Textureing approch for multiple props

stickadtroja

So im going to make multiple props for a project, mostly furniture and indoor stuff, and im considering what approch to go with.

the first that comes to mind is to go super modular. have a couple of different materials, wood, metal etc. and a couple of detail tetxtures that i use as decals to break up the repeditivness.
on top of that, a secound version of all the materials which is more worn, that i can blend with using vertex alpha.

the secound would be to texture everything uniqely, the regular way.

so for me the first way seems obvoiusly better, more suited for production and everything.
am i wrong? what is the most common approch in the industry? what would you guys do?

Joost

With most games you won't have the luxury of having separate textures for everything.
Shader complexity is also something to keep in mind though.

Maybe in a few years

stickadtroja

so i take that as a yes to the modular approach?

Joost

It depends on a lot of different factors. On elite for example because the scale is so massive we can't use unique textures for everything. If it's just for portfolio you could get away with unique textures for all props. Though if you can make things look awesome with tiling textures and shader trickery then it doesn't hurt to show that either.

You can have a look here to see how other people do it: http://www.polycount.com/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=62

stickadtroja

btw this isnt for a portfolio piece, its for a game project. so im hesitant to look to much around polycount since most stuff posted here is personal projects. im mostly curios what is the most common and tried way in the industry.

the snefer thread is amazing. dont think i have to go to that extreme though .

but for a game this days, that have open sandbox gameplay, is it common to use tiling textures? if anybody have links to breakdowns on commercial games, i would be really grateful

stevston89

If it's props I would use unique textures. Just make sure the shader complexity and the texture size are appropriate for the prop. Like if you were putting a pencil in the scene you wouldn't use a 512 texture for or have some fancy shader.

Joost

Yeah it depends on the scale and importance of the prop, but usually props will have unique textures. Also depends on engine/target devices limitations though.