GREETINGS!
In my training to assassinate polygons better I have developed a technique that is very important in understanding mesh flow, so much so that it is one of my main techniques!
-Activate Bear Eye of Understanding Technique-
-FWOOSH-
It is the ability to visualize what something in the real world would look like with a wire frame over the top of it. It was not something that immediately happened. It took many years for me to understand the concept and put it into practice. Granted this is just my experience with it and you may pick it up instantly. Maybe I can even help you with that!
To begin with, lets do something simple. Look at the monitor in front of you. Now envision the most simplistic form in 3d geometry. My monitor would be made up of 4 cubes. 1 for the main screen, 1 for the support, and 2 for the diagonal legs on the bottom of the support. This is one of the most crucial aspects to the technique! Being able to simplify shapes down in your mind will help you understand how to build them in 3d. It is like a backwards construction technique that you then play forward again when modeling.
After I have my basic geometry figured out, I begin imagining how those cubes would be connected. How would I slice my geometry and weld points (vertices)?
Once the cubes have been welded together, I would start looking at detail. The most important part would be the screen again. That's where every one's eyes would go first as a focal point! So I would need to inset the front polygon and extrude in the negative to create the screen indentation. I would do this same technique for any other focal points on my object, knocking them out one at a time until I feel I have covered enough ground dissecting to start modeling or until something shiny catches my attention.
Do this process a few times on simple things. Your office telephone, desktop tower, energy drink next to you, then move on to something more complex. Something like a semi-truck, 747 airliner, or cargo boat. Once you feel confident with these objects start moving to the organic, trees and flowers. Once you can do vegetation, your power level will be over 9,000! Try to do this with humans. Start with photographs (because staring at a stranger is awkward... Trust me on this...) and then try on a friend or loved one.
It is a fun technique and can be used to warm up before modeling or sketching! Can you visualize what your monitor would look like in wire frame? Try it out!
-POOF-
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Friday, August 5, 2011
Getting Started with Game Designs
*SHABLOOEY*
Sorry, working on a new poly assassination technique. Ahem.
A lot of people have ideas for games, concepts, stories, or all of them but do not know how to get started. I just wanted to share some ideas and techniques that I have come up with over the years of scratching my head and randomly trying things that explode in a mish-mash of failure and rejection until finally something shiny appears.
The first trick is for game design in general.This is something I do and may not work for others. Just thought I would share. One of the best things that I can do when it comes to designing is to just start scribbling notes. They don't have to be in any order or sequence and I often use blank printer paper because lined paper still has a sense of order to it.
Chaos is key.
Start with an idea. A lost treasure, a kidnapped friend, the resurrection of an ancient evil, it doesn't matter if the idea has been done before, what you are going to do with it is make it unique and original. Once you have an idea, scribble down some interesting descriptive words. Steam-punk, electronica, bard-assassin (I know a bard-assassin. He is the loudest person I know and the fastest. He once killed this poly monster while in the middle of a... Ah, story for another time.), metropolis, mountain fortress, government agency, etc.
These keywords will help give your original idea some more substance. Remember that if anything ever pops into your head while you are writing, write that down also! Don't stop a thought path even if it goes somewhere really weird and unexpected. Once you have scribbled thoughts and ideas down on 2 - 3 pages, collect all of it together and start picking out the best scribbles. Lay these out on a new piece of paper, order still doesn't matter, and repeat the process. This will allow you to have more information in your head that you can build on yet still be free and chaotic enough to come up with some more interesting ideas. I will sometimes do this process 4 or 5 times depending on how deep in the idea I am and how much fun I am having. Also, don't forget that you might end up with 10 different games by the time you are done thinking about one! Always keep these pages and refer back to them, never know when a thought you had can break open another stream of ideas!
That's all for now! In another post, I will talk about where I go from here. Hope you enjoyed this one.
-POOF-
Sorry, working on a new poly assassination technique. Ahem.
A lot of people have ideas for games, concepts, stories, or all of them but do not know how to get started. I just wanted to share some ideas and techniques that I have come up with over the years of scratching my head and randomly trying things that explode in a mish-mash of failure and rejection until finally something shiny appears.
The first trick is for game design in general.This is something I do and may not work for others. Just thought I would share. One of the best things that I can do when it comes to designing is to just start scribbling notes. They don't have to be in any order or sequence and I often use blank printer paper because lined paper still has a sense of order to it.
Chaos is key.
