What defines "Next-Gen Game Asset"

TangYC

I would like to know that what defines the next-gen game asset.
The production? The realistic outcome effect? Or the target platform of the asset being used?
Is PBR workflow a definition of next-gen game asset?

sacboi

My opinion, is essentially the Tech Generation that enables progression.

Meloncov

At this point in time it seems kinda weird to talk about "next-gen assets". We're close enough to the PS5/XBoxWhatever that "next-gen" clearly refers to them, but it's not yet common knowledge what the specifications for assets for those consoles will be.

PBR has been standard for the better part of a decade, calling it "next-gen" at this point is silly.

ned_poreyra

Nothing, it's been pretty stale for the last couple of years. Look at some top notch games from 2015, like Fallout 4, The Witcher 3 or The Order 1886. The differences between those and current assets are negligible at best. Fallout 76 even used some assets from Fallout 4, so... what kind of "next-gen" are we even talking about at this point.

NikhilR

Im thinking is mostly a PR term at best.
 Like you see this a lot in job advertisments.
   Maybe more relevant to the next generation of consoles that arent out yet so for assets, likely reach a level expected by a company, provided they are clear about thier requirements?

Alex_J

I'd say it means whatever is top of the line right now in the realistic style.

musashidan

NikhilR said:

Im thinking is mostly a PR term at best.
 Like you see this a lot in job advertisments.
   Maybe more relevant to the next generation of consoles that arent out yet so for assets, likely reach a level expected by a company, provided they are clear about thier requirements?

I would say this^ It's as if to say 'this work is future-proof for years to come because it goes above and beyond the current gen quality.....'

Gimmicky really, considering apart from a switch to 'PBR' and some new engine hacks and workflow boosting tools, fundamentally the pipeline/process is still the same.

oglu

The most changes are in the areas of rigging and animation. A lot of feature film workflows will become standard for games. Character Artists have to work closer with the Animation department.

Higher polycounts and texture resolution could lead to some troubles in the beginning. Its not in any case needed to spend the max poly on something if you cant see or animate it.

If the client does have the time and money im sure we will have a lot of fun to create next gen stuff! 

NikhilR

Alex Javor said:

I'd say it means whatever is top of the line right now in the realistic style.

musashidan said:

NikhilR said:

Im thinking is mostly a PR term at best.
 Like you see this a lot in job advertisments.
   Maybe more relevant to the next generation of consoles that arent out yet so for assets, likely reach a level expected by a company, provided they are clear about thier requirements?

I would say this^ It's as if to say 'this work is future-proof for years to come because it goes above and beyond the current gen quality.....'

Gimmicky really, considering apart from a switch to 'PBR' and some new engine hacks and workflow boosting tools, fundamentally the pipeline/process is still the same.

I also feel its more to do with realistic style, open world games since its adverts from those companies that tend to use this term a lot more than others. 
I don't know why they use them and it still makes no sense since all you're really just doing is what it takes to get the job done. You probably don't even get to work on the whole damn asset by yourself.

Also we don't quite know what the next gen actually is as far as systems go specification wise.

Its fair to suggest that games and film will be indistinguishable in the future, but is that actually necessary to the audience as far as the overall appeal of a game?

What about budgets, its mad expensive and time consuming to do film quality work, putting that in games is crazy difficult.

There is the hope that with cloud streaming none of that will matter but its important to understand the cost vs benefits to having a missive server full of next gen graphic cards burning electricity remotely to allow people to play games they get for 5$ on subscription. (good luck getting that price point)

Like this isn't similar to getting a Netflix subscription, TV content isn't being rendered remotely in real time, so there's no associated server overhead.
Props for companies for trying though, I've always felt it unrealistic to provide games in this fashion given how volatile the games market is and how people actually play the games they buy.

The term in general seems very context specific, and honestly its likely just a bs formality when it comes to hiring. Like if a recruiter asked me that I'd be "Well if your releasing something next generation, and I'm a part of it, sure why not?"

Like I think Cuphead is next gen as far its art goes (even though its from the 1930's). 
 Even angry birds AR is next gen considering the system its on. (which according to its creator is already previous gen as far as he's concerned.)
But I'm not sure if that makes your art for them automatically next gen since you used PBR (neither of those games do)
Nor is anyone from the next gen actually playing them (they likely aren't born yet)

Like is this next gen?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYHp8LwBUzo
Or previous gen? Like when I play it I feel like I'm on LSD which makes it 1970's gen but its on PS4.
If it ends up on PS5 does that make it next gen, or do we have to wait until PS6?
If those systems are backwards compatible do the games on it automatically become next gen? What about the artists, do they become top tier rockstars?
When does the madness end?!

It would be interesting if anyone in HR/PR could add a word or two in this matter. (that will be the day, lol)

Alex_J

Words have a few uses. Relay information. Make somebody laugh. Make yourself look cool.

