Sumea Challenge #7- johnn- Challenger #6

Neat concepts, hope you get time to finish :)

looks like you are going to make a fine modeler.. your concepts are great..:)

can already see them in 3d in my head..

Yeah, nice concepts. even if you dont get them modelled in time for the comp, you should do them for yourself, i think they will look great. Good luck!

I think I have more or less finished the basic model! pics below are front/side/back and 3/4 views. Current poly count is bit over 2700 so there is room for some details to be added... like some glowing lights or something... but where to put them? any feedback and/or tips on the model would be appreciated.

[img]icon_paperclip.gif[/img] Download Attachment: [url="http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/200561345638_heavyArmour_m…"]heavyArmour_model1.jpg[/url]
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[img]icon_paperclip.gif[/img] Download Attachment: [url="http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/20056134584_heavyArmour_mo…"]heavyArmour_model2.jpg[/url]
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Hey John, sweet work there, coming along well, only thing that catches my eye are his legs, I notice in the concept he has some sort of piston type thing, will you be putting that in? Maybe try putting a bit more shape into them too, from they front they look blocky and could benefit from a chamfer on those inside edges.

thats a damn fine effort for a first model man, well done

Cool!
Give him dual guns and a tail!! acutally, 4 guns and a tail!!
Maybe beef the legs up a little, they gotta support a lotta weight.

I've held off critiqueing in here for a bit, but I'd just like to say your progression is great to see John! Since you posted your original portfolio up to now, you've had a steady and constant improvement, and it's really showing in your latest pieces. Your concepts have gotten cleaner, better designed, more aesthetically pleasing, and most importantly practical and viable for game designs/assets.

I love seeing models from people coming from design/visualisation/concepting backgrounds - the translation and execution always seems to be nice and fluid, and this is no exception. You're doing great, keep it up! [:D]

at last! I think the model is finished (apart for some technical details.) You will see there are some minor tweaks and 1 major change.

I revisited the upper legs and confirmed to myself the piston + ball joint was not quite the right look and the boxy legs conveyed slow, solid and strong better. I also beefed up the upper legs a little but skipped the tail (sorry Makk[;)])

The big change is the gun - the jumbo blaster was bugging me, I thought it looked like a plastic jobbie you would get from Toys'r'us. So it was replaced with a triple barrel minigun. More realistic and much more suitable for the overall style I think (I'm thinking about shortening the barrels and adding a flash suppressor at the front... ?). For those wondering, the boxy bit at the back with handles will (fingers crossed) appear as a removable/replacable ammo box.

3/4 view:
[img]icon_paperclip.gif[/img] Download Attachment: [url="http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/2005614102132_heavyArmour_…"]heavyArmour_1_14june.jpg[/url]
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front side and back:
[img]icon_paperclip.gif[/img] Download Attachment: [url="http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/2005614102227_heavyArmour_…"]heavyArmour_2_14june.jpg[/url]
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edit:edit:edit: had some question about mapping but I think they are sorted.

--thanks for the kind words JI. When I started posting at sumea I wanted to redirect my skills (and career) towards the CompGame industry. Whilst I haven't succeeded in securing a day job as an illustrator thus far(I do get the occasional freelance contract), I think I have made huge in-roads on my own skills and on understanding the industry (Due to a large extent on the existance of this forum and it's members.)

Fingers crossed it will only be a matter of time before my career shifts too.

I'm actually hoping that having some modelling skills will improve my chances, being the primary reason why I entered this comp.

maybe a little late, but I think you may still be quite interested in it as design referance -- the heavy design reminds me of the pka mecha designs;

[img]http://www.imasy.or.jp/~kiyo/model/pow_mel/melu_s.jpg[/img]
[img]http://www.imasy.or.jp/~kiyo/model/safs/safs09s.jpg[/img]
[img]http://www.imasy.or.jp/~kiyo/model/fireball/fb__02s.jpg[/img]

The link to the site these come off:
http://www.imasy.or.jp/~kiyo/model/index.html

edit! and another with english: http://users2.ev1.net/~jimbobwan/gij82sf3d.htm

...? thought I had replied to you last post JI... oh well, thanks for posting the cooool mecha designs. I promptly tracked down the larger versions and saved them off the for collection.

