Before i spend the next 2 months polishing and refining these assets, id like to get some feedback and see if anyone would be interested in actually purchasing them.
It was suggested on twitter that i sell these assets on the Unity Asset Store. I have them elsewhere, so would have to modify them a lot and refine them, but the theory is all there It works well and you can quickly build quite unique layouts.
So in theory here is a screenshot of modular parts:
I think i would divide them into a base section, with stilts or supports (from bottom or side) ,the core walking section, then handrails. Then i would also include some extra matching items like baskets, ladders, and other knick knacks.
You could build a walkway, a jetty, a fishing village, in water, on the side of a cliff, in the desert, or to connect floating islands. Also add some details to a forest, and if could be used in a modern setting, a fantasy setting or a post apocalyptic setting.
So i think some feedback:
Would you buy this?
Why/Why not?
How much would you be willing to pay for it?
How could i improve the assets and what objects could i include in the pack!
Sounds like a good idea to me. I could see using it. I purchased EasyRoads3D Pro for that very reason. I purchased it for $45. So, depending on the functionality you were going to offer I would imagine you could charge something similar. One thing I would suggest is having it work with both meshes and unity terrain. I am developing with Ultimate Terrain as well a voxel engine, so a solution that would work with those would be well received too I’d imagine.
Thanks for the reply @boysenberry .
What may i ask do you mean by working with Unity Terrain?
It should by default i guess, and would enhance it.
Another question is the style, its kind of on the realistic side, do you think realism over cartoon is the better option?
I prefer realism myself. I would think there would be a really big market for both though, at least by what I see available in the asset store.
As far as mentioning Unity Terrain in specific I did so only because there are other options, like meshed terrain, voxel terrain, etc. Right now I am favoring Unity Terrain in my project because there is so much that works with it. If there were more developed that would work with voxel based terrains I would probably use that instead. I would guess that technologies that will work with voxel based terrains will be really popular because of the lack of it.
I will probably move to using voxel terrain in my current project as well after a generation or two of a working game, i.e. after I get the game stable and can start adding nicer, but optional upgrades.
If you search the asset store for “bridge” there are quite a few similar sets (probably more if you add a few more search terms). Not comparing them to yours, but maybe you could gauge what would make yours stand out or what kind of popularity other sets have…
Thank you @wetcircuit , good points, i guess im trying to make them a bit different style wise and also trying to make them VR compatible. For example instead of a rope texture trick, i want to actually have the rope sticking out, same with the nails.
I will add enough variety and make it unique compared to other assets. It wont only be a bridge, but a jetty, walkway, even treetop villages like Chewbaccas homeworld!
Ok progress is going well, splitting all the assets up and thinking of new ideas all the time.
Here are some ideas with what you can do with it so far:
In this case a couple of stairs, railing and platforms, and you have the entrance to a wooden fortress.
Each modular part actually increases exponentially what you can do with it. For the first pack we will build some prefab examples as well.
Not that im aware of , i can see them here, and tested on another browser not logged in and was fine?
What error you getting? They are hosted on Puu.sh , sometimes it goes down?
Thanks for the words of encouragement. We are up to about 60 meshes so far, when to stop! Basically we want to be the be all and end all of any wood asset. So log cabins, jetties, Wood fortresses, Furniture, Bridges. The list is never ending! But we will probably break it into packs and update the core package.
Any chance you’re actually reusing texture space? Having one larger texture with 4+ plank sides and a some pole endings would be perfect, gives some variation without wasting all my texture space. In my use case I’ll add texture tinting on top and perhaps even add a couple of replacement textures for different types of wood.
So far we have 6 x textures with materials. The textures are seamless and have a normal map, so yes, the texture space is reused over and over again, im trying to avoid tiling patterns. Each plank basically uses a new UV space, within the same texture. Have explored all the options, and this seems to work the best visually, and also in Virtual Reality. No texture tricks for nails, the nails are actual objects.
That results in slightly higher Poly counts, but since this pack is more focused on desktop we think the extra polys are worth it?
Sounds perfect with one concern, do you have an LOD version that is identical but without the nails? The thought of having nail poly’s 100m away makes me cringe, pc or not…
It works well and you can quickly build quite unique layouts.
