How would I approuch this?
interpolator
Bungie seems to have this way of making water tight enviroments using only 3ds max as said in there last art interview. Even though some of these structures seem very modular, it all fuses perfectly with the geometry around it as one continuous mesh. This can be seen when you fly halo's theater cam out into the skybox. I always thought though, that there is some sort of CSG system they are using to make objects. Much like how hammer editor does its bsps. Or that they use autocad or illustrator to get splines and such into max. But it still doesn't explain how everything is so perfectly continuous to its self. And how they would do this with transitions from irregular terrain surfaces to inorganic forerunner structures. Though the only time they use floating, intersecting geometry is on the levels with the flood. But even so, they use a base covenant bsp and glob some flood blobs and structures around it that work as scenery. Any thoughts on how they went about making such environments like this?
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the best way to make levels that have a csg/bsp feel is to work with extrusions extrusions and more extrusions and if you have seperated stuff that needs to fuse together booleans are max/maya s closest thing to csg. but i don't think bungie ignores the power of instancing props and stuff they would be stupid not to heavily use instances ...
also i could swear i saw a halo making of once (right when halo 3 came out ) where they showed a level in "maya" but maybe i was high or something ...
These Videos.
And these power points.
btw
Basically the terrain and unique pieces like the NPP and such are modeled then grouped in Maya and exported as one mesh.
Things like the train carts and other objects that are instanced through the level are there own separate objects that can be imported as props.
Theres load of games that are completly modeled in a 3d package, The Witcher, Stalker, Uncharted, Resident Evil's and most of Capcoms other games.
Meshes are the new CSG.