Attack at Mosul
polycounter lvl 18
About my project:
Attack at Mosul started out as a map for Battlefield 2, but with different feedback I received from game studios and other people I decided to focus more on the high detail environment. The main idea was to focus on inner city fighting with squad based teamwork.
Thanks in advance for any criticism you guys give.
<font color="orange"> Edit: OH YEAH. Feel free to rip it apart. </font>
Attack at Mosul started out as a map for Battlefield 2, but with different feedback I received from game studios and other people I decided to focus more on the high detail environment. The main idea was to focus on inner city fighting with squad based teamwork.
Thanks in advance for any criticism you guys give.
<font color="orange"> Edit: OH YEAH. Feel free to rip it apart. </font>
Replies
I would like to know if you are using a reference for the city shot... and if it is going to be brush based? just curious...
Also, can I see a wireframe? I really like what i see so far... Seems a bit high poly, but I assume you will use that for the normal map...
the scud launcher looks goods except when i scrolled to the right and saw the back support, at first i thought it was an oil leak, xexe, but then at a closer look it was a support, its a bit too thin for me.
What I think can be done by textures:
- The modeled X's on boxes and pannels. They don't stick out enough to actually effect the silloette of the model that much.
- Same goes for the tread on the tires. You could just flare out a few tiny polys on the sides and paint the rest of tread.
- The front grill. It doesn't add to the siloette of the model and is ressed in, a perfect canidate for normal mapping or a well painted texture.
- The molding around the windows, since it goes in, you can paint it.
- the panels in the middle that have raised edges can be painted on.
Really anything that doesn't contribute to the outter silloette of the model can be painted on. Whatever polys you manage to shave here and there can be put back into the scene. Even saving two polys out of something lets you put in an extra grass plane. Shave out 6 and you can put a box in a corner, and so on.
Heres the link: http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?t=354701
The scud could be totally optimized with a normal map and I may get around to that but right now just need to fix some of the modeling issues.
- The wheels. Yeah I forgot to close that seam up and there are some errors so I'm gonna go in and fix it and possibly change the whole tread look. I found some more ref. that I like so we will see.
- Support stands. Yeah those are rather flimsy looking aren't they? Gonna have to beef them up. Thanks for pointing that out.
Thanks again guys. I've got to run to class but I'll be working on this late tonight so I'll post some updates.
Might have been mentioned before, but is this for high poly FMV or a realtime? I only mention this because at the moment your scene looks very high poly on some of the items.
It may be worth setting a polycount and working to it.
Anyways here is an update.
You will need to go in and bevel edges on everything if this is going to be high poly.
The wires are not hanging properly, or naturally.
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Yeah they are kind of floating. I need to go back in and tweak them once the poles are finished. I kind of put them in as place holders so I would know how far the buildings could stick out and not come in contact with them.
I really liked the stuff you were doing at CGTalk... funny for you to start over after doing so much, but I really admire your dedication.
You will need to go in and bevel edges on everything if this is going to be high poly.
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Glad you liked everything I had on CGTalk. I never really started over as I still have all of the assetts from before. I'm just taking some of them and adding a lot more detail and props. The problem I was running into with making this map for BF2 was that everything had to have LODs and I just don't have that much time right now.
I also showed the project to a few game companies in the San Diego area and the feed back I got was good but they wanted to see me go in the more high poly - higher detail environments. So here I am.
I would still like to convert this to a BF2 map later on so if anyone would be interested in doing LOD's and helping with that let me know and we can get this thing done.
- added street lights
- thinned wires out and tried to make them look like they hang more naturally
- added debris to far end (will be able to be seen in close ups)
- rounded out the tunnels to the immediate right
Let me know what you guys think.
Thanks for the feedback.
as i told you before i dont know wheter it is high poly or lowpoly, you better decide wich is wich , since it seems a odd mix right now
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Some stuff is still just place holders until other pieces are done.
I took a break from modeling some things tonight to texture some of the more finished areas.
Here is the start of the diffuse for one of my buildings walls.
Its a shame it wont become a bf2 map
im impressed. Are you using any reference for the architecture or are you making it up as you work?
Its a shame it wont become a bf2 map
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I have almost a gig worth of photos that I have from when I was in the middle east and from stuff I have collected from friends in the military and from the internet.
I would love for this to become a BF2 map. I just really don't have the extra time to put into it alone as I'm working on my portfolio for my upcoming graduation this spring.
Does anyone here have any experience with BF2 editor or how to do the textures and assetts for it? If so would you be interested in converting it?
