I just wanted to show some pictures of my most ambitious project in hammer to date, and the one that I’ve seen the farthest through. It’s my attempt to replicate the “past” levels from Sonic Adventure DX.
In Sonic Adventure the playable characters each experience a sequence where they are taken back in time and witness events that took place hundreds of years ago. The level really has no other purpose then explaining the back story and foreshadowing future events because as soon as that sequence is over, the characters return to the present and never go back again. I always felt bad for whoever designed this level since they clearly expended a lot of effort on a level that was hardly ever used.
When I first saw the level way back when, the first thing that I thought of is how it could be potentially used in gmod and other source games but there were so many other levels I wanted to try and replicate first, (most of which ended in failure lol).
The process of creating this level was a very time consuming one but ultimately very rewarding. First HybridProjectAlpha (Umbreon here on the forums) and I had to tidy up the models from the pc version of Sonic Adventure DX. Sometimes multiple sections of levels were superimposed on top of each other and we had to sort them out. Next we scaled the levels to source as close as possible by importing a model of Alyx into the model editor and scaling the level to her. Then converted it to a .MLD format which could be seen in hammer.
Once the level model was in hammer we could then create the brushwork around the model using the model as a guide. The brushes can be made around it for the regular shapes and displacements can me morphed around any irregular shapes.
We also had to export all the textures from their original packed file format individually converting them all to VTFs. Then we retexture all the faces of the brushes and displacements with the original textures from the game.
All of this results in a very close approximation, (if not a carbon copy), of the original level down to the closest detail.
[b]Comparison:[/b]
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=Gen_com2.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_Gen_com2.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=SADX_com2.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_SADX_com2.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
[b]Other Images:[/b]
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_det0044.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_det0044.jpg[/IMG][/URL][URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_det0042.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_det0042.jpg[/IMG][/URL][URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_det0040.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_det0040.jpg[/IMG][/URL][URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_det0049.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_det0049.jpg[/IMG][/URL][URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_det0053.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_det0053.jpg[/IMG][/URL][URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_det0054.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_det0054.jpg[/IMG][/URL][URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_det0061.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_det0061.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
You can see some of the work I’ve done so far in this album on photobucket
[url]http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/[/url]
There is still much work to be done. There are still some sections that need to be properly textured. I’ll have to see if I can find out if it’s possible to scale decals or how to use overlays. The sky texture is wrong at the moment. I have the original but it was designed to be stretched over a sphere (since the “skyboxes” of Sonic Adventure are spherical) so I’ll have to see if I can sort that out. There are a few boulders trees and statues that I need to make. The original model is great for a guide in hammer but outside of that they can’t really be used. If anyone wants to make the trees for this level let me know.
By far the biggest thing that still has to be done is replicate the Emerald Altar from the past sequence as well I believe it should be able to fit in there as long as I orient it properly. That is bound to take quite some time since it’s mostly displacement work, slowly moving each vertex to match the one of the reference model.
[b]Anyhow it most certainly won’t be done anytime soon but I’m hoping to get it done before the fall.[/b] I’d love to have your feedback, be it comments, criticisms, questions or concerns. Oh and this level will need a cool name its just referred to as “past” in SADX.
Looks awesome, good luck with it!
I wish someone would do some scenes from Colony ark and the Egg Carrier too, stuff like that would be awesome.
Hot damn though, can't wait to see this as a finished product.
i hate sonic.
but the map sure looks awesome!
Will it include the master emerald island?
Now we're talking turkey here. :)
[QUOTE=SZK;20999684]
I wish someone would do some scenes from Colony ark and the Egg Carrier too, stuff like that would be awesome.[/QUOTE]
I'm working on building the Egg Carrier as we speak, it's coming along slowly because it's absolutely massive. That seems to be the biggest problem with porting these levels
Since SA2 doesn't have any adventure fields, the only free-roaming Ark levels are the Knuckles/Rouge ones, and again, they're gigantic
[QUOTE=Umbreon;21000529]I'm working on building the Egg Carrier as we speak, it's coming along slowly because it's absolutely massive. That seems to be the biggest problem with porting these levels
Since SA2 doesn't have any adventure fields, the only free-roaming Ark levels are the Knuckles/Rouge ones, and again, they're gigantic[/QUOTE]
Awesome, let me know when you post a thread for it.
