Is it okay to have weapons as part of portfolio of 3d environment artist?

Oblivion2500 · May 2021

I'm a 3d environment artist and I'm currently working on my portfolio. I'm working towards smaller projects with more focus on quality and high detail. One feedback I got was that it's not a bad idea to have a high-quality prop in my portfolio as well. I was wondering if having a weapon is okay? I know that there are weapon designers but I love making weapons. It's sort of a prop...

Ashervisalis · May 2021

Yeah for sure man

sacboi · May 2021

Yes.

Weapons encapsulate an hard surface discipline throughout all phases of the creation process. Also I think worthwhile, is to research established artists like Tim Bergholz, JL Mussi...etc in order to examine their individual methology generating these particular objects.

Zi0 · May 2021

Yes, you can also make a weapon that can also be used as a prop, a turret for instance.

Ex-Ray · May 2021

In the context of your other threads and current portfolio I would advise against it. I would recommend spending your time and effort on a environmental hero piece that supported your environmental work. The hero piece becomes the focal point and direction for lighting, composition, layout, set dressing etc.

Think:
- Ornate fountain/statue in a courtyard.
- Grandfather clock in a manor house.
- The main computer terminal in a nuclear bunker.
- Jukebox in a diner
- Old typewriter in an abandoned house.

So you have a hero asset and an environment and you showcase both.

Broaden your vision, use photography or cinema as inspiration, then imagine your chosen environment in a game as a end of level area or even better as an in game cut scene. Think what sort of quality do I need to pull that off.

All the best.

Oblivion2500 · May 2021

That's a good idea.

Meloncov · Jun 2021

A weapon? Sure. All the skills you show in a weapon are relevant to making environment assets.
Weapons, plural? I'm gonna start to wonder if what you really want to be is a weapon's artist, which could be a mark against you.

Oblivion2500 · Jun 2021

Meloncov said:

A weapon? Sure. All the skills you show in a weapon are relevant to making environment assets.
Weapons, plural? I'm gonna start to wonder if what you really want to be is a weapon's artist, which could be a mark against you.

Honestly, just one or two weapons.

Alex_J · Jun 2021

if you want to design games i think you should be designing games right now (more importantly, building games). Unreal blueprints are really accessible way to start.

look out on udemy they have 90% sales every so often. Guy named Ulibarri makes the most accessible scripting/visual scripting instruction I've found anywhere. That's a great way to get started.

Knowing how to make art is a huge plus but it is a separate branch. To me it makes sense to take the most direct path possible once you know what your goal is. And with all the resources we have you literally don't have to wait a day to be designing and selling your own game ideas. There is no obstacle to prevent it.

Oblivion2500 · Jun 2021

Alex_J said:

if you want to design games i think you should be designing games right now (more importantly, building games). Unreal blueprints are really accessible way to start.

You're probably right.

Alex_J · Jun 2021

i don't know anything about getting jobs in the industry. in general it looks like you are in competition with too many people so that means you need to become really good at something, which means focus on only one thing to the exclusion of others until you are the expert at that thing. Knowing myself I can say I'm not a real smart smarty and I don't see dignity in the current employer to employee relationship dictated by capitalism in general so that's not a feeding frenzy for me.

as far as making games goes just make pong and tic tac toe and stuff like that first. you can still practice art skills by making them look nice once you've built the mechanics. if you can make tic tac toe look nice then i am sure you can make any game look nice. slow is smooth and smooth is fast.

very few people can actually finish a game so that has to count for something. as always the inhibitors to production are human issues. know thyself is the only real guidance needed because then you can solve any issue.

if you notice that you start noodling with art and forward progress slows you got to ask why.

if you notice that you diving into technical issues or over-engineer your tools and this slows forward progress you got to ask why.

if you procrastinate ask why.

beware excuses: ever meet the sort of people who really suck at lifting weights and so they'll say something like, "yeah i'm more of an endurance guy." Don't be that guy. If there is a job you got to do just find a way to do it or die trying.

Oblivion2500 · Jun 2021

Yeah, the industry is very competitive.

I'm was doing exactly. I was reverse-engineering old atari games like pong and space invaders, etc. Also, from there, make it my own with gameplay changes/improvements and graphical enhancements. I really want to get into 3D games once I get the feel of making 2D games. It's actually quite similar, just an extra dimension. The code remains similar. It's just that I have to finish the project, have a deadline, schedule around my job to do this, and then push myself. Get it done.

Neox · Jun 2021

no matter if you are an environment or a character artist, showing that you have hard surface modelling skills can never be wrong.

Roomper · Jun 2021

It's funny but I had an interesting experience. When I was applying for the position of Environment Artist in a studio that makes FPS games, I had most of my portfolio were weapons and robots and some environment. After reviewing my portfolio they offered to give me an art test for Weapon Artist. But I wouldn't like to make weapons all the time. But I thought this is a chance to join the team and after to go to Environment Artist.

Oblivion2500 · Jun 2021

Roomper said:

It's funny but I had an interesting experience. When I was applying for the position of Environment Artist in a studio that makes FPS games, I had most of my portfolio were weapons and robots and some environment. After reviewing my portfolio they offered to give me an art test for Weapon Artist. But I wouldn't like to make weapons all the time. But I thought this is a chance to join the team and after to go to Environment Artist.

I guess it can't hurt to have a weapon in your portfolio. it can still be considered a prop or used as a hero object in a small environment like have a weapon hanging on the wall or a dead soldier holding a gun or gun in some casing sci-fi, etc.

Roomper · Jun 2021

Oblivion2500 said:

I guess it can't hurt to have a weapon in your portfolio. it can still be considered a prop or used as a hero object in a small environment like have a weapon hanging on the wall or a dead soldier holding a gun or gun in some casing sci-fi, etc.

Yeah, you are right. That's an interesting idea. But you shouldn’t detail weapons for the environment like if it was used for the character in an FPS game.

But I think it would be better to have a complex environment in the portfolio which demonstrates skills on the different types of material and objects: stone sculptures, foliage, cloth objects, modular stuff etc. Also, the works about setting up lighting, overall mood, composition, shaders and some technical elements. I mean, the portfolio's focus should highlights these things. I'm working on it myself.

Is it okay to have weapons as part of portfolio of 3d environment artist?

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