CGDC '97 Roundtable Reports

The roundtable sessions were attended by a host of experienced artists, a few producers, and at least one 2D artist per session trying to make the move to 3D. To formally begin the session, I asked everyone to introduce themselves, state what type of software they used to create 3D models (if any), what platforms they worked on, and what area of interest prompted them to come to this discussion. These areas of interest were initially focused on, especially the common topics that were shared by several of the attendees. The topics that ignited the discussion always altered course to other more detailed concerns.

The roundtable discussion topics included:

*software for creating real-time models: a mixture of 3D Studio, Max, Form Z, Softimage, Alias

*Multigen - creating hierarchies for character animation

*character creation, (under 600 polygons)

*texture memory allotted: ( swap file alleviates this problem )

*type of textures used (bmp, pcx, gif, jpg)

*size of textures (64, 128, 256)

*problem of high polygon count vs. number of textures

*colored vertices, which software supports this

*stretching faces, character motion - arm pits

*tricks of the trade: using single textures tailored to your models

*creating real time models from detailed pre-rendered models (not a good solution)

*using pre-rendered detailed models for texturing low poly real time versions

*using LOD, levels of detail, models

*mapping strategies

Most artists were using 3D Studio or Max for the creation of their models. A discussion of the shortcomings of all the software packages ended with a consensus that none of them can do everything that they want. Usually, the shortcomings of one product were answered in another package. In most cases, the producers created proprietary software to compliment their modeling packages, and bridge the gap between the model files and the game engine.

The bulk of the discussions centered around tricks for creating realistic real time models. Most attendees agreed that photo realistic textures provided the best solution. When possible, a single texture per object was recommended for rendering speed and efficiency.
t was mentioned that an innovative approach to creating photo realistic textures involved the creation of a detailed pre-rendered model, often with several textures, then using it as a source texture.

This same concept was mentioned for use with LOD models. A low level of detail model could use the higher LOD as a texture map. This could reduce the jumping or popping effect when switching between different levels of detail.

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