UGAC – Handheld Environment - Rules

[Missed]

Nice challenge ,ill join this one . I have 1 question, does before instancing mean unique object and the 13k after instancing mean copies like barrels or crates? :S

[DanMarionette]

This sounds like a lot of fun! I can see having a go at this will increase my respect for handheld level builders 1000% (which is already pretty damn high to start with).
Look forward to seeing all the great work here!!

dan

[urgaffel]

With the 2mb load limit, do you mean that we can have a bunch of 4 bit textures instead of a few 32bit textures (as long as they are up 128x128 in size)? If yes, then people will start to learn more about optimizing their palettes :D

[octupe]

A 45K poly limit seems high for a typical DS level. Also, there is no mention of draw limits. The DS is very restricted in what it can draw. For example you can have no more than 6144 verts or 2048 triangles in a frame. If you have more you will get rendering artifacts.
You have to account for polys getting clipped at the edge of the screen, so you can assume more like 1600 polys max in view at any one time. So without any characters in your scene, you can use 1600 polys in view at a time.
If you are to have any characters visible in your game then you should knock your environment limit down to 1000 polys a frame, NOTE that is front facing polys!!

Yes it`s a challenge :)

[SHEPEIRO]

this sounds interesting.

i hope it will be judged on functionallity within the home system, and not be biased because of the PSPs better specs.

i'm interested in going for the DS's specs, if your using the 1k (viewed), with a clipping limit on your view, is it possible to do a basic fog on the DS? also how does it work with opacity?

[DevilHacker]

Nice challenge ,ill join this one . I have 1 question, does before instancing mean unique object and the 13k after instancing mean copies like barrels or crates? :SYou got it!
:thumbsup:

This sounds like a lot of fun! I can see having a go at this will increase my respect for handheld level builders 1000% (which is already pretty damn high to start with).
Look forward to seeing all the great work here!!
danI too look forward to seeing all the great work here. CGTalk has some great low-poly modelers. It should be interesting to see how people go about optimizing their palettes...

With the 2mb load limit, do you mean that we can have a bunch of 4 bit textures instead of a few 32bit textures (as long as they are up 128x128 in size)? If yes, then people will start to learn more about optimizing their palettes :DYou bet. Just keep in mind the 2mb limit.

A 45K poly limit seems high for a typical DS level. Also, there is no mention of draw limits. The DS is very restricted in what it can draw. For example you can have no more than 6144 verts or 2048 triangles in a frame. If you have more you will get rendering artifacts.
You have to account for polys getting clipped at the edge of the screen, so you can assume more like 1600 polys max in view at any one time. So without any characters in your scene, you can use 1600 polys in view at a time.
If you are to have any characters visible in your game then you should knock your environment limit down to 1000 polys a frame, NOTE that is front facing polys!!

Yes it`s a challenge :)Yes. After talking to many developers, I came out of the experience with two radically different numbers when it came to what the PSP can do and the DS can do. The only way to do this challenge (without having two different categories) was to find an middle ground for both systems. The DS can max out around 50,000 with heavy optimization, but they all recommended not to go above 45,000 to leave processing power for other objects in the scene. The PSP on the other hand is more like the PS2, and from what I am hearing, it can max out at 80,000 (and that is with the PSP’s under clocked processor.) And most developers said not to go above 60,000, if you plan on keeping an smooth frame rate, and to have lots of nice effects on screen.

The guidelines we ended up with were an balance between the two….
And yes, it is a challenge, especially I you wish to shoot for an DS model.
Which (if the case) be sure to optimize all your images as best as possible, and try to not shoot for anything over 64x64...
:thumbsup:

this sounds interesting.

i hope it will be judged on functionallity within the home system, and not be biased because of the PSPs better specs.

i'm interested in going for the DS's specs, if your using the 1k (viewed), with a clipping limit on your view, is it possible to do a basic fog on the DS? also how does it work with opacity?Yes. Which system it was built for will be taken into account. That’s why it is asked for contestants to tell which system they plan for in their fist description post.