I am also asking the USI team to see what they can do. I haven't been very active with them as of lately.
Anyways I'm gonna get back to work on some texturing.
i love how you have a couple of windows here and there open in it, gives it that extra little lived in feel. good work
This is just the diffuse for now. When I'm done I'll do the normal and spec maps.
<font color="red"> ** Edit - Bump Map Test ** </font>
Also the nomal has too much grain on it,try to add some variation to the normal by making some areas smoother some areas rougher and some of the larger more pronounced details try to back them up on the normal as well so when light hits cracks,big chips on the wall the normal backs up the diffuse as well.
if thats a tileable wall texture i recommend toning down the unique details a tad, if too many of these details appear many times over the tiling will be really obvious.
Also the nomal has too much grain on it,try to add some variation to the normal by making some areas smoother some areas rougher and some of the larger more pronounced details try to back them up on the normal as well so when light hits cracks,big chips on the wall the normal backs up the diffuse as well.
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It's not tileable so the repeating pattern is something i'm not really too worried about. As for the normal I haven't even made one yet. I just tossed the diffuse on the bump map slot to get a quick view. When I work on the normal map I'll be breaking it up more and the parts that have big chips will be sunk into the wall more so when the lights hit it it will look like chunks are missing.
I'm not overly familiar with middle eastern architecture but perhaps some false windows (like arched window frames that cut a little way into the wall) might work well and would help to break up the large areas of blank wall space.
You might need to add a little more geometric detail to that bottom part to make it a little more intereting. Skirting around the base with the occasional break for a vent would probably be a good start.
I'm not overly familiar with middle eastern architecture but perhaps some false windows (like arched window frames that cut a little way into the wall) might work well and would help to break up the large areas of blank wall space.
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I'm still trying to decide which door I want to put on this building and the window styles so thats kinda why the walls look plain.
As for the skirting or pieces around the bottom. Great idea. I think it can help with the transition into the ground. I'll have to play around with some designs and look over my reference for some. Usually its the fancier (higher class) buildings that are really nicely done but it's a video game art and not a architectural documentary so a little exageration and imagination is ok i'm sure.
<font color="red"> ** Edit - Last update for the night. Rendered out one of the angles looking down the street to see how the lighting is and how the textures will react. ** </font>
Added a specular map and the normal map. Still tweaking it to get it just right. Trying to finish this building up tonight.
Then move on down the street to the next building or work on some of the props.
As always c&c is welcome.
<font color="red"> *** I have also gone with a much cleaner format for uploading my updates. </font>
the spraypaint shouldn't effect the bump. unless it's a styrofoam building of course.
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If you are referring to the one where the woman is indented into the wall then I have already fixed that along with the other ones.
Now they are just a minor surface bump.
I guess all I'm saying is I would suggest just cutting loose and making an amazing model without worrying about putting it in BF, or research what BF requires before you get too far.
Anyways for everyone else. Here is one of the props i'm working on that goes with the environment / theme of everything.
It's an RPG. I got the idea for the render layout from a tutorial I saw on rendering for a portfolio and since I had an RPG I was working I thought hey that would look good like that so here it is.
Just started the texture on the diffuse tonight and will finish it up tomorrow and then do the spec and normal map and then finish the rocket part.
So heres the UV layouts (this thing was a major pain by the way)
and heres the render of it so far
<font color="orange"> Let me know which one you like better</font>
and heres a shot of the wireframe and poly count.
Also you might now this but on that RPG you count polygons not triangles. Ingame it would be about 4000 triangles.
The render i think you need to get a sharper lookin shadow map. That one you got now just blurs the scene and makes it look messy. Same goes for the ground. higher definition texture! Also you would want some specularity on your materials. For real fancy render turn throw a skylight in your scene and turn on light tracer and cast shadows.
j/k man, it's lookin great as usual.
try changing the render setup from Area to Catmul-Rom. It will make the renders more crip.
Heres an update with the normal map and spec maps applied. Still work to do but it's moving along. Just want to get this part of the building done and move down the line.
Out of curiousity, are you tiling the base texture and using decals to add elements like the painted symbols, random dirt smudges and exposed brick? Or are they just large individual texture sheets for each wall?
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It's actually one texture sheet. Since this isn't for a game engine any longer I am not sticking too the requirements needed to put it into engine. Just trying to make it look pretty.
This section is on a 2048x4096. Since my renders are gonna be in high res for my portfolio and to scale them down I figured I could get away with it and show as much detail as possible.
So heres the last one for the night.
would it not be good practice to come back to this and re-do the textures for a specific game engine? just a thought.