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  • CGNetworks Feature :: Artist Profile
    Frank DeLise – A 3D Journey
    Lisa Thurston, 21 December 2004

    CGNetworks interviews Frank DeLise, General Manager of Digital Illusions CE and creator of the popular Battlefield 1942 mod Desert Combat. Formerly a product manager at Discreet involved in the development of 3ds max, DeLise has worked his way from amateur 3D enthusiast to a renowned figure in the games industry.

    Motivated by the lack of and potential for more realistic and engaging games (and gaming engines), DeLise tells the story of how Desert Combat came about and the company it spawned. As a member of the advisory board for the new digital art book ELEMENTAL, he also talks to CGNetworks about the state of the 3D art today.

    CGN: How did you start in CG and where has it taken you?

    DeLise: I started in the field of 3D graphics at college in 1990. I learned 3D Studio DOS and spent every waking moment refining my knowledge and creating tons of 3D images that I posted to CompuServe at the time. By constantly publishing my images on the web, I quickly became know as one of the early 3D graphic artists, who were somewhat scarce at that time.

    I was offered a job out of college to work for Computer Associates to model a virtual reality networking solution (which still exists today). In 1995, I joined Autodesk as an Application Engineer for the eastern seaboard at AutoDesk Multimedia. Two years into the job, I was promoted to Product Designer for 3ds max, then to Product Manager for 3dstwo years later. During this time I worked on various projects ranging from commercials for Nickelodeon, games like Wetlands and even film credits for Lost in Space. It was an amazing experience for me. I got to travel the world as well and visit many game studios and film studios. I was able to help refine their workflows and build custom tools. This is where I was able to pick up a lot of knowledge on how different studios worked. I was even able to get several patents under my belt in the field of computer graphics.

    After seven years with Autodesk/Discreet, I decided to move on and joined a startup called RTzen to help design next-generation real-time shading technology for a gaming engine called RT/Shader. During this period I spent my nights reverse-engineering game engines to see how they worked, and designing the game I'd always wanted to make. Basically I wanted a fast-paced modern military game that had land, sea and air vehicles all in one multi-player environment. The first product of this process was Desert Combat, built on the Battlefield 1942 engine. I decided to release a new version every 45 days and to add people to the project as I needed them. Desert Combat swiftly became a project with over twenty contributors and over 3 million cumulative downloads – a pleasant surprise.

    To protect the assets I formed Trauma Studios, and as Desert Combat became more popular I decided to make Trauma my full time job. Trauma Studios was based in New York City in the west village with eleven employees and several projects in the works. We worked on projects with EA and Digital Illusions CE (DICE) including mod tools as well as contracts with the military and R&D for Battlefield 2 from EA and DICE.

    In September this year, Digital Illusions CE, the makers of Battlefield 1942 and many other games, acquired Trauma Studios. I then became the General Manager of Digital Illusions New York. We are now working on new projects based on the Battlefield 2 engine and we are growing quickly.







    Desert Combat screen shots© Trauma Studios







  • Desert Combat screen shots© Trauma Studios

    CGN: What have been your influences, mentors and inspiration along the way?

    DeLise: My major inspiration was designing cars, but when I saw Tin Toy in 89, I decided that was what I really wanted to do. At that time, it was nearly impossible to get into the field since computers for 3D cost over US$100,000... Thank god for 3D Studios in 1990.

    CGN: In recent years, we've seen an explosion of digital art and design, new digital art/design techniques and technologies. What do you think this means for the direction of the 3D industry?

    DeLise: Well for us, better artists means better-looking games. I'm all for that! I want to make the experience as real as possible while combining that with fun gameplay. In reality, it's getting harder to find great artists for gaming. The days of low-polygon characters barely exist and we demand a lot more from character artists now than in the past. You need to build detailed normal maps out of high-res characters, higher end content all the way around. In general, tool providers need to increase the workflow. Currently artists are starting to work longer hours because the content is getting harder to make, but the tools are starting to slow in pace and are becoming bloated.

    CGN: You were product manager for 3ds max – how is new 3D software and software innovation impacting on the industry and the state of the art?

    DeLise: Well without 3ds max, I would likely not be in the position I am now. It made it possible for me and many of my employees to actually get into this field. The fact that 3D software is getting cheaper is great, but I hope they can keep up the pace of workflow innovation.

    And it mostly definitely frees the people who are artistic, but do not have the skills to wield a paint brush. I myself feel I am very imaginative, but I am also not that great at painting. 3D has allowed me to express my ideas like never before. 3D is only a tool; you still need to be an artist to make anything interesting.

    CGN: What made you redo Battlefield 1942?

    DeLise: Basically, I wanted to create a fast paced modern military game. The whole experience was very gratifying since I was able to fulfil my dream of making a game and also the gratification of driving and flying my models – and of course, blowing them up!

    CGN: What were your favorite parts in developing it?

    DeLise: My favorite part was definitely driving or flying my own creations. It's a lot better then making something really cool and then watching your computer render it over night. Make it, then start flying it in real-time. Then it became exciting to grab talent in the community and help them learn how to build a fun game. Many of them grew so much in experience while creating Desert Combat . We had contributors ranging from 14 to 34 years old!

    CGN: Most challenging elements?

    DeLise: Reverse engineering Battlefield 1942. There were no tools or documentation. In fact, we built the tools and documentation that all Battlefield 1942 modders use today.

    CGN: What advice would you give to those with high aspirations, starting a career in 3D?

    DeLise: For me, showing your work is really important. Always take criticism as positive, learn from it and make it better. Always act professional on forums and to others. It only helps build a network of 3D friends who you can learn from.


    Related Links
    Frank DeLise's website
    Desert Combat
    Trauma Studios
    Digital Illusions CE
    ELEMENTAL digital art book

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