And yeah, I figured as much. But Sonic Adventure 2 had some of the best levels. I'd love to see Pumpkin Hill or maybe the Chao gardens + Hub world for them too.
Now I'm gonna have to go and play that game again, along with Shadow the Hedgehog.
That temple looks great.
Is it me or are you missing maps on those textures?
[editline]ok[/editline]
On the other hand, it looks quite charming without.
[QUOTE=Adsone;20999836]Will it include the master emerald island?[/QUOTE]
It will provided it fits, I just haven’t started that section of the map yet. I’m reasonably pleased with the way the temple part looks; it just needs a few touch ups here and there. Then I’ll work at reconstructing the emerald altar
[QUOTE=Hellsten;21000703]That temple looks great.
Is it me or are you missing maps on those textures?
[editline]ok[/editline]
On the other hand, it looks quite charming without.[/QUOTE]
Yeah there’s no maps on the textures as of yet. They still need some work but I might leave them without, depends if I feel satisfied with the end result or not.
Holy crap, thats quality there. Cheers.
Here is a minor update: Just a small bit of work I did on the emerald altar.
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0006.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0006.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0007.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0007.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0008.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0008.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
It’s really difficult to get all those circles to conform to the grid – or at least to conform when I need them to.
Looks freakin' awesome! This map is gonna be amazing for poses, I can tell.
Nice job so far!
You're doing the entire Mystic Ruins or the The Lost World level?
Sky doesn't fit.
Looks great so far, definitely want this released. When I first saw that level years ago, I was blown away, and still am. Now we just need a tikal model & we're set!
Well, there's a Tikal out there.
It's been out there for a while. I know I have it.
Yeah it’s coming along faster then expected. Thing is I’ve got 3 or 4 term papers and a hand full of exams coming up so I don’t know what the progress will be like in the coming weeks. However any procrastination on my part will definitely help the level.
[QUOTE=Sodisna;21071457]You're doing the entire Mystic Ruins or the The Lost World level?[/QUOTE]
The parts of this level will only be the sections seen in the flashback sequences so the temple and the emerald alter. The lost world action stage would be an interesting project but it would be like 30 levels long if we did it to scale lol.
Once I get this level done I’d like to revisit the Mystic Ruins Station level I was working on. It was coming along great but I ran into several technical problems which I didn’t know how to solve then, (I’m still not sure I do). I’d definitely like to revisit the project. In any case the Mystic Ruins Station will not be a part of this particular level. It simply wouldn’t fit with all this stuff anyway.
[QUOTE=Jakobi;21071508]Sky doesn't fit.[/QUOTE]
The sky really doesn’t fit with the level as it is now. I do have the original sky Textures but they are pretty low res and they weren’t designed with a square skybox in mind, (the skies in SADX were spherical). I’ve experimented making custom skyboxes using them with mixed results. I’ll mess around with that more when I get closer to the end.
The temple and altar are pretty huge. However, I believe I’ve managed to get the scale as close to the original as possible given the very different nature of the 2 games. The level reference models were scaled to the sonic player models for gmod. The levels look a lot smaller when you play SADX but then you have to imagine what the levels would look like from Sonic’s or Tails’ perspective.
[QUOTE=SZK;21072894]Well, there's a Tikal out there.
It's been out there for a while. I know I have it.[/QUOTE]
Sweet, I'll go look for it if gmod.or is up.
Well here’s another minor update. All I’ve done is duplicate the pillars and added the emeralds.
The emeralds themselves are actually the ones that HybridProjectAlpha made for the altar in our gm_New_Republic. I’ve since scaled then appropriately and moved all the vertices around to make them the correct dimensions. They were originally brush based objects but I’ve since converted them to models. The textures on them are the originals from the game, however they don’t look right. I’m not sure how they did those effects in SADX but if a skilled texture artist wants to tackle them let me know.
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0012.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0012.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0011.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0011.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0013.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0013.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
While you can’t see it in the pictures, I’ve also parented them all to func_rotatings so they spin just like in the original.
