Shadow in Whitby Video

(Video showing the environment in CryEngine)

The project video has been uploaded and can be seen above.  As with the images from the previous post, it's a bit dark in places but I think it will do for the submission.  I made sure to put all the required logos in, including the one in the bottom right corner.  The video footage itself was created using CryEngine's Track View with multiple cameras.

Next step is to upload everything.

Finally, Some Images

It's been a long time coming but I finally have some images to upload and show.  They show most of the environment that I've created.  I would love to add more detail but I need to submit my work.  Some of the images are a bit dark but you can still make out what they are.

There are a couple of images I really like that show the hand painted texture used on the building.  Hope you like them.

Troubleshooting

I know I said at the end of the last post that I'd be posting images of assets (and that will happen soon)  but first I should probably go through the problems I've encountered whilst importing assets into engine.  I've been plagued with error warning about index formats and materials since I've started using this SDK build and I decided to sort it out today.

(Error report I saw every time I started my level in engine)

This caught me by surprise, as the build I used for Mystical Wings didn't have this.  To start with I looked through all the settings in the 3DS Max exporter to see if there were any settings to change.  Much to my dismay, I couldn't find anything, so I then began looking through forums to see if anyone has been having any issues.  Thankfully I came across a post that described the method for changing the index format of the models:

http://source.crydev.net/viewtopic.php?f=326&t=121280

The material issue I was having was just something left over from the way I set up the project assets.  I managed to figure this one out quickly as I have seen similar issues in other engines.  The material assigned to the model had a different name from the material created in engine.  I'm changing them as I make update the files with the new index format.  I'm also adding Physics Proxies (collision) to the meshes so players can't walk through walls.  I'll make a short post about this process too.

Known problem resolved.  Hopefully nothing else comes up between now and tomorrow evening.

General Progress

(Progress so far on the level)

As this is the last full day I'll be working on this I thought it would be a good idea to give a general update as to the state of the project so far.  As you can see from the image above, it's far from finished.  The reference map it was standing on is finally gone and the models moved to ground level.  Over half the models have been UV mapped to display the texture properly.The main texture need a few more bits added to it and the terrain need a new one made.

So what does this mean?  Well I've decided to get the map as close to finished visually as possible.  The gameplay will most likely not be included in the submitted build, which will be a real shame (I am a bit stubborn though, so I haven't given up entirely on it).

I will be putting some images up of the finished assets in the next post together with some images of a finished map (hopefully).

UV Mapping

(UV mapping process for one of the models)

Following on from yesterday's post, I've been UV mapping to try and get the textures to display properly on my models.  The image above shows the process of packing the UVs into the space, which will allow me to add more colour information to the texture for other models.

(Testing the texture in CryEngine on the newly UV mapped model)

The image above is a screenshot of a test in engine to make sure it looks good.  All of the bricks are going in the right direction and are the same scale.  Still quite a few models to work on though, so I'd better get on with it.

Texturing

(Untextured whitebox model of Whitby Abbey)

I now have Whitby Abbey mapped out with 3D models and it looks okay.  I will be adding a little bit of extra detail to a few of the models but most of them are likely to remain as they are.  The next step is to create a texture I can use on them.  Most of today was spent hand painting a texture from scratch (no photos were used in its creation), with various stages of testing to see what it looks like on a model.  I'm not trying to create a photo-realistic recreation of Whitby Abbey; instead I want a painterly look as stated in the Style Guide post.

(A small section of the texture I've been working on today)

I can't apply it in engine yet, as I will need to redo the UV maps to use the texture properly and efficiently.  For those who don't know what a UV map is, it's a 2D representation of the geometry of a 3D model.  It dictates where an image will be displayed on the surface of a model.  As you can see from the image below, the texture looks quite good on the model even though it hasn't been mapped properly yet.  I am aiming to map them tomorrow or Sunday.

(A test render of the texture on a model without finished UVs)

The texture will be merged with some others onto a single material so that multiple meshes can use the same texture space in engine.  This increases efficiency and demonstrates optimisation for game development.

Troublesome Day

Yesterday ended up being slightly problematic in terms of being able to work on the project.  Most of the day was spent in the hospital waiting for a rather unpleasant gastroscopy procedure.  Despite this I returned home and got on with some 3D modelling, working on the tower section of the scene.  The day was made worse by an untimely power cut, which corrupted the file I had open and forced me to use a backup save, costing me around an hours worth of work (really wasn't my day).

On a brighter note, I've managed to finish the tower model and can continue to work on the project next weekend.

Whitebox Models

(More place holders in engine, looking a bit more like an abbey)

As I expected, I have already fallen behind in my schedule, so I've spent as much time as I could today 3D modelling.  First of all I worked on finishing the middle and upper sections for the inner walls and importing them into CryEngine.

(Basic shape of one of the abbey's main walls)

The next stage was to create one of the big walls at the end of the abbey, together with the two spires either side.  The wall is only a basic model at the moment, although more detail will be added at a later point.  It's probably worth mentioning that most of the detail will be added through the texture, as it will be a lot quicker.

(One of the spires to go next to the wall)

The spire model I made has a bit more detail and was a lot more difficult to make.  There are actually two different meshes for this (one for each side of the wall) because of the way they are shaped.  Ordinarily I would just use the same model and rotate it in engine, however there is chamfering on part of the model that would be in the wrong place if I did so.

I'm hoping to get most, if not all of the basic shapes built before Monday so I can start texturing or adding gameplay.  Hopefully no more unforeseen events prevent me from working on it.