Cities And Housing Archive
Thread: The process of creating a structure for SWG
I've been doing some 3d modelling through school lately, and I'm having a hard time figuring out how (eventually...we aren't to the trimming phase yet) we'll be making great looking models with a specific face badget.
Message Edited by drachenfire on 10-02-2005 09:29 AM
In all fairness, Rick IS A PLAYER of this game. And it shows with the love he puts into his art, whether YOU particularly care for the style or not, after all, there is no accounting for taste. And adding artwork to the game, involves more than just designing it. Instead of berating a dev that actually plays the game and got SOMETHING into the game that many players want, perhaps you should spend time lamenting that MORE of the SOE devs arent avid players of the game. Something tells me if they were, and if they brought the same "lets work within our constraints but still getthe best thing we can into the game" attitude, as Rick did here, SWG would be much the better for it.
Stakex007 wrote:
SWG-Goliath wrote:
This will be my last comment on this subject.
Rouge 5 and I were having a discussion about what kinds of things players might like to have for purchasing this expansion,A reward that I thought would be as good as the BARC speeder has been. It was my own idea to suggest this bunker house and how it could also be implimented faster then normal structures. R5 liked the idea and so I created this house. Thats how this bunker got into the game. Had I not suggested it and a way to quickly get it in, you might never have seen a bunker.
I hope that clears things up.
That only goes to show that player ideas are overlooked and YOUR ideas are brought to the game. SOE's standard practice. Players wanted a bunker style house for well over a year now... and when we finally get one, its not becuase we wanted it, not becuase the players thought it would be cool... but becuase a developer said "Hey I have a great idea! I'll make a bunker house!". Is that the only way players get things they want? When the devs happen to want the same things? This dev team has to be the most disconnected, and out of touch dev team in the bussiness right now when it comes to their community.
Further more... you said "I" six times in that statement... playing it up as tho it was your idea to make a bunker. When really anyone who has read the boards at all over the last 5 months knows damn well the community has been screaming for a bunker house. But yet... instead of saying "The community wanted a bunker house, so thats what we did".... you go out and say "I thought a bunker house would be awsome, so I came up with the idea of a bunker house, and I put it in the game.... I love me". When the design is poor, especially sicne it took you 25 days... thats pathetic. As someone who has supported the dev team a lot in the past... the new SOE dev team makes me want to puke. You guys have no idea what the players want, and have horrible ideas for this game... the only thing that will save this game short of SOE being bought out, is bring back the devs of old that actually made the game.
The time should have been spent making a new house for architects to craft.
Not used to make a item to entice players to purchase this expansion.
UnBanCire wrote:
SWG-Goliath wrote:
Narut0 wrote:
SWG-Goliath wrote:
The bunker I made recently was an exception to the rule and I was able to finish it slighty faster then previous things I have made like the Y-8 and ARC170.
YOU WHERE RESONCIBLE FOR THE Y-8 ?!?!?!?
dude you fked up
mining ship can't be a platform unless its a drill platform that docks to the astroid.
if this ship is a mining ship for collecting rocks it should look more like a balldozer with a open face, make it smaller dirtyer. i tell you what let me spend some time on some consept designs and ill get back to you, /mumble piff devs' mumblemuble.
Actually I had concept work for that. I didnt design it, I only made the 3d art. Maybe you can take solece in the additional 2 turrets I added to it for publish 24.
Yes, that is, if Publish 24 ever comes out.
Been over 3 weeks on TC now.. /cry
Publish 24 isn't on TC, hasn't been for over 2 weeks. It made the TC server very unhappy (very unstable, grouping caused crashes, certain locations crash-traps) so it was pulled back internal to be fixed.
are u saying that when u decided to make this house for us the above ground part was allready designed (probaby for dungeons or npc buildings) and u just added the allready existing above ground part to ur newly designed below ground part. 2 speed the process up. that said will that mean we will see those bunker entrances all over mustafar?
