This is the workflow I created to set up multiple characters' lip-sync and blend shapes in Unity. This method is for general game quality, not for high-quality/Movie render.
Final Result preview:
Tool: Unity, Maya
Prepare:
3D Character model
1. Finding a tool to set up a Facial rig for general characters
Tool Sample: https://www.cgkode.com/i/frigger/
(you can find yours, or you can do it by yourself without any tool)
Frigger V5 is user-friendly, setting up the bone and face control easily, but still need to do the skinning by yourself
2a. Setting up the first Character's facial rig, also do facial skinning in Maya.
2b. Key Control for the facial expression (for example 20keys = 20 facial / Lip expressions),
Lip Sync: Viseme Reference: Unity | Oculus Developers (here show what the lip looks like)
Reference to the Viseme, you need to key 15 keys frame (Sil - U)
2c. Setting up blend shape, that means you need to save the keyframe to be a Blendshape
Be careful the blend shape order needs to be like below:
Sil > pp > ff > th ..... > ou
The namespace is not mattered, but the lip name must follow:
If you have other blend shapes for the character:
All the facial expression needs to be behind all lip-sync, like happy, sad, nervous
How to save the keyframe to blendshape?
Open [Windows > Animations Editor > Shape Editor]
Select the mesh, (the character head) and then click [Create Blend Shape]
Move the keyframe to the first keyframe, and then click: [Shape Editor > Create > Add Selection as Target], you will see a target created below the "blendShape"
Move to the next keyframe and then press "G" to repeat the saving target to be blendShape.
After 15 blendshape created, rename all blendshape (like the above picture):
2d. Testing the first character in Unity first
Export the character FBX to test in Unity, remember to click the Animation box when exporting FBX.
3. Setting up the next character and copying the control keyframe from the first one, adjusting, and then creating a blend shape.
How to copy the keyframes? I use Trax Editor in Maya. (you can find the tutorial on youtube)
4. If we need more blend shape/adjustment, we can adjust the original one with the original keyframe.
So, for multiple characters, we don't need to do the blend shapes each time.
Useful tips:
*Maya Viewpoint brightness:
*[Alt + 2] Hide meshes in viewpoint only Select joints easily when doing skinning
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