[CE3] Sci-fi residential map

[EzMeow]

Long story short, I've decided to get a degree on top of my daily job. Luckily my experience in the industry made me skip all years of study and all I have to do is a map as student project (which would explain that I did put in hold all other project I had running).

Only constraint is that it has to be a playable map running at 60fps /1080p on a Xeon W3530 2.80GHz, 6gb RAM, and a GTX 465.

Anyway less text, moar images :

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking11.jpg

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking12.jpg

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking13.jpg

Obviously everthing is still WIP, but crits are welcome~

[Computron]

Reminds me of a Brink concept. Clean!

Now dirty it up, add some deeper AO using vertex colors and maybe increase the GI settings in the console?

[Snader]

I'm really not getting any sense of scale. How large is this thing? Throw some rudimentary people in there to see how your proportions work.

[PhilipK]

This is looking great! Very nice shapes and good amount of details IMO. I wouldn't dirty it up. If anything I'd try to add some vegetation here and there (if that'd fit the theme that is).

[MartinH]

You have some really cool shapes going on with this building, i dig it alot man.

What does the modular pieces that you made for this look like? I think the biggest challenge with a building like this is to make it out of a kit that can be reused to create alot of different variants.

Some scale ref would be useful to have present to keep you from slipping up with the scale but looking at it i think you're doing pretty well, can't see any glaring problematic areas.

Do you have some ref to go off of, or a rough sketch of what you envision this to look like in the end?

Again, cool stuff, will keep an eye on this for sure.

[Darkrusader]

Very nice! Love the clean sleek shapes. Im with Phil about keeping this thing clean and tossin in some greenery.

[megalmn2000]

The concept is really like. It reminds me of BRINK and some kind of graffiti shapes. Anyway, I would add more props like vegetations to give a sense of life into it. The water looks a bit fake, I think it's because of the specular/glossiness. Try to play around that. Can you show us more how you did the modularity? :)

[Alberto Rdrgz]

looks pretty sweet

[EzMeow]

Thanks for the comments guys :).
The original idea is to keep the whole environment clean. It should be a more detailed pass on the building itself but mostly some small props on top of it.
A vegetation pass is on the list as well, but I'm trying to get the overall of the map done before starting another iteration.
While I duplicated a lot of pieces to create the building in maya, the building isn't made from modular asset in the editor as I wanted something more unique and very line driven(and regroup all the drawcalls for performance reason).
As for my references I went through Brink (as mentioned earlier) minus the dirt, a lot of modern architecture research (mostly Zaha Hadid),wipeOut, Tron, Mirror's Edge Etc...

[JordanW]

badass shapes! needs a sense of place and scale but lookin great.

[chrisradsby]

Really nice! Needs green bushes and benches STAT! :D

[Donavonyoung]

And possibly some of those neat news displays that are trasparent and emissive.

[SHEPEIRO]

Really nice! Needs green bushes and benches STAT! :D

+1

id also like something "normal" to set it off like a bin or a dinosaur

[Orb]

Looks awesome...Hope you'll make a playable scene :)

[EzMeow]

Small update, no obvious change but it slowly taking shape.

Trying to get the volumes of the lower floor :
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking14.jpg

Defining some planter area to get ready for some vegetation and added some cover wall for "gameplay" purpose

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking15.jpg

close up of the bench (1st pass) , trying to stay very simple and minimal in the shape but effective :

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking16.jpg

The level have to be fully playable, that's the main reason it takes time to setup, it's a bit longer than a portfolio still shot :p

[Computron]

Interesting. nice unwraps, good minimal use of textures. Reminds me of Halo Reach cityscape environments.

The underside looks really flat right now, get some GI in there, or manual point lights.
There are very few medium frequency lighting details, and I think that will really help sell the minimalist look.

Do you got any concepts or are you just pumping his out of your head?

Take a look at this Mirrors Edge collection from Dead End Thrills (http://deadendthrills.com/collections/mirrors-edge/), if you need some ref.

[EzMeow]

Thanks for the link, the lower floor is really just a blockout of the volume so I didn't bother with the lighting at the moment.
I'm mostly working directly in 3D here, just doing some paintover to get some idea but not really what I would call a concept. Most of the planning is in my head~ :p

[almighty_gir]

reminds me of some kind of super yacht!
http://www.charterworld.com/images/yachts/Superyacht%20St%20Ekaterina%20-%20formerly%20called%20XANADU.jpg

[Holi]

Me gusta!
Good luck with your graduation :P

[Callesw]

Haha +1 on the yacht thing! Also get that feeling.
I really love the part under the bridge. (the first photo of your last update!)
Looking really sweet! Give us moaaar!:)

[fearian]

Love it! Great shapes and style. Very 'brink'.

