Creating gameplay video from Corona Simulator?

General (non-technical) Marketing and Monetization
#1

Hello,

I’ve been tying to get some sample video footage of my game ready because it seems like a short gameplay video is absolutely necessary these days! As a result, in recording my video, i’ve simply used QuickTime screen capture to record from the Corona Simulator!

  1. I was wondering if in your opinion (as both as a developer and as a gamer) if this is acceptable, because i’m not using a real device? i.e. the gameplay is not from a real device, would this bother you?

  2. How “un-professional” would it be if in the video you see the mouse pointer?! Is there a way to quickly not record the mouse pointer on the simulator or change it to a finger icon?

  3. I find the quality isn’t great when i upload to YouTube - any tips to improve this? Or do i need to move away from QuickTime and Simulator combo and get/buy proper software/apps?

Any other general tips on recording gameplay video welcomed, as this is new to me!

Thanks for reading, cheers!

[import]uid: 175094 topic_id: 36573 reply_id: 336573[/import]

#2

Well I just downloaded sound stage from the app store.

It can screencast simulator only and deals with mouse hiding and is cheap (<5).

It could be a solution for you BUT I also have some questions :

Sound stage uses ios simulator, so :

  • someone can make it work with corona simulator ?

  • how can I run my app on ios simulator ?

(BTW, this app records at max 320*480) do you have anyway to record at 640*960 ?)

Thx [import]uid: 9328 topic_id: 36573 reply_id: 145562[/import]

#3

Thanks for the reply back! So i have been playing around using my approach of quicktime to screen record from the corona simulator, after which i upload to youtube and it kind of works for me - at least i feel the end result is good enough for a short gameplay video.

You can see the mouse but i think - hope - its not too bad. Viewing the recorded video on my laptop is acceptable ish in terms of quality although on the ipad and iphone its not bad.

I may post the video later for feedback to see what you guys think!

But for now, this approach works - if a little long-winded… [import]uid: 175094 topic_id: 36573 reply_id: 145702[/import]

#4

if you are on windows fraps is a good tool for this, you can choose to show or hide the pointer

http://fraps.com [import]uid: 118333 topic_id: 36573 reply_id: 145713[/import]

#5

that’s pretty much what i do for my videos. lol, i was just searching around to try and change the mouse icon to a hand icon last night, to no avail.  but i just try and clear off my desktop, record the video then add in some music & titles in imovie.  the videos i’ve made for my apps have had enough views that i’m convinced they’re doing the job.

if i were better at video editing i’m sure i’d fuss with it more, but i have more apps to make! hehe.

#6

CoronaComplete (or what ever their newest incarnation of the program) has a screen capture feature (at least on the Mac not sure about Windows)…

#7

Another good tool is Microsoft Expression Encoder 4, which has a free version with screen capture, edit and encoding (at least to WMV). Easy to use and good options (e.g. trimming, bitrates, fps, mouse on/off/highlight). I recommend getting it now just in case since MS has discontinued the product line.

#8

@boss1 - I’ve heard about fraps but never used it although I’ve now moved over to the apple ecosystem (my windows laptop is knackered) @batgirl - from my current samples I’ve uploaded to YouTube (still private) the quality is ok ish… On the desktop it doesn’t look great but on iPad and iPhone its not bad. It’ll do for now, I guess it’s more to provide a sample of what to expect from the game/app… And I find the mouse pointer isn’t too distracting on the screen. Also to record the sound from the game/app using quicktime I’ve use sound flower app rather than then editing and add sound separately…

#9

Well I just downloaded sound stage from the app store.

It can screencast simulator only and deals with mouse hiding and is cheap (<5).

It could be a solution for you BUT I also have some questions :

Sound stage uses ios simulator, so :

  • someone can make it work with corona simulator ?

  • how can I run my app on ios simulator ?

(BTW, this app records at max 320*480) do you have anyway to record at 640*960 ?)

Thx [import]uid: 9328 topic_id: 36573 reply_id: 145562[/import]

#10

Thanks for the reply back! So i have been playing around using my approach of quicktime to screen record from the corona simulator, after which i upload to youtube and it kind of works for me - at least i feel the end result is good enough for a short gameplay video.

You can see the mouse but i think - hope - its not too bad. Viewing the recorded video on my laptop is acceptable ish in terms of quality although on the ipad and iphone its not bad.

I may post the video later for feedback to see what you guys think!

But for now, this approach works - if a little long-winded… [import]uid: 175094 topic_id: 36573 reply_id: 145702[/import]

#11

if you are on windows fraps is a good tool for this, you can choose to show or hide the pointer

http://fraps.com [import]uid: 118333 topic_id: 36573 reply_id: 145713[/import]

#12

that’s pretty much what i do for my videos. lol, i was just searching around to try and change the mouse icon to a hand icon last night, to no avail.  but i just try and clear off my desktop, record the video then add in some music & titles in imovie.  the videos i’ve made for my apps have had enough views that i’m convinced they’re doing the job.

if i were better at video editing i’m sure i’d fuss with it more, but i have more apps to make! hehe.

#13

CoronaComplete (or what ever their newest incarnation of the program) has a screen capture feature (at least on the Mac not sure about Windows)…

#14

Another good tool is Microsoft Expression Encoder 4, which has a free version with screen capture, edit and encoding (at least to WMV). Easy to use and good options (e.g. trimming, bitrates, fps, mouse on/off/highlight). I recommend getting it now just in case since MS has discontinued the product line.

#15

@boss1 - I’ve heard about fraps but never used it although I’ve now moved over to the apple ecosystem (my windows laptop is knackered) @batgirl - from my current samples I’ve uploaded to YouTube (still private) the quality is ok ish… On the desktop it doesn’t look great but on iPad and iPhone its not bad. It’ll do for now, I guess it’s more to provide a sample of what to expect from the game/app… And I find the mouse pointer isn’t too distracting on the screen. Also to record the sound from the game/app using quicktime I’ve use sound flower app rather than then editing and add sound separately…

#16

I’ve made some of the gameplay videos public on YouTube, which you can view here - http://www.youtube.com/appvism

Looking at this again on my MacBook, the quality (and framerate) is a little poor - although when i view it on an iDevice it looks ok.

In your opinion, would you keep and continue using these videos as marketing/website collateral for your game and app or would you consider re-doing them? One or two of them i find to be extra blurry/jumpy… Also, i find the mouse pointer shown in the videos isn’t too distracting personally…

Thanks,

#17

I just had a great idea: Draw a finger-like picture in place of the mouse cursor. I’m using QuickTime on a Mac to record and I’m sure that this will work great. I’ll update once I actually made a video with that.

#18

I’ve made some of the gameplay videos public on YouTube, which you can view here - http://www.youtube.com/appvism

Looking at this again on my MacBook, the quality (and framerate) is a little poor - although when i view it on an iDevice it looks ok.

In your opinion, would you keep and continue using these videos as marketing/website collateral for your game and app or would you consider re-doing them? One or two of them i find to be extra blurry/jumpy… Also, i find the mouse pointer shown in the videos isn’t too distracting personally…

Thanks,

#19

I just had a great idea: Draw a finger-like picture in place of the mouse cursor. I’m using QuickTime on a Mac to record and I’m sure that this will work great. I’ll update once I actually made a video with that.

#20

I’m not sure if anyone else agrees with me, but I have noticed these days that the video quality of many apps - such as trailer videos or gameplay videos - seem to be of a higher standard and quality. There are some really professional looking videos to promote the app/game in question, it is quite impressive!

Mines in comparison, albeit as a first timer and without the specialised software, look a little amateur-ish and poor…