Also, yes the DS can handle basic fog. It just takes a lot of work on the side of the programmers to make the magic happen.
:D

[octupe]

Basic fog on the DS is fine, it`s built in, but there is no vertex opacity.
Since most people on the challenge will not have a devkit handy I guess you`ve got to have a bit of leaway. Also DS does have a triangle and quad primitives built in, but rememeber those quads have to be planar, otherwise they will draw wrong and you`ll get rendering drop out.
I guess this challenge is more about working in low low poly than something that will definately work on a DS, or even PSP.
Whats always satisfying is trying to get the most out of the restrictions you have.

Good luck all

[nemesis_256]

This is all "fictional" right? I mean no one will be able to actually put whatever they make in whichever game?

[Dennispls]

Looks like a very interesting challenge im in
expect story/ideas soon

[Farzanb]

oh i am so gona try this out... can't wait to create a PSP version of the level that i was going to build later for a next gen MOD.

[Lee3dee]

I just finished this psp art test last night, im down for another try at a different genre :D. I like the idea of a race track, wipeout style!

[ysvry]

great contest, if i just can remember those fantastic game ideers i had that stranded after the first sketches. lol

[abyjoe]

what are the constraints on developing art for handhelds apart from your poly limit...??? never worked on a handheld project...

[HellBoy]

I can't believe this, I just tested out a model with 128x128 texture map, why is it that I can see square pixels on the mesh
this is going to be a heck of a challenege, texture is so not me

[MrDev]

the PSP has about 32 megs of ram but due to other things you get stuck with about 30

Anything you can stick in the "video" ram you want to usualy we stick the map and all of the textures we intend to use and if possible any animated models we can

the extra 30 megs well I'm not reeely sure... dont take me for a scholar on this, I could be wrong, I'm just the level designer.

right now I'm working with Id Software's Quake 3 engine. So far on our test engine (Which was NOT developed with Sony's Official SDK) the unofficial SDK builds actualy work quite well

farthest we've done was about 20 textures about 15 - 128^2, and 5 - 256^2 we managed to maintain a constant 60FPS with that and about 25,000 triangles being rendered at that time.

a big thing to consider the older firmware versions of the PSP has a problem with the LCD's refresh rate, it appears asif its only hitting about 10 frames per second which allows most games to do 30 frames and look no different from those games running at 60.

so for that you can push it all you want. the 45,000 tris limit for us is only per viewable instance...

[Dennispls]

heheh just wait till you do some 64x64

The only thing i can tell you is to leave 2 pixels in between the uv lines to prevent the edges on the uv blending with other edges(messy result and hard to select for texturing)

The only thing im still trying to figure out is that instancing thingy?

[DevilHacker]

The only thing im still trying to figure out is that instancing thingy?
Instanced Objects are objects that are repeated throughout the level or scene.
Example: Crate, Tree, Barrel…
You get the Idea.
:thumbsup:

[heavyness]

hooray! i'm in, just brain-storming right now for ideas...

[DevilHacker]

hooray! i'm in, just brain-storming right now for ideas...
Good to hear!
Look forward to see what your imagination cooks up!
:D

[Farzanb]

alright i really want to work this out somehow but i really need to know the specifics about this one thing

" Quote:
Originally Posted by urgaffel
With the 2mb load limit, do you mean that we can have a bunch of 4 bit textures instead of a few 32bit textures (as long as they are up 128x128 in size)? If yes, then people will start to learn more about optimizing their palettes :D

You bet. Just keep in mind the 2mb limit. "

what do you exactly mean by 2mb?
is it a texture max size is 2mb? or only 2mb of textures can be on a scene at everytime or 2mb for the whole texture package, or none of the above :banghead:

Also another thing, the renders that we finish for this project, they have to be PSP output res 456x288, sry i don't think i saw anything about that in the doc unless its abit late and my eyes just didn't see them :arteest:

plz help me out here
thanks.

