Hacienda Improvement

[Hero]

For the last bit I've been working on taking tracks and making them... weird. But now I want to make something that could if liked be put in the main package. Not creating a new track but editing an old one. I've decided on Hacienda.

So what will Hacienda be objected to? Here:

1.: Add falling pillars in the dried up river.

2.: Add the camel from shifting sands.

3.: Add a jump instead of the bridge.

4.: Add an alternative way.

[Auria]

Hacienda would typically be in south america/mexico or in spain. I don't think camels belong there?

Now you can make a modification to Hacienda. But I think you should perhaps forget the idea of making something for the core game for a little while. Learning blender and getting sufficient experience to be good at it can take quite a while, and I think you might not have enough 3D modelling experience yet for such a project. Now, as a learning experience this would be excellent - just don't have too much expectation that it will be included in STK core just yet. Keep in mind most modellers that made STK tracks that went into the core have been practicing 3D modelling for years. 3D modelling is very rewarding but I think you need to be a little more patient

[Hero]

1: Thanks. Maybe I'll forget that part or make it a lama.

2: I know Blender. When I say learning I mean extra features. But let's say if it's good quality and it fits (what you think) it will go in. If it's not of good quality then of course I don't want it to spoil the game.

[samuncle]

1.: Add falling pillars in the dried up river.

I want to add more objects and details in this track, like the stove that I made for mansion or a train.

2.: Add the camel from shifting sands.

Like Auria says Hacienda is in Mexico. Camels aren't Mexican animals.

3.: Add a jump instead of the bridge.
4.: Add an alternative way.

That's a good idea, I like it . Maybe I will add a jump or and alternative way myself.

I think you should perhaps forget the idea of making something for the core game for a little while. Learning blender and getting sufficient experience to be good at it can take quite a while, and I think you might not have enough 3D modelling experience yet for such a project. Now, as a learning experience this would be excellent.

+1, I suggest you to follow this tutorial to learn how making a low poly object.

[Hero]

That's a good idea, I like it . Maybe I will add a jump or and alternative way myself.

Don't do that for another two days please. I want to try to do this (and potentially succeed first).

[Hero]

Hallo everyone!

Now I have here an edited version of Hacienda track. It contains:

Box that falls onto the track.

Pillar that falls onto the track.

New jump instead of the bridge.

Added alternative way.

Notes:

Alternative way is rather bumpy.

Known bugs:

Lantern is hanging from air (will fix soon)

AI can have trouble with alt way (will look into).

It's difficult to get off of the alt way (wil fix soon).

This is an alpha version. Please test for more bugs.

hacienda.zip

This is a hint on what I have planned.

(4.44 MiB) Downloaded 351 times

Will fix the bugs ASAP.

[Ludsky]

Please DON'T Change the actual map. CREATED YOUR TRACK, please, please, please !

Hacienda is very good currently !

Your track have some bug : at the end of the second road is jammed.....

[samuncle]

Hello You have cool ideas and you are trying to make them. That's good . Often people have many pie in the sky ideas but they didn't do anything.

First the bridge, Zippers don't work and it looks strange. Fix the problem of the flying lantern and move posts that are across the bridge.
The second bridge (the jump of the alternate way), add more details and fix the texture bug, it's ugly, the UV layout isn't correct.
I'm not convinced by the current alternate way (but it's your idea, why not ). It's too bumpy and hard to drive. You really need to make another track with bezier curves and include it in the ground mesh. Just trying to randomly cut the mesh doesn't work.

The animation with the column and the box doesn't look natural, and the box just disappears. I think the column will be better without animation. Just a box falling and breaking on the ground .

[Hero]

Okay.

Note: The box goes into another box.

I think I'll even out the landscape a bit and see if the path works. If not I'll start anew with it.

Ludsky: The alt way overlapped a physics mesh which I didn't know was there. I've since fixed the bug.

[Hero]

Okay, I've fixed those major bugs.

Improvements:

Took out the pillar and made the box animation a bit better.

Flattened out the alt way a bit.

Got the lantern to follow proper ideas of our physical universe.

Here you are:

hacienda.zip

Here we are. Release candidate one you could say.

(4.42 MiB) Downloaded 335 times

[samuncle]

I'm sorry but you haven't corrected any of major bugs.

The second bridge (the jump of the alternate way), add more details and fix the texture bug, it's ugly, the UV layout isn't correct.
I'm not convinced by the actual alternate way (but it's your idea, why not ). It's too bumpy and hard to drive. You really need to make another track with bezier curves and includes it in the ground mesh. Just trying to randomly cut the mesh doesn't work.

