UC 2009 'END GAME' | Unearthly Kings | 3D
polycounter lvl 14
Hi everybody, we are the Unearthly Kings. We're entering this thing a little late, but hopefully that'll just push us to try harder. The three of us all go to the Art Institute of San Diego and are in our last couple of quarters. The Unearthly Kings consists of me (Jacob Norris) 3D modeling and Texturing, Diwan - 3D Modeling and Texturing, and Nathanial Castronovo - Concepting, 3D Modeling and Texturing.
Here is a quick summary of our story for the concept. The name of our Project is called
Glycereth
Another time, another place. There was once a small town, poor and simple. The people lived in peace with each other, despite their lack of money, and struggle to survive. The town hungered.
Until one day. The townspeople found Glycereth, an organic material which can be refined into a power source. The news spread quickly, and the forces of government opted to build a refinery in the slum. The structure towered over the town. The citizens were offered employment at the refinery, which they accepted hastily. They were paid only enough to maintain a livable poverty.
But one day, while digging the people struck some form of underground green gas that started seeping into the air and killing most of the towns citizens. It made some of the townspeople violent and they began killing and taking over the town. You and a small group of others are immune to the gas and beginning fighting for your lives to survive. This is the final scene in which you throw the rebel gas infected leader into the mining pit and he is killed by the penetrating beam that is used to dig in this futuristic refinery.
After all of the violent rebels were finally killed, you and your remaining companions begin to rebuild/repopulate the town using any scraps you can find lying around the city. Transport ships, ship parts, metal plates, empty buildings, anything you can find really.
Here is a quick summary of our story for the concept. The name of our Project is called
Glycereth
Another time, another place. There was once a small town, poor and simple. The people lived in peace with each other, despite their lack of money, and struggle to survive. The town hungered.
Until one day. The townspeople found Glycereth, an organic material which can be refined into a power source. The news spread quickly, and the forces of government opted to build a refinery in the slum. The structure towered over the town. The citizens were offered employment at the refinery, which they accepted hastily. They were paid only enough to maintain a livable poverty.
But one day, while digging the people struck some form of underground green gas that started seeping into the air and killing most of the towns citizens. It made some of the townspeople violent and they began killing and taking over the town. You and a small group of others are immune to the gas and beginning fighting for your lives to survive. This is the final scene in which you throw the rebel gas infected leader into the mining pit and he is killed by the penetrating beam that is used to dig in this futuristic refinery.
After all of the violent rebels were finally killed, you and your remaining companions begin to rebuild/repopulate the town using any scraps you can find lying around the city. Transport ships, ship parts, metal plates, empty buildings, anything you can find really.
Replies
Concepts by Nathanial Castronovo
But I am not sure if the final event that is shown in your composition really suggests end game thing. Without all that background story it might look like a destroyed/abandoned city. Which is cool as environment but might be too static.
Try to imagine the final composition without characters and the back story. Check if u will feel that it still works the way u wanted.
Artwise, looks nice by now
- maybe more props and environmental details expressing the zombie gas uprising - signs of abandonment/hastily erected barriers and fencing to hold of the hoard and 'government' signs saying stuff like 'no mine employees to leave the area' or 'report any signs of infection to your nearest quarantine teams...'
i like the 3rd colored concept - good scale and illustration.
Here are some of the concepts for the Refinery: (Jacob Norris + Nathanial Castronovo)
Here are some more of the Concepts for the ship: (Diwan + Nathanial)
Final Concept
Then here's some blockins and basically shows where our main comp shot will be: (Nathanial Castronovo + Jacob Norris)
(Nathanial Castronovo)
Well, as the project progresses we are going to change a few things.
Our original story was as follows, Maybe there is a way we can gear this more towards END GAME.
--
Okay, so, without having to completely change the scope of what we're doing, Diwan and I are currently leaning towards this idea, please discuss:
To make things more END GAME...
A massive crack runs through the ground between the ship and bar, emanating from the refinery. Some of the slum homes have fallen into the crack, evidence that people were killed by something that went wrong. The toxic green gas seeps out from the crack...further destruction.
Its the bad ending, and you were unable to stop the refinery from malfunctioning, cracking open the earth, causing the damage, killing the townspeople, and releasing the toxic gas.
Smoke billows from the slums and refinery in the distance.
one of the twin towers on the right has fallen into the fissure, and begun to crumble, breaking up the similarity between the two.
A bridge connecting them has broken.
You, the player, are the Vagabond. You have failed to save your town, and in an unfortunate End Game scenario, you look beyond your makeshift home, unto the disaster that has laid waste to your friends, your neighbors, and the slum you once called home.
The thruster looks good, but we should probably make the big section at the bottom of it smaller, its way huge right now.
the concept looks good guys! stick to it!
How about a compromise? Do a somewhat standard huge beam shooting out of the refinery downword, but have some slightly cracked ground in the foreground, nothing major. But for the cracks to have reached all the way from the refinery would imply a really major impact, you could add some smoke effets too. If you guys find you have more time, by all means pump up the destruction. You gotta build something fully functional before you go in and start detailing destruction anyway...
