Animated Briefing – Arma 3
Overview
The Animated Briefing framework allows you to create a briefing using the in-game map which features timeline-based, animated events such as moving markers, blinking markers, zooming, and other marker-related features.
Features
- Easy to setup
- Timeline based
- Can be easily synced to music or dialogs
- Skippable
Functionality
The standard map is used as the platform. Standard markers are placed on the map using some kind of animations. Showing, hiding, canceling, moving and stretching markers is done by set of functions which are part of the briefing's framework. The briefing can be easily synced to dialogs, such as a leader explaining a plan, or to music.
Systems
BIS_fnc_TO_AnimatedBriefing
- Enhanced version of the BIS_fnc_eventTimeline function
- Does the work with the event timeline simpler and get the start of the briefings consistent
- It does the initial setup
- speaker setup
- black-out / black-in
- opens the map
- starts the event timeline by calling BIS_fnc_eventTimeline function
- holdKey setup (for skipping the briefing)
Parameters
Parameter | Description |
---|---|
timeline | 2D ARRAY: see BIS_fnc_eventTimeline |
pointer | NUMBER: see BIS_fnc_eventTimeline |
music | (OPTIONAL) - STRING: music to be played at the start of the briefings. Timeline events will be synced to music |
hideMarkers | (OPTIONAL) - ARRAY: if passed, markers are hidden before starting the briefing and at the end of the briefing |
showMarkers | (OPTIONAL) - ARRAY: array of markers which will be shown after the briefing has ended |
endPosition | (OPTIONAL) - STRING: marker used for determining position and size of camera at the end of the briefing |
canCloseMap | (OPTIONAL) - BOOL: value that determines whether or not the player will be able to close the map after the briefing is over |
endUserCode | (OPTIONAL) - CODE: code to be executed at the end of the briefing |
BIS_fnc_eventTimeline
- Essential system of the Animated Briefings, but the function can be used for different purposes
- It executes the code fragments at given time (keyframes)
- It can play the events from start or from a defined position (index)
- It can be interrupted from outside
- user defined code can be executed onInterrupt or onFinished
Parameters
Parameter | Description |
---|---|
timeline | 2D ARRAY: array with keyframes and code to be activated at a certain time |
pointer | NUMBER: where to start playing (index) |
music | (OPTIONAL) - STRING: music to be played which will provide the sync time for the timeline |
codeInterrupt | (OPTIONAL) - CODE: code to be executed if the timeline is interrupted (missionNamespace setVariable ["BIS_fnc_eventTimeline_play", FALSE]) |
codeStop | (OPTIONAL) - CODE or ARRAY: code or array of codes to be executed once the timeline is finshed. The codes are CALLed one after the other. |
Usage
Setup
A few things need to be prepared before calling the Animated Briefing function:
- Timeline
- A timeline is a multi-dimensional array in which each element consists of a time (represented by a number) and an event (a piece of code).
- The timeline starts counting from 0 when it is created.
- When the time specified in a timeline's element has elapsed, its relative event is spawned.
- The timeline stops once it reaches the last element. The last element's code can also be empty if you're just using the element as an ending point.
- The timeline can be kept in a separate file and included using #include "timelineFile.sqf"; within the file calling the briefing.
private _timeline = [ [ 0, { [markerSize "BIS_SF_zoom0", markerPos "BIS_SF_zoom0", 0, nil, true] spawn BIS_fnc_zoomOnArea; [(getMissionLayerEntities "g_showAtEnd") select 1, 0, true] spawn BIS_fnc_showMarkerArray; sleep 0.5; [markerSize "BIS_SF_zoom1", markerPos "BIS_SF_zoom1", 3, nil, true] spawn BIS_fnc_zoomOnArea; } ], [ 1.5, { ["to_c02_m01_003_br_sf_briefing_c_GUARDIAN_0", "GUARDIAN", BIS_fnc_AnimatedBriefing_speaker1] spawn BIS_fnc_TO_playSoundAndSubtitles; ["BIS_SF_specialArea", 2] spawn BIS_fnc_showMarker; } ], [ 8.2, { ["to_c02_m01_003_br_sf_briefing_c_GUARDIAN_1", "GUARDIAN", BIS_fnc_AnimatedBriefing_speaker1] spawn BIS_fnc_TO_playSoundAndSubtitles; _arrayTemp = ["BIS_SF_question_"] call BIS_fnc_getMarkers; [_arrayTemp, 8, false] spawn BIS_fnc_showMarkerArray; } ], [ 12, {} ] ];
- Array of markers to be hidden
- Array of markers that will be hidden both at the start of the briefing and at the end.
