How Borderlands 4's Style Was Brought to Life with Vicon's Mocap
Check out how motion capture techniques shaped the expressive performance in Borderlands 4.
Let's continue our journey behind the scenes of various projects and explore the making of Borderlands 4. Vicon, the company behind a cutting-edge motion capture technology, shared how Borderlands' signature energy was brought to life using their next-generation motion capture system and Shōgun's toolset.
According to Vicon, the game's distinctive style is based on the actors' performance with big gestures, expressive silhouettes, and comedic exaggeration. All that was skillfully transferred to gameplay using the studio's high‑fidelity optical system. The technologies ensured full‑body and finger tracking, and high-quality data allowed animators to receive lifelike motion with minimal post‑processing. Such a result helped the team to focus on storytelling rather than fixing errors.
"Anytime we take control of the camera from the player, we have to treat that with respect. We want to be focused on saturation of performance… allow our actors to live and breathe more vividly. Finding that good balance within Borderlands was something that Vicon made possible," says Matthew Ward, Cinematics Director at Gearbox Entertainment.
Vicon
Vicon
Vicon's software Shōgun became the basis for Gearbox's performance pipeline. With the help of automated cleanup, it was possible to reduce manual post‑processing and streamline the creative process. Also, customizable workflows were seamlessly integrated into the pipeline that Gearbox regularly followed.
Vicon
Apart from this, such a feature as automatic retargeting ensured maintaining motion integrity while optimizing labeling, solving, and object tracking. Complex scenes, with the participation of several actors, were crafted using VK16 cameras that ensured precision and graphic fidelity.
If you are interested in learning more about Vicon's technologies, you might take a look at its motion capture setup that combines Shogun and Unreal Engine 5, finger tracking technology, and the company's story and working organization:
It's always fascinating to explore how complex game or film projects were brought to life. To dive deeper into the production of animated media, check out how REANIMAL and Keeper were made, along with multiple inside takes on Zootopia 2: the making of a scene where Nick and Judy eat worms, an animation test of Pawbert Lynxley, and a breakdown of making the film with Maya:
Read more about creating motion capture for Borderlands 4 here and don't forget to subscribe to our Newsletter and join our 80 Level Talent platform, follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Telegram, and Instagram, where we share breakdowns, the latest news, awesome artworks, and more.
