NextGen Foliage Modeling Tutorial [Video]

[DonPunch]

[Armageddon]

How is this 'next-gen'? It's just a bunch of flat planes. Is it because it sways? Because that's pretty easy to animate on your clump model.

[DonPunch]

Next gen as in, normal map creation and vertex painting. The textures themself are creation using projections. This method can be used for any type of foliage, grass, trees, bushes, etc.

The model isnt animated either, its all done with shaders.

[Hollow]

This grass looks very nice and all, but I think your method of advertising & demonstrating the creation process really quite puts me off.

I don't agree with the whole tactic of teasing something by asking for X amount of views/likes. You'd probably get a lot more 'likes' if you just put it out there as a gesture to your community/target audience instead of trying to rope them like this in hoping you'll get more credibility as a channel.

[DonPunch]

You are taking it all wrong. I am very busy creating a game right now, and dont want to waste time on a tutorial if it is something people are not interested in. If there are enough people who want to see it, then I will make it.

That video was just a demostration put up a year ago as a demo of the grass to our team and it got a few thousand views and a handful of people asking for it to be a tutorial.

I can asure you, there are no 'tactics' in play here.

[Armageddon]

The whole projection thing and even normal maps sounds like a waste of time for something that looks kind of mediocre in my opinion.

[Hollow]

Well in that case, I think you should just fully concentrate on your game right now and wait til post-release when you have the time to do tutorials. It will be good bonus material for your community to stay interested, til say, your next project.
Because the logic of ''can't waste time because working on a game, but prepared to waste time IF I get enough likes'' is pretty far-fetched.

[DonPunch]

If you are not interested thats fine, this message isnt for people who dont want to know how to do this.

[WhiteDevil]

That grass looks far better what I've managed to make myself.
I've tried making these things from source photos, hand painting and projections and I've found projection is the fastest to get the job done.

The whole projection thing and even normal maps sounds like a waste of time for something that looks kind of mediocre in my opinion.

Projecting 3d shit to planes is the fastest solution to get the best quality out of small details, since if you take a picture of grass or a tree, It's hard work to isolate the leaves or the single pieces of grass from the picture unless you start use a scanner for that purpose but then you still don't get the whole branch or the whole lump of grass to make the texture out of. Projecting gets you all the things done in one go.
And that is why making a tutorial for it is in my opinion a great idea.

[MacKenzie]

The title is a little misleading. I came here to learn how to make nextgen foliage with modeling. Not learn how to make a flat plane, apply a texture and then import it into UDK.

[stoopdapoop]

Guys, I've got bad news.

Next gen foliage is still going to be flat planes, with the very occasional modeled weed/flower thrown in. (except for in very very specific cases)

[Gambini]

How is this 'next-gen'? It's just a bunch of flat planes. Is it because it sways? Because that's pretty easy to animate on your clump model.

This kind of response irritates me. Why don´t you show us how real next gen foliage is done then?
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I think your foliage looks really good Donpunch, but I´m not interested in a tutorial about how to make foliage for UDK. I´m sure most people here uses Source, so why not making it for Source instead?

BTW I second that about your advertising method not being the best. If you want to make a tutorial, many people will be glad, but don´t go around expecting them to beg for it.

[kraid]

I also think the thread title is a little missleading, you should have called it something like: Tutorial - creating moving grass in UDK.
For Next-Gen foilage modelling i'd expect something like a complex and detailed plant or tree.
Also, these days UE3/UDK is Current-Gen.

[Gary]

Guys, I've got bad news.

Next gen foliage is still going to be flat planes, with the very occasional modeled weed/flower thrown in. (except for in very very specific cases)

Why do you say that? Seeing as how newer GPUs can push so many polys.

[DonPunch]

Tutorial will be up next Sunday. If anyone here is good with Source shaders, I would be happy to add in part for how to implement it in Source too.

If you are, pm me and I will show you the theory of the UDK shader so you can create something in source.