[urgaffel]

The 2mb limit means that all your textures will be 2Mb when added up. So you could for example use a lot of 64x64 with 8 colours to get the most out of it. Or maybe 4 colours if that's all you need etc etc :) At least that's how I've understood it

[octupe]

Well, I dunno about PSP, but DS only has 512K VRAM.

Some figures that might help for textures

128x128 256col palette = 16k, palette 512 bytes
128x128 Direct col (15bit) = 32k
128x128 4x4 texel compressed = 4k, palette 2k

As a guide I would stick to no more than about 20 unique 128x128 textures in your level tops if you are considering DS specs. assuming you cannot stream textures. But hey I aint running this show :)

[SHEPEIRO]

interesting.


Question. how do most DS games deal with shadows, im thinking Plane with alpha under object?

oh and if i was to use 64* textures (DS specs) with 8 colours how many would be an exceptable amount.

[HellBoy]

wait a second, 2MB for all textures, this is just getting even more challenging

one more question: This poly limit, is it for all the levels added up? also does vehicles include the limit?

[-KDX-]

interesting...

looks challenging indeed

-KDX-

[Swizzle]

Oh, holy hell. You people are trying to drop my productivity even more than it already has with all my homework and stuff, not to mention the low-poly Metal Gear I'm working on texturing as I type this.

I am so getting in on this.

[ChimpanG]

i'm in on this
firstly though, do i NEED to make palleted textures or can i do it any way that fits under my 2mb limit?

[DevilHacker]

wait a second, 2MB for all textures, this is just getting even more challenging

one more question: This poly limit, is it for all the levels added up? also does vehicles include the limit?poly limit is just for the level. Other objects in the scene will not be judged, and therefore will not be added to the polycount. Though, if you want to make some vehicles’/characters with your level nobody will stop you.
:D

i'm in on this
firstly though, do i NEED to make palleted textures or can i do it any way that fits under my 2mb limit?
We are being pretty lenient when it comes to the texture. Just make them all under 2mb’s.
:thumbsup:

[DevilHacker]

alright i really want to work this out somehow but i really need to know the specifics about this one thingNo problem what so ever!
If you have any more questions (than the ones hopefully answered below), you can post the questions here; PM me; or email the UGAC judges at unofficialgameartchallenge@gmail.com (unofficialgameartchallenge@gmail.com)

what do you exactly mean by 2mb?
is it a texture max size is 2mb? or only 2mb of textures can be on a scene at everytime or 2mb for the whole texture package, or none of the above :banghead:2mb limit for the whole texturing of the level. Only the level.
It sounds rough, but remember, the textures do not need to be very detailed, as they will be outputted on an small handheld screen.

Also another thing, the renders that we finish for this project, they have to be PSP output res 456x288, sry i don't think i saw anything about that in the doc unless its abit late and my eyes just didn't see them :arteest:More on outputting the final renders will be in the submissions thread. Which will be up soon.
:thumbsup:

[MrDev]

I think it would be fun to have a "In-Game" spoof screenshot along with a couple beauty screens

the PSP's screen resolution is 480x272 FYI :P

[Farzanb]

I think it would be fun to have a "In-Game" spoof screenshot along with a couple beauty screens

the PSP's screen resolution is 480x272 FYI :P

so true, beauty shots would be awsome :) and ya i guess i was wrong about the res, i heard it long ago and i geuss i heard it wrong, but tanx for the fix :buttrock:

[Terminal24]

lovely pic of the defunct gizmundo there, you know they went under right? You can't buy that handheld.

right, thought I'd be helpful here and give you guys some lovely guides that I made a while back:

http://www.dadako.com/forums/screen_ds.png

suggested polygon count for performance (total visible): 2000
texture memory (per screen): 512kb
max texture size: 1024px x 1024px
screen colour depth: 18-bit (260,000 colours)
3d data format: (custom exporters)
texture format: TGA, NNS Targas
alpha blending: 5-bit? (32 colours)
suggested texture size: under 128, 64, 32 etc

http://www.dadako.com/forums/screen_psp.png

suggested polygon count for performance (total visible): 50,000
texture memory (per screen): 2mb
max texture size: 128px x 128px ?
screen colour depth: 16-bit (65,536 colours)
3d data format: ? (probably custom export)
texture format: ? (safe to assume TGA)
alpha blending: 8-bit (256 colours)

http://www.dadako.com/forums/screen_gp.png
http://www.dadako.com/forums/screen_mobile.png

should add some realism to your shots :)

[HellBoy]

thanks Terminal24 :thumbsup:

useful stuff

[MrDev]

I've seen the PSP do 256x256... I'll try higher give me a sec!

