Modeling Philosophy Questions
by Shane McLeod · in Artist Corner · 06/27/2002 (8:04 pm) · 1 replies
I have a few questions as I struggle to do some realtime low-poly models. Much of the project I'm working on is indoor, caves, ruins with maybe the first 3 or 4 levels being outdoor. So, when reading the questions, please think in terms of indoor detail modeling primarily :)
1. Does each DTS have to be a single object or can it be multiple objects grouped? Take a torch with wall mount. Should the torch and wallmount be a single mesh or can it be two meshs grouped?
2. Is there a nice "rule of thumb" for poly count? I know that the typical answer is "depends on the target hardware." However, I see 2000 for characters and 500 for objects tossed around quite a bit. Better yet, what is a good target poly count per frame?
3. Can Torque support more than one object on a single texture? Say the torch is two objects, the torch UV mapped in the left half and the mount UV mapped in the right. Is this even a good idea?
4. Continued from 3, when there are many textures in a given level, is there an impact to framerates when the textures are many different sizes? Say 512x512 for one, 512x128 for another, 256x256 for another and so on.
5. Must the model be to scale before being exported to DTS, or can the engine/level guys do the scaling? If it must be to scale before exporting, what is the best way to determine scale?
Thank you all for your time and expertise. I don't currently have a license to the engine since I'm just creating models and not interfacing with it at all. If I still need to get the license, I'll be happy to. I was under the impression that I didn't need it if I wasn't touching code.
1. Does each DTS have to be a single object or can it be multiple objects grouped? Take a torch with wall mount. Should the torch and wallmount be a single mesh or can it be two meshs grouped?
2. Is there a nice "rule of thumb" for poly count? I know that the typical answer is "depends on the target hardware." However, I see 2000 for characters and 500 for objects tossed around quite a bit. Better yet, what is a good target poly count per frame?
3. Can Torque support more than one object on a single texture? Say the torch is two objects, the torch UV mapped in the left half and the mount UV mapped in the right. Is this even a good idea?
4. Continued from 3, when there are many textures in a given level, is there an impact to framerates when the textures are many different sizes? Say 512x512 for one, 512x128 for another, 256x256 for another and so on.
5. Must the model be to scale before being exported to DTS, or can the engine/level guys do the scaling? If it must be to scale before exporting, what is the best way to determine scale?
Thank you all for your time and expertise. I don't currently have a license to the engine since I'm just creating models and not interfacing with it at all. If I still need to get the license, I'll be happy to. I was under the impression that I didn't need it if I wasn't touching code.
About the author
Torque Owner Greg Findlay
2. I'd say 2000 is reasonable. It's not just target software though it's also what you expect to have in a scene. Ever notice how detailed the characters are in fighting games now a days. That's because there are only two characters on the screen at once, where as an FPS could have dozens.
3. Yep you can use one texture for multiple objects and it is a good idea. Your saving some texture space.
4. For frame rates on texture sizes the rule of thumb is the bigger the texture size the bigger the impact on frame rate. I don't believe have a bunch of different sizes for each texture will alter frame rate though. Also the more textures you have in a scene the lower your frame rate will be.
5. Characters are made to scale in the game but objects you place with the world editor can be scaled after. 1 max unit is one meter in the game so making an object 2 max units tall will give you a 2 meter tall character.
And no, you don't need the engine if you not touching code. :)
Alc