SWG-Goliath wrote:
I have seen some people wondering what takes so long in creating a new structure for SWG and I wanted to explain what it is we do when we create a new structure or ship.
The first thing we have to do is get a concept for the exterior of the house and maybe one for the interior as well. A concept artist will spend a few days working on this and it will go through several stages before its actually finalized. Next it will be given to an artist like myself and Ill spend approximatle 40 days creating the ooutside and inside. there are several tasks when creating an interior/exterior house or ship
- creating mesh
- creating textures (including effects like normal maps and specularity)
- pre-lighting each room
- adding character lighting
- adding floors
- adding other technical components
After this is all done, we put it through a review phase where several other artists will look over the assets and make sure they work properly. If anything is broken I will have to go back over it and fix any issues. then it is re-submitted for a second review. Once it passes the review it is exported and a designer has to work on it.
Designers will need to add things like terminals, repair points, chairs and any other objects called for in the design. they will also need to make sure that it works in the world and that the turrets, engines, thrusters, guns, signs and any other additional items funtion and fit. all together it can take over 2 months from start to finish to bring a new ship or house into the game. Thats one artist taken up for 40 days and a designer taken up for additional days to bring it in.
The bunker I made recently was an exception to the rule andI was able to finish it slighty faster then previous things I have made like the Y-8 and ARC170. In the case of the bunker I was asked to use the pre-exsisting mustafar bunker exterior. that saved me alot of time in mesh and textures. I also designed the interior from my own concepts so I didnt need a concept artist. all of this shaved my art time down to about 25 days. The house is now in the stage where it is being prepared for the game by designers. When it finally gets into the game it will still be 40+ days of development however.
Hopefully this sheds some light on what me and the other artists do from day to day to bring you the Star Wars experiance
* * * * * to you
SWG-Goliath wrote:
Narut0 wrote:
SWG-Goliath wrote:
The bunker I made recently was an exception to the rule and I was able to finish it slighty faster then previous things I have made like the Y-8 and ARC170.
YOU WHERE RESONCIBLE FOR THE Y-8 ?!?!?!?
dude you fked up
mining ship can't be a platform unless its a drill platform that docks to the astroid.
if this ship is a mining ship for collecting rocks it should look more like a balldozer with a open face, make it smaller dirtyer. i tell you what let me spend some time on some consept designs and ill get back to you, /mumble piff devs' mumblemuble.
ActuallyI had concept work for that.I didnt design it,I only made the 3dart. Maybe you can take solece in the additional 2 turretsI added to itfor publish 24.
it won't, it's obvious from his post that he is a long time space miner in RL and has been piloting Mining ships for years. I mean he obvously knows what he's talking about, after all his knowledge on the subject must be extensive, after all he grammer and spelling are spot on...
ofim wrote:
SWG-Goliath wrote:
I have seen some people wondering what takes so long in creating a new structure for SWG and I wanted to explain what it is we do when we create a new structure or ship.
The first thing we have to do is get a concept for the exterior of the house and maybe one for the interior as well. A concept artist will spend a few days working on this and it will go through several stages before its actually finalized. Next it will be given to an artist like myself and Ill spend approximatle 40 days creating the ooutside and inside. there are several tasks when creating an interior/exterior house or ship
- creating mesh
- creating textures (including effects like normal maps and specularity)
- pre-lighting each room
- adding character lighting
- adding floors
- adding other technical components
After this is all done, we put it through a review phase where several other artists will look over the assets and make sure they work properly. If anything is broken I will have to go back over it and fix any issues. then it is re-submitted for a second review. Once it passes the review it is exported and a designer has to work on it.
Designers will need to add things like terminals, repair points, chairs and any other objects called for in the design. they will also need to make sure that it works in the world and that the turrets, engines, thrusters, guns, signs and any other additional items funtion and fit. all together it can take over 2 months from start to finish to bring a new ship or house into the game. Thats one artist taken up for 40 days and a designer taken up for additional days to bring it in.