Start with an idea. A lost treasure, a kidnapped friend, the resurrection of an ancient evil, it doesn't matter if the idea has been done before, what you are going to do with it is make it unique and original. Once you have an idea, scribble down some interesting descriptive words. Steam-punk, electronica, bard-assassin (I know a bard-assassin. He is the loudest person I know and the fastest. He once killed this poly monster while in the middle of a... Ah, story for another time.), metropolis, mountain fortress, government agency, etc.
These keywords will help give your original idea some more substance. Remember that if anything ever pops into your head while you are writing, write that down also! Don't stop a thought path even if it goes somewhere really weird and unexpected. Once you have scribbled thoughts and ideas down on 2 - 3 pages, collect all of it together and start picking out the best scribbles. Lay these out on a new piece of paper, order still doesn't matter, and repeat the process. This will allow you to have more information in your head that you can build on yet still be free and chaotic enough to come up with some more interesting ideas. I will sometimes do this process 4 or 5 times depending on how deep in the idea I am and how much fun I am having. Also, don't forget that you might end up with 10 different games by the time you are done thinking about one! Always keep these pages and refer back to them, never know when a thought you had can break open another stream of ideas!
That's all for now! In another post, I will talk about where I go from here. Hope you enjoyed this one.
-POOF-
Thursday, August 4, 2011
Bungie - 20 years of awesome.
Taking a minute out of training my ridiculously awesome Tiger Dragon Sheep to watch this documentary on Bungie. It is worth watching!
http://kotaku.com/5827766/happy-20th-anniversary-bungie-this-is-your-life
While I have some issues with the Halo series you cannot deny that Bungie has had an amazing life and will be doing some more awesome work in the future.
Cheers to you Bungie!
-POOF-
http://kotaku.com/5827766/happy-20th-anniversary-bungie-this-is-your-life
While I have some issues with the Halo series you cannot deny that Bungie has had an amazing life and will be doing some more awesome work in the future.
Cheers to you Bungie!
-POOF-
Greetings, old friends. It's been too long.
The last time I posted was right before I was sent on a massive power-leveling, loot finding, monster polygon killing, quest.
Needless to say, I have returned. With sharper weapons, crazier assassin moves, and a wicked pimp walk I earned by cutting polys down in the slums. Life is good right now with polygons too big for their own good all over the place. There is work a plenty.
I have a new assassin headquarters out in the beach valley of mountains and a new partner in crime. I found her while battling a particularly tough group of polygons. They managed to get the better of me for a moment and that's when she appeared, a shadow, well trained and completely mesmerizing. She destroyed the polygon monsters with a technique I have never seen before and since that moment, we have not left each others side.
Also, I have started my own Dojo. Enlisting the aid of several young assassins, each with their own specialty. The road has been difficult but as of yesterday, we can see a massive loot box at the end of the tunnel. There will be more news on this later as I finished channeling my power into the orb of understanding.
I hope this note finds all of you in good spirits and health! If you need any polys taken care of, you know where to find me.
-POOF-
Needless to say, I have returned. With sharper weapons, crazier assassin moves, and a wicked pimp walk I earned by cutting polys down in the slums. Life is good right now with polygons too big for their own good all over the place. There is work a plenty.
I have a new assassin headquarters out in the beach valley of mountains and a new partner in crime. I found her while battling a particularly tough group of polygons. They managed to get the better of me for a moment and that's when she appeared, a shadow, well trained and completely mesmerizing. She destroyed the polygon monsters with a technique I have never seen before and since that moment, we have not left each others side.
Also, I have started my own Dojo. Enlisting the aid of several young assassins, each with their own specialty. The road has been difficult but as of yesterday, we can see a massive loot box at the end of the tunnel. There will be more news on this later as I finished channeling my power into the orb of understanding.
I hope this note finds all of you in good spirits and health! If you need any polys taken care of, you know where to find me.
-POOF-
Thursday, April 3, 2008
Still Alive
Hey everybody. Yes, I am still alive. Just had a lot of stuff happen recently. I left my job as an Environment artist over at Left Field Productions and started teaching again. Family issues, girl issues, and pretty much everything else.
Now I am back and ready to rock. Got a new place, teaching is great and a couple pieces of art are getting finished up! As for the textures I promised, I have them. Just need to upload them. =]
Alright, that's it for now but I will be back later to add more!
Now I am back and ready to rock. Got a new place, teaching is great and a couple pieces of art are getting finished up! As for the textures I promised, I have them. Just need to upload them. =]
Alright, that's it for now but I will be back later to add more!
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