WIP middle eastern street
polycounter lvl 5
so this is my first post on PC and im making a war torn city scene for my portfolio, im still attending school but i graduate soon so i want to make sure i have some good portfolio work. its a work in progress, need critiques
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Firstly, as a couple people have said, you're gonna need a lot more dirt. Here I've added some dirt and grime around areas in the buildings that would collect it - along the base where they meet the ground, and around any recessed areas. I've also added some sand/dirt texture to the street. This might depend on what engine you're using, but I think a good way to do this kind of stuff would be with the kind of techniques described in this tutorial, which I haven't actually seen but it seems pretty legit
http://www.3dmotive.com/training/udk/advanced-mesh-paint-with-udk/?follow=true
In addition to dirt, I also threw in some rubble piles. I've seen people around here recommend these videos for rubble:
http://vimeo.com/7208356
http://vimeo.com/7087604
I also added some cracks in the concrete and a manhole cover to the street, just to add some more variation. I'm not actually sure what would be the best way to add the cracks; my first instinct would be to use tiling decals, but maybe somebody here can make a suggestion for this kind of stuff?
Now, for props: Your tree and dumpster looked good, so I added some more of them - like I said, those seem like good things to dupe around the scene. I also agree with CaptainRev that a broken car would work well in this scene. Or if you want to go really crazy, I think it would be SUPER EFFIN' SWEET if you took Selaznog's suggestion of having a shot-down helicopter, and show where it crashed through one of the buildings on its way down. That would be EPIC. But I didn't put that in my paintover, because it would be super-complicated
Additionally, pretty much every picture of a middle eastern street that I saw in my (admittedly super quick) 5-second google search had a bunch of power lines, which I thought looked cool. This would be another prop you could make 1 of and just clone all over the place. Also, you've got a few signs with Arabic writing, but I'd probably throw in even more; and really, my paintover probably doesn't even have enough based on the reference images I found. They have a LOT of signs in the Middle East, apparently.
My biggest complaint with what you've got so far is the way the most distant building is broken. I guess it's been hit by a rocket or something, but buildings don't tend to break down so perfectly in real life. Generally, an explosion that would cause that kind of damage would rip off a bigger piece of the front of the building, likely causing structural failures that would cause a whole portion of the building to collapse. Once that happens, you'll see lots of broken stone, bits of rebar, etc on the ground at the base of the building, and you'll probably also be able to see internal structures like the divisions between floors, if it's a multi-story building like this one. Reference will probably be super useful for this.
Finally, I added some stuff in the background, like more buildings, a mosque, and some mountains. I'm sure you have something in mind for the background but your current scene is empty in back so far
Once you're further along with modelling, I also think it would be super nifty if you threw in some effects like sand blowing along the street, or billowing smoke clouds from fires a few blocks away, etc. This kind of desert setting has the potential for a lot of atmosphere.
Good luck man, hope some of these suggestions are helpful!
Here is my work in progress, im still working on the rubble and damaged building. just an update
The wooden pallet works well as a cool repeatable junk-type prop, and I think the powerlines look nice. I also like the fabric stuff you've got hanging from the left foreground building (a clothesline, I'm guessing).
Looks like you've started ripping some chunks out of the perfect edges of the buildings, too - this is really helping to make the scene feel less pristine and more battle-scarred. It might help to make the edges of the broken-out chunks less straight and more irregular.
This is definitely shaping up, I'm looking forward to seeing where you take it!
Looking a lot better than it was though.