Dev Log #19 | A little rework (Patreon)

What you can see in the picture, is the reworked cabin. A project I've wanted to do for a while, but never really had the tools for. In this Dev Log I want to talk about some new skills I picked up, why this rework was necessary and how I struggled with it.

And for those who just want some news about 0.6.1, I am confident that I will be able to release the update in 2020, but I don't know when exactly, as I am going to take a few days off around Christmas. I will share more information in the coming weeks.

The cabin needed to be remade. I was 100% certain of that fact. It was one of the earliest renders I did for MIST and every time I look at it I feel like it isn't on the same level as my other graphics. And even the style is a bit different as my way of doing plants and trees has changed a lot. That annoyed me for a long time.

But it wasn't only the style or contrast to my newer graphics that bothered me. It was also the feel of the render. Before it was just a hut on a clearing. I wanted it to be more. A bit strange and almost out of place. Something that would really make you curious if you stumbled on it by accident and something that could become a cozy home. I wanted to awaken the feeling that you see it and wish, if even just for a second, to be there yourself and live in that moment. Of course those are a lot of big words and I don't think it is necessary for anyone to actually feel or think like that. But it is the mental image I pursued while making the rework.

That was the image I had in my head as I started redoing the hut. But getting to the result was more difficult than I had anticipated. I don't know what it is. But sometimes when I finish an update and the feedback isn't as positive as I hoped for (which is totally fine), I get really worried. I suddenly doubt all my decisions and think I lost my ability to continue with the game. I am really not sure why my brain has to scare me like that. After almost two years of making games it should be obvious to me that I can continue and improve even more, but sometimes your head just does what it wants. I am sure you know some of those moments too.

That was how I felt as I started to redo the hut. So suddenly, what would be a routine piece, ended up with me creating a bunch of new assets and using a bunch of new techniques and workflows I had heard of but never used before, simply because I thought everything I did was bad. Now you might not really see what exactly flowed into this new cabin, but let me tell you. It is a lot. I've basically tapped into a whole new toolset of rendering tricks that I never used before and even started completely handpainting assets like the flowers, grass and foliage on the ground. Something unimpressive if you know what you are doing. But I've never done that before. The entire development of this render felt rushed and was exhausting but...

I think it looks good. I really like it. And not only that. I finished it this weekend and as I woke up monday morning, I felt fine again. No more doubts and a clear head. It is always strange to see how struggling for two weeks can suddenly end with you having a nice render in front of you and and a bunch of new techniques in your toolbelt. And if anyone is interested in the new techniques. I am gonna link two articles that talk about most of them, but it is most likely very difficult to understand them without knowledge about 3D software.

About stylized foliage in general 

About manipulating normals for said foliage 

In the end only one topic still remains. It is actually reason number two for redoing the cabin in the first place. Performance. I was ably to vastly improve it in the new render and the new techniques really helped with that too. As the post is already long enough I will keep it short. I was able to reduce render times from 12 seconds down to 7 per frame. That is a lot. It will literally save me hours in longer animations. Definitely worth struggling for.

And that is it for this weeks Dev Log. I decided to go a bit more in-depth, similar to what I did with the last one too and I think I will stick with this style. That way you can really see what is going on in the development and my head and maybe my constant struggles might help you with your own.

Have a nice week!