The bunker I made recently was an exception to the rule andI was able to finish it slighty faster then previous things I have made like the Y-8 and ARC170. In the case of the bunker I was asked to use the pre-exsisting mustafar bunker exterior. that saved me alot of time in mesh and textures. I also designed the interior from my own concepts so I didnt need a concept artist. all of this shaved my art time down to about 25 days. The house is now in the stage where it is being prepared for the game by designers. When it finally gets into the game it will still be 40+ days of development however.
Hopefully this sheds some light on what me and the other artists do from day to day to bring you the Star Wars experiance
Sorry but this doesn't explain why Architect has had ZERO new real content in 3 years. If it's this dificult to make a house using the tools that the programers have given you, then they need to work on a better set of tools.
Artchitects have continualy asked for:
Furniture Colorization
New House Floor Plans
New Bestine Paintings
More of the NPC House Furniture to be craftable
Why is this such a problem? Some of these things are already in the game!
He wasn't trying to explain why you haven't had any new content. He was explaining how the house came to be. Two completely different topics.
SWG-Goliath wrote:
Narut0 wrote:
SWG-Goliath wrote:
The bunker I made recently was an exception to the rule and I was able to finish it slighty faster then previous things I have made like the Y-8 and ARC170.
YOU WHERE RESONCIBLE FOR THE Y-8 ?!?!?!?
dude you fked up
mining ship can't be a platform unless its a drill platform that docks to the astroid.
if this ship is a mining ship for collecting rocks it should look more like a balldozer with a open face, make it smaller dirtyer. i tell you what let me spend some time on some consept designs and ill get back to you, /mumble piff devs' mumblemuble.
ActuallyI had concept work for that.I didnt design it,I only made the 3dart. Maybe you can take solece in the additional 2 turretsI added to itfor publish 24.
Any clue when publish 24 will be returning to TC (and when it may be hitting live)? Been itching for that publish for awhile now...
I've been interested in trying to create 3-d character models for a long time, so I picked up Maya PLE to see what it was like, about a month ago.
The learning curve for these tools is very very steep. The graphics programs are complex, with hundreds of options. It takes a long time to master it, and I'm not even looking at the animation/bindpoint/kinematic stuff yet, or matching textures to surfaces.
I've also noticed that it takes a long time to build the basic structure, too. The more detailed you get, the more difficult it is to do quickly. Hearing that the 'bunker house' took only 40 days to build, textures and all,tells me a lot about how quickly Goliath works. Dang, he's fast.
Stakex007 wrote:
SWG-Goliath wrote:
Lotussutol wrote:
SWG-Goliath wrote:
I have a question for you. You said in a diff thread that 'this' bunker house is one that you started working on a few weeks ago and is not the bunker house that was mentioned as a one year vet reward...
can I ask you this straight up then...was 'that' bunker house ever worked on? if so, why would soe put you to work on a NEW bunker house when there already is one started on and or finished and not in the game? seems like a waste of resources to me. If there is another one completed already it makes more since to use it instead of putting out the effort and wasting valuable time to create a whole new one.
Not that I know of. The bunker house as a vet reward was an idea that we had but I dont think we ever got to actually putting an artist on that. I could be wrong, and maybe TH might have a more accurate answer for you
Then I think this is the bunker that was supposed to be a vet reward in a wayThe fact that in the thread where TH mentions what would SWG vets like to see as a two year vet reward he tossed out the bunker house idea...
people in that thread LOVED that idea...pages upon pages of people said they would love a bunker house...
we now see the first bunker house as a reward...not a two year vet reward but as a reward for buying an expansion...
this is a slap in the face to SWG two year vets...as are the cheesy current two year vet rewards.
Goliath...don't get me wrong. The bunker house is awesome...but it is a slap in the face to the two year SWG vets...
and please SWG forum admins...don't for one second think I am trolling...I am discussing a MAJOR problem with SWG philosophy...
