History Main / LiveActionCutscene

* ''VideoGameDeepFighter'' employs live-actors over greenscreen backgrounds for its briefing videos. Of note that is that the game was an early acting role for Creator/DavidWalliams..

** ''VideoGame/AlanWakeII'' continues the tradition with live-action footage appearing on in-game [=TVs=] and projected films. This is utilized to {{Mind Screw}}-y effect during Alan's portions of the game, which has some screens that need to be interacted with in order to progress, replacing the gameplay with the video, and turning the in-game Alan that the player was just controlling into the live-action one.

* ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'' often used live-action stock footage in its (in)famously long-winded cutscenes about real-world issues.

** ''VideoGame/AlanWakeII'' continues the tradition with live-action footage appearing on in-game [=TVs=], projected films, and in visions, akin to the hotline calls in the studio's previous effort, ''VideoGame/{{Control}}''. This is utilized to {{Mind Screw}}-y effect during Alan's portions of the game, which has some screens that need to be interacted with in order to progress, replacing the gameplay with the video, and turning the in-game Alan that the player was just controlling into the live-action one.

** ''VideoGame/AlanWakeII'' continues the tradition with live-action footage appearing on in-game [=TVs=] and projected films. This is utilized to {{Mind Screw}}-y effect during Alan's portions of the game, which has some screens that need to be interacted with in order to progress, replacing the gameplay with the video, and turning the in-game Alan that the player was just controlling into the live-action one.

During UsefulNotes/TheFourthGenerationOfConsoleVideoGames, when just about every game was making the [[VideoGame3DLeap leap to 3D]], graphical fidelity was all the rage. The better your game looked, the better it would sell. One way developers achieved this was [[PreRenderedGraphics rendering certain 3D models with a higher-level quality than the game could actually achieve beforehand]].

* ''VideoGame/IronHelix'': Every character is portrayed by a live actor, and since everybody on board the ship is [[PosthumousCharacter already dead]], you never interact with any of them, so they are all relegated to cutscenes. Most cutscenes are shot with a green filter over them to mimic the ship's screens, but the UsefulNotes/SegaCD version features an exclusive ending cutscene shot in full-color.

Like pre-rendering, live-action cutscenes have seen [[DiscreditedTrope a significant decline in use]], due to both [[TechnologyMarchesOn game engines getting more powerful]] and capable of rendering more photorealistic graphics, and also just the inherent limitations of them. MotionCapture has also proven to be a much more seamless option for integrating actors' appearance and/or non-vocal performance into a game since it allows their movements and facial expressions to be mapped onto an in-game model, rather than jarringly cutting to live-action footage. Some games do still use them from time-to-time, though.

** ''[[VideoGame/WingCommanderPrivateer Privateer 2: The Darkening]]'' is widely praised for its live-action cutscenes. While the game itself is [[ObviousBeta notoriously glitchy]], the cutscenes are often considered its saving grace, thanks to its outstanding production value and acting.

[[quoteright:349:[[VideoGame/CommandAndConquerTiberiumWars https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/cnckw.png]]]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Shivers}}''

* ''VideoGame/BiingSexIntrigenUndSkalpelle'' uses one for the tutorial, which features a blonde model [[HospitalHottie dressed as a nurse]], [[{{Fanservice gradually stripping down to her underwear]], as she explains the game's mechanics. A disclaimer at the beginning of the video assures us that she is an actual medical professional.

** ''Wing Commander'' is noted for being one the few early examples of live-action cutscenes that actually did them well, using quality movie actors and solid writing, with ''VideoGame/WingCommanderIV'' being a particular standout. (Unlike ''[[VideoGame/WingCommanderIII III]]'', it was shot on film with actual sets, and had a stronger script than the later ''Prophecy''.)
** ''VideoGame/Privateer2TheDarkening'' is widely praised for its live-action cutscenes. While the game itself is [[ObviousBeta notoriously glitchy]], the cutscenes are often considered its saving grace, thanks to its outstanding production value and acting.

Like pre-rendering, live-action cutscenes have seen [[DiscreditedTrope a significant decline in use]], due to both [[TechnologyMarchesOn game engines getting more powerful]] and capable of rendering more photorealistic graphics, and also just the inherent limitations of them. For developers seeking to integrate actors' non-vocal performance and/or appearance into a game, MotionCapture has also proven to be a much more seamless option since it allows their movements and facial expressions to be mapped onto an in-game model, rather than jarringly cutting to live-action footage. Some games do still use them from time-to-time, though.

Like pre-rendering, live-action cutscenes have seen [[DiscreditedTrope a significant decline in use]], due to both [[TechnologyMarchesOn game engines getting more powerful]] and capable of rendering more photorealistic graphics, and also just the inherent limitations of them. For developers still seeking to integrate actors' performance and/or appearance into a game, MotionCapture has also proven to be a much more seamless option since it allows their movements and facial expressions to be mapped onto an in-game model, rather than jarringly cutting to live-action footage. Some games do still use them from time-to-time, though.

Like pre-rendering, live-action cutscenes have seen [[DiscreditedTrope a significant decline in use]], due to both [[TechnologyMarchesOn game engines getting more powerful]] and capable of rendering more photorealistic graphics, and also just the inherent limitations of them. For developers still seeking to integrate actors' performance and/or appearance into a game, MotionCapture has also proven to be a much more seamless option since it allows the actors' movements and facial expressions to be mapped onto an in-game model, rather than jarringly cutting to live-action footage. Some games do still use them from time-to-time, though.

In reality, many of the cutscenes were of crude-quality, often (though not always) [[{{Narm}} harder to take seriously]] than their pre-rendered counterparts. This was largely due to inexperience, both with the actors -- some of whom were [[DescendedCreator actually the developers themselves]], who had zero acting experience whatsoever -- and those in charge of writing and directing these live-action cutscenes. Animation and voice acting is a very different beast from real people that are interacting with each other in the same room. Recreations of the live-action actors' appearances for the in-game graphics [[UnintentionalUncannyValley usually look off when placed side-by-side with the real thing]], especially in the days of more primitive graphics. Even as graphics advanced, MotionCapture has proven to be a much more seamless option for integrating an actor's performance and/or appearance into a game, making live-action cutscenes a mostly DiscreditedTrope these days.

Like pre-rendering, live-action cutscenes have seen a significant decline in use, due to both [[TechnologyMarchesOn game engines getting more powerful]] and capable of rendering more photorealistic graphics, and also just the inherent limitations of them. Some games do still use them from time-to-time, though.

In reality, many of the cutscenes were of crude-quality, often (though not always) [[{{Narm}} harder to take seriously]] than their pre-rendered counterparts. This was largely due to inexperience, both with the actors -- some of whom were [[DescendedCreator actually the developers themselves]], who had zero acting experience whatsoever -- and those in charge of writing and directing these live-action cutscenes. Animation and voice acting is a very different beast from real people that are interacting with each other in the same room. Recreations of the live-action actors' appearances for the in-game graphics [[UnintentionalUncannyValley usually look off when placed side-by-side with the real thing]], especially in the days of more primitive graphics. Even as graphics advanced, MotionCapture has proven to be a much more seamless option for integrating an actor's performance into a game, making live-action cutscenes a mostly DiscreditedTrope these days.