Subscribed!

[ultramedia]

awe. some. :)

I find it so hard to come up with ideas for futuristic urban designs, so seeing people coming up with great designs like this is very inspiring - Keep up the good work!

[PHaynes888]

So is the aim of this to produce a map that's playable and looks good? Or is it more of an art assignment? The reason I ask is because it does look cool (and Brink-y as mentioned), however it does look quite difficult to judge where the routes are for players, there's a lot of acrhitecture everywhere in some of those shots. Of course, it could just be the camera angles you've used, maybe it's easier to navigate when running around it. Something to bear in mind though.

Maybe you need to split the colours up a bit? Lots of white going on so the higher areas that you can't access could be a darker colour to the ones that you can? Also Brink used a lot of planters and trees to break it all up:

http://thecontrolleronline.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/brink-agents-of-change-featured.jpg (http://www.polycount.com/forum/view-source:http://thecontrolleronline.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2011/08/brink-agents-of-change-featured.jpg)

[Orchidface]

There are definitely some parts that are well executed, however its looking a little plain. The materials don't really look tangible. Looks a little CGish.

[EzMeow]

Thanks for the comment guys.
The super yacht feeling is a good thing, it was part of my references and I wanted to inject the modern/clean/sunny mood from it.
As for the playability, let say that the map has to be playable but that I'm not really judge on the balanced/fun factor from its level design. I think it would be a control point map (still have to figure out how to setup that in the editor~)
I'm trying to get this aspect right anyway but I don't really have the time nor the possibility to play test it so it's kinda difficult. But as I said I'll be mostly judge on the art side of it.
Anyway thanks again for the comments, any critics are welcome ~

[stxtch]

Your shape language is really tight and the architecture is exciting- but because its such an unusual style it's hard to get a bearing on scale or context. Consider adding some more recognizable elements such as tree planters or bushes as PHaynes888's mentioned. Let the viewer know why this space exists. Is it a courtyard to a convention centre? If so, think about adding tables, umbrellas, fountains, banners, etc. If it's part of a cruise ship or resort maybe a pool and some deck chairs would help. Always look for opportunities to give add the human element.

[David-J]

Loving it. Like a lot of people have said it reminds me a lot of Brink, and I mean it in a very good way.

what kind of props are you planning to add to populate your environment?

[Darkleopard]

Its looking really great but i agree with phaynes. I think adding some plants or something like in that picture would really pull the whole thing together

[Ace-Angel]

Add fake plants ;P

[Computron]

Add fake plants ;P

That's too hard, every time I try to make fake plants they turn out photoreal... :poly127:

:-P

[walklikethis]

would it be possible to see the UV layouts and wire of the plants. i really like how they have been done. if not, a brief explanation would also be fine. thanks

[EzMeow]

would it be possible to see the UV layouts and wire of the plants. i really like how they have been done. if not, a brief explanation would also be fine. thanks

I guess you are talking about the screenshot that PHaynes888 (http://www.polycount.com/forum/member.php?u=52677) posted, which is from Brink, because I haven't start on my plants yet :p

[PHaynes888]

Edited my post to be a link to the image rather than the image itself, might help people distinguish the level screenshots from others :)

[HandSandwich]

Very cool stuff. Love the shapes and colors.

[walklikethis]

I guess you are talking about the screenshot that PHaynes888 (http://www.polycount.com/forum/member.php?u=52677) posted, which is from Brink, because I haven't start on my plants yet :p

well its a shame you can't tell me. but i guess it is a testament to your work that i get it confused with a AAA title.

[EzMeow]

Update, added some green ~ (some bush are just randomly placed to check the color composition)

There's still a lot of props to do (trash bin,air con, lamppost, some grid etc~ ...)and some area to define.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking20.jpg

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking21.jpg

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking22.jpg

I'm trying to "inject" some more sci-fi feeling into the image without going the gribble orgy way.

And according to those screen shot, it seems that I should calm down my HDR setting.
Thanks for your time :D, C&C welcome~

[Scifix]

One way to make it sci-fi is to maybe make some signs: LED, Scrolling, Neon, Stencils. Look for samples of Mass Effect Citadel, Portal, Dead Space. Although it looks pretty sci-fi already.

