Possible Space Shooter Mockup...

[Howard Day]

Thanks Guys - And sorry for the lack of updates lately - I got distracted by other things...like helping friends learn how to light space scenes (http://www.hedfiles.net/galaxy%20test.mov )
yosh64: Yep, they are animated textures - the guns are all hand-drawn, but the explosions are done in a 3d program.
Dogmeat: I'm using 3dsMax 9 for the ships - for the textures I'm using GraphicsGale.
urgaffel: I'll post the max file for the explosions when I get home.

Anyhow, here's the latest!
2 gun Civilian fighter - sort of the general minivan of the universe - not bad guys, but you may go up against them every now and then.



then I also re-vamped the shield hit texture - I was seeing a pretty large disparity between my hand-made textures (gun effects, engine flares, etc) and the 3dsMax-generated stuff - so I decided to try and equalize that difference by going over the generated stuff with a pixel brush afterword - using it for a guide, so to speak.

and what that might look like pushed on polys:


anyhow, I'm fiddling with the explosions now, but I've also got addition GUI stuff I'm doing.

[Lazycow]

Excellent work! (again) I especially like that "thrusters-effect" of the gun-fighter. Looks like you are alternating the transparency. Can you write down some parameters? Is it a simple 2 frame alternating between 50% and 25%?

[Howard Day]

Sure - even better, here's the texture.

So it's actually 4 frames, but is definitely flipping back and forth between a on/off state. But I put something different in each state to give it a little more character.
When this is put on the flare model it's an additive blending mode, so it's nice and bright.


Hope that helps!

[Shrike]

I really love all of this, but there seems to be more ass-pats than critique- which may be what you wanted, but I have a few suggestions, all stylistic since I know nothing about 3D. 

I'd make the wings on the latter slanted down, as they're a bit boring right now.
Also on the latest, I feel the cockpit should be better distinguished, maybe you should make it a transparent green, and make the whole cockpit area much bigger so it reads.  Blends with the metal atm.

But I do really like all of this.

Toodles!
Shrike

[Howard Day]

Zenobia: Thanks.
Shrike: Critique is Awesome, and I love all of it I can get. I agree with the cockpit concerns - I'm probably not going to make it transparent - as that makes a whole lot more issues than it solves - but more contrast-y is definitely going to happen. The wings also - I've got kinda a gull-wing thing going on, and I can definitely increase the angle of that.
urgaffel: Here's the max file for the explosions - http://www.hedfiles.net/pixel/blastsmall.max - 430KB, open with MAX 9 or later.

[Conzeit]

Hrm, seeing as how you're lacking in crits...I think for the best weapon in the game that hardon(teehee) cannon is really lacking....two crossed planes do not a 3D beam make!.
Why dont you try a single plane, and instead make it shoot circular sprites(I mean those flat 2d textures always facing the screen so they dont lok flat) I think that'd give a much better sense of depth...

[Howard Day]

Conceit: Yep, good call! I've never really been happy with that Hadron Cannon - I think something a bit more impressive is definitely in order. In the meantime, here's the changes to the latest fighter, as suggested by Shrike.



I actually like it quite a bit.
Thoughts?

[urgaffel]

Thank you very much! I quite like the ship designs you've got and the effects are very nice indeed. Makes me wish I could spend more time doing similar things but when I get home from work I have no inspiration at all (or very little...) and end up playing Persona or something along those lines  I wish I could pick your brains on how you create the effects in max

[Shrike]

[OFF-TOPIC] Whenever someone says 'Hadron Cannon' it always comes off the page and into my brain as 'Hard-on Cannon'.  Is that just due to my perverted thirteen-year-old brain or is this happening to other people?[/OFF-TOPIC]

Good work, the new ship is much better.
Me gusta!
Shrike

[TrevoriuS]

Offtopic: No it's your reading method really

By the way, you should really explain me how you make these animated textures like that  - Keep it coming