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Textures are a fundamental part of 3D, and it can help define characters, create seamless environments, and add subtle details like distortion or noise to make a scene feel more realistic. Designers use a variety of tools, including editors, generators, and software such as the GLTF Editor -NSDT, to create and manipulate textures.
GLTF Editor -NSDT
The GLTF editor supports GLTF/GLB online preview, material editing, resetting the origin, and model lightweighting (merging the same material mesh).
In this post, I'd like to share my knowledge of textures and shaders in games and VFX production, and how I can use them to create high-quality projects.
We'll explore the different types of textures, including diffuse, specular, and normal maps, and how they affect the final result.
I'll also discuss some of the challenges and techniques involved in creating textures for games, including optimizing textures for different hardware and software platforms.
Whether you're a VFX artist, game designer, or just someone interested behind the scenes of game development, I hope this article has given you a deeper understanding of the power of textures in creating immersive game experiences.
What is Texture?
Over the years, I've come to appreciate the power of texture. But what exactly is texture, and how does it enhance the visual experience?
At its core, a texture is a visual representation of a particular object or surface. This can be an image, a pattern, or a series of data points that represent the properties of a material. Textures are used to create a convincing and realistic look for 3D models and visual effects in games, animations, and movies.
In the world of game development, textures are used to reproduce the surface of objects, from the rough bark of a tree to the shiny metal surface of a car. By applying patterns and details such as bumps, scratches, and blemishes to the 3D mesh, textures can create a sense of depth and realism that makes objects feel more realistic. Textures can also be used to add color, lighting, and shadow effects to objects and environments, helping to create a sense of immersion in the game world.
The type and complexity of the textures used in a game depends on its graphics requirements and the artistic vision of the game developer. Whether it's a simple pixelated image or a detailed normal map, textures play a vital role in enhancing the visual experience of games and other forms of media.
What are the different types of textures?
Illumination rate
Refers to a texture map that represents the base color of a material or surface, without any lighting or shading information. It is commonly used in physically based rendering (PBR) workflows to provide a starting point for the appearance of a material. Albedo textures can be thought of as the "color" of the material and are often referred to as "diffuse colors". In PBR workflows, albedo textures are often used in combination with other maps, such as metallic maps, roughness maps, and normal maps, to create photorealistic materials.
Normal map
Normal maps are used to add detail to an object without increasing the number of polygons. These details may include bumps, dents, and other small surface features. And it is often used to make objects look more realistic.
Additional information:
Each point on the surface has a "normal" (that is, a vector that points at a 90-degree angle to the surface) that is used for lighting calculations. (e.g., reflection, refraction) normal maps are used to modify the "normals" of the surface geometry they map to create the illusion of more complex underlying surface geometry.
镜面reflection
Specularity is a texture that defines the amount of light reflected from a surface. It is used to create the appearance of shiny surfaces, such as metal or glass. Specular maps are typically black and white, with white areas representing areas that reflect more light.
Additional information:
Specular reflections produce bright intensity highlights on a surface, depending on the light location. Specular mapping gives you fine control over the appearance of these highlights.
roughness
Roughness maps are used to control the appearance of an object's surface roughness. They determine how much light is scattered or absorbed by the surface of an object, affecting the overall appearance of the object
reflection
Reflection is an image that can be used to create the illusion of reflection on a shiny surface. By applying a reflection map to an object, you can make it appear as if the object is reflecting its surroundings.
Ambient occlusion
Ambient occlusion is a type of texture that simulates the amount of ambient light that is occluded or blocked by nearby objects, resulting in shadows and depth. This type of map can be used to create more realistic lighting in a 3D environment.
Ambient occlusion is created by sampling the surrounding geometry in the 3D scene and calculating the amount of occlusion at each point. This data is then used to generate texture maps that can be applied to the geometry in the rendering.
While not every type of rendering requires ambient occlusion, it can be very helpful in creating realistic lighting effects. If you're interested in creating an ambient occlusion for a 3D scene, there are some tutorials available online.
Displacement/Height
Displacement allows you to create the illusion of more depth and detail on the object. By modifying the geometry of an object, you can add the appearance of additional textures and dimensions. This is especially useful for creating realistic fabric or fur textures.
To create a displacement map, you need a software program that can generate a 3D model. Once you've set up your software, you'll need to create a high-resolution model of your object. Once you have the model, you need to generate a texture map from it. This texture map will be used to generate a displacement map.
Once you have a displacement map, you can apply it to an object in a 3D software program. By doing so, you'll be able to create the illusion of extra depth and detail on the object.
Additional information:
As far as the framebuffer is concerned, it does create new geometry. (i.e. pixels with new position/depth) Unlike normal maps, which only change the lighting calculations. The difference can be seen at the edges of the visualization sphere. (i.e. the display shows distorted edges, the edges of the normal map are smooth, and only the color changes)
Emissive texture
Emissive textures are useful when creating realistic objects and lighting effects. Unlike other types of textures, emissive textures do not rely on an external light source to create the appearance of lighting. Instead, they emit light on their own, giving the illusion that an object is glowing. This is useful for creating a variety of lighting effects, such as neon lights or glowing magic spells.