And also please rename your track in something like hacienda-hero, to avoid confusion.

[Hero]

1. Sorry I didn't get that.

1. I know about that part but I will have to work on it a bit. I'm smoothing it out right now. If I can't do it successfully I'll create a new mesh.

3. Right. But if it ever is included ( ) it will need to be named back.

[Hero]

RC2 as you could say!

So what does this fix?

- Zippers (I took them out. Best way to do it).

- Alternative way. Now it is flat and in a separate canyon.

- Texturing on the second jump (as best I can. If it still looks ugly you'll have to tell me in what way.).

- Names. The track is now named Hacienda [edit] and the directory is called hacienda edit. If this ever goes in these can be corrected.

Please give me lots of lovely feedback.

To the STK team. What do you think of this? Is it a step in the right direction? Can it go in or does it need some more work? Or is this completely the wrong way? I'm all questions.

hacienda edit.zip

RC2 you could say.

(4.44 MiB) Downloaded 354 times

[hiker]

Generally using a new name is preferred, since then it's easier for anyone to quickly install your track and test it. If it has the same name as another track, STK won't be able to distinguish the two tracks properly (even when installed in the addon directory).

Cheers,
Joerg

[Hero]

In game: "Hacienda [edit]".

Directory (track Id): "hacienda edit".

I await your comments/questions/dismissals/praising/annoyances etc..

STK: I await your decision.

[Ludsky]

- remake the input of the second route
- remake the input of the bridge
- the big drum falls strangely

[samuncle]

RC2 as you could say!

Sorry but no. Your version of hacienda isn't a RC, maybe an alpha version. Making a good track can take days, weeks and even months.

To give you an idea, I took about 50 hours to make the first version of hacianda.

To the STK team. What do you think of this? Is it a step in the right direction? Can it go in or does it need some more work? Or is this completely the wrong way? I'm all questions.

Your canyon is not smooth and the textures don't fit together If you want to help us. Please learn how to use blender. You need practice.

Currently we cannot accept your version. It doesn't has enough quality. I think you need to really improve your skills and only after that you can upload a new version.

[Hero]

Okay, I'm overhauling.

I'll redo the canyon with the sculpt tool and then try retexturing (with a bit of help from my eternally better-at-Blender brother).

Just an idea. Do you think the lip of the cliff should be smooth or rough. I know yours is perfectly smooth all along but this is just an idea.

[Hero]

Two words:

Hope, Opportunity

hacienda edit.zip

Alpha... pick a random number. Anyway here we are. It adds in a lip to the canyon and better unwrap.

(4.59 MiB) Downloaded 346 times

[samuncle]

@hero

Writing good criticism is not easy but I will try.

The general looks of the canyon is good. Texturing is much better, but in corners (at the begin and the end) it's still stretched. The animation of the falling box is good but it doesn't look natural . The other problem is maintenance and scalability of the track. You have used N-GONs, It's not a good choice, use only quads and tris and avoid the sculpt tool. I have personally never used this tool for stk. The result is too random for me. You need more polish. Clean up the mesh (imagine the future 3D artist that wants to edit your track).

The gameplay is also important. The alternate way is much shoorter than the normal one. So, Why did you put 3 big nitros in the middle ?

I still cannot accept you contribution, but I think that you are going in the right direction. I suggest that you open an account on stkaddons, and submit your track as an addon. It's much easier to submit a track for addons than the core package but the process is the same.

I think you need to be a little more patient

[charlie]

I like your enthusiasm Hero, keep working at it. The standards for STK are a lot higher than they were a few years ago, when your contributions may have been accepted into the core package more easily, so if you keep improving you'll eventually get there.

And samuncle is right; best way to contribute is via stkaddons and let the developers pull in the best stuff from there.

[Hero]

I'll work on it. But no I can't put in STKADDONS. Please don't ask why.

The box I'll do frame by frame (looking forward to it).

Yes I can smooth up the sculpt a bit.

Stretch. My better-at-Blender-brother already told me this. I'm on it.

Nitro for the jump. The zippers were too difficult. I'll add in bannanas once you get out of the canyon to even the odds a bit.

[samuncle]

I'm sorry but why you can't ? It's free. Maybe it's a bug and we can correct it.

[Hero]

The fact that it sends an E-mail. My parents don't want to receive anything. If anyone gave them my stuff as an add-on I'm completely fine.

[samuncle]

You can use a temporary mail like yopmail.com.