Invisible Faces on Exported DTS Shapes
by Jeffrey Bakker · in Technical Issues · 09/07/2005 (5:43 am) · 5 replies
I've modelled a few shapes for my game, and learned the art of exporting them to DTS format. The problem is, when I put my shapes in the game with the mission editor, you can see right through some of the faces from certain angles, and even some faces are completely invisible.
I have used both Blender and MilkShape to model and export shapes to DTS, but I get the same problem with both. I have tried with other models and even tried exporting meshes that other people have made, but that turned into an even worse problem (character is missing a leg, and from certain angles, lines are stretched out accross the screen).
Here are some sample images of my problem.
Modelled and ready for export
Solid view of the shape - no see through edges
Shape with missing faces in game
Shape with missing faces in game (with texture, different angle)
I'd really like to continue with making my game with Torque, but this problem is a showstopper if I can't get it resolved. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
I have used both Blender and MilkShape to model and export shapes to DTS, but I get the same problem with both. I have tried with other models and even tried exporting meshes that other people have made, but that turned into an even worse problem (character is missing a leg, and from certain angles, lines are stretched out accross the screen).
Here are some sample images of my problem.
Modelled and ready for export
Solid view of the shape - no see through edges
Shape with missing faces in game
Shape with missing faces in game (with texture, different angle)
I'd really like to continue with making my game with Torque, but this problem is a showstopper if I can't get it resolved. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks.
#2
With help from your explaination, in hindsight I see what you're taking about. The way I hollowed out the cylinder and box for the chest seemed to result in using a lot of backface shapes I wasn't fully aware of.
This does raise another question about modelling techniques though. When many people model characters, they generally model half of the character, then duplicate it and mirror the second half on the x axis. You can tell the mirroring does something wrong (possibly inverts the faces, placing the backfaces on the outside), because in certain shaded views, the colour of the duplicated half is sometimes blackened out. When converted to DTS and viewed in the torque engine, the duplicate half was transparent from certain angles.
Example
Is this the wrong way to model characters? How can I model a character in such a way to avoid this from happening, without having to do twice the work? Does your answer above also apply to this?
09/07/2005 (6:19 am)
Thank you very much for the quick reply.With help from your explaination, in hindsight I see what you're taking about. The way I hollowed out the cylinder and box for the chest seemed to result in using a lot of backface shapes I wasn't fully aware of.
This does raise another question about modelling techniques though. When many people model characters, they generally model half of the character, then duplicate it and mirror the second half on the x axis. You can tell the mirroring does something wrong (possibly inverts the faces, placing the backfaces on the outside), because in certain shaded views, the colour of the duplicated half is sometimes blackened out. When converted to DTS and viewed in the torque engine, the duplicate half was transparent from certain angles.
Example
Is this the wrong way to model characters? How can I model a character in such a way to avoid this from happening, without having to do twice the work? Does your answer above also apply to this?
#3
What program are you using to model?
Sometimes when duplicating, the duplicated half belongs to a different shading or smoothing group. This makes a distinct line right down the middle. Try having both sides belong to the same group. That may help.
09/07/2005 (7:28 am)
Jeffrey,What program are you using to model?
Sometimes when duplicating, the duplicated half belongs to a different shading or smoothing group. This makes a distinct line right down the middle. Try having both sides belong to the same group. That may help.
#4
09/07/2005 (8:10 am)
He is using Blender by what the screen shots look like.
#5
When I finish the character model, I join the two haves as one mesh object, and merge the vertices that once made the seam down the middle. As one object, one half will still look discoloured, even though they share the same material. There doesn't appear to be seperate shading groups in my project in the heirarchy view.
I'd like to try what Chris Labombard has suggested "...flipping the vertex order (winding order)", but I'm not sure if there's a feature to flip vertex order in Blender, or if perhaps the feature is named something else. If anyone knows how to do this in Blender, please let me know.
09/07/2005 (2:33 pm)
I am using Blender mainly, and sometimes I model simpler things in MilkShape.When I finish the character model, I join the two haves as one mesh object, and merge the vertices that once made the seam down the middle. As one object, one half will still look discoloured, even though they share the same material. There doesn't appear to be seperate shading groups in my project in the heirarchy view.
I'd like to try what Chris Labombard has suggested "...flipping the vertex order (winding order)", but I'm not sure if there's a feature to flip vertex order in Blender, or if perhaps the feature is named something else. If anyone knows how to do this in Blender, please let me know.
Torque Owner Chris Labombard
Premium Preferred
If you need ot be able to see the poly both ways then try selecting the offending polys, duplicating them, and flipping the vertex order (winding order).