Alpha (Transparent Map)
An alpha map is a texture that defines the transparency of an object. This type of texture can be used to create a variety of different effects, from making an object appear partially transparent to making it appear completely transparent.
One of the most common uses for alphamaps is to create transparent materials, such as glass or water. To do this, use an alpha map with a reflection map. A reflection map defines the reflection image that will be seen through a transparent material, while an alpha map defines how transparent the material is.
Another common use for alphamaps is to create masks. Masks are used to hide and show certain parts of an image or video. For example, you can use an alpha map to create a mask that shows only the highlights of the image, or you can use it
How are textures made?
Developing textures for video games is an important part of the game development process. Textures are used to create visual effects, such as creating realism or giving a unique visual style.
There are many different types of textures that can be used to meet the desired effect, such as diffuse textures to add detail and normal maps to create a deep appearance on a flat surface.
3D artists who specialize in textures often create these textures, which are then utilized by game developers to complete the final visual effect.
Hand
Texturing involves creating textures from scratch using digital painting software such as Photoshop or Krita. This method gives you complete control over the final look of the texture, but it can be time-consuming and requires a high level of artistic skill.
Photo credit:
Photos that involve using real-world textures and materials as the basis for creating textures. This approach can quickly generate highly realistic textures, but finding the right photos can be challenging, and requires a good understanding of how to edit and manipulate them.
Procedural generation
Involves the automatic creation of textures using algorithms and mathematical formulas. This method is highly efficient and allows for the rapid creation of complex, unique textures. DreamTexture .js Automatic Texturing Development Kit - NSDT can automatically generate texture maps, users only need to enter prompt words, the system will automatically generate textures and map to the model.
mock
Involves creating textures through physics simulations, such as cloth simulations or fluid simulations. This method is often used to create dynamic textures, such as flowing water or fabric, and can add an extra layer of realism to games or visual effects
The type of texture used in the particles
Textures are often used in conjunction with particle effects in game engines to create special effects that are more realistic and visually appealing.
The workflow for creating a texture and adding it to particles starts with creating a texture - > Material Editor/Shader Graph - > emitter
Here are some ways to use textures with particles in your game
Seisai
Sprite is a popular choice for video games because it can be easily animated and manipulated. They are also relatively small in size, which makes them ideal for games that require fast loading. Genie has been used in video games for many years and will likely continue to be used for many years to come.
Sprite 表
A sprite table consists of a set of small images or sprites that are put together to form a larger image. By carefully positioning the sprites, you can create the illusion of texture and detail.
Flip the pages of the eBook
A texture is a type of texture that is characterized by a series of images that change over time. This type of texture is often used in movies or video games to create a sense of movement. Flipbook textures are created by taking a series of images and playing them continuously. This can be done manually or with the help of software.
A volumetric texture is a three-dimensional texture that generates a texture, which is then compressed and stored in a file format that can be read by the game engine. When the game engine renders the game world, it decompresses the volumetric texture and uses it to calculate the rays that should be cast into the scene. They are often used to create realistic environments, such as fog or smoke. Or in this case, an object
What are some of the challenges of textures in game VFX?
Creating textures for game visual effects can be a time-consuming and complex task. Since textures can be used for a variety of purposes, they require a lot of detail and precision to look convincing. In addition, textures need to be optimized for the game engine being used.
Textures also need to be carefully balanced to create realistic visuals while being optimized for performance. Optimizing and balancing textures can be a challenging process that often requires a lot of trial and error.
Tips for creating textures to keep in mind
In Unreal Engine, textures need to be powers of 2 because it's more efficient for graphics cards to handle textures with size 2. This is because the graphics card is optimized to use textures in the form of 2^n (where n is an integer), such as 64×64, 128×128, 256×256, etc.
When the texture is not a power of 2, the graphics card may need to perform additional calculations to resize the texture, which can negatively impact performance. In addition, some rendering techniques used in Unreal Engine, such as mipmapping, require textures to be a power of 2 in size.
Therefore, to ensure optimal performance and compatibility with Unreal Engine rendering technology, it is recommended to create textures that are 2 powers of size (e.g., 32×32, 64×64, 128×128, etc.). If you must use a texture that is not to the power of 2, Unreal Engine will automatically resize it to the nearest power of 2, but this may result in a loss of quality or performance.
Textures play a vital role in visual effects and game development, helping artists create incredibly detailed worlds and cinematic experiences. GLTF Editor - NSDT offers a range of tools that make it easy to edit and manipulate textures. By understanding the basics of mapping, warping, and bump mapping, designers can improve the quality of their projects and bring them to life.
GLTF Editor - NSDT supports GLTF/GLB online preview, material editing, resetting origins, and model lightweighting (merging the same material mesh).
Texture generators and online collections make it easy to find and incorporate seamless textures and sprites into any project, while emitters and character tables simplify the animation pipeline. Whether you're working on a short project or a complex game, textures can transform the way you design and enhance the visual quality of your work. With a deep understanding of textures and the right tools at your disposal, you can create stunning visuals that will leave a lasting impression on your audience.
Reprint: Guide to the use of VFX textures for games