Industrial Sci-Fi Model Pack in the Making

Hi,

at the moment I am deep in the progress of creating a set of models to populate industrial sci-fi models. More comprehensing models will follow.

Here are some textures that I made for this purpose (rendered directly in the GIMP normal-map preview, so this is real-time):




And here are some models of this pack (this is only a small selection of items):














And here is an example how I created a lowpoly model from a highpoly-one:








More will follow later. I also plan to create concept levels with all those models and textures.

I painted those textures in "The GIMP" and modeled the models in Lightwave 3D.

The quality of the work done here is simply amazing. BTW, how many polies are those high poly models and how many is the low poly one?

OMG *wegrenn*

Excellent work.
Your Models/Textures and a GOOD!!! 3D-Engine. That's it.

The highpoly generator has something around 20 thousand polies. The lowpoly around 100.

But it was much fun to create the highpoly one. Lightwave has fantastic tools to speed up the modelling process.

You're simple a pro when it comes to texturing Frank !!
The skills you've got just don't stop improving won't they

Cheers

Frazzle

Professional work, Friendly_Frank, as I am used to see from you... I especially like the generaton thingy in motor2_preview.jpg.

Wow!! They look awesome!

I just have to say: Wow!!!
This looks amazing great. Keep on making nice textures like that!

Regards
TSGames

Thats pretty good work Frank. Im also studying how to make textures like that.

@nitro777
they're actually pretty easy to do, its just hard to find the right workflow that has the least errors and workarounds, that is easiest for you

@frank
Incredible job, if I may ask, how long did these take?

The pack is for sale or project for client?

Those models would definitely add a nice touch to any sci-fi level. The generators were particularly nice and I love the normal maps. Very professional looking.

Some of the best modeling I've seen has come from Lightwave, including some of my all time favorite Quake models I got online. I'd like to get it, but it's probably wayyy beyond my budget.

looks very good frank you did a great job.

it would look more realistic if the skin would fit more to the geometry of the model. for example in corners and edges there's more rust cause the water longer remains there. the paint also is more sensitive at the edges so you see the blank metal espacially at the edges.



i just did a quick paintover so u see what i mean, hope u don't mind

Wow.That looks awesome.
@Friendly_Frank:Do you have a good tutorial to start with making textures?

@Fear411: Create Professional Game Art Using Photoshop, Digital Texturing & Painting.

May I join the "rusty" thing?
Screws/bolts/edges/base are favored places for grid...
(sorry Friendly_Frank to overpaint your nice texture)

mercuryus got the point, just imagine dirty water is running down the model where would be the places of dirt concentration.

it's just a little unrealistic that there is rust all over it but not at the places where normally rust and dirt is concentratet

Thank you all for your the kind words.

Regarding your questions:

frazzle: "The skills you've got just don't stop improving won't they".
I hope so, I still have to learn a lot.

lostclimate: "...if I may ask, how long did these take?"
It depends. Yesterday I made a crate very fast (texture and model) but it took me a few hours to create a texture and model for an air-recycling machine that you can see at the end of this post.

D3D: "The pack is for sale or project for client?"
Initially I started to make this pack for sale but am still not sure about it. There are several reasons to re-think this idea.

FoxZero: Yes, id-Software made a lot of content with Lightwave. They also used Mudbox (a software similar to ZBrush) for adding details. The Unreal-engine also can read lightwave objects natively as well as other engines (e.g. Serious-engine, Unigine-engine, Beyond Virtual). Lightwave has everything a game-artists needs: texture-baking, normal-map-baking and lots of fine editing tools. There are plug-ins for most engines out there (e.g. 3dgs, Torque, Ogre). The price is incredibly low compared to 3ds max, Maya while delivering the same amount of functionality. Because of that it is the king amount indie-developers.

Fear411: "Do you have a good tutorial to start with making textures?"
I never found a tutorial that shows how to create textures like I do. Most of them just show how to use filters or how to paint layers to achieve photo-realistic results. But my work-flow is optimized to get diffuse, height, spec and normal-map with almost one strike. I had to make also lots of little adjustments and experiences to come to the point where I can produce that stuff in a very short time.
The tutorial that has been kindly mentioned by D3D is interesting, teaches a lot of common knowlodge but is still too basic when it comes to the special techniques.

Mercuryus and Phil3d:
Thank you for the hints and comments. This helps alot though I already know how to add rust. I often "forget" or leave it just because of the speed of my working. I already made several hundret of textures and models and sometimes I am too fast and forget the rusty thing. But you are right anyway

Here is an air-recycling machine that I made together with a crate yesterday:



This model has something around 500 polygons (triangles).

This model might be fixed at the ceilings of some industrial rooms. Some pipes and cables might be added.

excellent models. i am an artist, but i do a lot of freehand, so learning how to create awesome skins for my models with paint prorams is something that i am trying to learn right now. that quality can make or break a game. the type of work that i have seen here is truly inspirational.

Thank you Blink, you are welcome

excellent as always, congratulations to you, frank.

ill buy them. tell me when they are done!

Nice new model! Thanks for the info. id has made many of my favorite games, but I didn't know they used Lightwave (I was referring to player created models like the one's of planet-quake.com).

I was expecting it to be around $3000, but it's only around $900! I'll have to start saving for it, I guess my bands new PA system can wait lol.

Well, if my new project goes well, then I'll probably be purchasing ALOT of your work for it. Since it's going to be 2.5D, I can use your models with NM at full quality

Maybe we can find some kind of trade?

