#greyboxing

Greyboxing

Once we had figured out how we wanted the level to be we started geryboxing the level. We did this using Pro Builder. Pro Builder is a tool that allows you to easily greybox your level.

Greyboxing is were you put in the main features of the level without any detail. This leads to the scene being made up of mostly different size cubes. The reason why we do this is because we need to see if the level is going to be fun. If we add a lot of detail and then realize the level isn't fun it means we have wasted a lot of time on something we don’t need.

So instead we make a simple object that has the same dimensions as the object we want to be there. We then test the scene.

Once we have gone through different iterations of the level and we have tested it and think that it is fun and have a design we like. We then start making more detailed assets in Maya.

Greybox version of the level.

Art Asset

Once we had made the model for an object we then had to change the mesh from the Pro Builder mesh to the mesh we made in Maya.

This was something new I had learnt to do and instead of placing the new object and trying to line it up with where the old one is, it was actually just as simple as a few clicks.

Once most of the art asset models were kin the scene. The level started to look better and it also showed we had made progress which is a good feeling.

Art assets in the level.

Textures

When we were able to make the assets we then learned how to texture them. I then realised how hard making textures really is and it also showed that i'm not that good at art.

That is ok though because that is something I can only get better at and they didn't turn out that bad so I am proud of myself and my team.

But texturing isn't all about how to make pictures we also learnt about unwrapping an object in maya. On some objects it wasn't too hard but on some more complex objects it was a bit more challenging. It ended up working out well in the end and I learnt another skill which is never a bad thing.

Animations

We also learnt about animations. We learnt about how to make something move, change colour and we also learnt you can animate more than just objects. You can animate lights as well which I had no idea you could do.

Conclusion

By the end of the project I have learnt so many new skills and I am so happy I have learnt them. One of the most important skills I have learnt is time management. If you don't get your work done on time it can affect the whole outcome of the project and it can show. I also learnt a bit about lighting and got to play around with it in my scene and I'm quite happy with the way it turned out.

Began switching out probuilder objects with maya models

This was quick, very quick. The initial design was based off a combination of a few peoples ideas drawn from a sketched layout. As a team we decided that we wanted to do a level with large amount of verticality and jumping options. 

We essentially have four heights to this level. As you can tell it is very, very grey box and not even a scale grey box. However, the team and I tested this at least twenty times in an hour and a bit, and by the end of it, it felt really fun. 

You can see what you need to get right at the beginning of the level. There is a central focal point that forces places to cross paths. You have many options to jump to great heights and to run away from opposing player. The best thing we found right towards the end of our allocated time was that you can jump from one of the highest points in the level in order to land on the lowest. This was great watching this happen, because it happened in testing and was an accident. Seeing something occur when you hadn't planned it was amazing. Having this kind of mobility with many places to get in and around, made a very broken simple grey boxed level become quite enjoyable. 

What I’ve tried (and failed, refer to title) to do here is make the player want to go through the big building in front of them, where they will come out to find a gigantic tree in a pond, with some rocks leading towards a small cottage just behind it. 

The borders around the edges aren’t borders as such, but rather placeholders for trees and general foliage. 

What I wanted was the player to come out of this building and really marvel at the huge tree in front of them, giving them a really shocking set piece to walk out to.

Although it’s pretty weak in execution, I’m still happy that I tried something a little different, and who doesn’t love big trees?

This theme was based around a bridge. I still used a real place as a reference and built a level around a Bridge. For my reference i chose Liberia, specifically Monrovia.

    I used the slum like environment of parts of the city as inspiration and the huge contrast of third world and modernized industrial world was a massive influence. There are people and cars everywhere, i took this idea and expressed that in ways like the multitude of cars i have placed here as a way to bloke the player. Ideally i want to guide the player but sometimes it is necessary to block them from going to far out of the way.

 I used verticality in the bridges to keep the slightly curved lines of the bridges interesting. you go from multiple level, from the ground to a second floor building to a bridge then down another bridge and back to the ground behind the car pile.