[Dennispls]

yeah 256x256 is possible

[heavyness]

i think for this all future challenges, we should have a beauty shot of us playing the game. this one is simple, hold up your DS or PSP and photoshop the game in. for future, take a picture of you and friends playing it on the 360/Rev/PS3 in your family room.

just for shits and giggles.

[Dennispls]

fun idea but not so cool for the ones that dont own one;)

[MrDev]

There is a way to see them on the device themselves but it takes alot of work...

you'd have to convert all of your textures to 24bit TGA's only 256 colors per texture... convert the file to a .map

relight the map, compile it in an old version of Q3Radiant... and run the Q3BSP viewer for the PSP...

[Neil]

The 2mb limit means that all your textures will be 2Mb when added up. So you could for example use a lot of 64x64 with 8 colours to get the most out of it. Or maybe 4 colours if that's all you need etc etc :) At least that's how I've understood it

What about file formats though? Someone could be using jpegs, others gif, others dds, etc. If you didn't know about a fileformat that helps shrink size, you are already at lose from the others in terms of texture size.
Would it help to make a basic rule that everyone uses the same file format too? But you can still edit the pallette, etc.

[DevilHacker]

What about file formats though? Someone could be using jpegs, others gif, others dds, etc. If you didn't know about a fileformat that helps shrink size, you are already at lose from the others in terms of texture size.
Would it help to make a basic rule that everyone uses the same file format too? But you can still edit the pallette, etc.
No, I don’t think we should force an certain file format over another. Though, what we can do is place an comparison chart between a few of the best giving the pros and cons, and let the participant decide which one to use.

i think for this all future challenges, we should have a beauty shot of us playing the game. this one is simple, hold up your DS or PSP and photoshop the game in. for future, take a picture of you and friends playing it on the 360/Rev/PS3 in your family room.

just for shits and giggles.Awesome Idea. I will see what I can do.

[Neil]

Correct me if i'm wrong, but if you save a gif as optimized, doesn't it automatically adjust the color pallette to only save whatever colors are being used? Unless you're using more than 256 colors in which case, you can set a lower level limit.

[voodoofactory]

It's been a long time since I've done any game related 3D stuff, but this sounds like a really interesting challenge. Nice job!

Just a quick question(just to be safe): Are you allowed to change the transperancy of something in your level, without out resorting to using textures with an alpha channel. Most engines that I know, allow you to change transperancy of a whole model via code.

[DevilHacker]

I posted the submissions thread (http://forums.cgsociety.org/showthread.php?t=337385) for all you fast workers…
We only have a little over an week to finish. The entries are looking great so far guys. Keep it up.

*man! Only a week… I need to get working on mine… I will finish.
:D

[Adamtehgreat]

Any chance of an extension to this challenge?
My digital environment is far from complete :sad:

[SHEPEIRO]

noooooo no extensions. im of on holiday on monday not fair.

anyway can we get sa video as a submission, say 1min and resolotion same as console.

Plus as DS's the screen size is crap could we get 8x images rather than 4x with some of them set up as duel screen and some as single. cos i dont really just want a map as half of my image space.

[DevilHacker]

Any chance of an extension to this challenge?
My digital environment is far from complete :sad:

[Edit]
Well. You’re in luck.
Due to so many entries being so close to being finished, and the great quality of requests, the challenge has had one more week added to its deadline.

[DevilHacker]

Due to the need for an extended deadline; it has been decided to extend the challenge for another week, making the new due date April 15th, 2005. This will be the last/only extension that will be offered for this challenge, so its time to gear-up and get some of those entries done.

