I don't have a registered version (yet) but I would like to put my idea out there if anyone wants to do it. My idea is an animation of the evolution of a planet, starting a molten, lava like planet then cooling; then having growth and water then an ice age then the recession of an ice age. I think it would look cool (if not being really complex) and it could be done provided the correct application of fractals and the creation of an atmosphere could be done by increasing the slider of the haze and blue sky density after a certain point and having it level off after the "world" had been created. Anyway I though it was worth mentioning.
regards,
Will
That sounds like a good idea,
This should be saved until we get the final, optimized release latter this year. Also for your idea about the "Ice Age" phase of the planet to work properly I would want to have Sub-Surface Scattering so that the ice looked real (What would also be nice is if TG2 would let you do the internal cracking and fracturing you get in that type of ice from the immense pressures involved in its creation, what would also be nice is if you could have the air bubbles you see in ice, these contribute to the look of that kind of ice).
I have reasons for asking for this stuff, Micro-Detail is an important part of every day life, we just accept that it is there but our brain to prevent information overload filters some it out however if you have this detail missing (Like in a CGI image) some thing dose not quite feel right, but you don't know precisely what it is; in other words your brain misses it by its absence, these things may seem minor or trivial but thats the difference between the real world and CGI, CGI is ordered and clean (To Clean in fact) and the real world is random and messy some thing that is hard to get computers to do.
I think that one day that this animation will be possible, but for now should be held off till the final commercial version of TG2 comes out.
Regards to you.
Cyber-Angel
Yes its defiantly is a project for the future but an interesting concept non the less (sp?) As for micro detail its interesting I recently took a lecture at MIT's SPLASH program on how the brain processes information and it is a fascinating subject. a bit off my topic but its actually quite easy to planet false memories in other's minds. But anyway I like the idea of frozen bubbles and ice fractures the later of which I believe could be done today with some clever function use. The hardest part I think would be the recession and melting of the ice as it would require a rather smooth transition even if it was a brief one (considering the time scale). Also erosion would be difficult although who knows what will changes in the time before final release.