[Darkleopard]

Looking way better with the plants. Cant wait to see all the little props. This will be amazing

[leleuxart]

This is looking awesome! I love the style. With the plants, or maybe it's the POV in the recent shots, I'm getting the yacht feeling even more. Which isn't a bad thing

I also agree with the Halo: Reach city style. Maybe you can take a look there for some ideas on more sci-fi designs.

Also, I'm not sure if the blue lines are emissive, but I think it'd be kind of cool if those provided the lighting. The green ones could even be somewhat of a glow-in-the-dark material for ambient lighting. That would cut down the need for another model(and you have lights in this (http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking16.jpg)). A night-time scene with the emissive lines would be pretty sci-fi, in my opinion. :)

[Lennyagony]

This is looking incredible, love the direction and style.

Additionally this is interesting "Long story short, I've decided to get a degree on top of my daily job. Luckily my experience in the industry made me skip all years of study and all I have to do is a map as student project."

I hope this isn't too personal but was this hard to swing? and is it a game art related degree? im currently without a degree, with a bunch of industry experience and would find a degree helpful, especially if the time constraints on attaining one were reduced.

[scotthomer]

Loving this dude, really awesome work. The added vegetation is really contrasting with the sci-fi architecture (which is cool as hell) I all works together really nicely!

[snow]

fantastic job! subscribed!

will you be posting flats? I'd love to know how you approached the trims and texture in general of this building, and the fact you didn't use modularity makes it even more interesting!

[konstruct]

Damn- this is turning out so cool. I cant help but feel the underside of that bridge needs some sort of structural support. Maybe its just the screenshot where I cant see where it goes to, but it just feels a little unsubstantiated.

[JamieRIOT]

Really liking the progress on this so far; it was just two days ago that I decided to buy BRINK again and your piece (like many others have mentioned) oozes that art style.
I think to know exactly what other props to place etc, you need to nail down what this environments purpose is. At the moment it looks like a futuristic holiday resort or company HQ.
As for wanting to give it a more sci-fi feel, maybe adding some neons lights, little ATM-style machines (or something like that) or strips of metal and light running through the flooring?
Looking forward to where this goes from here!

[SHEPEIRO]

love it but i think your veg needs some work looks a bit unaturally clean both texture and model...needs messing up a touch... it could be an aesthetic decision but i think some contrast between the clean lines of the building and some nice natural foliage would be great

[Somni]

Trees definitely help! At first it was difficult to see what was what in the first few images.

I agree with others about the white walls-they feel a little too perfect.

I know this might be too much, but I'm not so sure about the wooden floor texture. Personally, if I was an architect, I would not construct a building with so much wooden flooring, especially for the outdoors. I would probably use some sort of tile, or concrete. Perhaps this tile could be a different color or similar to the color of the wood. There's also wood flooring on what appears to be road; I don't think it makes sense to have wooden flooring with road.

Since this is a residential area, perhaps you might want to add something more cultural; usually residential areas have something that mark some kind of culture since people live there. Right now it appears more like a corporate area than residential. Or it appears like some sort of hotel or public building where people do not necessarily live in. But maybe I'm being too picky :p

Either way it looks nice. Awesome shapes, awesome map, awesome job bro!

[Tidus]

Lovely architecture.. and it looks so clean. Awesome. I would push the contrast in the textures of the plants. The vegetation of Crysis looks pretty good, for example.

I would also try to match the colour of the leaves with the green structure you have in the building.

[GoSsS]

That's sick dude !!

[looprix]

Finally a fresh sci-fi scene! The architecture is beautiful keep up the good work.

[EzMeow]

As requested some of the textures I used to build the building :

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_textures.jpg

Those are still WIP and I probably iterate a bit more later on.

Here are some hi-poly that I used to get my normals :

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_HP.jpg


@ leleuxart : The feeling I wanted to get at first is a kind of sunny clear sky "perfect day" mood. But I though about the night shot and I'm thinking about an alternate version if I got the time.

@Lennyagony :I'm not sure what do you mean by "swing". I'm still doing Env artist as day job, while working on this project only during my free time, which is somehow exhausting, doing a playable map is way more work than doing a still shot for a contest. As for your case, I don't know where you live but I'm a french guy living in the UK doing this procedure in a school in Belgium (I could do it in France but studies cost are really affordable there.) so maybe you could find a way out of that.

