions.
“We’re figuring this out right now, and we’ll continue to evolve that process as we go through this weekend and from game-to-game, week-to-week,”
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It may not be a waste of time. Watching crowds that run and roar in the stadium are necessary to feel the game.
CGI graphics have come a long way to put virtual people in the video to improve the sellability of the game.
These would be the beginning of the new era in gaming with a virtual presence.
 
I watched a little of my team on Friday. It did sound weird to not hear much of a cheer when the home team made a good play. Although there was some cheering. Not sure how many more people were in the stadium over the players, managers ,the radio, tv crews and the organist. The camera seemed to avoid the seating area as much as it could. I would have wanted to see a more shots of the mostly empty stadium. Maybe they showed that at the beginning. Maybe I did not watch long enough to see enough fowl balls. I don't know I did not watch the whole game.
 
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Marees said:
It works by leveraging graphics (created by creative agency Silver Spoon Animation) built in Epic’s Unreal Engine. Unreal Engine is used here for the same reason it’s popular for creating video games or for crafting virtual on-set backgrounds for shows like The Mandalorian. Unlike most film graphics, which have to be rendered in post-production after the fact, Unreal can render in real time, making it far more suited for live television.

https://www.theverge.com/platform/a...-empty-stadiums-mlb?__twitter_impression=true

Fox Sports producers will be able to control things like how full the virtual “crowds” are for a given game, what weather fans are dressed for, and what percentage of the crowd will be home fans versus away, although the company is still figuring out how it’ll make some of those decisions.
Click to expand...

Anyone who looks back on this season needs to see these stadiums empty. Fox is going to be virtually advertising the entire time and nobody asked for this.
 
drescherjm said:
I watched a little of my team on Friday. It did sound weird to not hear much of a cheer when the home team made a good play. Although there was some cheering. Not sure how many more people were in the stadium over the players, managers ,the radio, tv crews and the organist. The camera seemed to avoid the seating area as much as it could. I would have wanted to see a more shots of the mostly empty stadium. Maybe they showed that at the beginning. Maybe I did not watch long enough to see enough fowl balls. I don't know I did not watch the whole game.
Click to expand...

From what I've seen of European soccer matches (Premier League, Serie A and the like), you want something to make the stadium seem... well, non-empty.

In a few cases, there have been games with zero attempts to fake seating or provide some kind of background fan-like sound. It ends up being very weird, as it's eerily quiet aside from the players shouting and the ball hitting the net. The emptiness is a bit awkward during a five-minute highlight video, let alone a full match. I suspect that an unvarnished MLB game would feel just as strange.
 
Now if they install web cams per specific seating block area. Then let fans pay to have a controlled block of virtual fan's. With controls defined like cheer, boo, heckle, wave, and so on. With paid feature like local fireworks or strobing jerzy's and other microtransactional shit like that. Then linkup to other fans... *DING* "BIGDONG26 as initiated a wave request. What percentage of your crowd would like to maintain the wave?" stuff like that could help to make it interactive again.
 
Aurelius said:
From what I've seen of European soccer matches (Premier League, Serie A and the like), you want something to make the stadium seem... well, non-empty.

In a few cases, there have been games with zero attempts to fake seating or provide some kind of background fan-like sound. It ends up being very weird, as it's eerily quiet aside from the players shouting and the ball hitting the net. The emptiness is a bit awkward during a five-minute highlight video, let alone a full match. I suspect that an unvarnished MLB game would feel just as strange.
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That's a good point. I bet I could fall asleep watching an MLB game in 2 minutes with no fans versus the 5 minutes is normally takes watching it with a full stadium.
 
Honestly, I think it would have a bigger impact on the actual players rather than the home audience, but I don't think we've reached the point to digitally put people in the stands for the benefit (or detriment) of the players.
 
kirbyrj said:
I don't think most people watch baseball to see what the fans look like. Seems like a waste of time.
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It kinda sounds silly, but I disagree ultimately

The atmosphere of the stadium adds a lot to these games
 
Cleveland has cardboard cutouts of fans as well as fake crowd noise on the broadcast (they also have a recording of the drum that plays in the outfield). I don't think the crowd adds anything for watching a broadcast, in person it is totally different. I also usually just have the game on in the background with low volume and don't really sit there and watch it.

There is already a major covid outbreak on the Marlins (11 out of 33 players) that is causing multiple games to be postponed. Hopefully it is just a single occurrence, I don't see how MLB could continue if it happens more than a few times. I don't think the Marlins had a good chance of going to the World Series anyway but losing that many players for weeks of the very short season would pretty much destroy any teams chances.
 
Aurelius said:
From what I've seen of European soccer matches (Premier League, Serie A and the like), you want something to make the stadium seem... well, non-empty.

In a few cases, there have been games with zero attempts to fake seating or provide some kind of background fan-like sound. It ends up being very weird, as it's eerily quiet aside from the players shouting and the ball hitting the net.
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So, basically a typical modern NBA game.
 
