Game Environment

Snow Island:

Concept Art

Tutorials

How?

This environment was made by first creating a plane flat terrain and scaling the length, width and height. I was then able to raise and lower the terrain using a pen tool to create an accurate plane. After this I smoothed the the texture of the terrain so that all bumps made by the tool brush would disappear leaving a smooth base.This was an easy process which was helped by watching numerous tutorials online and ready Unity documentation and forums.

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v04_Rzu-TGY < For example was a very helpful tutorial which helped me when dealing with textures and foliage. 

The Unity Asset store is a huge helpful library full of everything you need to make a game. For example it offers Motion Capture data, models, textures, skyboxes, animations and physics which I could easily access by a link on the unity software itself. Most of what I needed such as textures and models/objects were free and came in large asset packages. I also made and experimented with my own textures in Adobe Photoshop CS6 and used them in my Unity Project. 
I downloaded free grass, dirt and sand packages to paint onto my terrain using the paint texture applicator. 

I raised the whole terrain above the base of the map in order to lower the edges of the plane to make the island rise further out of the water surrounding it. I downloaded a water physics pack which enables the water to move realistically when in gameplay.

I was able to create a quick and efficient work flow by not having to model my own buildings and trees as it would have taken up too much time. As a result of this I downloaded my objects and tree packs from the unity online asset store for free in the starter pack sections. Some problems arose with certain objects as they had not been solidified in their prefab folders and so in gameplay the character is able to walk through some objects. Again time has not allowed me to correct this issue, however I intend to expand and develop on this project after the degree show. Some objects came with their Physics already assigned such as the foliage and Palm trees which enables them to move in the wind during gameplay, making it more effective and realistic for the player. When placing the grass and bushes into the scene, the colour of the foliage had to be edited in order for it to keep in with the same tropical pallet as the palm trees.

I experimented with skybox's to pick the right one for the tropical island scene. The physics of this skybox were not advanced as the clouds do not move, however whilst in gameplay it isn't noticeable. Also as the environment is small the player would realistically not see a vast change in the environment anyway. As a result of this game being a one level free roam game, the time of day does not change. 

 

The whole process of creating this environment was extremely enjoyable and I intend to improve and experiment in this area as it may be another root for me to go down.


Inspiration for my gaming environment:

Above is a mood board of the First Person Shooter and adventure game 'Far Cry 3'. This game has had a huge inspiration on my own environment as I wanted my piece to have the same abandoned shanty town aesthetic. The game is based on a heroine trying to save his friends from gangs of murderous modern style pirates. The game enabled you to drive vehicles such as planes, trucks and speed boats. The player can also  ride elephants and has a vast inventory of weaponry. This game's realism in it's large environment has inspired mine own. For example I have tried to add in accurate textures to portray worn grass and dirt patches where wet sand would appear on the beach area. I have also used tropical trees and a variation of grass, bush and weed plants in order to make the island look wild and abandoned. I was also inspired by the industrial living quarters of the enemy gangs who all live in man made steel, wood and brick huts. In my environment I placed empty boxes, wooden panels and toxic waste barrels around my island in order to give the suggestion of an industrial trading town.

The above mood board is from the game 'Battlefield -Bad Company' . This is also a first person shooter game which is mostly played in Multi-player mode to play online with anyone from around the world. It is a hugely successful series of games and has a large fan base. This environment is very interactive and similarly to far cry one of the maps is set on a jungle based island which is populated by steel houses.

I edited these textures in Adobe Photoshop CS6. I added blood and dirt by using brush effects on different layers. This made my character look like she had been in combat.