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[WIP] Japanese Level

krusader
polycounter lvl 9
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krusader polycounter lvl 9
So I don't think I've ever actually posted any of my progress, on any of my projects, to polycount. Well I'll be graduating soon and I decided I'd take a chance with posting my progress on a level I am working on. If you can too, check out my site and let me know what you think: http://www.martindewitt.net/

The level is being built with UDK, and my intention going into this project was to make it modular as much as possible, as well as trying to use as many tilable textures as possible (Rather than unique textures). I started on it roughly 2 weeks ago, and have about 35 hours into it so far. Here are a few images showing some progress:

Capture_01_zps096fe236.png
I was adjusting the scale of the level at this point, figuring out how big each piece should be.

Capture3_zps60a87083.jpg
I made a few more modular pieces and started spacing them out, getting the starting area laid out.

Capture6-3_zpsda671827.png
I blocked out the rest of the zone as well as added in roof pieces.

Capture7-3_zps5bcdb053.png
The pieces I have so far, the roofs will be modeled into a higher poly later, and the red objects still need to be sculpted and properly unwrapped, where as the green could just have a tiling texture applied.

Capture8_zps594deb2a.jpg
A bridge I finished late last night. It's one of the few assets that will need to be unique.

So anyways, I'll be working on this over the next few weeks to get it to a presentable piece. I do plan on vertex/mesh painting to make the modular pieces feel unique when its all said and done too.

Feel free to comment and critique.
Thanks.

Replies

  • Javibcln
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    Javibcln polycounter lvl 8
    Wow man shapes are looking really nice, keep it up! Im looking forward to seeing those textures.
  • krusader
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    krusader polycounter lvl 9
    Managed to get some time to add more detail to the roof tiles, and a sloppy texture job just to get it in there.
    Capture9-5_zps24ec8b8c.jpg
  • locater16
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    locater16 polycounter lvl 8
    Nice progress!
  • krusader
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    krusader polycounter lvl 9
    Finally managed to get some time this past week to work on the level, about 40 hours over 4 days. The major progress is the framing and support structure of the buildings (Where it's visible under the roof from outside, and for the 2 rooms you can visit in as well). I also added some decorative pieces to the tops of the roofs to really sell the Japanese theme. I managed to sculpt the rock pieces, unwrap, and texture them as well. And as of this morning I managed to place some water in with a fairly decent water material (Though it'll change as I get closer to making it presentable). I set up some basic lights to make sure I am headed in the right direction, as well as put a massive decal on the sky to really sell the scene.

    Capture12_zpse458a0bc.jpg
    It's a little dark but it helped me understand what I might need to do for lighting in the future. (The finished product is going to have rain and lightning.

    Capture13_zps26afc6a1.jpg
    Bronze lanterns were added, and tested some emissive lighting. However...

    Capture14_zpsb277f52a.jpg
    ... My peers recommended I go with the festive lanterns instead, so I made one of those too. I'll likely keep the other, but I just need to figure out where it'll fit better.

    Capture15_zpsefc26738.jpg
    I added in some water for the river, has a reflect on it, and some pixel depth applied. I also added in a gated wall of sorts. Eventually the wall will be where the player's progress will be blocked, and force the player to find an alternative route.
  • onewinged
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    onewinged polycounter lvl 8
    I think the architecture looks great, I would like to see some vegetation though, plants, trees,and maybe even a koi pond to really sell the theme.

    Keep up the good work!
  • Brammertron
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    Looks nice buddy, some things could do with some AO.
  • pangarang
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    pangarang polycounter lvl 11
    Your technical execution is impressive.

    My question is what reference were you using? Your piece incorporates design from traditional Chinese (elaborate, in your face) and Japanese (minimalistic and zen).

    - The railing style is more characteristic of Chinese and Korean architecture. Japanese tends to not have railings as their verandas are closer to the ground.
    - The torii gates (JP) used for the bridge (CH) actually traditionally serve as an entrance to shrine or holy place, not as decoration in a manor.
    - Roof styles are too elaborate for traditional Japanese style.

    Those are really the only things that jump out at me at first glance.

    Nice work though.
  • krusader
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    krusader polycounter lvl 9
    onewinged wrote: »
    I think the architecture looks great, I would like to see some vegetation though, plants, trees,and maybe even a koi pond to really sell the theme.

    Keep up the good work!

