Remaking backgrounds...

Post by **hurleybird** » Thu Apr 24, 2003 3:15 am

Ok... I've been farily lazy so far and I've only gotten 3 sets done... tommorow I'm gonna work on them all day though

<snip>links are dead now, so the've been removed</snip>

Post by **hellcatv** » Thu Apr 24, 2003 3:20 am

well we want as many backgrounds as possible so people can recognize which system they are in based only on the backgrounds in that system

I suggest 512x512 backgrounds and maybe 20-30 of them

Post by **hurleybird** » Thu Apr 24, 2003 3:28 am

ok... they already are 512x512... 20-30... I'd better get working, and yah, now i see what you said before about more people making them the better... after a while this could get pretty repeditive, and different ppl have different styles.

peteyg · Post by **peteyg** » Thu Apr 24, 2003 3:38 am

If I may ask Hurleybird could you give a quick description of how you're making the backgrounds?

And if you're using any free tools, maybe pass on a link to them.

Post by **hurleybird** » Thu Apr 24, 2003 3:52 am

welll... first i use photoshop to make a whole bunch of "gunk" on a 2048x2048 image... i make sure that the image is a perfect tilable texture, usually by making the outside black

then i run it through HDR shop (free)http://www.debevec.org/HDRShop/, using panoramic distortions from longitude/latitude to cubic enviroment. This gives me a cross which can be split up into six textures to make the cube-map. I can edit and add stuff to each textures in photoshop or a cool (but not free) program called "universe". I donsize all of the textures to 512x512, then i give them the right names, rotate a few of 'em, and stick em in the game. ITs actually pretty easy. If you have the right tools you should give it a try

Post by **hurleybird** » Fri Apr 25, 2003 5:53 pm

All right! 1/3rd done... 2/3rd to go!

peteyg · Post by **peteyg** » Fri Apr 25, 2003 7:16 pm

This is looking GOOD! It'll look especially good when the VS ships have per pixel lighting, and they'll more subtly reflect the backgrounds.

Post by **hurleybird** » Fri Apr 25, 2003 7:18 pm

After I'm done with the backgrounds I'll start working on a "secret project", i think you'l be pleasently surprised!

peteyg · Post by **peteyg** » Fri Apr 25, 2003 7:32 pm

Hey Hurleybird... could you make one or two of your new backgrounds available for download NOW as a kind of preview?

I would love to simply replace all of my current backgrounds with one of your snazzy new ones.

Post by **hurleybird** » Fri Apr 25, 2003 7:37 pm

well... I'm at 11 right now... VS has 18 Back grounds that are in use currently... about four or five of these are the sphere backgrounds which dont need to be replaced, but could still use enhancement. Hopefully I will be able to supply a full upgrade download by tommorow night, so the wait is less time than you think. In the meantime... theres alwas the teasers.

Spiner · Post by **Spiner** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 1:25 am

Wow thats a old neb of mine. anyway here is a newer neb I made
http://vegastrike.sourceforge.net/album ... nebula.jpg

anotehr pic without the planets. http://vegastrike.sourceforge.net/album ... ebula3.jpg

The jpeg distorts the hell out of them but you get the idea.

Post by **hurleybird** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 1:41 am

Yo spiner! How many do you have done anyways? pretty soon we can put everything into VS...

BTW I really like the nebula! I wonder if it would be possible to have sprities sorta like that nebula go over top the background? Mainly because i can add cool looking galaxies to my stuff... but @ 512x512 they are ust too blurry in game.

Spiner · Post by **Spiner** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 3:15 am

I dont use 512x512 I use 1024x1024. as for over the top of the background, not sure what you mean.

I think I have 7 done, but probably less. not sure. I know TS knows.

Post by **hurleybird** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 3:22 am

ok... for example have a nebula or a galaxy, and have the black part transparant so you could "post" it over top of a background. That would be pretty cool, and add some randomness to backgrounds, but would require artwork and coding.

Better make 512x512 versions of those too! 1024x1024 can make for a big DL as well as run slow on old computers... When i upgraded the planets images i had to lower them from 1024 for that reason... I still have the orignal high-res ones on my HD though!

Post by **hurleybird** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 3:25 am

ok... i have fourteen down right now, +~7 is 21, five of the old backgrounds (the spheres) I salvaged and enhanced making for a grand toltal of 26 Textures! Tommorow lets finish our remaining work and put them together in a package, we're 98% done!

Spiner · Post by **Spiner** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 7:04 pm

Actaully I was thinking since your doing them at 512x512 those can be for people who dont want the extra mb or are on a older machine. Because I usually delete all my work once its done(That one background is only because I forgot to delete it). I send to TS and thats it.

Post by **hurleybird** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 7:11 pm

Its better to have all of the textures together IMO. Otherwise both textre packs would be made by only one person. Its better to have more people making these beacause people have different styles. the more difference in the backgrounds the better... and this way its also less work so we can focus on something else while were done... we have enough textures right now to finish this and move onto something else... its also just more organized to have one set other than two. You should try changing one background to 512 and see the difference in quality, sometimes theres a difference, but many times its unnoticable.

Spiner · Post by **Spiner** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 10:25 pm

TS wants 20 from me. so 20 it is

then Ill move on to either modelling or planet backgrounds(probably both at the same time).

Post by **hurleybird** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 10:30 pm

are you sure its not for the entire.

Post by **hellcatv** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 10:53 pm

the more the merrier guys

so then people can recognize the places merely by the backgrounds...
we probably want to save some for future releases where you end up exploring new space, etc so you don't get mixed up...

well if you guys each give me 15 that's fine... or 20/15 is also fine

I would also like to purge the spheremaps--those don't look too hot

unles you do 'em better

Post by **hurleybird** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 11:25 pm

for your viewing pleasure:

http://vegastrike.sourceforge.net/finaltextures.zip

just unzip and unrar (win rar 3 shareware is in the zip as well) into your textures/backgrounds DIR.

Replaced old backgrounds with some of my new ones,

Sphere maps a little bit enhanced, but still dont look as good as the normal ones, so yeah, they'l eventually be toltally replaced.

you might want to delete the files in your .vegastrike\backgrounds dir before unzipping...

Have fun!

Post by **hellcatv** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 11:39 pm

is this it?

or are there more coming....

you sent some more a while ago--- are these equivalent to those plus more

Post by **hurleybird** » Sat Apr 26, 2003 11:41 pm

there are more comming... though i might take 1 day or 2 break (or at least make only 1 or 2 those days) since the last two days i spent around, oh, 5-6 hours a day on them...

FireHawk · Post by **FireHawk** » Sun Apr 27, 2003 5:09 am

Anyone tried making animated nebula..you know...lighting...light flashes and glows

Post by **hurleybird** » Sun Apr 27, 2003 5:13 am

Not yet... would definantly be cool...

Has anyone played star trek: Dominion Wars? crappy game, but had that really good animated nebula type effect for the badlands

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Remaking backgrounds...