@konstruct : The support is here ! but now you know why I didn't include it in the shot :p
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking23.jpg

@JamieRIOT : Holiday resort was basically what I had in mind for the mood setting (I think that's the same words I used to describe it to a colleague)

@SHEPEIRO : I did rework a bit on the tree according to some feedback, If I got the time I'm going to rework the bush a bit as well, but the primary intention was to have a clean slightly stylized vegetation.
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_blocking24.jpg

@Tidus : I tried at first to match the 2 green together, but it won't do here, otherwise as people noticed, the tree looked fake, and changing the green on the building to a less vibrant tone isn't really helping the mood.

[snow]

thanks for the flats, will you be releasing this so we can play it? :)

[EzMeow]

thanks for the flats, will you be releasing this so we can play it? :)

I'll think about it, but first I need to to check one of the most stupid thing : how to launch the map without the launcher asking you to log in (if that's even possible).
And then it would be more "navigate in it" than "play it", as there isnt any gameplay set or so :p

[snow]

haha of course :) i'd imagine it more to be in the style of snefer's UDK map, just be cool to check out and learn from especially with how much effort you've put in.

hopefully someone can help you out in that area cause i'd love to explore it!

[EzMeow]

long time without update, so here it goes. I'm getting all the navigable area done before getting into dressing/decal/small detail pass, so all the map get progressively updated.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_wip01.jpg

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_wip03.jpg

sci-fi trash bin !
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_wip02.jpg

And I did a pass on the lighting and the skybox :

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_wip04.jpg

everything is still WIP, crits welcome ~

[David-J]

great update. Love the lighting now. I wish I had something more insightful to say but it just rocks so far.

[EzMeow]

quick update :

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_wip06.jpg

[TheGoozah]

Hey awesome improvements! I really like this scene!
The only thing bothering me right now is the road. The texture looks too flat... it's like rough paper. Also the yellow line has some strange hard twists in the turn. Overall, you could add some dirt later on but it is not really necessary! It could add more life to the scene, but just make sure you don't loose it's spirit.
So keep going, this is going great!! Cheers!

[EzMeow]

I've added some overall details/dirt, started to optimized a bit and do the physics proxy (that you won't see :p). I still have some text/ads to do and think about the background.

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_wip10.jpg

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_wip11.jpg

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_wip08.jpg

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_wip07.jpg

and now the weather report ~

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_wip09.jpg

[Quack!]

I'm in love with how clean this is. Very refreshing. If a playable a demo is out of the question, a simple walkthrough video would be a boon. Keep up the great work.
The tracks and grease/oil/gas on the road seems to be scattered in an odd way. I would try to spread out the grime there a bit, right now it looks like you just have a few square shaped decals tossed on the road and it is off putting.

[Darkleopard]

Great work. Would love a walkthough

[Thegodzero]

I have really been enjoying watching this come to life, great job man!

[Helba]

Love this work :)

what method did you face in the texturing of the big white building blocks?

[Miodnre]

Very nice shapes, loving this scene!
Can you tell we more about your workflow? Did you make a blockout in the sandbox ( or Max ? ) before starting modelling?

[coots7]

does it have a swimming pool? This reminds me of a Cruise Ship. Great looking scene. How modular is it? I see you reused the textures (thanks for posting those btw) but how are your modular is your geometry?

[EzMeow]

Thanks guys for your comments~

@quack : some tracks are just randomly set for now, I need to do a polish pass on it. Thanks for the input.

@Helba : the building is mostly a tiling texture mixed with some trim texture to avoid the "hard edge" cut look. I'll try to post some more explicit images when i'll get the time

@Miodnre : I did a lot of blockout test in maya with a bunch of paintover before doing the final version. I'll try to gather some of the screen of the test or paintover when I'll be back home.

@coots7 : It doen't have a swimming pool :p~ I though about it, but as the map has to be somehow "gameplay ready" and that pool are just a pain in any fps map, i just throwed the idea. (let's say that the pool is on the other side of the building).
As for the modularity, as I said before, it's not really modular in a editor way. I had some wall pieces in maya that i reused a lot then applied some deformer on them, to finally merge them. I went for this option because as I'm alone on this project, there isn't people waiting after me to get some modular asset in order to build the world, and I wanted a more unique shape.

[urgaffel]

I'm really liking this, looking forward to more :)

[SasoDuck]

I'm actually not getting much of a sci-fi feel out of this- more of a modern luxury resort/casino-type place, with some cool club lights going on. As that, it looks wicked, but there aren't a whole lot of sci-fi aspects...

