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Post by aureliantactics on Dec 19, 2016 20:16:46 GMT
Do you have any thoughts on the pros and cons of using 3D models vs. sprites to represent the units? If you were going to use sprites how would recommend going about it? I did a little research and someone suggested textured quads. Any thoughts or further reading you'd suggest would be appreciated. Also, I have a few other questions and would you prefer that I ask them all in one thread or create multiple threads?
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Post by Admin on Dec 20, 2016 15:34:34 GMT
There are probably a lot of reasons to choose one over the other. I feel that Unity's 3D toolset is more mature than its 2D side. I also think 3D models are easier to work with and are much easier to come by / tweak to your liking. For example, imagine you have a hero that can attack with a weapon. Now you want to add a feature where you can actually see the different sword, axe, or whatever art while they are attacking:
* In 3D you simply create the new weapon and parent it to the hero's hand - done
* In 2D you must create a completely new sequence of sprites to match the hero animation(s).
The same would be true for any customizable asset such as body armor, helmet, shield, etc, and would multiply by the number of different hero or enemy units that were not matched to the same size or timing.
Depending on the size of your 2D sprites and the fluidity of the animation, you are likely to see a smaller memory requirement to use 3D models and textures, but you may need to use higher poly count models to have a look that competes well with a 2D sprite and that may be an issue depending on the speed of the processor and video card (for mesh deformation etc), so the target platform is definitely a consideration as well.
Some may choose 2D simply because they like the look of it. I think there is something charming about old pixelated sprites too, but I also like the look of high quality 3D with nice flashy particles, lighting, etc. Overall, it probably matters most what you are comfortable with. I would recommend trying a small sample size of each and seeing which one you like working with better.
Regarding the other questions, I think it is easier to follow when a different topic is in a different thread, but I'm not picky about rules or anything.
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Post by aureliantactics on Dec 20, 2016 23:28:24 GMT
Thanks for the feedback. I'll have to try a project with 2D. I like the look and the nostalgia. I thought about it initially when doing a Tactics RPG project and wanted to revisit it a bit when I saw Brennan's work in one of his comments. I'm hesitant to switch now because it seems easier to do 3D (at least based on the number of assets at the Unity store and the tutorials and examples I've seen online).
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Post by cerulea on Sept 17, 2018 23:09:09 GMT
Hey, just thought I could add an idea here, I simply added an empty game object to the 3D model with an animator on it. It animates fine with 2d sprites, and the layering is always correct as well. I also attached a billboard script so that the image always shows the right angle for the isometric camera set up.
I am currently using particles for ability animations, but looking into using sprite in a similar way instead. This has proven a little tricky due to my setup however.
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Post by Admin on Sept 18, 2018 14:51:28 GMT
I would probably have done something similar. Would love to see some videos of your work in progress though  |
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