Hello! I am getting into the video game making world, and now I have to learn texturing. I think it is very difficult though! I made my model, and imported the UV map into Photoshop, but now when I actually texture it, it is really difficult! This is what I have after an hour of playing around it Photoshop
Is this an at least somewhat decent start for someone who has only used PS for an hour? My question though is are there any tools in PS that I should learn to make it look more realistic? Now I do NOT want to make it the most realistic possible, because I am making a mobile game. However, this is obviously too bad to be put inside of a game. I looked at quite a few tutorials, but nothing really “got to me”. And yes I know that I am not going to be able to make good textures right away, and it will take lots of time to learn.But, as long as it is helpful, I am totally willing to learn anything that’ll help me make it more believable and “game-like”. Maybe any direct links covering this exact thing? ALSO I do NOT want to use premade textures on the interwebs, I want to make everything myself .I don’t want to explain why in this thread, but I think you should know this though. Thanks guys!
Personally, when using Photoshop (to be specific I use GIMP 2, but pretty similar) I always use existing photos and edit them (hence the name Photoshop!) There are plenty of places online to get pictures that you may legally use in commercial games, such as cgtextures(.)com.
Is there some reason you don’t want to use existing textures? You generally only use a texture to cut it up/manipulate it to look as you wish so you will not have a generic looking game. The textures and images simply give you a starting point and make your art more realistic or interesting.
Well I kind of want to do everything my own, not sure why though lol. And also doesn’t different resolutions mean different amount of realism/unrealism based on the resolution? I don’t personally want to go through the hassle to have to find each individual picture with the same resolution. Correct me if I am wrong though, because I am still rather new here. And yeah, as I said, I can’t make things the most realistic possible, because I am making a mobile game. Thanks.
Everyone has to start somewhere.
You might want to split the UV map up based on the different materials. So the silver blade is one group, the gold parts another group, the leather another. It just makes it easier to do. Also UV maps where possible should have vertical and horizontal edges, because it’s more efficient and pixels are square.
In Photoshop the real trick is to use layers. With layers you can edit things in a non destructive way, you can experiment a bit without having to undo or reload if you go wrong. If you create a layer and double click on it, it’ll let you change the layer style which will let you alter colors, make things look 3d and other things to play with. With a layer you can set it’s blend modes create different effects.
E.g. I’ve filled a layer with noise and set it’s blend mode to multiply to break up the solid colour.
LookDev (Look Development) involves both textures and shaders. While your sword blade might look very flat as a texture, if you have a specular shader it will glint in the light and look more realistic. You need to throw lighting into the mix too, so it’s important to explore how those three things work together. I’m not sure if there are limitations on mobile platforms though - I’m not that far into it yet.
@BigDaz Yeah, I knew that layers were somewhat important, but not to that extent! I now see the importance of layers a lot more. Thanks for that.
@christinanorwood Ok so I looked around on Youtube a bit a found this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYMIjvLVas8, and then though to myself "Why can’t I THINK the way somebody like him does? I know he has been doing it for years, but I just feel like I should be able to think the way he does and his thought process while making textures. Even though I am naturally not good at art (drawing or computer graphics), my dad is and is an amazing drawer and photoshopper, so I have really high expectations for myself, lol. But he doesn’t do textures or things of that sort. Also, do maps such as Bump, Diffuse, Specular, etc, affect game performance or FPS or anything like that?
Will I eventually just get better and make things look more believable as I mess around with PS myself and keep practicing by myself with no help or tutorials?
Thanks, this helps out pretty well. Will I eventually just get better and make things look more believeable as I mess around with PS mysefl and keep practicing by myself? And just mess around with tools and stuff?
Try to help your self more from the modeling stage. I noticed that your sword is symmetrical. So why not model it in such a way that it is symmetrical on the model as well?
And do the UV like that as well. Left’s side UV overlap over the right side, and only fully UV map the place that you’ll have writings on.
