What are the PC specifications required for game development? Three CyberAgent CG artists verify the mouse computer DAIV!

[PR] Nowadays, various games are being developed on various platforms such as smartphones, dedicated game machines, and even PCs. I think many people are aspiring to develop games, but the question of "what kind of PC do you need?" Is an annoying problem. Therefore, this time, three cyber agent CG artists who develop a wide range of games, from light works that can be enjoyed casually to high-end works that are particular about visuals, verified the desktop PC "DAIV Z7" for mouse computer creators. We asked them to compare them with the PCs they mainly use, and to explore their performance, usability, and other attractiveness.

What are the PC specs that are important in game development?

CyberAgent is responsible for the development and operation of various games, and also holds a contest "CG Grand Prix" 3D Cross "powered by CyberAgent" (hereinafter referred to as "3D Cross") aimed at discovering young 3D designers. There are 13 subsidiaries responsible for application development, and three of them mainly deal with 3D titles. This time, we conducted the verification with the cooperation of Mr. Takahiro Murakami and Mr. Yusuke Ota of App Pod, and Mr. Atsushi Nagoya of Griffon. Mr. Eupou specializes in effects, and is in charge of effects for new projects at Applibot. He usually uses Unity's standard particle tool "Shuriken" to create effects, and he also edits videos using After Effects. As a case of utilizing video, for example, when adding a special move effect in a game battle scene, there is a technique of synthesizing the effect in real time at the beginning and then "combining short videos" without discomfort "" in the middle. That thing. This will enable "richer production" and "do not exceed capacity" for a short period of time.

Mr. Takahiro Eupou

Applibot Senior Effects Artist

Mr. Ota specializes in environment, and in addition to the background leader of "NieR Re [in] carnation", he is also the leader of the background team of Approbot. He usually uses Maya and Substance Painter to "create fairly photorealistic visual-based content." Also, although Mr. Ota himself does not use it, he says that he is "working with ZBrush and Unity for output" internally.

Yusuke Ota

Applibot 3D Environment Artist

Mr. Nagoya, a 3D animator, is in charge of directing 3D character motion design and camera work. Again, Maya is used for the main work, and Maya and Unity are used for camera work. All three are specialists who serve as judges for 3D Cross in each department. Regarding the selection criteria for the PCs that each person usually uses, Mr. Eupou first mentioned "GPU" based on work efficiency. In fact, the PC currently used by Mr. Eupou has added a graphics board (about 150,000 yen), which is the same price as the base body, later. He added, "It doesn't matter if the capacity is small, so it would be nice to have a high-speed SSD" for caching in After Effects.

Atsushi Nagoya

Griffon Chief 3D Animator

Mr. Ota feels that "baking and rendering of lightmaps is a heavy load" in his usual work, so considering that point, "the priority of CPU and GPU is high". He added that the speed of rendering and preview is "the faster the better". On the other hand, as an environment artist, he "is conscious of checking every detail", so he also touched on the importance of "4K compatible display". Mr. Nagoya, who handles a large amount of video data, also thinks that "GPU", which greatly affects drawing speed, is important, but in addition, he answered, "I want memory as it is." In addition, since files such as characters drawn in detail "take a long time to open", "SSD" that can speed up file reading and software startup is also "ideally installed". "Target". While holding down these points, this time, Mr. Eupou, Mr. Ota, and Mr. Nagoya conducted a test based on the actual work of 3D game development. We asked them to check the performance of the DAIV Z7 and other points of concern other than the specifications, while comparing it with the PCs they usually use.