Good luck to all the contestants.
I hope the week proves to be beneficial to finish/polish your entry’s.
-Daren Loney

[SHEPEIRO]

cheaters :-) hehe

[Oxig3n]

brilliant work shep. looks like a real game for the DS!

*edit* bah, my internet lagged and this got posted in the wrong place

[DevilHacker]

Hey everyone, the entries that have been submitted in this current challenge are amazing in their quality and originality, and I just want to say great job to all those who participated.


The competition officially ends today, and I thought it would be nice to get the Ideas rolling while we get the judges verdicts in, ect…


Upon looking back on past challenges I am seeing a trend were more people participate the more simple the challenge is. I think these level challenges seem to daunting for most people (which in some cases, they are) so I was thinking about taking a 360 back to our original roots(though the final decision is still decided by the contest winner). Here are some Ideas that have been circulated but never used. Please add yours to the list, who knows. It might be chosen.
:D

Some ideas for themes (pretty simple objects, low poly count, medium rez textures)

-Cyborg farm animals
-Chair of the endboss
-Two wheeled vehicles
-BioGuns
-Retro or Futuristic Phone booth
-Personal Flying machines
-Space helmet
-Walking cacti
Those are all great ideas, I hope we can get around to 'em all.
I went brainstorming, here's a pile straight out of the brain, little damp...

Power generator
Transportation device
Medical personal scanning device
Mountable animal head wall hanging
Experimental Coffee Table (of the FUTURE!)
Next Next Generation Gaming Console
UFO
Forcefield Generator (and field)
Multi-purpose tool
Steampunk device of the FUTURE!
Child's Toy
Excessive Melee Weapon
Guns & Ammo :buttrock:
Because we did a jungle theme, how about a theme based on snow/ice prop, something you find in ice (can't think of any so far). If not then:

- Local shop
- Bus Station
- Modified weapons

[SHEPEIRO]

hey wheres the judgement folks

[SHEPEIRO]

yeah ive been thinking theres been no good vehichle design comp for ages and ages.

if it was up to me id say SEXY AND SHINEY FANTASY vehicle comp.

that would be nice and open with inspiration like Queen armidalas (or what eva the heck) space ship, flight of the navigator, judge dredds bike, UFOs, fith element, 2000 leagues, blah blah blah.

medium poly count, 2x 512* diffuse, 1x 512* norm, 1x reflection map, or sommit.

i think it would be cool and different.

[DevilHacker]

hey wheres the judgement folks
Trying to get them all rounded up and ready to go… should be ready by Friday…
Next challenge hopefully Monday…

Or so we hope
:beer:

[HellBoy]

so ideas here, more like though, instead of doing the 3d side of games, lwhy not do the 2d concept verion of games, maybe storyboard, the early stage of game project. why not do the 2d side of things.

E.g. Write a game, support it with your 2d storyboards, concept ideas etc

cheers

[Auctane]

So, where is the judgment?

Sick job guys! Really sick Shepeiro!

What is the next one going to be?

[SHEPEIRO]

cheers somnambulance

i repeat WHERE ARE THE JUDGES, WHO ARE THE JUDGES

[Neil]

haha, uh, i dunno. Who are the judges?

[Auctane]

well, at least it is established that it is unorganized.

[DevilHacker]

haha, uh, i dunno. Who are the judges?
i am trying to find them ASAP... Neil, an email is heading your way...
;)

I think very few know how daunting a job it is to find judges an good number of judges. So, I was wondering, how does everyone feel about re-organizing the judging some?

