Week 6 Failure Lecture

In this lecture we were asked to consider what role we could take if in the industry of game development. Going through the Creative Skill Set web page http://creativeskillset.org/creative_industries/games/job_roles, I think I would maybe pursue a carrier in the Level Editor role or possibly even a QA Tester. I would pick the Level Editor role because you get to be involved in hoe the Architecture of the game looks, and I would probably pick the QA Tester role because it also gives you the change to explore the game thoroughly and have some input into the final feel of the game.

Materials Lecture

It was real good how Russell showed how some materials were made to give us a better understanding how these materials will degrade over the years. Such as the concrete and how it can spall when the steel reinforcement inside gets some moisture and begins to rust. 

Forensic Architecture Lecture

In this lecture we were shown how particular built buildings react to either natural disasters or human destruction. Russell had said that typically in brick buildings they tend to break apart at the mortar joints because all the moisture is gone and they basically turn to sand. And he also said how some materials like hard wood can be so ridged that even after some of the walls are removed the roof trusses kind of just float and give an un-real look to the scene.

Abandonment Lecture

When Russell spoke about the abandoned diamond mining town of Kolmanshop in Nambia and he mentioned about how there are little moment created in the pictures when you see things like the old cast iron bath tub outside of the house. These things will be good to use in our environments to show there was actual evidence of a human presence. Also Russell used as an example how it is import to think about how the environment acts in little details, like how the sand pile up into the corners of the room.

EXP 1 The Island

5 Reference View

The image below is a panorama of the landscape of a cattle farming land at Scone NSW, Australia. The land is predominately grassy but has has a lot of hills and mountains surrounding as well as native trees such a gumtrees. 

This next image is of the same property in Scone, but has a different landscape view with a rocky river bed and and flowing river.

The image below here is of a gorge in the back yard of my brothers property in Warragamba NSW, Australia. The landscape at the bottom of the gorge almost looks as if it is a rainforest with ferns and large broad leafed trees, flowing water and moss covered stones.

The next image is of the Italian Alps, the landscape is very mountainous and snowy which must mean it is high above the sea level and is very cold. There is not much vegetation that can be seen but the sky has no clouds and it looks very bright.

The image below is of the Waipio Vally in Hawaii. It is a coastal landscape with lush green terrain and large cliffs near the water. 

Week 1 Lecture Reflection

I feel that in the week one lecture I saw many ways that I can incorporate my work into a real time environment. I saw how the gaming engine can be used to communicate with people and represent a real environment that a person can connect with visually and maybe emotionally.

Tutorial Notes

Getting Started And Folder Structure

• You can go to the game folder and inside are .pak files, you can extract objects out of these files to unlock the objects.
• In the tools folder you need to look for the zlib1.dll , jpeg62.dll , libtiff3.dll. copy the three files and paste them into the root of photoshop.
• Also you nee to copy the crytiff into the root of photo shop.
• Install the crymax tools folder, to install open the crymax tools folder and load the copytoMax file.
• In the dos window type the letter of the drive were you have 3ds Max installed.

Overview of the Cryengine 3 Sandbox User Interface

• "The secret to a good workflow is to know were you can find all the stuff you need and more importantly to use it correctly"
• In the topi right are the stats for the level that you have loaded.
• In the top left you can access different viewports such as wired frame, but more often we will use perspective.
• You can change the resolution of the viewport that you work in to make it process faster.
• The speed input changes the speed in which you can move around the viewport.
• AI physics  does the same thing as if you are in game but instead you are still in editor mode.
• The console box allows you to edit thing in the environment such as turn down the sounds in the environment.
• The third tab is the hide by category tab which allows you to hide particular things by their category such as a entity of brush.
• Fourth tab is the layer tab which help you work within the layers that you create in the build.
• Export to engine exports the level that you have open to the engine.
• Modify allows you to link and unlink objects
• In display you can change your grids and grid snap values.
• If you go to the tools tab you can reload all your texture if they are not updating inside your level.
• All the panels on the Interface are located in the view tabs and Open View Pane.
• If you want to only select a particular object you go into the drop down and chose the particular item you wan to only select.
• If you want to place a particular object on the terrain just click the snap to terrain button and you can do the same for other objets like entities and brushes. The same technique also applies to the snap to grid tool.
• Cryengine works in METERS.

Customising The Editor

• Drag and drop the different windows you have open on top of each other and then they become one.
• Toolbars can be turned on and of if they are not frequently used.
• You can create your own toolbar by going to view and customise key board.
• You can make many changes to the user interface inn the preferences menu.
• If you go to the files tab in the preferences menu you can enable the program to save at any interval you select.
• In the configure user commands drop down tab you can create macros for the most commonly used commands used in the editor.
• If you want to create a macro button that has more than one function you click on the 'toggle variable c box.

Viewprots

• If you do not want to move through the terrain just press 'Q'.
• When you want to get to an exact point in your level go the the 'go to position' window and type in the exact co-ordinates you want, and if you want to go to the exact same view in the window you press CNTRL F1 and the to get back to the same position your hen click SHIFT F1.
• If you press the space bar it makes it easer to select objects precisely.
• To make selection easier toggle highlight selection on mouse hover.
• You can move around using the wheel on your mouse.

User Interface Overview

• Select objects panel the shortcut is CNTRL D, its an overview list of all the objects in your scene. Just type in the name of your object and click select to pick the object you want.
• Also on the select objects window you can chose what type of object you would like to search such as a brush or entity.
• The asset browser button opens the asset browser and allows you to look for not only assets but textures and sounds also.
• DB open Data Base view, which is where you can edit entities and make them breakable or apply certain physical properties.
• To turn helpers on hit SHIFT SPACE
• Open in view panel 'Time of Day' which will open the time of day window where you can specify they time of day in your project.
• If you click on the FG icon it will open the'Flow Graph' window, which is were you script all the stuff for you scene an the way it works is that you create nodes that link to other nodes and can make certain actions.