[QUOTE=john41;21101018]Well here’s another minor update. All I’ve done is duplicate the pillars and added the emeralds.
The emeralds themselves are actually the ones that HybridProjectAlpha made for the altar in our gm_New_Republic. I’ve since scaled then appropriately and moved all the vertices around to make them the correct dimensions. They were originally brush based objects but I’ve since converted them to models. The textures on them are the originals from the game, however they don’t look right. I’m not sure how they did those effects in SADX but if a skilled texture artist wants to tackle them let me know.
[URL="http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0012.jpg"][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0012.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL="http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0011.jpg"][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0011.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL="http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0013.jpg"][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0013.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
While you can’t see it in the pictures, I’ve also parented them all to func_rotatings so they spin just like in the original.[/QUOTE]
It was a low quality game. Either that or they had some sort of transparency. You could also try upping the texture scale.
The altar base and stairs are now complete (save the water and the foliage on the top of the bottom section). The top now has the grove for the Master Emerald, however, as with the other emeralds, the colors are still wrong – I’ll deal with that at some later date.
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0021.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0021.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0022.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0022.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0023.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0023.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0024.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0024.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
Anyhow the real challenge will be to get that bizarre looking roof constructed.
Maybe a better texture for the large one?
Yeah it needs a better texture for sure. I've just been using the default one - which wasn’t designed to be used this way. I think the emeralds in SADX were made up of 3 or 4 parts which were all textured differently. The Chaos Emeralds looks just as bad when you get close to them so I’ll eventually have to deal with it. I only have basic texture making knowledge so I’ll have to do some research before I start playing around with that. My primary concern right now is getting the world geometry built.
Well I’ve been working on making the roof of the altar. Originally I tried to replicate it out of brushes but it basically tore itself apart, the vertices were just in too weird places. Since I had the original models, my second attempt was to retexture the roof section of the model and export it as a static prop. I’ve never textured anything outside of hammer before and I must say it was a most unpleasant experience.
While the textures look like they’re the right size and shape, the quality just isn’t there and the texture file is like 10 MB. So I’m not really sure what to do about that. The damned thing still needs an appropriate collision model too; I’ll have to learn how to do that as well.
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0027.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0027.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0028.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0028.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0029.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0029.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0030.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0030.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0031.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0031.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_det0032.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_det0032.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
In my frustration at the roof I dropped it for a bit and quickly built the bridge. Not very detailed but it wasn’t all that detailed in the game. I might take some liberties with it later and make it more complex.
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_detNova2.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_detNova2.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
Oh and I replaced the Master Emerald texture with the one from the republic until I can find a better one, or I might just leave it – I always like that one.
Looking great so far, keep it up!
Why not just make them glass texture with different colors?
[QUOTE=Adsone;20999836]Will it include the master emerald island?[/QUOTE]
I hate your avatar.
jk
Nice work. your better than me!
Well I haven’t had much time to work on this lately – however I did manage to create an animated semitransparent water texture out of the frames I extracted. It’s cheap but that’s ok because it means I can have multiple water levels without any weirdness.
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_hell0000.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_hell0000.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_hell0001.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_hell0001.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=altar_alpha_hell0003.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_altar_alpha_hell0003.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
The big piece of work remaining will be placing all the displacements over the island. Scale may also present a problem since the level limits will restrict the amount of land I can make. I can of course fit all the playable area in no problem; anything beyond that is a maybe at this point. I thought about trying to create miniatures and putting them in a 3d skybox, but since the altar will be sharing the sky with the temple section I don’t think that is an option (unless there is a way to create more then one 3d skybox per level).
Oh and I was testing bspziping the textures. It seems to work without a ridiculous increase in file size (though the map file will no doubt be quite large by the end).
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_det20000.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_det20000.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
Well I’ve been pretty bogged down with papers and exams this past couple of weeks, though I have made a small bit of progress on the level, which I am now convinced will be 2 separate levels one for the emerald altar section and one for the pyramid shrine. As much as I wanted to combine them I just haven’t found a satisfactory way of reconciling the 2 completely different sky textures they use.
Speaking of the sky, we’ve managed to get something reasonably close to the original.
