Tuesday, September 24, 2013
Beautiful BIOME
Today, we have just submitted a project called "Beautiful Biome" for my 3D class. We are supposed to make an scientific classified nature environment. The goal of this assignment is to practicing making organic shapes and making foliage cards. I feel this assignment is kind of like making a painting of nature, but it is in 3D, I am kind of weak of coming out a great composition, but overall I like what I got now. We have 8 days to finish this environment, therefore we need to rush many things, I definitely feel that I need more time to fix some issues. I need to tweak a bunch of stuffs later, like the UV maps and light maps of many stuffs.
Tuesday, September 10, 2013
Summer Break ZBrush Practise
Here are some updates of what I did during my summer break, me and my comrade Mike are making a underwater world for fun, so all the rocks are supposed to simulate underwater rocks, kinda like corals and volcano, anyhow they need to have very coarse and rough surfaces. These are just ZBrush practices, I have also UV and textured them, they look great in our environment, Mike has the .udk file, so I don't have the textured version of rocks with me. Here are just some sculptures of part of the rocks:
3D Assignment: Before and After Texturing
This "Before and After" assignment is to make us geek out the material editor in UDK, this is the first time we ever touch vertex painting, it is extremely useful for blending two textures. Everyone is supposed to create a simple model, my pick is ICE CREAM...... so far, I have just textured my ice cream, simple diffuse maps plus secular maps, so we call this the 1st pass of texturing, next, we are going to use vertex painting, I am going to make the ice cream cone dip into chocolate. Here is just the 1st pass:
Final Render: I made the cream sparkling and put reflections on both the chocolate and the cream. Of course, I added sprinkles on top of the ice cream cone. To enhance the shape of the cream and the cone, I used tessellations. Here are my final renders, please click them for full size images. Thanks!
Final Render: I made the cream sparkling and put reflections on both the chocolate and the cream. Of course, I added sprinkles on top of the ice cream cone. To enhance the shape of the cream and the cone, I used tessellations. Here are my final renders, please click them for full size images. Thanks!
3D Assignment Modular Kit: The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)
We have finished our first assignment in our 3D class, it likes what we did last year: making modular parts to construct an environment. However, this time we only have two weeks to finish, we have strict restrictions on all the maps (a 2048 px square), poly-counts limit and we cannot use other people's models. My theme is the New York Stock Exchange. Here are some screenshots of my environment to show the steps I went through:
The Toy Experiments
Toy 1: The New Snake Game
Concept Statement: Nothing venture, nothing have!
Setting/Mood: Daytime, Maze-like map, a rather tight place that are filled with apples and landmines.
Brief Backs Story and Ideas: This toy is based on the original "Snake Game", which you control a snake and eat apples, every time you consume an apple, you grow longer, but the longer you grow, the less agile you will become. Because of that, the difficulty of the game is gradually increasing. The map is a bit like a maze, in order to find all the apples, you need to explore the map a bit.
Obstacles: In this game, I changed the mechanics of the snake game a bit, the snake does not die when it hit the walls, instead, I placed some landmines around every apple, if the player step on any of those landmines, he or she lose the game. In this game, player can actually jump by hitting the space bar, they can jump over a landmine and even a piece of wall.
Goal of the Game: Players win the game by consuming all the apples without triggering any landmine.
Toy 2: The Rambo Pacman
Concept Statement: In front of crises, try not to lose your cool!
Setting/Mood: Nighttime, indoor,very tight space, maze map, creepy and horrifying environment.
Brief Backs Story and Ideas: I originally wanted to make the Pacman game, but later I decided to add some of my own designs. First of all, I want to make a game that has horror styles, therefore I basically made the entire map very dark, it is lit by just a couple of dim green lights. Players' goal is to collect all the apples in the map, which is pretty much like the goal in Pacman. Pacman was developed upon a great game mechanic, but after so many years, people may get bored of playing it, therefore I wanted to make my version of Pacman more exciting, more challenging and more stylized. My game is first person, the players does not know where all the apples are. Players are facing a crisis at the beginning of the game, they are surrounded by enemies, therefore the game play has a very fast pace.