Probably this is mostly number three I am thinking after reading your guys responses altogether.

musashidan

Alex Javor said:

Words have a few uses. Relay information. Make somebody laugh. Make yourself look cool.

Probably this is mostly number three I am thinking after reading your guys responses altogether.

Did you just break your rule no.3?

TangYC

Thanks to all of you that gives your own perspective of view. 
There is nothing wrong to express our own view, that maybe a joke in some other's eye. Or maybe my question itself is a joke.

So...
It seems like the game asset that are being used in a more realistic and latest game can be consider as a Next-Gen Game asset? Then of course the PBR will be a next-gen term because nowadays those game need the assets build from this method. 

Just a bit curious that when people talking about their work as a next-gen, what makes them says that.... hmm...

HAWK12HT

well you dont do next gen on mobile, like you dont have the luxury to use 1000s of materials on mobile compared to on PC. So I guess sometimes people feel the need to add this "next gen" to make it clear perhaps to recruiters that they can make PC / Console quality assets. 
Also I think its more of a marketting thing, here buy our latest console ready for "next gen" graphics. lol 
PBR on Lara croft with triangles count = to the tomb raider 1 ~1000 tris  wont be considered as next gen cause these days characters are somewhere ~100K triangles.  

DavidCruz

Not to resurrect but i wanted to add to the thread.

We probably hit the limit, any increase at this point is negligible, VR would be next gen i think, taking that into the realms of realism is what i'd think would fall under next-gen for me.  I mean f- realism i really want to see a well stylized game using the world of toon-ville / toon-town from who framed roger rabbit, with that crazy of an environment imagine how much f-ing fun that game would be where anything can happen and its just as bonkers as rick and morty's portal travels are. (but at a cinematic quality, that doesn't make the viewer/players sick)  Someone recently played a VR game and didn't stabilize the video and outputted it to 720 / 1080p 60fps and even i got sick and i've never played vr or used a headset.

https://youtu.be/sMr7NUqEzVc?t=24 (game would straight up look like this, imagine rpg, story mode, free roam explorations, the quality of this game would sky rocket, mods, game modes, people would roll play, and do everything they do now in GTA V)  Creating the worlds of fantasy and magic actually exist where you cast a spell and feel like a wizard, Harry!

I would also add high resolution models, i.e. more geometry more verts to smooth it all out.

To add styles that push the boundaries or cheats that give of an amazing vibe and puts interest into the atmosphere of a games style would be next-gen for me, paying more attention to the moods we bring rather than how realistic we can make it. 

If i had to say anything about the realistic front of current gen, we hit it. 

In a new thread 4k is over kill even for me to work with, the examples shown there between 2k and 4k just validates that 4k is the max we should be hitting, i would dare say if done right 2K is max. 

To hit the sweet spot and idk if we can the middle ground between the 2 is the ultimate spot 3072, but my knowledge of engines works on the divisible by 2's max resolution i do not know if 3072x3072 is a possible map solution an engine can use.

( Take this all from a person who took like 2-3 years off from all this and comes back trying to land a gig - so with the smallest grainiest of salts )

Larry

When I see "next gen" I probably expect better lighting and post processing,and  generally something in effects. Since we reached an era where we can scan real life assets and use them for games, we cannot possibly do much more to improve the quality of textures, am I right? So a next gen asset is probably the same as it was, with increasing number of triangles as hardware tech progresses.

Or we can make better tools to create realistic textures procedurally, faster and with less observational skills

PolyHertz

"Next Gen" assets, i.e. those for PS5 and Xbox Series X, probably wont be much different then what is currently being made for PS4 / XB1. The main differences going from the current generation consoles to the next ones will be raytracing, a higher standard for base framerates (60-120fps instead of 30fps), and massive improvements in data streaming technology (bigger visible worlds / faster movement, thanks to SSDs being put in consoles).

oglu

+ much complexer rigs and animations. 

Ghogiel

Upping the lens flare

Eric Chadwick

Next-next gen

thomasp

For simulation, deformation and shading in theory we already were able do a lot of cool stuff this generation but getting there is taking soooooo much time. I'd rather be interested in a next-gen pipeline to work faster with current asset budgets than raising the ceiling once again for some minor visual improvements but still having to work with the current hodgepodge of applications and workflow limitations.

The recent effort to put spline based grooms into Unreal looks like a next-gen kind of improvement to help in an area where right now we are still very much held back by the toolset and the cost associated with doing a convincing job.

oglu

Thats more a question for "how does the next gen pipeline look like".

thomasp

Perhaps so but then my definition of next gen asset would have to be that it takes months to make one and weeks to change it and by the time you are wrapping it up you will be so burned out from looking at the same damn thing for such a long period of time that you wish you'd have taken that job at some indie doing mobile game assets.

Justo

thomasp said:

...you will be so burned out from looking at the same damn thing for such a long period of time that you wish you'd have taken that job at some indie  outsourcer doing mobile game assets.

 

 That's me!