Creating 3D crates

Further into our 3D computer graphics course we students were assigned to create 3 different crates using the 3D studio max software. The 3 crates had to each present 3 different game styles of our choosing. While creating the crates we had to keep in mind what we learned during our first few lectures about the 7 elements of art and apply that to our work. The game styles I chose to create my crates in were sci-fi, cartoon and post-apocalyptic.

Sci-Fi

I chose sci-fi because of the simple and straight lines often used in sci-fi art and games. I felt like that game style would not require a lot of curves which are a bit tricky to do, especially for someone who is just starting out with 3D modeling like me. I wanted to first become comfortable with the tools using straight lines and sharp edges before I moved on to more organic shapes.

My initial idea was to do a mix of both sci-fi and my favorite game Mirror’s edge with its signature art style. I can’t stress enough of how I absolutely adore the simplistic, clean art style found in Mirror’s edge with its cleaver use of highly saturated primary colors against the overall bright whiteness of the game. Mirror’s edge isn’t by all means a sci-fi game, but it is both modern as well as futuristic and uses elements often found in sci-fi art and games and that’s why I think they would be a good match. They both incorporate straight lines and sharp silhouettes that read man-made and non-organic to the viewer.

Here’s a quick concept sketch I made as an example of the graphic style I wanted my sci-fi crate to lean towards.

I’m not too fond of the silhouette but it does work as a guide as to where I want it to be. I do see the potential in this sketch and I do believe after a few iterations I will have something closer to the concept in my head.

Unfortunately the concept I had in mind was too complicated to execute with the experience I had at that time so I ended up making a much simpler crate presented below.

It does convey the visual style of sci-fi but not so much Mirror’s edge. I will further iterate this crate to incorporate more of Mirror’s edge into the model.

Cartoony

I knew the second I picked cartoony for my second crate that I wanted to do something along the lines of the games Skyward Sword and Wind Waker from the Legend of Zelda franchise. Both games are cartoony in a way that they use exaggerated, asymmetric shapes and lots of curvy lines in their characters, environments as well as props. Since I became more comfortable working with 3Dsmax while creating my sci-fi crate, I decided to do something more curvy and soft for my second crate to give myself more of a challenge.

I’ve always liked the treasure chests in Zelda games because you can tell a lot of thought has been put into making them. I wanted to see if I could do something similar for my cartoony crate. Below is a screen cap of what I created so far.

I had fun with this crate although and like the way it turned out. It is very simple in its shape and does convey cartoony quite well. I’m looking forward to what it will later become as I continue to work further with it.

Post-apocalyptic

When most people think post-apocalyptic they think of dark, lifeless cities with lots of metal pieces scattered everywhere and there is no greenery as far as the eyes can see. When I chose to do post-apocalyptic for my third and final crate I wanted to do something inspired by the art style in Enslaved: Odyssey to the west because the game doesn’t present your typical post-apocalyptic environments and scenery. Enslaved uses very high-pitched colors and values in the scenery and incorporates lots of greenery into the props which is very refreshing. I liked the way it stood out from all the other post-apocalyptic games out there and therefore inspired me to make a crate that looks much damaged but still would fit into a game with lots of greenery like Enslaved.

Here is the crate I created.

I was particularly inspired with the structures found in the screenshots above from Enslaved and I really wanted the crate to look like it was before getting damaged a part of a bigger piece. It’s not really the concept I had in my head but I do believe it has a strong silhouette and conveys a strong message.

This crate was perfect as my third and final crate for the 3D assignment because it combines both straight lines and sharp edges like the ones I did for my sci-fi crate. But also curvy ones which I learned to do while creating my cartoony crate.

Conclusion

Overall I’m pleased what I managed to do during the week although they didn’t go exactly as I had planned. I do believe all my crates convey the visual styles chosen for them and I’m looking forward to further iterate them to where I want them to be. One thing I will take from this exercise is that I have to allow myself to make mistakes, because with software like this the most effective way to learn is by trial and error. It’s only when I loosened up and stopped thinking that everything has to be perfect that 3D modelling became really interesting and fun.