A 3D artist uses a multi-step process called 3D character modeling to produce a video game character or another type of media. Modern video games, films, and even commercials are nearly entirely produced using computer graphics (CG) technologies, one of which is character modeling. The pipeline’s primary stages include:-
Concepting, Blocking, Sculpting, Retopology, UV unwrapping, Baking, Texturing, Rigging & Skinning, Animation, Rendering.
How does 3D character modeling work?
A 3D artist employs a variety of software and tools during the multi-stage process of 3D character modeling to produce a character for a video game or other kind of media. It can be a human, animal, robot, or mythical creature. A character can also be the primary one (whom the player controls throughout the game), a secondary one (whom the player interacts with), or even a background figure who does not play a significant role. The easiest task to perform first in the process of making a 3D character is to create a simple form. For instance, a 3D artist could construct a cube, alter it with multiple tools, and then refine the model in other applications. Thus, despite the software’s limitations, they can produce an organic product.
The creation of 3D characters, there are numerous methods. For instance, we can emphasize the two most popular creative methods. Let’s start with a character pre-render and move on to a real 3D model later. Moreover, the level of intricacy in these areas of development can vary. Keep in mind that the rendering process depends on the result type we are looking for, not the game engine. Typically, the character is a person, an animal, a robot, or an imaginary being.
What is Polygonal Modeling?
It is split into two categories that make it ideal for usage in video games: highly polygonal (detailed model with many polygons) and low-polygonal (schematic model with few polygons). A low-level simulation called polygonal modeling uses a polygonal grid to represent an item. Working with them may frequently appear to be simple. It does not require any additional parameters or calculations because its external and internal areas are well-defined.
Sub-objects like this makeup polygonal grids:
- Vertex, or the intersection of the edges. Any number of them may exist;
- Edges-lines jutting out from the borders of the face;
- Polygons-grid cells, plane sections, which are most often triangular or quadrangular in shape.
3D Character Design Process :-
3D Character Concept
One should think about a character’s backstory and how you might depict it via them before you begin to create them. Gather a variety of references to help you decide who and how to design for this. Additionally, it is much easier to develop a playable character when you are familiar with their background, history, and distinctive qualities. Concept artists enter the picture at this point once you’ve gathered the concepts and the relevant references. Their major objective is to give unborn video game characters their first appearance and to set the stage for their continued expansion.
3D Character Blocking
The first step of making a 3D model is to combine simple forms to give it the appropriate character’s shape. For instance, you may connect various cubes or cylinders as various components of the final model. One will get a preview of your character’s appearance through this.
3D Character Sculpting
When you start the process to sculpt a character, you have a smooth model without any distinguishing features; the 3D artist must add them. Both sculpting and clay modeling are similar. Firstly, cheekbones and a chin are created, a long cylinder is transformed into a finger, and the character’s eyes are cut out of spheres it is a kind of example. A person can add or remove material.
Creating a 3D Character Retopology
Game character topology s that determines the model’s aesthetic qualities in the surface structure. For instance, it adds volume to facial features (mouth, eyes). Additionally, to animate the various model components, the correct topology is necessary. The topology of a 3D model is most of the time used to generate Polygonal modeling.
UV Unwrapping
A mesh is “unfolded” during the UV unwrapping process to make a 2D texture that matches the 3D object. If a person wants to texture her object correctly, it is typically required. A 3D model’s surface is flattened into a UV map, which is used to quickly wrap textures around it.UV unwrapping is the procedure used to create a UV map.
Baking
The act of baking involves transferring data from a 3D geometry to a texture file (bitmap). Two meshes—a high poly mesh and a low poly mesh—are often used in this process. A high poly mesh can exhibit high-resolution 3D detail because it includes numerous polygons—often millions. The low poly mesh costs less to store and render since it has a much less number of polygons (often only a few thousand). By using baking textures, you may benefit from both the high degree of detail provided by high polygon count meshes and the low cost of operation of low polygon count meshes. The information from the high poly mesh is passed to the low poly mesh during baking and preserved as a texture.
3D Character model Rigging and Skinning
The character’s skeleton was made during the process of rigging. To create a moving 3D human model it is required to separately animate the skeleton or bones in the future. Mostly the skeleton samples are made in advance by the program which is used for model characters and other game components. Skinning happens after rigging. What often works for bipedal characters, is to join the model’s skeleton and the surface it is the goal of this method. In other words, since it is difficult to animate the model’s surface at this juncture, the skeleton now belongs to the character and may move.
3D Character Animation
Characters are given life by artists by animating their body motions and creating expressive facial expressions. To manipulate specific body parts, specialized tools are frequently employed when working on facial expressions, gestures, and movements. Additionally, you can animate your character using video references. Large studios also frequently use motion capture, which is a technique in which game actors mimic facial expressions and body movements on film before having those actions converted to a computer model.
3D Character Rendering
An artist uses computer graphics to build a scene for a 3D model and then turns it into a 2D image. The lighting of the image, the camera angle, and the texture of the frame are all adjusted by the artist. Some 3D artists employ separate hardware for rendering, allowing them to continue functioning on some other modeling project on the primary computer while the rendering process takes hours on the secondary one.
