Integrating KnickKnack into UE4

The work has begun on integrating the assets that have been created into UE4. UE4’s render engine seems to be less forgiving than the one used in Substance Painter, and as a result, several objects have had extensive UV rework done to them. The Chinese Farmers are among the worst culprits in this regard, with them needing the entire model to be rebuilt and new UVs applied. Oh well, so it goes.

In the image above, you can see some of the assets that are completely done. The snow globes are also done and integrated, complete with scripts so that the snow flies around when you interact with it. These are not in this shot, of course. The hanging foot dolls were the most challenging, but are also among the best assets in the entire pack. The legs use a spline to tell UE4 where to draw the legs, and the geometry for the legs are spline mesh components. It is a great system in UE4 and we plan on using this technique a lot.

The assets will all have clean and dusty variants to them. In the image, the nesting dolls are shown only with the clean versions but there will be dusty ones as well.

Work continues…

Work has continued on Odin’s Eye as well as the Knick-Knacks asset pack.

Testing has been ongoing for Odin’s Eye, with some minor UI issues that have been resolved. Checking performance is vital, with lower-end systems being tested to ensure that a wide range of computers can run the game. This last point is very important to us. We want as many people as possible to be able to play the game in a reasonable form…the graphics may not be great, but the game will be playable.

Knick-Knacks is progressing more slowly than anticipated. The items chosen are meant to be simple ‘dust collectors’ that you may find in a normal, personalized, setting. But, simple is a deceiving word as it turns out. While it may be slow going, it is going! The featured image shows the latest assets that have been created. There are five nested dolls featuring a famous Northern general from the American Civil War to free the slaves. These would be great for a character that loves history, or a scene set in academia.