This will be my last comment on this subject.Rouge 5 and I were having a discussion about what kinds of things players might like to have for purchasing this expansion, A reward that I thought would be as good as the BARC speeder has been. It was my own idea to suggest this bunker house and how it could also be implimented faster then normal structures. R5 liked the idea and so I created this house. Thats how this bunker got into the game. Had I not suggested it and a way to quickly get it in, you might never have seen a bunker.
I hope that clears things up.
That only goes to show that player ideas are overlooked and YOUR ideas are brought to the game. SOE's standard practice. Players wanted a bunker style house for well over a year now... and when we finally get one, its not becuase we wanted it, not becuase the players thought it would be cool... but becuase a developer said "Hey I have a great idea! I'll make a bunker house!". Is that the only way players get things they want? When the devs happen to want the same things? This dev team has to be the most disconnected, and out of touch dev team in the bussiness right now when it comes to their community.
Further more... you said "I" six times in that statement... playing it up as tho it was your idea to make a bunker. When really anyone who has read the boards at all over the last 5 months knows damn well the community has been screaming for a bunker house. But yet... instead of saying "The community wanted a bunker house, so thats what we did".... you go out and say "I thought a bunker house would be awsome, so I came up with the idea of a bunker house, and I put it in the game.... I love me". When the design is poor, especially sicne it took you 25 days... thats pathetic. As someone who has supported the dev team a lot in the past... the new SOE dev team makes me want to puke. You guys have no idea what the players want, and have horrible ideas for this game... the only thing that will save this game short of SOE being bought out, is bring back the devs of old that actually made the game.
GEEZ, aren't you guys EVER happy. Does it matter who's idea it was??? Would you rather, stakex007, your name be mentioned in there? The point is goliath recognized the players wanted it, he brought it up and he got it for YOU.
I think he deserves FAR more credit than you're giving him.
DarthMinos wrote:
ofim wrote:
SWG-Goliath wrote:
I have seen some people wondering what takes so long in creating a new structure for SWG and I wanted to explain what it is we do when we create a new structure or ship.
The first thing we have to do is get a concept for the exterior of the house and maybe one for the interior as well. A concept artist will spend a few days working on this and it will go through several stages before its actually finalized. Next it will be given to an artist like myself and Ill spend approximatle 40 days creating the ooutside and inside. there are several tasks when creating an interior/exterior house or ship
- creating mesh
- creating textures (including effects like normal maps and specularity)
- pre-lighting each room
- adding character lighting
- adding floors
- adding other technical components
After this is all done, we put it through a review phase where several other artists will look over the assets and make sure they work properly. If anything is broken I will have to go back over it and fix any issues. then it is re-submitted for a second review. Once it passes the review it is exported and a designer has to work on it.
Designers will need to add things like terminals, repair points, chairs and any other objects called for in the design. they will also need to make sure that it works in the world and that the turrets, engines, thrusters, guns, signs and any other additional items funtion and fit. all together it can take over 2 months from start to finish to bring a new ship or house into the game. Thats one artist taken up for 40 days and a designer taken up for additional days to bring it in.
The bunker I made recently was an exception to the rule andI was able to finish it slighty faster then previous things I have made like the Y-8 and ARC170. In the case of the bunker I was asked to use the pre-exsisting mustafar bunker exterior. that saved me alot of time in mesh and textures. I also designed the interior from my own concepts so I didnt need a concept artist. all of this shaved my art time down to about 25 days. The house is now in the stage where it is being prepared for the game by designers. When it finally gets into the game it will still be 40+ days of development however.
Hopefully this sheds some light on what me and the other artists do from day to day to bring you the Star Wars experiance
Sorry but this doesn't explain why Architect has had ZERO new real content in 3 years. If it's this dificult to make a house using the tools that the programers have given you, then they need to work on a better set of tools.
Artchitects have continualy asked for:
Furniture Colorization
New House Floor Plans
New Bestine Paintings
More of the NPC House Furniture to be craftable
Why is this such a problem? Some of these things are already in the game!
He wasn't trying to explain why you haven't had any new content. He was explaining how the house came to be. Two completely different topics.
QFE