I'll second that comment about not understanding how the crate works. My first impression is that this crate is for a very heavy item(small motor, etc), and the whole top piece is lifted off. As for the polygon count, you can do a lot of reductions on the rounded areas, and rely more on the normal map. Good start though, I…
Looks good. Something I would suggest is to take the black background on the normal map and turn it into the flat shade of purple. That way you won't be missing any of the normal data. You should also extend the diffuse and spec out a little bit for the same reason. Just something that everyone told me to do my first time.…
The reason the split is there is because the geometry is symmetrical to get more on the texture map. The top flaps on the crate open. Its not overly apparent on the images posted but there are small wheels on either side of this flap. Thanks for the feedback DnS. I tried to subtly change the colour between grey and green…
Your Tri count seems fine just make sure your using them to define your silhouette and your fine. There's a fire hydrant in UT3 with a 1175 tri count and Im sure you're crate is bigger than a fire hydrant so don't worry there. I'm going to say its your diffuse or spec map making it feel dark. Post your maps so we cans…