ENVIRONMENT ART. 3D MODELING OF GAME ENVIRONMENT
Take a course on creating locations in games and master the profession of environment artist. After the training you can put your first game scene in Unreal Engine in your portfolio, for example a cozy village, an abandoned castle or a ruined city.
- required level: beginner with a basic knowledge of necessary apps
price: $350
WHAT IS THE JOB
An environment artist creates unique game worlds and makes them atmospheric and immersive. They create realistic 3D objects and adjust lighting, camera and composition, just like in Skyrim, Hogwarts Legacy or Horizon Zero Dawn. Such a specialist will always be in demand, because every game has a lot of locations and levels. Plus it's a carrer with a low entry threshold, which is in demand not only in gamedev, but also in movies and advertising.
$20,000/year
Junior 3D-environment artist salary
$40,000/year
Middle 3D-environment artist salary
$100,000/year
Senior 3D-environment artist salary
WHAT YOU'LL LEARN
01
Create concept designs
You'll understand how to work with ideas and match references to the setting.
02
Create tile textures
Learn a few ways to create them and you'll be able to paint the landscape quickly.
03
Work with the constructor
You will learn to split modular objects into their components - tiles and trims - and then make scene elemetns with them.
04
Create environment parts
For example, rocks, stones, trees, stairs or gates. You'll also learn how to combine them seamlessly with each other.
05
Set in-game camera and light
Include a video of a fly-through of the entire game scene in your portfolio.
03
Set locations within the Unreal Engine
Understand how to create playable scenes in Unreal Engine and present them in the best light.
LEARNING PROGRAM
We emphasize practice, so during the course you'll learn how to work according to the pipelines of real studios, assemble a cool portfolio, and get meaningfull feedback.
Bonus block: creating an environment concept in 3DCoat
Part 1: Interface
- Get acquainted with the 3D-Coat interface, navigation, layers and functions of the main program windows.
- Learn how to customize the program to suit your needs.
- Part 2. Voxel modeling tools
- Basic tools. You will get acquainted with the basic tools for working with geometry, you will be able to extrude, cut and create various shapes.
- Additional tools: needed for tasks that can be done in other programs. If you know how to work, for example, in Blender, you can skip this section.
- Part 3. Texturing tools
- Familiarize yourself with the basic tools for working with materials and textures in 3D-Coat.
- Part 4. Practice
- Developing a simple character for a warm-up composition. You can make a character in 3D-Coat in just six minutes with the help of ready-made dummies.
- Modeling of architecture and environment. On the example of ancient stone architecture payplain and methods of work.
- Texturing of what has turned out.
Getting to know Blender
- Navigation. Primitives, their movements and changes. Hotkeys.
- Learning to move primitives in space. Customizing the interface for yourself.
- "Opening" primitives (origins, vertices, edges, planes). Primary understanding of working with the mesh. Bevel, extrude, loop. Using proportional editing. Why it is better not to use straight lines.
Primitives and basic modifiers
- Modifiers array, bevel. Modifiers as helpers and enemies in modeling. What does it mean to "Apply scale"? An unexpected way of modeling. Another modifier (Skin).
- Modifiers boolean, mirror, solidify. Basics of working with Subdivision surface modifier. Working with modifiers, their influence on the mesh.
Modifiers and procedural textures
- Subdivision surface modifier or what is lowpoly and highpoly. Modifier or shade smooth. How to count polygons. When to use sculpting.
- Principled BSDF and other nodes. Addon and nodes. The basics of understanding the node system. Procedural textures. Face orientation.
Working with ready-made materials
- When do I need a UV sweep? Modeling a simple object with overlaying ready-made textures. How it is organized in Blender. How to overlay ready textures, their editing.
- Lighting, camera and render of the object created in the last lesson. Air in the frame. Color management and Photoshop.
Some approaches to the "beautiful scene".
- Working with particles (grass in a flowerbed, leaves on a tree). The basics of physics (pillows, curtains).
- Animation of primitives, camera and light. Reasons for using simple animation. In what ways does it degrade and enhance the object? Practical application of animations.
Model a 3D object using everything discussed in the course.
- Starting to model a simple scene. The basics of working with photos, refs, with what surrounds. We use all the knowledge we've gained.
- We continue modeling a simple scene. Apply textures. Set the camera, color and light.
Unit 1. Introduction to the course
Basic information about the course: how it is structured and how to turn in homework.
- About the course
- A guide to homework
Unit 2. Preparing the environment
You will learn to invent and assemble references according to your idea. Build a scene from simple objects and immediately upload it to the engine to see how it plays and fix mistakes.
- Preparing to create the environment: searching for ideas, references and points of interest.
- Prepare Unreal Engine for work: create a blockout - a rough sketch of the future scene. We work out the approximate location of objects, player's paths and general dimensions of the space and objects.
- Create model drafts: think in detail about what basic objects we will need for the scene and how they will look like.
Unit 3. Landscape and Tile Textures
You'll create tile textures to paint landscape and understand the different approaches to creating them.
- Creating an earth texture in Substance Designer for landscape.
- Quixel Mixer toolkit breakdown. Creating additional textures for Landscape.