- You can use allMapMarkers to hide every marker.
- Array of markers to be shown at the end of the Briefing
- Array of markers that will be shown at the end of the briefing.
- Markers that are manually shown during timeline events should also be included, as skipping the briefing before those events occur won't show them if they aren't.
- Markers can be organized into layers to facilitate the usage of the Animated Briefing function.
- To show the contents of the "showAtEnd" layers at the end of the Briefing, you can use the following code when calling the Animated Briefing function: To show a list of markers when the briefing starts, retrieve and show them in the first element of the timeline at 0 seconds as shown below:
[ _timeline, 0, nil, allMapMarkers, (getMissionLayerEntities "showAtEnd") select 1, "BIS_markerh_Zoom_final"] spawn BIS_fnc_TO_AnimatedBriefing;
private _timeline = [ [ 0, { [(getMissionLayerEntities "showAtStart") select 1, 0, true] spawn BIS_fnc_showMarkerArray; } ], ...
- To show the contents of the "showAtEnd" layers at the end of the Briefing, you can use the following code when calling the Animated Briefing function:
- Camera size and position at the end of the Briefing
- Position and size the camera will jump to at the end of the briefing
- This helps ensure that the camera will be in the same position when the briefing ends both if the player watches through or skips the Briefing.
- Rectangle markers can be used to make it easier to find the right position and size.
Starting the Briefing
The Animated Briefing can be started by calling the function BIS_fnc_TO_AnimatedBriefing. Once called, the briefing starts right away.
//timeline of events
_timeline =
[
[0.0, {hint "Start of the Timeline"} ],
[1.0, {hint "Event 1"} ],
[3.0, {hint "End of the timeline"} ]
];
//get markers to be shown at end by using the layer's name
private _showMarkers = (getMissionLayerEntities "showAtEnd") select 1;
//start the Animated Briefing at index 0
//hide all markers and show the markers from the "showAtEnd" layer after the briefing is done
//zoom on marker_rect_1 at the end of the briefing
[_timeline, 0, nil, allMapMarkers, _showMarkers, "marker_rect_1"] spawn BIS_fnc_TO_AnimatedBriefing;
Notes:
- The briefing can be started from a different keyframe (by passing the pointer/index), which is helpful in the development/testing phase.
- The briefing can be interrupted by setting a variable missionNamespace setVariable ["BIS_fnc_eventTimeline_play", false]
Synchronizing a timeline to dialogues
Dialogues can be easily synchronized to events. This can be achieved by following these steps:
- Open your dialog audio file or files in an audio editing software
- Organize/place them as you would like to hear them.
- Waiting roughly 1.5 seconds before playing any dialogue is recommended as there is a slow fade in at the beginning of the Animated Briefing.
- Write down the starting times of each one of your dialogues or, alternatively, create labels and place them at the beginning of each dialogue and then export them.
- Create an .sqf file with a timeline array using these times (in seconds).
- Use the following example to create a timeline:
private _timeline = [ [ 1.5, { } ], [ 8.2, { } ], [ 12, {} ] ];
- Set up audio files so they can be played from the timeline.
- Set them up in the CfgSounds class.
class CfgSounds { //Little Hope Mission 02 class to_c01_m02_brief_01 { sound[] = {"\a3\Dubbing_F_Tacops\Briefings\to_c01_m02\to_c01_m02_brief_01.ogg", db+3,1}; titles[] = {}; }; class to_c01_m02_brief_02 { sound[] = {"\a3\Dubbing_F_Tacops\Briefings\to_c01_m02\to_c01_m02_brief_02.ogg", db+3,1}; titles[] = {}; }; class to_c01_m02_brief_03 { sound[] = {"\a3\Dubbing_F_Tacops\Briefings\to_c01_m02\to_c01_m02_brief_03.ogg", db+3,1}; titles[] = {}; }; ... };
- Set them up in the CfgSounds class.
- Add commands to play the dialogs in the timeline you just created.
- It is recommended to use BIS_fnc_playSoundAndSubtitles or say2D.
- Note that the Animated Briefing functions creates two speaker objects, BIS_fnc_AnimatedBriefing_speaker1 and BIS_fnc_AnimatedBriefing_speaker2, which should be used to play dialogues or SFX pertaining the Animated Briefing.
["to_c01_m01_brief_002_br_briefing_b_OLYMPOS_0", "OLYMPOS", BIS_fnc_AnimatedBriefing_speaker1] call BIS_fnc_TO_playSoundAndSubtitles;
- Add a final element to the timeline array with the ending time.
Once you're done with creating the timeline, you can add commands (e.g.: moving/showing/resizing markers) to the existing timeline elements to have them synchronized with the dialogs.
