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[Technical Talk] - FAQ: Environment Modeling & Resources

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Jeremy Lindstrom polycounter lvl 18
Environment Modeling FAQ & Resources MEGATHREAD

I've been collecting some of the links and stuff people have been posting recently for all those aspiring environment artist junkies out there:

Polycount Environment Wiki: (most of this information and some new stuff.)
http://wiki.polycount.net/CategoryEnvironment

Peris:
fast method to create hipoly stone structures:
http://www.brameulaers.com/tutorials..._tutorial.html

small tutorial about keeping hipoly stuff optimised and manageable:
http://www.brameulaers.com/tutorials..._tutorial.html


Adam Bromell (Environment Artist: The Story Teller) Setting up your scene
http://www.adambromell.com/articles/article3.html

Adam's Workup of his entry in the "Facade Challenge"
http://boards.polycount.net/showthread.php?p=833213#post833213


Adam's Sketchbook Environments (Explanation of some of his workflow for this particular project)
http://boards.polycount.net/showthread.php?t=52743

Adam's post on Maintaining Suspension of Disbelief by adding a imperfection pass
http://boards.polycount.net/showthread.php?t=51254

Kevin Johnstone on his Environment workflow:
http://boards.polycount.net/showthread.php?p=678052#post678052
Kevin's GoW2 workflow. http://boards.polycount.net/showthread.php?t=62114


Chris Holden's Tutorials & Sketchbook
Modular Design:
http://www.chrisholden.net/tutor/modular.htm
http://chrisholden.net/tutor/
http://boards.polycount.net/showthread.php?t=52565
http://www.game-artist.net/forums/tutorials/182-step-step-techniques-tiling-textures-3ds-max.html

Workflow & Modularity and Unreal Tech:
http://udn.epicgames.com/Two/WorkflowAndModularity.html

Hourences - Making of the Spire (Gears of War)
http://book.hourences.com/tutorialsspire.htm


Modular Design and Texturing in 3DSMax
http://boards.polycount.net/showthread.php?t=49439 (Questions from a noob)
http://www.game-artist.net/forums/tutorials/182-step-step-techniques-tiling-textures-3ds-max.html


Tips from Vig:
- Trim everything.
- Trim is easy to make, Select an edge and covert to shape, turn that new spline into a rectangle, generate mapping coordinates and you have instant trim. You can do the same to create drain pipes, wires vent shafts, cross beams bla bla bla...
- Walk-Thu mode is great. It turns 3dsMax viewport into fly-by mode, just like any FPS. W = Forward, S = Back, A = Strafe Left, D = Strafe Right, Mouse = Look, [] control speed. I have Shift+C set to turn it on and right click exits. Its the icon down in the lower right that looks like two foot prints.
% of Environment Artists vs. Character Artists (Good info)
http://boards.polycount.net/showthread.php?t=52862

Level Designer Vs Environment Artist (differences, and there are some)
http://boards.polycount.net/showthread.php?t=52412

Environmental Art and Inspiration:
http://boards.polycount.net/showthread.php?t=51133


Ref and Inspiration:
Warhammer Reference Art: http://www.warhammeronline.com/conceptart/index.php
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/index.php
http://www.ontarioarchitecture.com/Terms.html
http://www.simoncornwell.com/urbex/frames.htm
http://www.angelfire.com/ny3/sunshyn...oned/main.html
http://www.xs4all.nl/~kazil/
http://www.kto-to.de/en/gal.php?lang=en&pd=6
http://www.containershipping.nl/casualties.html
http://www.shieldsaroundtheworld.com/gallery.html
http://www.opacity.us
http://www.forbidden-places.net
http://www.modern-ruins.com
http://www.ohiotrespassers.com/locations.html
http://www.undergroundkent.co.uk/maunsell_towers.htm
http://www.ghosttownexplorers.org
http://www.disassociate.com/lost.html


3DTotal's Tut on urban creation:
http://www.3dtotal.com/team/Tutorials_2/making%20of_urban-environment/urban_01.asp


1/30 - More stuff from Stefan Morrell on a modular environment he is making plus a little on his zbrush workflow for pillars. :D

Stefan-Morrell on how he creates his environments:
http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?f=39&t=444791&page=7&pp=15


Stefan-Morrell's way of modeling/texturing as of Dec 2007 (Used with Permission)
I have a couple of questions though if thats okay

When you build these buildings in modules how do you manage them to fit eachother?i mean do you build one wall at the time and try to gt them to fit?

I am trying to build a house of 1 mesh and i find it very difficult to keep everything apart,Especially when working with the interior of the buildings.Im doing this for Call of duty 4 or parhapps a UT2007 map which is the editor im used to work with

I have try to make modules but its a hell getting everting to fit eachother,Do you have any tip or a good tutorial explaining the workflow?
I guess the most obvious tip for working in modules is to work(at least when getting the basic shape down) with snaps on

I try to make whole buildings then break them apart into manageable assets..or some buildings,like the one below I'll leave as whole objects,where everything is a single assest except the bottom floor..so I can stack the floors up & make it taller if needed.

cheers
Stefan
what do you do with the parts that have been extruded in/out, from a planar map they get stretched uv's? do you ever use decals on your buildings? Like snow textures or mold?
Stefan wrote:
use an automatic flatten for those selected uv's..then place them where they need to go on the texture & (if possible)stitch the uv's back together

Decals,all the time..very handy for all sorts of things


oe2wip12.jpg

The building in Crysis
oe2wip13.jpg


*More to Come or add your own*

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