Futuristic City Advices and Suggestions?

[metal_head]

I've started to make a futuristic city for my game. I got the idea for the city from Serious Sam 2. I'm aiming for something like this:

but the game uses a completely different engine, genesis 3D can't compete with it, so I need to know if there's another way arroud to make a landscape like this. After I saw What could be made with RF I'm almost sure I can achieve something like this with a good framerate. But for example, take a look at theese reflective spheres...if I make a sphere with this details, it will be enough to kill the game's framerate and here it's reflective, now you'll say "Make it a 3D model", but how can I make the 3D model reflective, I know that there's sphere mapping, but it doesn't work (at least the way I do it) it just switches between two or three colors as I walk arround it. Also the windows of the buildings are reflective, they're all reflective, but the framerate is great (again, I make differences between serious sam and genesis 3D, but I want to know another way arround to achieve a simmilar result). I uploaded a screen from a window below, take a look if reflects eerything (not the actors).






And what about this? If I make a building that big and reflective, I will only see different pictures from what's happening in the game (in other words, 2/3 FPS)



Oh yeah, and the grass...it's so beautiful, in RF I have 2 choices- I can make the grass with TGA textures on empt sheet brushes, which will be framerate killing and not so good looking or use a foliage entity, which is also framerate killing and and the images rotate with the camera.


we have spoken about level optimizations and stuff, but I need help on exactly this level, a farclip for an open level like this is not a relly good choice. I'm getting really annoying with this, so I'll stop here and just hope, you'll help me with some tips and suggestions. I really want to make the level, I got the full idea for the level and I'll be so dissapointed of myself if I don't manage to make it.

[Juutis]

My suggestion is to stop comparing RF (and especially Genesis3D) to more modern engines. You just can't have all that eye-candy in RF. The only way to create truly reflective surfaces would be mirrors, which literally kills your frame rate. Sphere maps can only fake it. Read federico's actor reflection tutorial if you haven't done so already:
http://www.realityfactory.info/forum/vi ... f=11&t=838
(The pictures seem to be missing, at least I can't see them. To see them download the .doc version)

Other than that, I'd say plan the level very carefully. Make it a series of small areas instead of one huge space and don't try to get too many details in there. If you've ever played Half-Life 1 you should know what I mean. The theme is a bit different, of course, but using similar techniques should get you started.

[metal_head]

Thanks for theese, juutis. I've read frederico's tutorial and still I can't get it to work right this thing, so I touhg that maybe sphetre mapping looks like this in RF, but I'll try again!

I don't wanted to sound like comparing, I just wanted to ask for a way arroud, I've seen some really great screens and videos from RF and I decided that it could be ppossible

I've played HL, but I don't know how to make theese loadings (you stop for a minute for the game to load and proceed).

Maybe if I make the level 4 big rooms and the rooms will be connected with an area door, this could better the framerate if it works.

[Juutis]

I've played HL, but I don't know how to make theese loadings (you stop for a minute for the game to load and proceed).

What I meant was look at the level design in HL. It has outdoor areas but they're mostly pretty small and surrounded with buildings, cliffs and other stuff that block the view. This way the engine renders a very small portion of the whole level at a time while still giving the feeling of a large area. So instead of making a huge box and stuffing it full of things, make several small sealed areas and connect them: A parking lot leads to a alleyway which then leads to a yard. Then go through a house to enter another yard etc. Basically what you want to do is an indoor level with a bit larger "rooms" and where you can see the sky instead of the ceiling.

[metal_head]

Oh I get it, and in the house for example, I should put and area door so that the other room won't be rendered until I open the door. That could be vvery easy to mke in my case actually!, I should give it a try!