At first I was attempting to create a sky texture using the originals but it looked way too square. Then HybridProjectAlpha came up with the idea of replicating the spherical bounding box of the level in a 3d skybox and projecting the spherical image onto the square limits of the sky - an ingenious solution.
His first attempt for the Egg Carrier involved a series of brush based arches, forming a half-sphere, of which he textured the interior and placed in a 3d skybox. It worked exactly as expected; however, the problem arose of how to properly texture it. It was a nightmare trying to justify all the textures on the trapezoidal shaped faces so they would line up right.
I was musing over the fact that it would be easier just to texture a model’s faces, I took the level bounding dome from the original level, textured it and placed it inside the 3d skybox instead of the brushes. The results you can see here:
Sonic Adventure:
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=c1.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_c1.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
My Map:
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=c2.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_c2.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
Other shots:
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=sa_ancient_temple0001.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_sa_ancient_temple0001.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=sa_ancient_temple0002.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_sa_ancient_temple0002.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_skybox_det0000.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_skybox_det0000.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
It’s not perfect by any means; the dome warped the textures a bit and I’m not even sure that it’s the right one, (that is the texture from the jungle, not the past level); however I believe it’s a reasonable facsimile. All that’s left to do in the sky now is to add the hills and mountains in the background – which should be relatively easy though time-consuming.
In other news I’ve managed to get the overlays working. I was having some trouble with them, (some error about the overlay touching too many faces – which I think was because of the shear size of some of the brushes I was trying to texture), but everything seems to be working now:
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=sa_ancient_temple0005.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_sa_ancient_temple0005.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=sa_ancient_temple0004.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_sa_ancient_temple0004.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=sa_ancient_temple0006.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_sa_ancient_temple0006.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=sa_ancient_temple0007.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_sa_ancient_temple0007.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
As for the rest, besides the skybox stuff I still need models of the rocks, trees, those spherical statues and the Snake head door. There’s also some GameCube content I’m missing from my level as well, (the pc version cut out a few things and I’m using the models form the pc version to replicate the level), most of them are trivial so I haven’t decided if I need them yet. I’m also contemplating whether or not to include a bluish fog like the original level.
In any case that’s probably it for now – stay tuned.
Greeting all! Well, I’ve finally finished all my term papers and exams, to my obvious relief, and hopefully I can direct a bit more attention to this project.
I’ve managed to get the Snake Head door of the pyramid detached from the rest of the model and textured. The texture job probably isn’t spectacular but I’m rather pleased with it. I think I’ve even managed to improve on the original in some places, in others I cut a few corners, so I think it’s probably about on par.
Here’s a quick comparison for those of you critiquing:
Sonic Adventure:
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=SADX_CM1.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_SADX_CM1.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=SADX_CM2.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_SADX_CM2.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
My Map:
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=sa_ancient_temple_CM1.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_sa_ancient_temple_CM1.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=sa_ancient_temple_CM2.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_sa_ancient_temple_CM2.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
Other shots:
[URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_skybox_det0011.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_skybox_det0011.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_skybox_det0013.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_skybox_det0013.jpg[/IMG][/URL] [URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_skybox_det0014.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_skybox_det0014.jpg[/IMG][/URL][URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_skybox_det0015.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_skybox_det0015.jpg[/IMG][/URL][URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=genesis_project_skybox_det0012.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_genesis_project_skybox_det0012.jpg[/IMG][/URL][URL=http://s2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/?action=view¤t=sa_ancient_temple0012.jpg][IMG]http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y31/john41/The%20Genesis%20Project%20-%20Sonic%20Adventure%20Past%20Levels/th_sa_ancient_temple0012.jpg[/IMG][/URL]
The model does not have a collision mesh at present, thus bullets and other objects pass through it. I’ll probably build one out of nodraw brushes; it won’t be perfect but I think it should serve the cause adequately.
Anyone have an opinion on the lighting? I’m thinking I’ll tone down the brightness a bit before the next installment.
Sorry for the length of the posts, I just have a tendency to ramble on.
“See, here I'm now by myself, uh, er, talking to myself. That's, that's chaos theory”
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