I so wish I had your modeling and skinning talents .

Right now I'm trying to do a good texture for a futuristic racing vehicle I built (the model itself is okay), but my skins on it are not so good. I can't get that perfect cylindrical mapping like on your air converter, . It's always warped at the seams, top and bottom, or left and right, depending on which part of the model you're looking at.

Then again, you're using different software, so there's probably an "automatic cylindrical map" function in it.

@mrcode

if you use blender you can use a baked ambient map and the your shading at least will line up

@frank

sorry for cutting in on all the compliments to your great work.

xXxGuitar:
Thanks. I am looking forward to your 2.5D concept game. I would be happy to help. Actually I also thought about some kind of an 2.5D game for a possible project.

MrCode:
I think this is no talent - just work. Lightwave does cylindrical mapping but at the end I have to move and stretch uv-polygons manually. So there is still some work involved.

LoctClimate:
I am sure that Blender can do all that stuff as well. I once checked and liked it. A baked ambient map is a very good idea if you paint your textures later on. I use this technique for organic models. But for many other models I do it the other way around: I imagine this model in my head or on a paper and then I paint textures first. After that I start to model and uv-map the object. It is way more fun since I can apply textures right in the moment I am creating the mesh. It even saves time.

never thought of that, I might give it a try. the only other issue is that if you bake it, you can subdivide and get real normal maps, not the crappy plugin for gimp made ones. I'll have to give your idea a try tho sometime.

Well, I'm actually at the airport right now heading home, so I don't have much time. I'm still trying to make a story, but if you already have one, and you wan't to try this technique, then I'd be glad to program it for you. (Damn space key keeps getting stuck).....

gotta let me know whats up...

Here is one of 2 models that created today (simple mesh but detailed texture):

nice but the buttons and (schieberegeler) look like they come from the 1980s. when i think of sci-fi it think of bright colorfull touchable display to control everything

That high-tech look, what you are talking of, is not what I am looking for. I want a mixture of industrial and sci-fi. Some of the next models will show that more intensely. At the end it should look modern and old at the same time, but hopefully still convincing.

I am not after the star-trek look.

Amazing work Frank! It all looks very professional.

Simply superb work.

Thank you very much, William and Nemisis.

That's a really nice model. That would look good in my bedroom next to my nightstand, instead of using my unreliable cheap clock radio to wake me up I can wake up to annoying sci-fi beeps and klaxons and then push 20,000 and enter five passwords to shut it up, then every morning can be like a sci-fi movie!

60's fallout style! yay!

Here is another model, some kind of a turbine or generator:



Regards,
Frank

Sehr schön und sehr realistisch.
Sehr gute Arbeit!

hey frank sieht echt genial aus, hast du mal darüber nachgedacht ein tutorial zum anfertigen von eigenen texturen zu schreiben?

Thank you for the kind words.

Scorpion: I will write you a PM to answer your question.

lol, nobody knows what it is.. but it looks kick ass (as always)...

Your work is very professional. I'm just waiting to see it in a 3DGS game...

So Frank , so when is the next-gen human model pack coming out ? Remember that discussion over next gen art , and how u kept saying it was as easy and fast to make as current gen art , so , where is the model pack. It's been a pretty long time and havnt even see you mention a wip of it anywhere , I thought they were fast to make ?

xXxGuitar: Thanks for the encouraging words. I appreciate it.

Whydoidie:
Thanks for the question.
My goal is to create a complete concept level including character model(s). After finishing the first concept rooms I will work on the character models. It will have at least the same quality like the previous models. The normal maps will be even better since I will make it from a high poly model.

Sorry for stressing your patience so long
I'll do my best. I do all that only in my spare time. At the moment I have a job with 40 hours per week plus my own software company. So it is heavy work. But I will not give up.

By the way: If I get new paid modeling jobs then it will even take longer. Paid jobs come first my personal packs come later.

Thanks for watching and reading, best regards,
Frank

I realized that this pack already produced dozens of textures and so I created a few more and finished a new texture-pack alongside.

You will find more infos here, if you are interested:
http://www.coniserver.net/ubbthreads/showflat.php/Cat/0/Number/795054/Main/795054/#Post795054

I will post some new model shots very soon.

Thanks for updating these Frank, they look nice aslways
I'll be keeping an eye on this thread for the new models

Cheers

Frazzle

Your just awesome Friendly_Frank, inspiring and 'wow' factor screenies, always enjoyed poping in here.
I keep looking for work flow and app usage ideas and find a few good pointers from you too scattered about, great stuff

Thank you Nems and Frazzle, just for you I will add 2 new images of the model pack (showing a new office-chair, a control-table and a column-thingy ):





Regards,
Frank

Looks Awsome Frank...

But WHERE ist the "RED - Do not Push" Button on the Control Table?

Can you make me some Models for free?

cYa Sebastian

hey, the control table looks like the beam desk from enterprise TOS

Okay. Then I have another one for you, just to distract from the control table
But it still does not have a big red button, sorry

You will realize that some of the used textures are available with the latest texture pack.

Quote:

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Thank you Nems and Frazzle, just for you I will add 2 new images of the model pack (showing a new office-chair, a control-table and a column-thingy ):

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You're too kind ^^
Oh well, I guess I'll be sounding quite familiar by know regarding your textures so I'll keep it short:
Pro work

Cheers

Frazzle