5 réponses à ce sujet

[052Hagen]

 Hey there,

I'm holding out on the toolset till the next patch fixes some of the problems, but I'd like to know what sort of restriction I should expect when I want to create a new area. Particulalry, I'd like to hear how large an outdoor area can be without bringing the FPS down to single-digit numbers - I noticed that there aren't really any huge areas in Dragon Age, or they are segmented into 2 or more areas.

Oh, and since this is somewhat related to area creation as well, can anyone give me more insight on placing new buildings? Should I think more of something like Lego blocks, or do you simply chose finished building from a drop-down menu?

Modifié par 052Hagen, 28 novembre 2009 - 05:00 .

[georage]

 I think you can have very large areas, i believe some of the OC areas are fantastically large, but the area actually used is fairly small.

This is done to give the player a sense of scope, that he is traversing a large countryside.

Having said that, you should probably stick to 512x512 areas because it takes so long for the lightmapper and local post steps to process.



I don't think the size of an area will really affect ingame play.

Why? Because the level is basically converted into a non-object, and the game does not really do a lot of calculations based on the level design or size.

Non-static objects (creatures, flames, etc) would slow the game down, not the level (which is largely static).


In fact, it seems the design theory of "speeding up the game" for DAO (as opposed to NWN) was based on the theory of limiting ingame objects that code would have to loop through (thus there are no weapons or other items on the ground and limited loot drops, an no torches so no dynamic moving light sources).


Buildings are a pain, but fun in a cruel way. There are a few small buildings (I am using some pre-built slum shacks, I think there are 4 of those and 4 redcliffe type homes and 4 other ferelden type cottages/inns).



If you want something unique, you can use the 12 or so parts provided and Lego-style a building, but getting the seams to match up requires the patience of Job.

Using the Tevinter exterior parts, I was able to make my first custom building in an hour, and I am sure I will get faster. And it looks pretty cool.

Here is a screenshot.
http://indexjunkie.c...88181986192.jpg

Modifié par georage, 28 novembre 2009 - 05:42 .

[052Hagen]

Ah, thanks for the reply, I haven't really thought about that yet. Yes, having two map types for one area does actually make some sense to me now. Would it matter much if I had just one big area on the level map, or a couple of areas on the same map with transitions in between?



Nice building you made there, btw.

[Quilnux]

Georage, not to counter what you are saying, as you probably know more then I do but, doesn't the game dynamically load non-statics only when you get to a certain vicinity of the object? Unless I am mistaken, I do not believe the game renders non-statics as pre-loads. I think it renders them on the fly. I might be wrong however, which is why I ask.

[georage]

HAGEN - A general location should probably all be on one level. Example: You have a castle courtyard and can see from a hill the village outside. This would be tough to pull off using two levels. So, make them one level. Basically, if you can see landmarks and get a visual sense of place, use one level, if possible.



Example 2: You have a village and a path that leads to some woods. I would put these on two levels. The player in the village doesn't expect to see very deeply into the woods. And a player in the woods does not expect to be able to see the details of the village.

Quilnux wrote... I do not believe the game renders non-statics as pre-loads. I think it renders them on the fly.

I am not sure either, just guessing. I have seen statics (walls) being rendered on the fly, yes. But the game engine still has to keep track of object locations, which can get expensive in terms of CPU time when there are a LOT of objects to keep track of.



But, levels ARE largely static (terrain geometry for example).



And level elements would also never be considered in many of the loops the game executes .... spell effects, getnearestobject loops, etc.



Compared to NWN, which had every player carrying a dynamically lit torch, and flaming weapons everywhere, lots more spell vfx, and dozens of items laying on the ground (weapons, arrows, etc) and you can see the CPU cycles have been trimmed significantly.



Just think about how many useable objects there are in the typical DAO scene compared to NWN.



After a battle, you would have dozens of objects on the ground in NWN. In DAO you have maybe 4 or 5.

[052Hagen]

I do have another question regarding buildings, again - are there only specific building parts that become transparent when the PC is standing beneath it, or can you do this with all of them? So, for example, make the roof transparent ala Diablo 2.