Obstacles: Under those dim and creepy lights, players need to explore the maze, meanwhile they have to deal with 30 blood thirst enemy AIs. In order to avoid the attack of the enemy AIs, players need to keep moving and hide behind the walls, they need to remember all the locations of the ammo packs, armors and heal packs. At the same time, they must not pointlessly running around the map, or they will attract the enemies' attentions. It is not easy to kill 30 enemies within a small maze, players must not loose their cool mind under the enemies' fires and the heavy metal back ground music. They need to discover the path to the secrete armories. One armory is filled with heavy weapons, armors and heal packs. The other armory is stationed a gunship and a scorpion armored vehicle. Well, those armories provides the players great fire support, but they do not guarantee players victory. For example, when the play is operating the gunship, they must lift the gunship, let them fly higher in order to avoid enemies' intensive gun fires and crashing on the walls.
Goal of the Game: Eliminating all the enemies and collecting all the apples to win the game!
Toy 3: "Enter the Dragon!"
Concept Statement: Success requires both intelligence and courage!
Setting/Mood: Daytime, puzzle, a giant wall, circular passes.
Brief Backs Story and Ideas: This game is based on the concept of the "High Striker". Here, the player must stand on the highest level of the map and jump down and land on a pressure pad to trigger to a door open. I watched a tutorial of comparing velocities of bunch of variables in Kismet, by comparing the velocities of the player with a value to estimate where the players jumped from: level 1? level 2? level 3? At the same time, I do not want to just make a puzzle. I remember in many RPG games, when you hack through a gate or figured out a puzzle to open a gate, players could alert a bunch of enemies and immediately engaged into a big fight, here I add 8 enemy AIs around the gate, after players solve the puzzle, they would immediately be involved into a gunfight.
Obstacles: The puzzle is the first obstacle, it is actually not easy for people to solve it when they first see the puzzle, but there are plenty of hints. There are also 3 lights on one of the pillars. The pressure pad would glow if the player stands on it, when the player jumps down from the first level and land on the pressure pad, the bottom light is turned on, if players jump down from the second level, the bottom and middle light is turned on. If the players jump down from the 3rd level and land on the pad, all the lights are turned on. Then the gate is open. 8 enemies spawn and start to attack the player. The player must hide behind those pillars and run to the second level or the third level to get a better firing position.
Goal of the Game: Solve the puzzle, defeat all the bots to go through the door!
Concept Statement: Nothing venture, nothing have!
Setting/Mood: Daytime, Maze-like map, a rather tight place that are filled with apples and landmines.
Brief Backs Story and Ideas: This toy is based on the original "Snake Game", which you control a snake and eat apples, every time you consume an apple, you grow longer, but the longer you grow, the less agile you will become. Because of that, the difficulty of the game is gradually increasing. The map is a bit like a maze, in order to find all the apples, you need to explore the map a bit.
Obstacles: In this game, I changed the mechanics of the snake game a bit, the snake does not die when it hit the walls, instead, I placed some landmines around every apple, if the player step on any of those landmines, he or she lose the game. In this game, player can actually jump by hitting the space bar, they can jump over a landmine and even a piece of wall.
Goal of the Game: Players win the game by consuming all the apples without triggering any landmine.
A snake jumps over a landmine!
Toy 2: The Rambo Pacman
Concept Statement: In front of crises, try not to lose your cool!
Setting/Mood: Nighttime, indoor,very tight space, maze map, creepy and horrifying environment.
Brief Backs Story and Ideas: I originally wanted to make the Pacman game, but later I decided to add some of my own designs. First of all, I want to make a game that has horror styles, therefore I basically made the entire map very dark, it is lit by just a couple of dim green lights. Players' goal is to collect all the apples in the map, which is pretty much like the goal in Pacman. Pacman was developed upon a great game mechanic, but after so many years, people may get bored of playing it, therefore I wanted to make my version of Pacman more exciting, more challenging and more stylized. My game is first person, the players does not know where all the apples are. Players are facing a crisis at the beginning of the game, they are surrounded by enemies, therefore the game play has a very fast pace.