Map and Marker Functions
Name | Description | Parameters | Returns | Example |
---|---|---|---|---|
BIS_fnc_zoomOnArea | Rectangular area markers can be used as the parameter. |
|
||
BIS_fnc_shakeMap | "Camera shake" function for the map. Shakes the map for a given amount of time with a given amount of force around the given camera center. |
|
[2,20,getMarkerPos "BIS_markerExtraction0"] call BIS_fnc_shakeMap; | |
BIS_fnc_shakeMapEH | Event handler function called by the shakeMap function. |
|
||
BIS_fnc_zoomLock | Function that locks the camera in place when the map is open. |
|
[_cameraCenter] call BIS_fnc_zoomLock; | |
BIS_fnc_zoomLockEH | Event handler function for locking the camera. |
|
||
BIS_fnc_zoomUnlock | Function that unlocks the camera in which has been previously locked with BIS_fnc_zoomLock. | [] call BIS_fnc_zoomUnlock; |
Name | Description | Parameters | Returns | Example |
---|---|---|---|---|
BIS_fnc_blinkMarker | Blinks a marker (shows and hides it in sequence) |
|
["BIS_marker", 3, 10] spawn BIS_fnc_blinkMarker; | |
BIS_fnc_getBorderMarkers | Retrieves marker names used in the border restrictions module |
|
_borderMarkers = [] spawn BIS_fnc_getBorderMarkers; | |
BIS_fnc_showMarker | Shows marker. If speed is not passed, the default is used. If final marker is not passed, then marker's alpha is restored to last recorded alpha (i.e.: marker's alpha before it was hidden). |
|
["BIS_marker"] spawn BIS_fnc_showMarker;["BIS_marker",2] spawn BIS_fnc_showMarker; | |
BIS_fnc_hideMarker | Hides marker. If speed is not passed, the default is used. |
|
["BIS_marker"] spawn BIS_fnc_hideMarker; ["BIS_marker",2] spawn BIS_fnc_hideMarker; | |
BIS_fnc_cancelMarker | Places a red "X" marker on top of a specified marker. |
|
["BIS_marker"] spawn BIS_fnc_cancelMarker; ["BIS_marker",2] spawn BIS_fnc_cancelMarker; ["BIS_marker",2,1.5] spawn BIS_fnc_cancelMarker; ["BIS_marker",2,1.5,75] spawn BIS_fnc_cancelMarker; | |
BIS_fnc_rotateMarker | Rotates marker by a given degree (relative or absolute). If speed is not passed, the default is used |
|
["BIS_marker",90] spawn BIS_fnc_rotateMarker; ["BIS_marker",90,false] spawn BIS_fnc_rotateMarker; ["BIS_marker",90,true,1] spawn BIS_fnc_rotateMarker; ["BIS_marker",90,false,2,5] spawn BIS_fnc_rotateMarker; | |
BIS_fnc_moveMarker | Moves marker from point A to point B. Several types of interpolation can be used for the movement. |
|
["BIS_marker",[1111,2222,0]] call BIS_fnc_moveMarker; ["BIS_marker",(getMarkerPos "BIS_marker2"),2] call BIS_fnc_moveMarker; | |
BIS_fnc_resizeMarker | Resize marker to new size. |
|
["BIS_marker",[2,2]] spawn BIS_fnc_resizeMarker; ["BIS_marker",[5,5],5] spawn BIS_fnc_resizeMarker; | |
BIS_fnc_changeColorMarker | Makes the marker go from its original color to a specified color over time. |
|
["BIS_marker",[2,2]] spawn BIS_fnc_resizeMarker; ["BIS_marker",[5,5],5] spawn BIS_fnc_resizeMarker; | |
BIS_fnc_colorMarker | Colors marker using a transition. |
|
["BIS_marker","ColorRed"] spawn BIS_fnc_colorMarker; | |
BIS_fnc_getMarkerState | Get the visibility state of the marker. |
|
|
_state = "BIS_marker" call BIS_fnc_getMarkerState; |
BIS_fnc_showMarkerArray | Shows a set of markers. You can show and hide them sequentially by passing false as the 3rd parameter |
|
[BIS_alphaMovementArray, 3.0, false] spawn BIS_fnc_showMarkers; | |
BIS_fnc_hideMarkerArray | Hide markers over time or instantly. |
|
[_arrayTemp, 2] spawn BIS_fnc_hideMarkerArray; | |
BIS_fnc_getMarkers | Helper function. Gets all markers starting with the prefix passed as parameter |
|
|
_markers = ["BIS_fia_arrow_"] call BIS_fnc_getMarkers; |