AuthorTopic: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map  (Read 9221 times)

Offline Afr0Blu3

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[WIP] Small Warehouse Map

on: August 04, 2010, 10:08:19 am
So, I've been considering a short top down shooter and started making the first map for it today. This warehouse is bare right now but I just wanted to get the basic shape down before going too far. It's going to be littered with crates arranged fairly simply to provide a lot of cover and quickly break the player in to the controls and gunfights etc. It is only a short section but will take longer to navigate once the crates are in place.

The player starts at the red door and makes their way towards the brown door (the elevator doesn't work until later in the game). I'm also looking to add a desk with a PC and an open signing in book on next to the brown door, as well as yellow lines over areas where the warehouse manager doesn't want their staff to leave crates, and maybe pop some pieces of paper on the wall, notes, posters, possibly a calendar or something to give the room character.

Anyways, take a look at it's current and early stage, let me know what you think.

Offline MegaLeon

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #1 on: August 04, 2010, 10:24:51 am
Excessive higlights on the floor. It looks like it is made of tubes.
You might to try a tile-based floor, or go for a single color based style -- check some references of real warehouses.

Offline Afr0Blu3

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #2 on: August 04, 2010, 12:51:42 pm
Hm, tried with some beige tiles, but I dunno, I think this version looks worse personally.

Offline VDX

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #3 on: August 04, 2010, 01:34:56 pm
Now it looks like a floor. :)
Kinda like the illuminated tiles imo.
Looks more like a secret base rather then storage building.

Offline mattam

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #4 on: August 04, 2010, 02:25:20 pm
my suggestion:


btw there are some minor errors in your graphic. the tile is 16x16 and as you can see it's a bit wider than the map borders.
« Last Edit: August 04, 2010, 02:27:16 pm by mattam »

Offline StarRaven

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #5 on: August 04, 2010, 04:23:20 pm
Mattam's edit is a good suggestion. Honestly, I didn't even notice that some of the other stuff in there is quite nice because the floor was so overpowering.

What's up with the shadows halfway down the walls, though? (And on the top for that matter.) If they're straight walls, there shouldn't be any shading. Right now, it looks like the walls are bulging out. That's not too bad, it gives me a kind of sci-fi vibe, but when it's used on the doors as well, something seems off.

Offline Argyle

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #6 on: August 04, 2010, 07:06:07 pm




I remapped your tiles and optimized them - they were a terrible mess and were inconsistent.

I also just made the floor a flat gray color and tried to emphasize smaller details like some cracks here and there. Take a look at the thumbnail image results in Google Images for a "warehouse floor" search.

Having worked in a few warehouses before, I recall that warehouse floors are usually just smooth cement. Though mattam's edit was a step in a better direction than what you had going on before, I think it should be simplified even further from the detailed ground floor tiles that you've been plopping in.  Perhaps mix in some splotchy very low contrast patches throughout to convey that the ground is worn and dirty?  I did a quick attempt to have some light reflections on the ground but it wasn't turning out in a way I had hoped so I figured I'd just make mention of it :P.

Offline VDX

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #7 on: August 04, 2010, 08:53:56 pm
Mattam's edit is a good suggestion. Honestly, I didn't even notice that some of the other stuff in there is quite nice because the floor was so overpowering.

What's up with the shadows halfway down the walls, though? (And on the top for that matter.) If they're straight walls, there shouldn't be any shading. Right now, it looks like the walls are bulging out. That's not too bad, it gives me a kind of sci-fi vibe, but when it's used on the doors as well, something seems off.

If the floor was illuminated like in the first and second example, the wall's shading would be in a way correct, that may be why.

Offline Afr0Blu3

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #8 on: August 05, 2010, 10:53:52 am
Going from what you guys have said, I've added lights to the top of the walls to make their shading more relevant. When I originally did the walls I did it as if the light source was at the top of the wall/ in the roof and didn;t think to actually show the light. I also changed the floor to be plain cement but I've noticed in stores etc that cheap floors tend to have a lot of speckles in them so I've done that to add a little detail. I also put the yellow lines in.

On Argyle's reversion the lines are where the crates would be placed, in the warehouse of the store I used to work in, we had yellow lines which meant "leave this clear so we still have a walkway" if that makes sense.

This is how it currently looks.



I love the amount of constructive critiscm you guys give, I've never known a forum where everyone is as in-depth and helpful as this. On other art forums (where I post my drawings, concept art etc) people just say "It's good." or "Fix this." without really offering anything to the mix.

Offline Sly

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #9 on: August 05, 2010, 11:47:47 am
The floors are awfully bright. I would recommend making them darker like in Argyle's edit.

It would also help the lines show up better because they are not fully readable as they are now.
No zombies here.

Offline Afr0Blu3

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #10 on: August 05, 2010, 12:52:13 pm
OK. I darkened the floor and added in the crates and desk. Still not sure on the positioning of the desk. It currently requires 3 tiles to fit to the 16x16 grid because, well, it doesn't fit the grid. It is a 16x16 object but when I placed it taking up two tiles (8 pixels on each tile) it just didn't look right so it now occupies three.

Offline Afr0Blu3

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #11 on: August 05, 2010, 12:58:49 pm
No edit button? I edited the desk, it now takes up two tiles

Offline mattam

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #12 on: August 05, 2010, 01:02:05 pm
I like the darker floor! but the safety lines look realy choppy (they dont look damaged but rather translucent)... the containers imo look realy flat and are too new (saturated), but i like the idea of container obstacle/labirynth very much.

edit: there is a 'modify' button in top right corner of your post.

Offline Sly

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #13 on: August 05, 2010, 03:00:32 pm
I did some recoloring not sure if it is better.  ???





Edit: Added gif comparison.

« Last Edit: August 05, 2010, 03:07:26 pm by Sly »
No zombies here.

Offline Afr0Blu3

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #14 on: August 05, 2010, 03:28:31 pm
@Sly: I like the .gif comparison. It looks like everyone's gone home and turned the lights off when you watch it. It is an improvement though.

I've also tried my hand at a recolour. Remembered the tone of the game and decided to destaurate things a little and play with hues. Also rearranged the crates a little and added two warning posters to the loading bay and a calendar above the desk.

Offline Arachne

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #15 on: August 05, 2010, 04:58:26 pm
What sort of crates are they? I looked at some pictures of shipping containers to show you how you can shade them so they read better.



Notice how the sides are darker than the top. This helps to show that the two sides are angled differently. Secondly, the base color is uniform on each of the sides, which makes them look flat as they should be. Once I had that established, I started adding the details. I've used brighter colors for the details on the top than on the sides to preserve the difference in brightness between the two sides. Once I'd put the details in, I mixed in some other colors for variation. I haven't used the darkest colors much, just for shading in the darkest parts and for emphasizing holes and sharp corners.

Hope that helps. :)

Offline Sly

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #16 on: August 05, 2010, 07:44:37 pm
That is perfect Arachne! This is pretty much the style I've been working with awhile now and those crates are sexy.
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Offline Kaito

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #17 on: August 05, 2010, 07:47:47 pm
This kind of pixel art reminds me pokemon tilesets hehe...

Offline Afr0Blu3

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Re: [WIP] Small Warehouse Map

Reply #18 on: August 05, 2010, 09:05:21 pm
Well, my new crates aren't quite as good as Arachne's, but I think they're an improvement. Hopefully my skills can only improve, right? ^^;

New version with new crates.