I could use some good links to videos to help me update my modeling and Unreal skills. And some Q's.

Darkmatterx76

Hi, I could use some good links to videos to help me update my modeling and Unreal skills. I also would love to hear some options on current texture sizes for PC games, and how many tri's I should be aiming for for an indoor destroyed building scene.

Lastly, as I want to bring it into Unreal, I wasn't sure if I should do the main building in pieces, such as each wall and assemble it in Unreal, or if I should attach the objects as 1 piece. I can't remember how the unwraps work in cases with attached objects. If it has to include ever attached object, I'd say 1 piece for the whole main building would need way to big a texture.

For those who want some context, I did a gaming post grad back in '07 but due to health and family issues I never went into the industry. I'm now trying to update my skills from a decade ago.

Thoughts? Advice?

Thanks!

DM

Ashervisalis

AAA games have a texel density of 512 pixels per square meter. What kind of modeling tutorials specifically are you looking for?

Taylor Brown

check this out - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZT9xvP_1yIU

Meloncov

Ashervisalis said:

AAA games have a texel density of 512 pixels per square meter. What kind of modeling tutorials specifically are you looking for?

Third person games tend to use 512 per square meter. First person games are often 1024 per square meter, while strategy games and vehicle-based games may be much less.

Darkmatterx76

Sorry for my late reply. Had a minor operation and a "procedure" last week.

What am I looking for? Such a good question. I'm interested in environmental and object modeling in 3DS Max. I need to learn the new material editor, I'm sure there are lots of videos on that, but interface changes, Unreal Editor 4 I learned 3, but that was 10+ years ago, and ZBrush was JUST out when I was in school so I know nothing of it! Yay! Not much to cover at all! lol

Also, info on how many tri's I should limit close, medium, and far off objects, buildings (exterior), buildings interior (possibly damaged), and buildings that have both an inside and an out.

How many tri's should I limit an entire visible scene to?

Also, since I want to import this into Unreal, I wasn't sure how much of a damaged building (the main structure) I should attach as 1 mesh (which would mean a large and complex unwrap and texture, vs doing it in sections and putting it together in Unreal.

I have a bit of work ahead of me...

Thanks,

DM

TheGabmeister

For lighting in Unreal, definitely watch Unreal 4 Lighting Academy.

Darkmatterx76

Thanks everyone. Does anyone have any answers to my modeling questions, tri limits, how to best model a complex building so it unwraps well but can "easily" (ease is relative lol) be put together in Unreal without the player seeing seams. Should the building be 1 model of attached parts, or in pieces? Things like that. Oh, and I mean the actual building itself, not all the props that would go in it.

Thanks.

DM

Taylor Brown

I reckon that that depends on your needs. You could build one unique static mesh or create a modular kit that mixes pieces to create quick iterations.

Darkmatterx76

OK, what aprox total tri's should I limit my scene to mimic games made today? Even a general idea would help. I know it would depend on the platform the game was on, but lets assume a modern console and/or PC game.

Thanks.

DM

Andreicus

For damaged buildings or objects you could also use Decals: https://docs.unrealengine.com/en-us/Engine/Rendering/Materials/MeshDecals

Regarding the tris count take a look at this chart: http://https//docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1xJmSuBZbdMOlIcdXmO9hu46GJ7-wIiWCclJwimIOJa4/htmlview

Darkmatterx76

Sorry for such a late reply.

Because retraining myself and making a portfolio is going to be a rather long, involved process, I decided to do a market booth where I live to sell my photography, which is something I've been doing for over 30 years. The markets open in 1 month so I've been scrambling. I still plan to retrain, but my focus has to be on the market for the moment. At least until I'm ready to go.

Thank-you for the links. They'll be a big help!

DM

Spag_Eddy

I'm a little late to this party and I'm not sure if it's what you're looking for, but in case any other seekers of the Unreal ways happen to stumble upon this thread at a future time, I follow a Youtuber who is great at explaining the basics of Unreal - and modeling in general. He also happens to be witty as hell and makes it fun to learn and I totes recommend every chance I get.

Game Dev Academy

https://www.youtube.com/user/OnlineMediaTutor/featured

PS: There's no one single right answer to some of your questions. From my own personal experience, I prefer building in modular pieces. I have found that it saves me time, and it is much more efficient. It also removes the restrictions/pain-in-the-ass nature of only having one single mesh if I were to change my idea about the design later on. In the end, it all depends on your own needs/preferences.  

The tri count varies depending on the project and the platform, and yada yada. And this is the answer you will universally receive. Do your best to make your meshes look good whilst reducing the poly bits as much as possible, and generally you'll be fine. If it is a mesh off in the distance that a player will barely notice, sacrifice a few verts here and there and making it lower poly. If it is something the player will notice and be all up in its junk with, then add a few more verts and make that shit look good.

You also need to keep texture size in mind during the texturing process, which can be a huge resource hog if you're not careful.