Obstacles: Under those dim and creepy lights, players need to explore the maze, meanwhile they have to deal with 30 blood thirst enemy AIs. In order to avoid the attack of the enemy AIs, players need to keep moving and hide behind the walls, they need to remember all the locations of the ammo packs, armors and heal packs. At the same time, they must not pointlessly running around the map, or they will attract the enemies' attentions. It is not easy to kill 30 enemies within a small maze, players must not loose their cool mind under the enemies' fires and the heavy metal back ground music. They need to discover the path to the secrete armories. One armory is filled with heavy weapons, armors and heal packs. The other armory is stationed a gunship and a scorpion armored vehicle. Well, those armories provides the players great fire support, but they do not guarantee players victory. For example, when the play is operating the gunship, they must lift the gunship, let them fly higher in order to avoid enemies' intensive gun fires and crashing on the walls.
Enemies are approaching, shoot them!!
Attack from an enemy's side or back!
Concept Statement: Success requires both intelligence and courage!
Setting/Mood: Daytime, puzzle, a giant wall, circular passes.
Brief Backs Story and Ideas: This game is based on the concept of the "High Striker". Here, the player must stand on the highest level of the map and jump down and land on a pressure pad to trigger to a door open. I watched a tutorial of comparing velocities of bunch of variables in Kismet, by comparing the velocities of the player with a value to estimate where the players jumped from: level 1? level 2? level 3? At the same time, I do not want to just make a puzzle. I remember in many RPG games, when you hack through a gate or figured out a puzzle to open a gate, players could alert a bunch of enemies and immediately engaged into a big fight, here I add 8 enemy AIs around the gate, after players solve the puzzle, they would immediately be involved into a gunfight.
Obstacles: The puzzle is the first obstacle, it is actually not easy for people to solve it when they first see the puzzle, but there are plenty of hints. There are also 3 lights on one of the pillars. The pressure pad would glow if the player stands on it, when the player jumps down from the first level and land on the pressure pad, the bottom light is turned on, if players jump down from the second level, the bottom and middle light is turned on. If the players jump down from the 3rd level and land on the pad, all the lights are turned on. Then the gate is open. 8 enemies spawn and start to attack the player. The player must hide behind those pillars and run to the second level or the third level to get a better firing position.
Jump and Land on the Pad!
Hide Behind the Pillars!
Friday, August 23, 2013
Game Mechanic Brainstorming
First post after my summer break!! We are going to make another game level in my Game Design class, but this time it is just a toy, through doing this project it could hopefully reminds me the things I learnt last semester. Here are 20 ideas about the game mechanics:
1. Snake Game: As you know, you control a snake and collects food to grow longer.
2. Bring Your Little Sheep Home: a small plat former game, you control 3 little sheep and overcome different obstacles.
3. Walking On String: You control a clown and make him walk across the string.There is going to be a bar moving back and forth, the player need to put his or her mouse on the bar, or the clown will fall.
4. Mr. Ball's Adventure: You control a ball and try to overcome serious of obstacles.
5. Mini Golf: A mini golf game.
6. Land Mines: You control a boxy man and walk trough a room that has land mines under the floor, you have limited amount t of chances to detect and eliminate landmines.
7. Shooting Game: create a shooting game by utilizing the character we created last semester.
8. Bouncing Ball Adventure: Platformer, you control a ball that can bounce overcome obstacles.
9. 3D Version of Pac-Man
10. Car Platformer Game: control the car I made last semester and drive through a map that has plenty of obstacles.
11. Bomb Man: Put time bombs on the map to kill enemies and destroy obstacles.
12. Tower Defending
13:Simple Version of Zombie V.S. Plants
14: A Car Chasing Game
15. Shooting Ducks
16: Skating
17: Getting Out of the Maze
18: Catching Thieves in Maze
19: Closing Doors
20: Pushing Boxes and Solving Puzzles
1. Snake Game: As you know, you control a snake and collects food to grow longer.
2. Bring Your Little Sheep Home: a small plat former game, you control 3 little sheep and overcome different obstacles.
3. Walking On String: You control a clown and make him walk across the string.There is going to be a bar moving back and forth, the player need to put his or her mouse on the bar, or the clown will fall.
