How to make a good game character model?

[Dantert]

Hi Zbrushers!!!
I saw a lot of amazing game art here on this forum!
I really need to know what is the right workflow(or best/fast one) to make a game character.
I’m studying zbrush, xsi and other programs to know how to sculpt etc, but without knowing what’s best I’m kind of lost…
I saw a lot of tutorials and searched for an answer but all seems different or incomplete…
I always changed the way I create characters to try and find my way but all I come out are other doubts about if what I’m doing is good or not.
My workflow actually is this:
1: making a concept, in zbrush, drawing it or copy something that I can.
2:Study the possible topology(how to do it)
3:Create a base mesh made(1 for all the character or 2 pieces if high poly or for body and changeble armor) in Softimage and import it in zbrush to adjust the forms.
4:export the mesh from zbrush and reimport it in xsi to make the uv’s
5: reimport it in zbrush and detail it

This workflow present a lot of problems for me, for example the fact that if I modify the mesh then in high res in zbrush, like I add a little horn or something that goes too much out of the space of the base mesh, when I make the normal and the diffuse maps they seems too flat at that point so I had to retopologize all and project all the details.

Is this workflow correct? or there’s a better/faster or safer way to work on a game model? I’d like to know what’s your’s!
Maybe I have to make the basic mesh in zbrush, and then retopologize all, make the uv of the retopo in softimage and then project the details in zbrush from the old mesh to the new one?

The second thing that’s not clear to me is, a game caracter must be composed of only one mesh? if yes that mesh must be closed, without holes or I can do for example the hand and the body as 2 pieces?

And finally, for now ^_^… Is zbrush the best way to retopologyze, and to make the normal map? if yes what are the settings to make a good normal in zbrush? If no, what’s best?

I hope for your answer and that this post helps people in the same situation

[beta_channel]

Everything you’re asking is relative. There is no “best” way to do a lot of things in 3D.

There are a lot of retopo tools on the market. 3D-coat, Topogun, etc. Every package I can think of off the top of my head also has a retopo function within it. The one that is “best” is the one that you feel most comfortable with and can retopo fastest in. There is no right and wrong here.

Game characters may need to be one solid mesh with no manifold errors or they may need to be multiple pieces, this again, is relative, it all depends on the engine/pipeline you need to use.

Starting with base meshes if that is your workflow. Some people start with very simple base meshes and build from there, others start from a sphere, while others work mostly inside of a traditional 3D modeling app and only use a sculpting program as a detailing tool. This, like your other questions is relative.

[Cryrid]

I always changed the way I create characters to try and find my way

You’re on the right track then. Experiment and learn the pros and cons of various methods.

Tutorials are always going to be different because there’s no one way to do it. There are actually very few hardset rules for this sort of thing, just guidelines. At the end of the day it’s just creating art.

Some methods I tend to use:

• Load up an existing simple basemesh (or zspheres if I’m really exagerating or doing something non-human), sculpt and paint away until I’m happy with it, and then retopologize and UV it for my final game mesh
• Load up an existing basemesh that has edgeloops in place for the face and hands so that I’d already have a decent low-poly mesh after once I’m done sculpting (this also helps when doing background/NPC characters that might share the same rig or UV layout)

If you have room in the wallet for it, since you’re using Softimage, Species is awesome for this (http://exocortex.com/plugins/species)

• Mash together some simple primitives, dynamesh and sculpt in order to create a medium-res mesh that has the volume I’m looking for, then retopologize it onto something I can better subdivide and sculpt (either in softimage, with qRemesher, etc). I lean more this way when doodling or creating stylized / cartoony figures.

And finally, for now ^_^… Is zbrush the best way to retopologyze, and to make the normal map? if yes what are the settings to make a good normal in zbrush? If no, what’s best

ZBrush has some good retopology tools now, although you still may need to take it back into Softimage for some fine-tuning in more complex areas.

I wouldn’t recommend zbrush for baking normal maps when your focus is on games. Instead I’d recommend xnormal, which gives you control over the projection cage, vertex normals, and tangent basis so that you can have a result that is synched to whatever game engine you might happen to be using.

Another benefit is that xnormal can read and bake polypaint data from a zbrush sculpt, and you can project detail from a sculpt to a completely new mesh (unlike in zbrush, where you would have to bring in the lowpoly mesh, subdivide it, project the sculpt detail onto that, deal with any projection errors that may occur, and then bake the mesh) .

[Dantert]

Thanks very much to both of you!
Now that I know that I’m not on the wrong path I feel better!
I know that all it’s relative, but relative it’s not like I’m doing something completely wrong
However I’ll surely try other retopo programs and xnormal!
Really thanks a lot now I’m more motivated too!
If you or someone else want to tell me his workflow, suggest programs or tell some tips I’ll appreciate it a lot!