Here's an example of a "high poly" model. Basically, for normal-mapping, you use subdivided (Meshsmoothed) polygon geometry, and use a plugin or application to render the meshsmoothed version of the model down onto an "in-game" resolution mesh. Between 3000-7500 polys sounds about right for the in-game model, but there's…
In the tire example shouldn't there be more polygons in the silouette of the lowpoly wheel? I mean I can still count the sides no matter how detailed the highpoly mesh is. Anyway, I'm in the same position as Dio. I have made some low-poly characters and a few highpoly (that looks terrible, but anyway) so I have some…
Cubik: Yeah, like I said, it really depends on the target platform and game type when it comes to determining the polygon count and detail of the low-poly mesh. In that wheel example in my tutorial, I wasn't really aiming for anything specific. You could use more polys to round out the silhouette if they were available and…