4. Mr. Ball's Adventure: You control a ball and try to overcome serious of obstacles.
5. Mini Golf: A mini golf game.
6. Land Mines: You control a boxy man and walk trough a room that has land mines under the floor, you have limited amount t of chances to detect and eliminate landmines.
7. Shooting Game: create a shooting game by utilizing the character we created last semester.
8. Bouncing Ball Adventure: Platformer, you control a ball that can bounce overcome obstacles.
9. 3D Version of Pac-Man
10. Car Platformer Game: control the car I made last semester and drive through a map that has plenty of obstacles.
11. Bomb Man: Put time bombs on the map to kill enemies and destroy obstacles.
12. Tower Defending
13:Simple Version of Zombie V.S. Plants
14: A Car Chasing Game
15. Shooting Ducks
16: Skating
17: Getting Out of the Maze
18: Catching Thieves in Maze
19: Closing Doors
20: Pushing Boxes and Solving Puzzles
Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Finalizing the Vehicle and the Character
Now, it is the time to move my character to the final rendering, we made two turnarounds for them, and front , side, 3/4 and back view of the models, I generated a normal map from my ZBrush sculpture and for the car, I finalized the reflection map and the spec map, I get some good critiques on the reflections of the car, which I need to fix the texture of the car, I am not very happy about that, but the rest of the works are pretty well done. Please watch the videos in its highest resolution. Here they are.I hope you like them:
Making An Attract Trailer For Our Racing Game
I have to say this is a fun project. We are asked to make a trailer video to show our levels and the game play of our racing game (right now, it's official name called "Sophomore Spin-out") We submitted a 1st pass video first then this is the final version of my trailer:
Firing My Weapon In UDK
This is an extra credit projects for the Programming For Artist class, which we are asked to set our character as the default character in UDK and make them shoot their weapon. I followed a tutorial that is made by our professor, the particles and sound effects are from UDK. For some reason, the new gun does not show when I switch to 3rd person, but everything else work fine, here is a video about it:
Making Weapons for My Character
As I mentioned in my original concept design for my character, she is going to hold a M4 assault rifle, I have finished the rifle for her. I rushed this gun, because the weapon is no longer a requirement at the end of this project as we don't have too much time left before the semester ends, but I think I should make a gun for my character to really complete this project.
Making Animation
We are asked to animate a idling and a simple walk-cycle animation for our characters, we don't focus on animating in our major but it is something that every game artists should know, this is my first 3D animation, I get a lot of help from Yunhao Zhang, he is one of my friends here, he is a good animator in our school. Here is how they turn out:
Rigging and Weight Painting
I have to say that my character is not easy to paint weights. While I was painting weights, I have restart for 3 times because of lacking experience. I think that it is very important to know how the weights affect skins. I need to keep testing the weights in Maya, and then import the model into UDK to test again, because sometimes everything work fine in Maya but the weights do not work well in Animset.
Due to the fact that my character has many bags and gears around her body, I grouped those gears separately and bind them on different joints, therefore they can be constraint by different joints. Those joints that control all the pockets also have weights on the vest, so the vest and the pockets could move together without stretching too much. It is pretty challenging to add weights and make it working for this character, she works fine at the end, but I think I need more practices on painting weights.
Due to the fact that my character has many bags and gears around her body, I grouped those gears separately and bind them on different joints, therefore they can be constraint by different joints. Those joints that control all the pockets also have weights on the vest, so the vest and the pockets could move together without stretching too much. It is pretty challenging to add weights and make it working for this character, she works fine at the end, but I think I need more practices on painting weights.
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Finished Modeling and Texturing the Character
After sculpting my character in ZBrush, I imported my model into 3d-coat and retopoed my sculpture. The final model has roughly 30 thousand triangles. It is not very low-poly and the topology of the model can be better.
The texturing really take a while to make, it has been kept updating until the deadline. We are only allowed to use one 2048x2048 texture map, but I am allowed to use another 512x512 map for the hair and eyelash.
The texturing really take a while to make, it has been kept updating until the deadline. We are only allowed to use one 2048x2048 texture map, but I am allowed to use another 512x512 map for the hair and eyelash.
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