Comparison of equipment composition between verification machine "DAIV 7" and usual artists

This time, using the mouse computer "DAIV Z7", Mr. Eupou, Mr. Ota, and Mr. Nagoya conducted different verifications. Based on that, I asked them to compare it with the PC they use for their daily work. DAIV Z7 is equipped with Intel's desktop CPU "Intel Core i7-11700 processor" and middle class GPU "GeForce RTX 3060". The Intel Core i7-11700 processor is the 11th generation high-end model that appeared in 2021, and has high performance with specifications of 8 cores and 16 threads, a basic clock of 2.50 GHz, and a maximum clock of 4.90 GHz when using turbo boost. In addition, the memory is 32GB, and the storage is a dual configuration with NVMe connection 512GB SSD and 2TB HDD. On the other hand, the PCs of Mr. Eupou and Mr. Nagoya are desktop PCs that were introduced about two to three years ago. Although it has high specifications as a whole, it tends to be equipped with a higher performance GPU because "there was a tendency to emphasize GPU" (Mr. Eupou) from that time. In addition, Mr. Ota's PC is a little special, and due to the remote work caused by Korona-ka, he is currently using the 17-inch notebook PC introduced in 2020. The price at the time of purchase is over 400,000 yen, and it has quite high performance even though it is a notebook PC.

Mr. Eupou's current machine

Mr. Ota's current machine

Mr. Nagoya's current machine

Verification 1: Verification using After Effects, Maya, and Unity

Mr. Eupou used data with about 10,000 particles and performed operations assuming actual work with Unity and After Effects. It seems that Unity was able to work normally without feeling sluggish, "the processing using the trap code was no problem, and the preview of the cache was fast." In addition, After Effects also felt fast on the preview screen for particle generation and rendering, and I liked it as "easier to work than I imagined." Mr. Ota used the dragon modeling used in 3D Cross (produced by 3D concept artist Keita Okada who served as a special judge) and verified it with ZBrush. When I displayed the data in a sculpt and made various adjustments, it worked very quickly, and even when I changed the angle of the camera, "I felt that it was quick to respond and faster than the one I was using." ZBrush has a big influence on the performance of the CPU, so it is analyzed that "the performance of the CPU has appeared in usability". Mr. Nagoya also used 3D Cross dragon modeling, and verified the performance with Maya. Even when the work was re-applied to a large-sized texture, "there was no big catch that was particularly worrisome," and the camera rotation was smooth and there was no processing loss. Furthermore, when I tested the model with a smooth application and a high load (it is said that it will be about 4 times higher), I was impressed with its ability, saying, "Although a warning is given, it worked unexpectedly."

Verification 2: Evaluation other than performance

Other than the performance, all three people paid attention to the excellent design of the housing. Mr. Eupou liked the dial-type power supply design, Mr. Ota liked the space on the bottom that was conscious of cooling performance, and Mr. Nagoya also said, "The appearance was so good that I really wanted it." Told me. Mr. Ota also pays attention to guarantees such as "24 hours x 365 days telephone support" that can be used as standard. For example, if you are a student and you are working at 3 o'clock in the middle of the night and your PC crashes, there is a possibility that you will be at a loss while turning pale. At that time, he added, "I'm sure it will be a reassuring ally" if there is such a generous support system.

"DAIV Z7" will be a good partner in an era when young people can directly express their sensibilities.

In this verification, Mr. Eupou, Mr. Ota, and Mr. Nagoya firmly experienced the excellent ability of DAIV Z7. Based on the price of 200,000 yen, it is highly evaluated as "a desktop PC in the middle" (Mr. Ota) for creators, and "a level that can be used even in the field" (Mr. Eupou). I pressed the taiko stamp. Furthermore, due to its high cost performance, DAIV Z7 proposes that "it can be a" good partner "" when students and beginners challenge 3D CG. In the olden days, there were many cases where the performance and price of hardware became a barrier to the challenge, so people who aspire to be CG artists "have become a good time to directly express their sensibilities," says Mr. Eupou. He said, hoping that more young people would challenge the world to CG.

inquiry

Mouse Computer Co., Ltd. TEL (corporation): 03-6833-1041 (Weekdays: 9:00 to 12:00 / 13:00 to 18:00, Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays: 9:00 to 20:00) TEL (Individual): 03-6833-1010 (9:00 to 20:00) www.mouse-jp.co.jp/creator/

TEXT_Toshinari Kondo (spool) PHOTO_Mitsuru Hirota