[erik!]

This is the shit right hurr.

[EzMeow]

quick update : getting some work on the vista. (switched the line from green to yellow as well)

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/sci-fi_map_wip14.jpg

[Orb]

GRATZ ON THE BANNER!!! well deserved

[toolpaddz]

Is the water a shader or just a photo-texture? If it's a shader, do you mind sharing it? :)

[Darkrusader]

Well deserved indeed! This is looking super slick! Congratz man!

[EzMeow]

Wow thanks guys, I didn't expect that at all. I feel ashamed about the fact that I kinda slack off on the update of the thread with the finals.
I'll try do do this as soon as possible and will release the map as well.
Unfortunatly due to the freeSDK login restriction, people will only be able to play in in the launcher and not play around in the editor :(.

[toolpaddz]

Congratulations on the banner!
I wonder if you want to share the water shader perchance or speak about how you made it look so awesome?

[EzMeow]

Sorry for the delay, here are some of the final pictures :
http://www.ezmeow.com/Images/Gallery/Images/Resort_01.jpg

http://www.ezmeow.com/Images/Gallery/Images/Resort_06.jpg

http://www.ezmeow.com/Images/Gallery/Images/Resort_08.jpg

You can find more here : Link (http://www.ezmeow.com/Fr/Modules/Gallery.php?Folder=10) (So it avoid heavy loading time on this page)

As for the map itself : Link (https://dl.dropbox.com/u/16920315/Game.rar)
(Just extract that in the Game folder of the FreeSDK 3.4.0)

As I said in my previous post unfortunately you'll only be able to play it through the launcher because of the Crytek project profile management stuff on the FreeSDK =/

[polyly]

Thank you!

But... I want to go to higher place...
Is there a plan to make elevator to roof of the building? XD

[danpaz3d]

Very nice! The yellow accents really topped it off I think. Congrats on finishing it and getting a banner shot too!

2 questions.
How long did it take from start to finish ?
How come it's only a four star resort ? lol I think it's at least a 5

[EzMeow]

@polyly : Isn't the F3 key working to switch to the free cam mode?

@danpaz3d : took me roughly 4 months on my free time (evening and week-end) to get it done.
And actually I think you are the 4th person to ask me why it's only 4 stars, I never though it would bother people so much. xD
Basically I avoid to put 5 stars in case people would complain that it isn't classy enought, otherwise, let say that the hotel rating became more exigent in the future :p.

[Ruan]

As I said in my previous post unfortunately you'll only be able to play it through the launcher because of the Crytek project profile management stuff on the FreeSDK =/
To clarify, if you save your map as "Global Share" when prompted, then anyone can open the level :)

Awesome work either way!

[danpaz3d]

good to know, thanks! hahaha

[fragfest2012]

YOU ARE AMAZING! These look fricken sick!

[LiquidSpacie]

Amazing work you've done ;)

[ironbelly]

Yea, definitely screams brink, which is a compliment as the enviro style in that game was amazing..

[DonCornholio]

Really Great Work ! Like it a lot !
Would you mind Posting, a Flat+Wireframe+UV-Layout of some Smaller Prop like the Trash Can?
I still havent figured out how to use Smoothinggroups+UV Seams with Normal Maps properly (so many different opinions on that) , and you're props look really great so i'd really like to know how you handle this stuff.
Also i'd like to know how you go about texturing/uving the Architecture ?
I'm currently assisting a Project where i have to do scifi Stuff on UE3 Engine and i think i could probably answer some of my questions just by reverse enginnering what you did there.
Please pardon me if some of my questions have already been answered in this thread previously, i might have missed it.
I'd be glad if you could take the time to give me some answers :)
Thanks in Advance

[ASharpEdge]

Very nice...Been wanting to be able to create like that. Good work

[Fishypants]

Damn! Really nice!

[illogic]

Wow! really awesome design on this. I'm loving the vibe

[_DMage_]

Perfect, Cryteks high lightning system are not the best nut still, five stars from me:D ★★★★★

[SolCommand]

I simply love this map that you made. It's got such a nice style and feel to it.

[swag]

Wow. Really interesting architecture.

[bluekangaroo]

well deserved showcase piece

[vahid67]

i love sci fi scenes

[hydzior]

Great ! Love the shapes and the lighting.

[AlexanderVelex]

asd