You would have the public vote.
Once the overall (total) votes are in after one week, points will be given out to places 1-3…

1st place will get 5 points.
2nd place will get 3 points.
3rd place will get 1 point.
-------------------------------------

You would also have judges vote, with the minimum of 1 judge and an maximum of 5 judges. Each judge gets 12 points to hand out:

1st will get 5 points.
2nd will get 4 points.
3rd will get 3 points.
-------------------------------------

Points will be tallied after 14 days and the winner will be announced.
If such an voting system was wanted i could have it up by the end of the day.
Right now, it is becoming hard to find 3+ people to take out the time and judge....
-Daren Loney

[DevilHacker]

well, at least it is established that it is unorganized.please. i said around friday. it is not yet friday. give me a little credit. I am a full time student and work 30+ hours an week...
;)

[SHEPEIRO]

sorry mate i thought you had meant last friday. :surprised

[DevilHacker]

sorry mate i thought you had meant last friday. :surprised
Na. I was talking about today. Which still looks like it could happen…
The requests are out there, it just comes down to the people finding the time to judge…
:sad:

[Auctane]

sorry, I thought you meant last Friday as well. I guess it would be last last friday now though.

[DevilHacker]

sorry, I thought you meant last Friday as well. I guess it would be last last friday now though.yep. its getting sad.
It is getting harder and harder to find people with time to judge.

The only solution I personally see is changing the rules a little. But that would need community approval...

[Supervlieg]

Hey, I heard you were looking fer judges. Ill be happy to oblige.

Just let me know when you want the judging to happen.

[Auctane]

Hey, I heard you were looking fer judges. Ill be happy to oblige.
Just let me know when you want the judging to happen.
Hell yeah. Do it man!

What is the next comp going to be anyway, or is that pending the winner?

[DevilHacker]

Hey, I heard you were looking fer judges. Ill be happy to oblige.

Just let me know when you want the judging to happen.hell ya!
We would love to have you help in the judging process...

Hell yeah. Do it man!

What is the next comp going to be anyway, or is that pending the winner?yep. still up to the winner... hope we can find one fast... sounds like we have two judges that are good to go now...
:thumbsup:

[Neil]

I will try my best to judge it today, sorry it slipped my mind.

[DevilHacker]

sweet.
2 others have also said ok, and that they will have their posts in this weekend.

Lets get the ideas rolling...

[DevilHacker]

This challenge is now officially finished!
I would like to give a big thank you to everyone who participated, and a huge thanks to all the judges that have donated their personal time to keep these challenges running. Without you, who knows where we would be.

I hope to see everyone in the next challenge.
:thumbsup:

Here are the official rankings:
1- [with 11 points] Shepeiro (http://member.php?userid=183235)
2- [with 07 points] 3Darthur (http://member.php?userid=47382)
3- [with 06 points] Hellboy (http://member.php?userid=97359)

[DevilHacker]

Front page plug will be up Monday around late afternoon.
Again, congrats to the participants for finishing, and thanks to the judges for their contribution.

Lets get those ideas flowing.
All eyes are on you shepeiro.
:thumbsup:

[SHEPEIRO]

YAY front page

erm ideas.

well ive been thinking there arnt enough exciting vehicle challenges around.

so heres a thought, might have said sommit earlier but here goes again.

SUPER SHINEY SEXY- fantasy vehicle comp: design and make a vehicle model that doesnt exsist. can be sci-fi, contempory (but conceptual), or past (fantasy). the restriction is that it must not be possible with todays technology.

for refs. http://imblog.aufeminin.com/blog/D20050817/47459_100104927_sw1_naboo_ship_H203436_L.jpg















http://image.blog.livedoor.jp/p-5762508/imgs/2/1/210adc91.JPG

http://www.linternaute.com/auto/mondial-automobile-concept-car/audi-rsq3.jpg

http://homepage.ntlworld.com/john.clark63/pics/FANTASY/JohnClarksArtWorldFantasy/images/060.jpg

http://carpictures.carjunky.com/albums/Movie-Cars/the_bat_mobile_2.sized.jpg

the emphasis would be on form, and concept.

specs (suggested) = 2x 1024x512 map space

1- with diffuse, spec, normal (and 256* reflection)

2- diffuse spec and normal.

shiney and non shiney. kind of thing

What da ya think

[Auctane]

I think it is a kick ass idea!