Dermen said:
There is already a major covid outbreak on the Marlins (11 out of 33 players) that is causing multiple games to be postponed. Hopefully it is just a single occurrence, I don't see how MLB could continue if it happens more than a few times. I don't think the Marlins had a good chance of going to the World Series anyway but losing that many players for weeks of the very short season would pretty much destroy any teams chances.
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The MLSisBack tournament being held in Orlando atm had postponements because of positive tests. At the start it was rampant but it seems to have died down a little though

ESPN has had multiple feeds up, with and without added crowd noise. They both have language disclaimers at the top of the broadcast with the commentators trying to talk over the players when they feel something wild might go over live air

I believe it's because the league's are afraid of what the public will think about the language on the field. I'm not a baseball guy but I'm assuming that organizations like the MLB for example don't want little Timmy hearing the modern day equivalent of A-Rod telling an umpire to go fuck himself
 
This will be interesting to see what teams start to phone it in. That's a job, they get paid to do it, but the cheering and adoration keeps a lot of Egos afloat......you'll start to see who's there to work, and who's there primarily for the fame and glory....Athletes versus Entertainers.
 
HeadRusch said:
This will be interesting to see what teams start to phone it in. That's a job, they get paid to do it, but the cheering and adoration keeps a lot of Egos afloat......you'll start to see who's there to work, and who's there primarily for the fame and glory....Athletes versus Entertainers.
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Sports is entertainment. So athletes are entertainers. Pretty much since the first olympics, Its to entertain a crowd. Ask the Romans :)
 
I feel like I know why they are doing it to make people watching at home kinda forget there is a pandemic happening. I personally dont want the crowds or broadcast sounds and just want to watch the games. Will get to hear more from the players and coaches without all the background noise now.
 
Could you imagine how odd it has to be for the players? Think how noisy a baseball/football game gets. Also I hope this is better then the creepy fake cutouts they had
 
tunatime said:
Could you imagine how odd it has to be for the players? Think how noisy a baseball/football game gets. Also I hope this is better then the creepy fake cutouts they had
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It would be pretty weird for them too, but they would at least be somewhat used to since they typically practice without an audience.
 
Dermen said:
Cleveland has cardboard cutouts of fans as well as fake crowd noise on the broadcast (they also have a recording of the drum that plays in the outfield). I don't think the crowd adds anything for watching a broadcast, in person it is totally different. I also usually just have the game on in the background with low volume and don't really sit there and watch it.

There is already a major covid outbreak on the Marlins (11 out of 33 players) that is causing multiple games to be postponed. Hopefully it is just a single occurrence, I don't see how MLB could continue if it happens more than a few times. I don't think the Marlins had a good chance of going to the World Series anyway but losing that many players for weeks of the very short season would pretty much destroy any teams chances.
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that's what the A's are doing as well.. if a ball hits your cardboard cut out they'll mail you the ball. also they're allowing you to have pictures of your animals and donating the money from that to ARF. it's weird seeing it but honestly it's necessary.. hearing a completely silent stadium on the broadcast would be unwatchable for me and i can't imagine how weird it feels for the players trying to play a game that actually has some importance.
 
they should just setup hundreds of monitors with speakers and then we can buy tickets to "face time" into our bought digital space and then you can see my face on a seat there screaming and doing whatever elicit activities that will be caught on camera for the adoring public who are watching the game on live/streaming T.V.
 
Baseball is as boring as golf, virtual fans seems about right. No fans would be even better.

As a culture, we need a better excuse to get publicly drunk than sitting for hours on hard benches or seats and eating and drinking overpriced garbage and trying to watch tiny players on a far away field that we would be able to see much better at home.

Not sure what it is... But pro sports stadiums are stupid and a huge waste of money.
 
Darth Ender said:
Baseball is as boring as golf, virtual fans seems about right. No fans would be even better.

As a culture, we need a better excuse to get publicly drunk than sitting for hours on hard benches or seats and eating and drinking overpriced garbage and trying to watch tiny players on a far away field that we would be able to see much better at home.

Not sure what it is... But pro sports stadiums are stupid and a huge waste of money.
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It really primitive...and absurdly disconnected.

In old days, people would wear the colors of their tribe when going figthing another tribe.

Now people still wear the colors of their "tribe"...but they do not participate.
They sit, drunken and lazy, pretending that they are part of the "battle", telling themselves they are a "part" of it.
While watching players, that have NO clue who they are, do something...spectators always confuses me...claiming a part of somethi g they have no part in.

My life is to short to be a spectator 🤷‍♂️
 
JustinC said:
It may not be a waste of time. Watching crowds that run and roar in the stadium are necessary to feel the game.
CGI graphics have come a long way to put virtual people in the video to improve the sellability of the game.
These would be the beginning of the new era in gaming with a virtual presence.
Click to expand...
This is how I know the game itself is boring.... When people need the fans to get excited to even watch ;).

Ps. I don't/can't watch baseball because it's to slow paced for me. I was half joking above, but half not joking about it being slow and needing more interaction to keep it interesting.
 
holy shit... Professional sports are turning into video games slowly... Honestly all professional sports should be cancelled this year... this whole year needs to be cancelled.
 
Maybe I’m thinking outside the box here but shouldn’t the goal be getting paying customers into the seats? The only time I watch baseball is YouTube highlight reels of the World Series.

They are paying money to make it seem like they have more fanfare. It almost seems like they are buying followers on Twitter or something.

Installing VR into seating makes more sense but even that would cost a huge amount.
 
next-Jin said:
Maybe I’m thinking outside the box here but shouldn’t the goal be getting paying customers into the seats?
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I guess the TV/online viewer ratings (& the ad revenue) are more important than tickets sold
 
Kind of interesting how a sporting event cannot exist without a stadium. The empty stands are reality. Somehow, that is unacceptable.
 
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