General / Off-Topic Planet coaster , UGC and 3D-models

[Vampiro]

Im wondering if people know any good way's to learn the basics of modding.

I have quite some experience at Vb programming so im not a computer noob but i have zero experience in 3D modelling.
When Cities Skylines was released i once tried to do some modding but the options and settings were quite overwhelming so i closed of the program after 5 minutes to never open it again.

With PC i hope it will be a little easyer. (As i can imagine creating a 2x2 wall is a bit easyer then modelling a complete house).
Does anyone here know a website or a simple way to learn the basics to modding? Or did anyone ever make an easy to understand step-by-step tutorial to create a simple object?

(I realize i might ask this question a bit too early since we don't know exactly how it will work in PC but i guess the basics will be pretty much the same?)

 

[Abletudu]

You can download the free version of sketchup and start practicing with that. There are a lot of tutorials about sketchup.

 

[Vampiro]

You can download the free version of sketchup and start practicing with that. There are a lot of tutorials about sketchup.

Sketchup, okay... didn't try that one yet.

I will download it later on and mess around with it a bit. Hopefully i will get the hang of it.
Im already happy if i can do basic stuff like creating a simple wall or something.

Thanks for the suggestion.

 

[Abletudu]

That should get you used to modeling, however, we don't know yet what format PC will accept to import models into the game. If it is the .dae format, then you can use sketchup as you can export your models in that format. I have made some models for another game using sketchup and uploaded them to that game's workshop.

Here are just a few examples:

Storage Sheds

Water Tower

Marble Column

Church

Rocket Ship

 

[SplashMountain]

I've never tried modding but would love to start with PC. I use Blender and have been creating 3D models for a couple of years now. Hopefully I can use this program to design things for PC in the future. BLender is free and didn't take me too long to learn the basics as there are many tutorials out there. Maybe you could try this

Nice models by the way Parkmaker

 

[gregorburns]

Yeah Sketchup is definitely a good starting point if you just want to learn the basics of 3D modelling. Its quite easy to grasp but it does had limitations when it comes to more complex stuff like texturing and materials and stuff then I would suggest Blender- it is quite a learning curve though but it's more like a traditional modelling tool than Sketchup. But if you're serious about wanting to do some proper UGC then Blender is probably the best after you've got the hang of the basic principals. And Blender's open source: that's why I like it [big grin]

 

[Vampiro]

Thanks for all the feedback!

Guess i will start with Sketchup since it sounds more easy to learn (keep in mind i have really zero understanding of how this stuff works).

 

[Curlyriff]

Sketchup is an excellent tool. It is what a lot of content is created in and with a lot of engines can be a direct import. You may need to re-texture later on via the Cobra engine as they will almost certainly be specific to that engine. It will be likely that a library of the materials in game will be available. Further to this, people will create new textures to go into this library and the engine may be advance enough to convert them as needed.

I have not done a huge amount for gaming models in Sketchup but use it architecturally.

http://imgur.com/a/2tJJS

 

[Vampiro]

Sketchup is an excellent tool. It is what a lot of content is created in and with a lot of engines can be a direct import. You may need to re-texture later on via the Cobra engine as they will almost certainly be specific to that engine. It will be likely that a library of the materials in game will be available. Further to this, people will create new textures to go into this library and the engine may be advance enough to convert them as needed.

I have not done a huge amount for gaming models in Sketchup but use it architecturally.

http://imgur.com/a/2tJJS

Textures, Engines, Library's, Engine's ... ok ok, this already sounds very challenging [tongue]

 

[SplashMountain]

Sketchup is an excellent tool. It is what a lot of content is created in and with a lot of engines can be a direct import. You may need to re-texture later on via the Cobra engine as they will almost certainly be specific to that engine. It will be likely that a library of the materials in game will be available. Further to this, people will create new textures to go into this library and the engine may be advance enough to convert them as needed.

I have not done a huge amount for gaming models in Sketchup but use it architecturally.

http://imgur.com/a/2tJJS

Nice work!

Textures, Engines, Library's, Engine's ... ok ok, this already sounds very challenging [tongue]

Haha, one step at a time. Once you get used to basic modelling, the rest will fall into place

 

[Abletudu]

I think my favorite model that I made is the Rocket Ship as it can be used in a Sci Fi setting or possibly a Tomorrowland type theme.

Here are a few more along those lines:

Space Station

Sci Fi Shuttle

Sci Fi Ship

Discovery

 

[Curlyriff]

Textures, Engines, Library's, Engine's ... ok ok, this already sounds very challenging [tongue]

Haha it looks daunting at first, but you will soon break it down in chunks. and just work at each part. Some things are difficult but that is the nature of 3D modelling.

Don't be afraid to sketch out by hand before starting what you want to do in 3D. Trial and error is one of the best learning curves.

