Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
FIGURE 3.1
Our base model
Our first step is to physically map the muscle groups onto the mesh. Doing this gives us a
good understanding of how the mesh will move. In turn, when we animate the model, the
polygons will deform, giving the illusion of muscles deforming under the skin. While we
are adding these lines to the mesh, we can also add detail, giving additional shape to the
geometry while we check its deformability.
Tip
A lot of detail can be gained through the texture map (more on this in
Chapter 9
,
“
Texture Painting
”). Try not to get too caught up in building
small details into the geometry—you'll just use up processor power,
meaning fewer polygons can be used elsewhere in the game.
Use
Figure 3.2
to guide you in placing the muscle lines on the mesh. This illustration
shows a simplified version of the muscles. All we need is a basic idea to work with; at this
point, we're just implementing the main muscles.
