I really enjoy playing with UV textures but I've only been using blender for a few months, so I've got some questions about texturing using UVmapping. . .
Before I ask them, let me tell you what I want to do (as I'm sure that might influence the guidance you give): I'm mostly using these on models and scenes I'm currently working on (most still, but eventually some animated) where the models will be low poly and UV Textures will do most of the work. However, if my friends ever get serious about making a video game I would also like to know if these effects work in the Blender Game Engine also.
I noticed these textures on Characters in World of Warcraft. I was wondering if blender is capable of doing these same UV mapping effects, and if so, how would I go about applying them.
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>>Image1)
If any of you can remember The old Nintendo 64 game ‘Mario64’, then you should remember that when Mario put on the metal cap he would briefly turn into Metal Mario. He had a seemingly reflective surface. This is just like image1. Rotate it left or right and the texture on their surface changes as if it is reflecting something. In the model viewer I’m using there’s nothing to reflect so that’s not what’s happening. The image seems stationary to the camera and folds over the surface of the object as the camera moves around it (i guess). How would I do an effect similar to this in Blender?
>>Image2)
Here these models seem to have two UV layers. One that’s like the reflective surface above and the other a normal UV texture. Can this be done in Blender?
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>>Image3)
As you see in the tree branches and gate, a plane has a UV texture with transparent parts. I’ve been playing around and I have almost gotten similar results with Blender, but I must be missing some step. What can I do to get these effects?
>>Image4)
See-through! All I’m wondering is “how?”
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Now I don’t think this has anything to do with UV textures, but I thought they look cool.
>>Image5)
no matter what angle I view this ugly thing at the obviously 2D bubbles inside are always facing me. . .
>>Image6)
each individual smoke cloud does the same as those bubbles above, but they are animated and see-through. . .
What are they and how would I create them?
And on a side note: if I wanted to make an animation where the texture on the object itself is animated (like a TV screen) would I be using an animated .gif for that?
Any advice or direction would be most appreciated.
For the first question, use reflection coordinates in the material panel. (works in the game engine too if you set it in the UV editor_
2). 2.43 will be able to do this because it will have UV map layers.
3). Assign an image texture and tick the alpha button in the texture buttons, for the game engine go to the UV mode and push the alpha button in the UV options.
4). If you mean transparent it’s pretty much the same as question three.
5). For the game engine there’s a UV option called halo which will align your objects to the camera.
6). Transparent part same as question 3. For the animated part you’ll probably need a python script for the game engine and there’s animation options in the image texture panel.
What he said. And in response to the side note, you don’t need a gif, you can import movies or frame sequences with the image chooser. I’m too lazy to look it up, but I think you go in, load your movie or the first in your sequence set, then set it to ‘movie’ or ‘sequence’ respectively. Then you set how many frames there are, with movie files I think there’s a button that does it automatically, and you’re off. There are a couple other options, but you can figure them out easily.
wow, I feel like an idiot, that was too easy! Well, I guess that’s what happens when you’re new to something,
thanks
Now, Cyborg Dragon said that Blender 2.43 will be able to do the multi layer UV mapping, I downloaded 2.43 beta a little while back to play with the sculpting mode. I’ll explore it and see if I can discover it. Until then has anyone had any success with it?
One and Two: Enviroment Mapping. Metal Mario = generic shiny silver color + funky enviroment map. Murlocs = environment map of generic wet shine applied on top of the regular texture. Everything shiny in say, Unreal200x or any shiny-car racing game = enviroment map.
Three and four: Greyscale alpha maps pretty much what CD said.
Five and Six: Depending on what you want, for something like five Track To constraints might be what you want. Six is just a standard game particle system, which draws all the particles as facing the screen all the time so you get the impression of volume from a 2d image. Pretty much the same as how all the deco sprites (columns and hanging bodies and what not) work in the old DOOM.
Also, you can apply as many textures as you want to an object, you just can only have one set of UV coordinates per face right now, so the shapes of things have to stay the same between images. You can go into the material editor and add three texture channels, make one an image and another an envmap (both mapped to color) and make a third that’s a differeant image and all set them to Map To the UV coords.
It’s in the RC3 for sure. Over where there used to be “TexFace [MAKE/DELETE]” there’s now something with “add new” and a list and radiobuttons for picking which layer you’re working on.
yeah, you’re right. It is also with RC2.
(for anyone who doesn’t know: in the Editing Panels, look in the Mesh buttons. There was once a block that said “TexMesh:” now there is a “UV texture NEW” button. When you click on it a layer list appears below. I’ve played around with it and I found that to edit a layer in relation to the other layers you go to the texture buttons in the Shading Panel and added a new image texture for every UV layer. then you can go to the Materials buttons and make the usual adjustments, like alpha transparencies.)
On a side note, by playing with the UV layers I was able to get a simular effect that you see on the Murloc skin (Image # 2)
Does anyone know if multiple UV layers are supported in the Blender Game Engine?
I’m pleased with what I’ve learned. In image07 and image08 I’ve been able to replicate some of the effects listed above. The first cube has a leaf patten with transparent parts wrapped around it. The second cube is reflecting a metal looking texture. The low poly sphere is just a normal UV texture. The cylinder has a normal UV texture for it’s base, but for its second UV layer it is set to reflect a light looking texture that has transparent parts. I attached two images so that you can see that when you rotate around the cylinder the light UV layer does “reflect” while the normal UV layer stays in place.