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Nice work!

Cheers SplashMountain.

I have been using it for a good 7 years or so now and am only just starting to fully layer stuff in Sketchup in honesty because most the models for what I do don't need them. Groups are more than fine.

When it comes to stuff for games I could imagine this being much more important. Maybe not so in PC because they will be solid objects for the most part but games that have destructible scenery and applying physics to different layers I could see getting complex.

Parkmaker, some cool stuff in Sketchup there.

 

[SleepyPanda]

Thanks for all the feedback!

Guess i will start with Sketchup since it sounds more easy to learn (keep in mind i have really zero understanding of how this stuff works).

I recommend that you start with Blender. Sketchup is pretty much the worst option to make 3D models for games. [tongue]

Watch some videos, get used to how everything works and the standard routine for making different shapes.

 

[BigDragon]

Does anyone here know a website or a simple way to learn the basics to modding? Or did anyone ever make an easy to understand step-by-step tutorial to create a simple object? )

Back in the Unreal Tournament days I learned 3D artwork in Maya from 3DBuzz. They have a website and many video tutorials. Their Maya series was part of the UT2004 collector's edition where they also taught Unreal Engine 2. It proved surprisingly useful back in the day! Things were far less complex back then though.

I also recall watching videos from BlenderCookie on Blender 2.5 and newer. Blender was not a serious option prior to 2.5 given the UI design. Since 2.5 it's been a very capable program. I've done a lot of things in Blender, but I can't show you because of NDAs or lack of images online at the moment. The BlenderCookie videos appear to have gone paid as part of CGCookie, but there's still excellent resources on Vimeo and YouTube.

Once you learn the basics in a program like Maya or Blender you'll be able to translate those skills to other programs such as Max, ZBrush, Sculptris, and others. The key is to take things one step at a time. Break down the learning into a regiment that builds on itself rather than diving head-first into sculpting a kaiju monster out of a cube. You can get overwhelmed stupid fast with 3D modeling. Also get ready to fail, and that's ok! If you want to get good you need to work through the failure. Do not stop! People are only better than you at this stuff because they refused to give up.

Start with polygon modeling a stick figure to learn about mirroring, polygon modeling the Enterprise to learn about breaking down a complex object into simplier shapes and using references, skin-modifier (Blender) modeling a stick figure to learn about skeletons and then doing a simple waving animation, unwrapping the Enterprise for texturing and attaching those little phaser turrets to skeletal hard points, and then you can finish by making a fully functional scrambler ride. [cool] Why all the steps? Because you can build a scrambler by only building 1 rider car, 1/4th its attachment arms, and 1/3rd the central attachment arm. Mirroring, duplication, and skeletons will save you so much time compared to jumping in and doing too much by hand.

 

[Abletudu]

BTW, those models were not made for that wreck of a game made by A****.

 

[The Judge1]

If your just starting out, I would suggest blender. Its free and feature packed!
Tons of tuts on websites to learn how to use it.

Many people use it for UE4 and make some amazing things with it.

 

[Abletudu]

I tried Blender, but could never get the hang of it. That's why I went with Sketchup.

 

[Curlyriff]

I recommend that you start with Blender. Sketchup is pretty much the worst option to make 3D models for games. [tongue]

Watch some videos, get used to how everything works and the standard routine for making different shapes.

No it isn't. A lot of assets are produced with Sketchup that is why Cryengine for instance allows direct import of them and retexture in the engine.

Blender is better overall but the learning curve is slightly higher to jump in and play with models but I would certainly not suggest Sketchup is the worst. I mean we could suggest mudbox but that isn't free (legally) and has probably the highest learning curve.

It depends what Vampiro wants to do. Learning the base of 3D modelling and that is certainly easiest with Sketchup. It doesn't do so well for understanding poly count and the similar because you normally import direct to engine and tweak accordingly. Blender is better that you can use it to sort your poly count and work towards more accurate modelling but that is more advance.

Edit:

I should state that there things that Sketchup doesn't do but understanding the basics of 3D modelling seemed to be more the question at the moment. Lightmaping UV's for instance isn't possible but collision models are no problem. Sketchup is getting there and they are trying to make it something simple for indie developers.

You won't get to Frontier level modelling with it though. Depends how you want to go Vamp so let us know and we can talk through one software.

 

[gregorburns]

Yeah go for Sketchup to start with and learn the basics. Its pretty easy to get to grips with. Blender is difficult for a beginner but is definitely worth it once you're confident with the basic concepts.

 

[Curlyriff]

You can also do your base model in sketchup and export to blender to then add the detail of UV mapping and similar

This series might be worth a watch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PyYRz9h-eJU&index=1&list=PLmFopnrl6NkLbT4EQFcRmE865YCf9SV0p