I'm not sure I like the idea of defeat, the unearthly challenge is kind of about pwning and not getting pwned. Maybe twist the story a bit to be the precursor to a major battle, maybe the town becomes more infested and eventually criminally insane leading up to lots of ass kicking (think batman begins)? But that's just personal preference, the idea that this is defeat is pretty unique so there's pluses and minuses to both.
Best advice i can give is just keep truckin' and keep slammin' out art. A great looking scene is a great looking scene any way you slice it, and it ain't over till they say it is, just keep an open mind to new ideas as you work and weight the pros and cons as you move forward.
Anwyay, good luck guys! Be great if we all made it to the winners circle, just gotta work our asses off
Not meant to discourage, just something to keep in mind moving forward
"how is this going to be unique and badass?"
Concept/rendering are great though
Cheers
[edit]
I'd like to, at this time, mention that we'd like as brutal critique as possible. The sooner people mention these things, the sooner we can fix them. Thanks!
Man I wish I could find more time to put into the challenge.:(
What's going on in the inside?
well damn. I went and did some google-ing and lookey here...
those bastards even have an open sign..... crap.
great minds think alike??? ...*sigh*.
yeah....i guess the fan looks pretty similar, but to be fair, 3 blade vent fans are all over the place. ...including the last year's winner ...which someone else mentioned our concept is too similar to:
i still don't quite understand what's wrong with the satellite dish and menus. ...or is there some other part of this game that I'm going to be unhappily irritated by?
There's actually a restaurant-type building in particular in the tech demos(not the one you found) that echo's the shape and some of the elements of yours that I mentioned. I'm sure texturing and stuff will set em apart. It wasn't that there were 3 fan blades(that'd be rediculous, it's not like just because someone else made a 6-sided barrel you can't,), it was the over-all vibe. Apologies, carry on.
Sorry, i didn't mean to make it sound as though i'm feeling attacked. I don't and I appreciate the input.
If you could find a screen of the building you're talking about, that would be great. I'd like to make sure I don't end up unintentionally copying it.
Thanks!
The last full scene i was working on in 3d i had to completely overhaul because i saw a video by valve showing off their new swamp that looked exactly like the one i had half finished.
When you think about it we're all trying to save tris and create objects that look good in a very geometric fashion, so it's very probable that 2 artists thinking of the same limitations would come up with very similar assets in the end. Lets face it, there are only so many shapes that look good in 3d that can be relatively easily put together and we're going to see some repetition. Only so many types of plants and foliage that look good on an alpha, etc, etc. It's a fine line between duplication and doing your job in this field, because you do, in the end, need to do what's been proven to work, or risk spending waaay too much time trying something new. Just try to do a bit of both, put something in your scene that's purely original and the crits about repetition should fall to the wayside so long as it's not too similar.
Why not change the "open" sign to "HOLA!" and make it a burrito hut? You could even turn the satellite dish into a sombrero.
Just don't make it similar to
or they will sue your ass.
Anyway, So for all new original content, I had a few hours to work on the challenge today, so I knocked out a high poly prop. A siren to alert the surviving townspeople to mutant onslaughts...or something
nice looking HP stuff here. Fun concepts. I dig the scale of it! Big is awesome.
Anxious to see textures! Tons of potential at this point!
And I finally got around to making a low poly/unwrap, and normal/ao bakes for the siren:
I'm not really sure if these two props fit in the same environment. Can't put my finger on what it is...I think its the design, the incinerator seems very sci-fi while the sirens look pretty much like sirens you would see today, there isn't much sci-fi to it really.
?
http://ps3.ign.com/dor/objects/957207/borderlands/images/borderlands-20090901033714522.html
you mean because there's a stroke separating the object from the background I tossed it on? I'm assuming.
in defense of the siren, borderlands was just released.
I'd say that some attention needs to be paid to the overall theme of your project because these assets are going in three different directions. they look well done, but not necessarily in the same context.
I like the work you're doing, just gotta unify it!
Yes Nate that's what he is pointing out, and I'd take it as a compliment if I was you.
Anyways, i know it sounds like too big crazy change, just sharing my thoughts :P
U r doing good anyways
hehe, Borderlands is my game of the day for now, lol, so yes, that is a compliment :P
I have repainted the 2D concept, and changed the twin towers to a brand new concept that i doodled up in a dark, desolate room, far, far away from any overly similar visuals; AND cracked the ground, casting slum homes and props into a foggy-green-fate, and tilting the vagabond's AirCab and Eatery. A simple addition geometrically.
Jake, The low poly looks good! the supports look much better. I like what you came up with. The only thing that stands out is the big block on the bottom, but I'll wait to see the high-poly before I comment on that.
Lets see some wires! I'm curious where those 20k triangles are hiding.
Hoping those wires and rails are alpha planes.
Keep it up dude.
The clock is ticking, fellows. Let's start seeing some scene compositions!
If you look reaally really close, you can see the UT Scale reference character. It's like playing a quick little game of where's Waldo lol