Thanks again to all who posted answers to my questions regarding the texture maps too - I would have possibly never figured it out and definitely not in time to finish the comp. As you can see the advice was not in vain [:D]

so this is where I am at - just starting the textures. My initial plan was to go with a 'Desert Storm' kinda cammo pattern BUT The competition rules suggest 'tried and true' team colours should be avoided and I suspect standard military colours may get the same frownie treatment come judging... so I'm thinking of getting some inspiration from classic racing cars (!) Not practical in a military sense but could work in a Futuristic 'Robot Wars/Running Man/Gladiatorial arena sports' kinda way.

[img]icon_paperclip.gif[/img] Download Attachment: [url="http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/200562410147_heavyArmour_2…"]heavyArmour_24june800x600.jpg[/url]
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I think some racing stripes on the mech would look pretty cool and original.

bit of an update: I think I have been tinkering pattern variations too long - I thought I was really happy with the basic pattern design until about 30seconds ago... now I think it might be too busy... I might try a more minimal pattern scheme before continuing with texture details. any comments regarding this point would be appreciated.

[img]icon_paperclip.gif[/img] Download Attachment: [url="http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/20056271241_heavyArmour_28…"]heavyArmour_28june800x600.jpg[/url]
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the orange and white pattern dosent appear too busy at all in my mind.

I agree with Moonunit, if you go for a minimal pattern, it may end up looking a little less interesting. I like the pattern you have now

It may need a number and some sponsor logos.

only kidding.

Thanks for the opinions guys. Whilst Leachy says he is kidding about the logos and sponsors, I felt much the same way, The robot was ready to take the court with the Harlem Globe Trotters! So I did end up redoing the basic pattern - some thing a little more dignified, but more appropriate I think.

It's actually very close to finished too [:D] Just need to add some details to the cream paint and left arm and gun body and anything else people point out... actually its a long way from being finished isn't it!

[img]icon_paperclip.gif[/img] Download Attachment: [url="http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/200562892221_heavyArmour_2…"]heavyArmour_28june_v2_800x600.jpg[/url]
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edit: and a quick update before I pack it in for the night...now it is getting close.

[img]icon_paperclip.gif[/img] Download Attachment: [url="http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/2005628122459_heavyArmour_…"]heavyArmour_28june_v2_800x600.jpg[/url]
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yeah right now it seems you need to get all that surface detail down, good luck!

Here it is. I'm going to look at it for a day before I declare it finished, but I think it might be.

[img]icon_paperclip.gif[/img] Download Attachment: [url="http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/20056292220_frontSideBack…"]frontSideBack.jpg[/url]
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[img]icon_paperclip.gif[/img] Download Attachment: [url="http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/200562922514_3quarter_uvun…"]3quarter_uvunwrap.jpg[/url]
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Hey John, I dig the colour scheme that you went with, really nice.
Have you tried overlaying a photo texture or something? At the moment its a bit to clean and there is really no surface material to it.
Congrats on getting finished :)

well it is finished[:D] final touch of a very little texture on the flat areas, maybe could have introduced a little more tonal variation but time is up.

[img]http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/20057312051_HeavyArmour_Mo…]

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[img]http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/20057312313_HeavyArmour_wi…]

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[img]http://www.sumea.com.au/forum/attached/johnn/20057312526_HeavyArmour_te…]

I was really looking forward to your effort here JohnN, Like JI Mentioned earlier on in this thread seeing a concept artist or traditional 2d artist make the leap over to 3D is often a really nice smooth process.

The modelling came out pretty well - you actually did a really good job there for a first (??) attempt. As far as the textures go though - I thought you would have really got stuck in and attacked the sheets with some lights and darks - a bit more contrast etc. Overall good job man - you should be proud of that.

Next time I'd really delve into the texture and try to bring out and define what makes up your model a bit more in terms of materials and how light would present them. [:)]

You're challenger #6!

Yeah Haz, as I progressed with the texture it became apparent that extra tonal variations could be incorporated. I initially thought that the modelling would provide all of the basic tone but discovered that it wasn't really the case - cast shadows, hot hightlights etc. But i'm using ignorance as my defence! This is the first time I had even looked at a 3d package (I bought a book on 3dMax at the start of the project) and same goes for the texturing too. So I figure I did pretty good just finishing a model for the comp :)

Taking nothing away from your entry at all man - The style you picked was perfect for a first shot.

Unfortunately like most newbs my first had to be the coolest character I could possibly think of - and of course it was also the trickiest son of a bitch to work on at the time and the result was a nice design, executed with skills from a negative dimension. I should have picked something like a mech which is basically extrudes and bevels.

You show wisdom and restraint beyond measure for picking something easy to do first up - and nailing it on your first go also.

Full marks from me [:)]