Guild of Writers

Most likely what the Cyan artist in question did to make that texture was to combine a flat sand or sandstone texture with a cracked rock texture (or even an ambient occlusion map) - so it probably wouldn't be all that hard to recreate the Gira rock texture if you can use Photoshop and know the right tutorials.

This is an interesting series of experiments to be sure.

Using Trylon's fixed textures makes a improvemtnt to be sure, but things still are not quite right (I don't expect to have everything look just like it does in Plasma....the whole point of trying these SDK's is to see if they can make it look different. If everything is set to make it look just like it does in Uru or MOUL.....then what's the point? heh).

However, there is a "Rock Detail" blend layer that needs to be added. So try to add I did, and ended up with a very black looking cliff face. This is not the first time I've had issues with trying to blend another texture layer in CE's material editor. The ground where we first link in to Gira for the first time, is dirt with mud that is cracked. This is 2 textures; a dirt one, and the cracked mud one that is a strip running across the canvas, with alpha at the top and bottom (so it can also be used as a decal in other places).
No problem, I just put in the Dirt layer as the diffused, and then use the cracked mud texture as it's blend layer...right?........Wrong. When I do that, where ever there is alpha from the Mud texture, the ground becomes transparent....rather unnerving.....

So I'm looking at CE's Material editor, and I'm like: "What gives? Why are you so primative? I can only add 3 layers? What up wid dat???? As powerful as this engine is, this is like having a super powerful motor boat engine.....only it's being used on a raft!



So I'm using the Unreal SDK this morning, learning how to make Reflective Water. Look at the difference of the control you have in Unreal's Material Editor:



All the different things you can do (the preview is Real Time too, what you can't see in the pic above, is that water looks like a Waveset in motion) to each layer.

Then I remembered: Unreal SDK is made to actually make everything from scratch, with the exception of textures. Those you need your own Photo Shop program. CryEngine on the other hand expects you to make all your assets in your 3rd party modeling program including all of your materials that go on your models!!!

The exporter for CE in Max exports the materials too, in a special format for CE.

So I smacked my forehead and said "DOH!"

So it's back to Max, and I have to create all the materials in there (where I can blend a LOT more layers). I guess while I'm there I should see about smoothing some of those meshes too, eh?

I haven't given up on Unreal however. I was pleasently surprised to see how well it does outside scenes too. So I'm quite busy with Gira in CE and Gahreesen in Unreal (and being so busy, I just don't have time to wash the car, do all the laundry, bathe the dog.......I have perfect excuses to give my wife!).........(and here you all thought I was porting Uru over to another game engine! HA! I'm just doing this to get out of house work! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA........What? oh, right, gotta wrap up as I hear my wife yelling for me......).

I'd have to say that the idea of making a adventure based MMO (loosely based on MOUL....or not, either way works for me, it could be based on Sam & Max.......I could REALLY get into a Sam & Max MMO....) using CE is very attractive, but then not a lot of people could make anything for it, since it is really dependent on making all the assets in Max, Maya or XSI (still no Blender plugins.....guess they need the GoW guys to show up in town....heh...).
On the other hand using Unreal to do the same thing, you CAN use Blender with it (or use it just by itself, and it's free).

Ah, my wife just yelled a 4th time. I guess I better stop pretending I can't hear her and go see what she needs. I'll post pics of what it looks like after making the materials in Max when I can.

Just letting anyone interested know, that CryTek has announced that they will be releasing an update to the CryEngine SDK on the 19th of this month. Said update will include a package to allow for compiling your creation into it's own game, with the ability to make your own HUD/UI!

Yay!

And here I thought the wait would be a lot longer. I must still be on Cyan Time.......

You know Andy, your post rises an important question:
Why is it that a wife can always yell at her husband, but if he tried to do the same she would rip his head off?

Some questions are better left unasked........

Actually, I did yell at her a lot yesterday........make that screamed a lot.....

Shoulder dislocated. I've got a bad socked on my right side. Popped loose while changing a shirt, was down on my knees and it didn't want to go back in. EMT's had to come out (takes a while considering I'm 30 minutes from the hospital). They couldn't do anything for me. Oh except the young lady EMT. She's Army reserve. So when I yelled for a smoke (was damn sure going to have something before I started screaming my head off in pain again being moved), she whipped out a Newport! heheheheheh. She's only 22.

Long story short, 2 hours after it popped out, it popped back in, just as they loaded me in to the ambulance. Instant relief.

Arm is in a sling right now, makes it kinda hard to type. But before all that happened, I did get some work done:

Serene being re-done:



And boblishman wrote me back and told me to "go for it!" with Sonavio:

(Just started on this one, before my shoulder had other plans)




And my wife? She forgave me, heheheheh. As long as I let the VA replace my shoulder socket.......

Andy shows all what he can do with <ahem> one arm tied behind his back.

Lovely work, Andy. I'm looking forward to your continued work with the other platforms.

Your story sounds like a real ordeal.

My teenage son injured his knee 3 years ago putting on a shoe, a day after using a Razor scooter for several hours. Then last year as well as last night at college dislocated a shoulder swinging a bat in softball. The kid has loose joints.

Boy - Does that sound Familiar
Remember the OLD PHRASE "Tuck and Roll" I'm ex-military (USAF)
(Survival school) - my first jump - I did

Everything would have been perfect if that #!@%# gopher hole hadn't been there.

The foot stayed in the hole for a second - and ended up laying sideways (no broken bones - just torn ligaments and muscle)

Sounds quite bad. I hope you'll feel better, Andy !

The new version of Serene is wonderful. Sonavio looks a bit empty, but the light remains beautiful.

Sonavio is empty because my damn shoulder had other plans for me.

I got complacent about my shoulder. over the years I've been very careful with how I reach above my head with that arm and things like that. The other day I was in a hurry, and I just plain forgot what would happen. So my socket gave me a reminder: POP
Because it's popped out so many time, the damage is great enough that just swatting at a bug can make it pop out. But I've finally decided to talk to my doctor about it and see what they can do (most likely replace it with a artificial socket).

Well, actually my wife demanded I go talk to my doctor about it. And I acquiesced to her demands, hehehehehe. But in the mean time, I have a sore reminder to take it easy with this arm.

Actually, I've always liked Boblishman's Sonavio, even the first release he did of it, back when PyPRP was like version 1.0.0, and we were very limited at that time with what we could do. As each new PyPRP version came out, he added more stuff to it, to where it is now (puzzles and a neat looking surprise hidden inside the age!).
It might look pretty simple on the outside, but the inside is going to be a doosy to replicate, heheheheh.

He's doing okay BTW. In the middle of moving. He gave up Age Building because both of his desktops died on him and he's using things like the iPad now.