[erilaz]

What about a 2-state challenge where you model the shiny vehicle as SHEPEIRO suggested, but then also make it's replacement model for when it gets damaged/destroyed?
It would be interesting to see how you translate a perfect flawless design into fractured twisted metal and flash burns. :)

For example:
http://static.howstuffworks.com/gif/crash-test-front.jpg

EDIT: Sorry, I didn't realise the winner makes the next topic!!! :sad: Carry on...

[vikasumit]

yea that is great idea :thumbsup: one with cool deign and another hammered deign

Cool idea man

[DevilHacker]

Ok SHEPEIRO, here are some front page plugs I put together real fast.

http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/8369/frontpageplug10ye.jpg http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/8462/frontpageplug22mw.jpg http://img56.imageshack.us/img56/5549/frontpageplug33gh.jpg http://img117.imageshack.us/img117/2770/frontpageplug45sd.jpg

Pick the one you like best, or tell me what you’re looking for, and I will see what I can do. (or if you want, create your own)…
:thumbsup:

I got the front page plug ok’ed by Roberto, and we should shoot for something asap, no later than 4pm tomorrow….

I will re-check this forum in an few hours (around 6am) and see if by chance you got online… till’ then, take it easy, and get together what you want as far as the next challenge…

Later,
-Daren Loney

[SHEPEIRO]

the second ones cool.

and whats the process of getting the next one ready, apart from choosing the topic, specs and getting some refs together i aint got a clue.

[DevilHacker]

the second ones cool.cool

and whats the process of getting the next one ready, apart from choosing the topic, specs and getting some refs together i aint got a clue.You basically just named it.
Let’s get the specs and everything ironed out and I will make the standard rules write-up.

[SHEPEIRO]

ok

Super Shiney and Sexy vehicular comp, is still sounding good. I dont like the idea of a non-crashed/crashed vehicle as the amount of work would be too much for most and we'd have few finishers.

topic
single object it is, so
Super Shiney and Sexy vehicular competition,
design your own original vehicle,
emphasis on form and concept,
can be from any period past present or future, its just gotta be fast, super, and not look daft drapped in scanttily clad women

specs

6k tris
2048x1024* or 1024* (?) colour specular and normal maps
2 materials allowed, one with refection cube map (6x 256) or single 512* spherical cube map

[SHEPEIRO]

pretty sure im goona set this as next comp any one with an objection raise it now or forever.... er shut up

topic
Super Shiny and Sexy vehicular competition,
design your own original vehicle, emphasis on form and concept,
can be from any period past present or future, its just got to be fast, super, shiny, and not look daft draped in scantily clad women.

Must be original, no copies, no variations, no modifications of existing vehicles.

specs



Ok I based these specs on the tanks from BF2 (PC highest LOD), so they are high-end pc, low-end next-generation .

6k tri’s
2048x1024 colour, specular, and normal maps.
2 materials allowed, one with refection cube map (6x 256), or single 512* spherical map.

refs

http://www.cgchannel.com/gallery/vi...jsp?imgID=10491 (http://www.cgchannel.com/gallery/viewimage.jsp?imgID=10491)
http://www.linternaute.com/auto/mon...r/audi-rsq3.jpg (http://www.linternaute.com/auto/mondial-automobile-concept-car/audi-rsq3.jpg)
http://www.moviezilla.org/images/movies/fn2.jpg
http://xbox360media.ign.com/xbox360...1721566-001.jpg (http://xbox360media.ign.com/xbox360/image/article/666/666040/ridge-racer-6-hands-on-20051110091721566-001.jpg)
http://www.bath.ac.uk/~ensgwo/Image3.gif
http://www.hotrodhotline.com/featur...s/ArtArfons.jpg (http://www.hotrodhotline.com/feature/special/04wallypks/assets/images/ArtArfons.jpg)

[HellBoy]

6k tris, man isnt that too low, especially as we're going towards next gen...

[Auctane]

General question to everyone: What exactly is next gen? The Xbox 360 is on the shelf, PS3 will compare, and PC's dont work in generations...?