    Thanks! Vegitation, rocks (with either moss on it, or as a deco), some path stones, and a large bell, are my next goals for this level. Koi pond would definitely look good, but I don't have a lot of room for what I originally planned (Plus I'm running out of time to wrap this up).
    Looks nice buddy, some things could do with some AO.

    Thanks! And, yeah... I think I'll be redoing some of the assets' textures so that they include AO and some finer details (Namely the foundation and brick walls).
    pangarang wrote: »
    Your technical execution is impressive.

    My question is what reference were you using? Your piece incorporates design from traditional Chinese (elaborate, in your face) and Japanese (minimalistic and zen).

    - The railing style is more characteristic of Chinese and Korean architecture. Japanese tends to not have railings as their verandas are closer to the ground.
    - The torii gates (JP) used for the bridge (CH) actually traditionally serve as an entrance to shrine or holy place, not as decoration in a manor.
    - Roof styles are too elaborate for traditional Japanese style.

    Those are really the only things that jump out at me at first glance.

    Nice work though.

    Thanks! This is my third attempt to go modular, the other two didn't turn out as well lol. But I think my perfectionism and OCD are really kicking in this time! :D

    I did a lot of google image searching and as much as I love to think that all the images were Japanese, I know it's mixed. That said I kinda just created my own style as my main goal was to go as modular as possible for this. As a result of that I went into this knowing it wasn't 100% accurate. If you have any suggestions that won't take too much effort to change, I'm all ears. (I'm pressed for time, so I'm trying to wrap up the outside fast. (In an attempt to get some of the inside done.))

    - Could you reference me a proper railing, please. (I've never been to Japan personally)
    - Did not know that... Any suggestions for the bridge then? I did it because it fit design wise, and my peers (Who don't know of Asian architecture) think it looks good.
    - Can you elaborate on what you mean by that... I don't quite understand.

    Thanks for the kind words everyone. ^_^ It's giving me some good motivation to keep working hard on it. I can't wait to have it ready for some screen shots, let alone a video capture.
  • krusader
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    krusader polycounter lvl 9
    I finally got around to getting some more done (Classes are coming to a close and final projects are starting). Anyways, here's a cherry blossom tree, some pedal decals and a pedal particle effect.

    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVmuw1vNLRY
    (is it even possible to have a youtube video on here?)
  • AndroidBebop
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    Yep its possible to have Videos on here.


    [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-RdOnY8UlQ"]Spring cherry Blossoms in japan? ? ? ?? ??? ?? flower viewing - YouTube[/ame]
  • gsokol
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    Looking good! This is progressing along quite well.

    Looks like you got a pretty good handle on the whole modular thing. I think the one thing that throws me off in your images is how washy everything looks. Even though its night...shadows are still pretty soft and the ground and undersides of things still look fairly lit. Maybe you have a lot of ambient light there?


    Also, I think your materials read a little flat. Looking at the wood, I don't really see much of a specular response.

    The petals falling from the tree is a nice touch. I dig it! I think its always better to see some things in motion like that...helps give life to your environment.
  • thepapercut
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    So far looks really clean and off to a great start, nicely done.
  • krusader
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    krusader polycounter lvl 9
    It's been an age since I've had time to sit down and work on this... Here's an update. I remade the shader for the landscape using Landscape layer blend instead of the terrain weight layers. I also made a plant that fits the theme (Though it may change in size).

    Please feel free to continue to critique it, any and all advice helps.

    Capture24_zps3bfeea17.jpg
  • krusader
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    krusader polycounter lvl 9
    Here's another perspective, and the shader I did for the landscape in case anyone wonders. Thinking on it after talking to some friends, I believe I'll try to pack in some other textures using separate RGB channels on my textures.

    Capture24-2_zpsde10eacb.jpg
    Capture24-1_zpsc2d4aedc.jpg
  • krusader
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    krusader polycounter lvl 9
    Added in some vertex painting to the wood, wall panels, and roof. I'll be waiting to do it all over till I get some feedback here and from my facebook friends. But lemmy know what ya think.
    Capture25_zps5c87580a.jpg
  • krusader
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    krusader polycounter lvl 9
    I got it to a point where I need critiques. I have a short video (And I won't likely make it too long as it'll be apart of a demo reel). Please let me know what you think.

    [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gAKLytJgHuQ"]Japanese Level - YouTube[/ame]
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