How would you go about modeling this?

radumitroi

So how would you go about creating these assets? Especially the stuff circled in red. Any other way coming to mind other than individually modeling all of these toys and then placing them? I'm thinking about some displacement tricks, but I don't even know for sure how I'd go about that. The assets don't have to be detailed, that's why I'm thinking that some displacement trick would do it. The player won't be able to get close to these, he'd just walk past them.

Alex_J

Depends entirely on the final application.

A stylized indie game? A high-end AAA realism game? A tv commercial?

When in doubt, just begin by modeling it the way it is constructed in real life.

I'd make the stand -- that's just rectangles -- and then I'd make the minimum number of uniquely shaped items and then duplicate them as needed. You can use a lot of stacked UV shells here.

Always try to use the simplest solution possible.

Also, if you dont got it, download unreal desktop app and then the modkits for whatever games they got on there. Then you can export models made by professionals for AAA games and see what they did.

radumitroi

Alex Javor said:

Depends entirely on the final application.

A stylized indie game? A high-end AAA realism game? A tv commercial?

When in doubt, just begin by modeling it the way it is constructed in real life.

I'd make the stand -- that's just rectangles -- and then I'd make the minimum number of uniquely shaped items and then duplicate them as needed. You can use a lot of stacked UV shells here.

Always try to use the simplest solution possible.

Also, if you dont got it, download unreal desktop app and then the modkits for whatever games they got on there. Then you can export models made by professionals for AAA games and see what they did.

I can create these assets the simple way - modeling them as you said - with no problems. The thing is the game I'm creating these assets for requires very few polys for their models. A full rack of toys like the one in the image shouldn't go above 1,000 polys, and I'm sure that filling a rack like that, even with low-poly objects, will exceed that limit. That's why I'm asking about some displacement tricks that could be useful for me.
I'll try some tricks with some textured planes instead of actual meshes for the toys, see if I'm getting something out of that. If not, I guess I'll just model and place them in such way that they don't exceed the poly limit.

Eric Chadwick

Yes then you will need to use planes, or very very simple shapes. Convex hulls, basically.

It will be better to work with the client to rethink their level design. 

This is a common newbie mistake, choosing references or concepts that can't be made properly for the target application. The designer needs to design within the constraints  of the underlying setup. 

Look to oldschool PS 2 games for inspiration. 

sacboi

Sounds like your brief is intended I assume eventually for mobile release, due to the low vertex count?

Anyway since the're just static props, as mentioned above I'd agree that in this instance simplicity is key.

radumitroi

Eric Chadwick said:

Yes then you will need to use planes, or very very simple shapes. Convex hulls, basically.

It will be better to work with the client to rethink their level design. 

This is a common newbie mistake, choosing references or concepts that can't be made properly for the target application. The designer needs to design within the constraints  of the underlying setup. 

Look to oldschool PS 2 games for inspiration. 

Yea, convex hulls is what I'll probably end up using.

sacboi said:

Sounds like your brief is intended I assume eventually for mobile release, due to the low vertex count?

Anyway since the're just static props, as mentioned above I'd agree that in this instance simplicity is key.

The game is intended for PC, mobile, apple tv, and all that stuff. The maps on which these assets go are also huge, tens of kilometers, and they're worried about the number of polys on such large distances. It's a cycling simulator with real-world courses from around the world. The player can't get himself close to these assets, he'd just be passing them while he rides on the predetermined path.

Eric Chadwick

You'll need LODs then.

radumitroi

Eric Chadwick said:

You'll need LODs then.

Yep, but even then, LOD0 is the one that shouldn't go above the 1,000 poly limit. Today I finally have the time to work on these assets. I'll share my final product here.