[HellBoy]

when I say next gen, I mean games are getting more advanced and more details can be put down on a mesh along with its norm map. Also hearing the WWE characters for the PS3, each character has almost 20k

so for me, next gen = more poly. For the PC, you are right, PCs doesn't work as next gen but from now and then, most games require higher system specifications, which means those details have been enhanced. Anyways, to make long painful story short, 5 years ago, a PC game mesh had less details compared to today, and for years to come, PC Game meshes will have even further details than today, so in a way PCs do work as next gen

[erilaz]

Although I agree with you on the next gen poly counts Hellboy, there are still going to be games where this sort of polycount is required. Perhaps i'm being pedantic, but I guess i'm trying to work out in my mind at least how a model of this resolution fits into a game of current technology:

LOD Models: The Half-Life 2 character model for Alyx is around 9k, but she also has 5 reworked models for various distances and speeds, right down to about 1k. I know many apps have functions that do this for you, but they're usually pretty messy and a cleaner way is to model the lesser detail by hand.

Mass-model games: This is the most common one I would think. A vehicle like this may be part of a massive fleet of veichles and characters (such as a war sim). All those polys add up.

Poor Companies that can't or won't go to next gen engines: Okay now I'm just being silly. :D (although there is some truth to it!)

[DevilHacker]

to everyone:
I understand the questions about the polys. But, those are around normal with PC games such as Battlefield 2...

Check it out...
[Link (http://games.mirrors.tds.net/pub/ea-games/misc/bf2modpolycountguidelines.doc)]

[Auctane]

... ok, I am a bit confused then. Do you mean next gen, like projected specs for Xbox720/ps4? or the high end of current specs?

anyway, allowing higher wouldnt hurt, but 6k should be enough - IMO

[DevilHacker]

... ok, I am a bit confused then. Do you mean next gen, like projected specs for Xbox720/ps4? or the high end of current specs?

anyway, allowing higher wouldnt hurt, but 6k should be enough - IMOwow.
Xbox720... now there is an thought... :D
*Thinks of crazy # of polys such an system could push

The specs it looks like we are shooting at are high end current gen, mid-end next gen (xbox 360, PS3). If you stop to think about it, 6000 is really the sweet spot; while it is low enough to not be daunting; it is high enough to get impressive results; while at the same time being not ultra-time consuming (IE: More people theoretically finish).

[erilaz]

(IE: More people theoretically finish).

Hahhaa! Exactly. I'm a major culprit of NOT finishing! I intend to remedy that this round. :)

[DevilHacker]

Hahhaa! Exactly. I'm a major culprit of NOT finishing! I intend to remedy that this round. :)Awesome news!
I always love to see what you come up with.
:thumbsup: :arteest:


…and to keep with the good news… It looks like this might be the fastest turn around so far. (or at least as far as I can remember) Looks like this challenge might “officially” start tomorrow afternoon!

[Auctane]

Well, I think you should get it going in a flash, while there is interest tailing the last comp.

LITE EM UP!!!

[DevilHacker]

Well, I think you should get it going in a flash, while there is interest tailing the last comp.

LITE EM UP!!!That sounds like the plan. The rules were put together tonight, and will go through editing tomorrow. After that... its go time...


Ok, i am off to get some sleep... Night.
-Daren Loney

[DevilHacker]

Ok. Rules and everything is 100% done. Here are some sample Front Page plugs.
I thought that I would give people an choice, to pick or create their own, than post the challenge up in the morning while some moderators are actually awake...

http://img226.imageshack.us/img226/7775/ugacsssfrontpage14mk.jpg http://img226.imageshack.us/img226/8500/ugacsssfrontpage25hw.jpg http://img133.imageshack.us/img133/9416/ugacsssfrontpage35rb.jpg

Night.
-Daren Loney

[erilaz]

I like the third plug image, it stands out well!
So when do we start? :)

[Auctane]

1 or 3 _

[HellBoy]

yea I like the third, should grap folks attention very carefully

[DevilHacker]

Morning everyone.
3rd it is!
:thumbsup:
Thread should be up in an few min’s to an hour.

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