- Parsing the basic features and nodes of Unreal Engine's Material Editor. Creating material for landscape and painting.
Unit 4. Rocks and Stones
Come up with organic rock formations and large rocks to break up the monotony of our cliffs. Figure out what organic skirts and cliffs are for.
- Sculpt. Creating high poly rock in Zbrush. Creating the main silhouette of the object and its primary, secondary and tertiary forms.
- Low poly. Creation of low poly rock, its sweep. Bake basic maps for texturing. Creating a Substance Painter preset.
- Create a master material to work with large scene objects under vertex peint and tile textures.
- Rock texturing. Refining the master material, adding functionality to the material and optimizing it. Rock painting.
- Stones. Creating large stones in Zbrush. Material customization in Unreal Engine. Subsequent refinement of the scene.
Unit 5. Modules
Create a constructor from which you can assemble different pieces of scenes. You will dismantle modular objects into component parts - tiles, trims.
- Creating stone blocks for later use in a tile texture. Creating a second variation of the stone blocks texture.
- Refinement of modular objects by creating midpoly assets. Creating a destroyed variation of the object.
Unit 6. Trims
Create a trim texture for the environment assemblies. Detail modular assemblies using trim textures.
- Principle of operation and creation of mesh decals. Decals for the second UV set and adding Edge decals.
- The principle of creating trim textures for the environment. Detail of modular assets using trim textures.
- Work with vertex peint of modules. Unique and modular painting of environment objects with vertex paint.
Unit 7. Architectural objects
Unit 8. Large blocks
Analyze approaches to creating unique large objects. Create large objects of a scene using a combined pipeline.
- Creating unique large environment assets, texturing with masks and tile-detail maps.
- Creating large environment assemblies using midpoly piplane without a unique normal.
Unit 9. Vegetation
Create trees, grass, pebbles and other minor objects. Without them, the scene will not be interesting and "alive".
- Creating small rocks to paint the surroundings. Setting up and working with vegetation painting.
- Creating tile patches for a scene. Using these landscape patch objects to increase detail.
- Creating different types of vegetation using atlases. Working with vegetation in a scene.
- Creating large vegetation types using a tree as an example. Model trunk, large branches and atlases to create trees.
Unit 10. Decals
Creating decals and patch meshes for environments. Material and application of decals in Unreal Engine.
Unit 11. Props
Creating small props. Refining the environment and creating a local story by adding small unique objects to the scene.
Unit 12. Finalization and presentation
You'll learn how to demonstrate the skills you've learned while working on a scene. The presentation is specially arranged so that all the skills you have learned are visible.
- Finalization of the scene. Final polishing of the environment, points of interest. Adjustment of atmosphere, light and post-processing.
- Render and final presentation of the environment for the portfolio, its objects and textures.
Thesis: make final renders of the scene and objects
Bonus unit
Here you'll be able to watch stream feedback recordings of past streams.
AUTHOR
COURS
There are no theorists among our teachers, only practitioners with
many years of experience and renown in the industry. Igor Emelyanov
is no exception.
![](http://fs-thb03.getcourse.ru/fileservice/file/thumbnail/h/6ff64c7c7a43d69b0a024060027812e8.png/s/s1200x/a/696297/sc/43)
Ramon Hicks
3D environment artist
Ramon is a 3D artist with six years of experience. He has worked at TraceStudio and Fox3D and participated in Metro: Exodus, Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare and Plague Tale: Innocence.
POST-TRAINING PORTFOLIO
Environment artist
![](http://fs-thb03.getcourse.ru/fileservice/file/thumbnail/h/61383a2df2310cfaff62c2f1a96f5f36.jpeg/s/s1200x/a/696297/sc/236)
Author's own 3D scene in Unreal Engine
It will be a powerful argument for future employers and customers.
Full-fledged composition with an ancient structure in the portfolio
You'll make it on a bonus block in which you'll learn how to conceptualize fantastic architecture and simple characters
in 3D-coat.
$30,000
Knowledge of algorithms for creating complex 3D scenes
You'll be able to create scenes to suit any task and setting.
Skills for working in the studio
They're enough to get a job as an environment artist in a studio or sell your work profitably at asset stores.
COURSE WORK
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What programs will we be working in?
You'll need any 3D modeling program (Maya, Blender or 3ds Max), Zbrush for sculpting, as well as Substance Painter, Substance Designer and the Unreal Engine 4 engine.
I have no skills in 3D modeling. Can I take the course?
We're counting on you to have at least some understanding of buttons and programs. We advise you to start with more basic 3D courses, such as our free intro course "Create your first 3D model".
What are the carrer options of the environment artist?
A good environment designer will never be out of work - for every big game you need to create a huge number of locations. This is one of the most in-demand professions - at least in the AAA-industry.
Will I get a job after the course?
You'll need any 3D modeling program (Maya, Blender or 3ds Max), Zbrush for sculpting, as well as Substance Painter, Substance Designer and the Unreal Engine 4 engine.
How powerful do I need my computer to be?
The system requirements are fully consistent with the current system requirements of Blender and Unreal Engine 4.
Blender - OS: Microsoft Windows 8.1, 10, 11, Apple macOS 10.13.x. Processor: 64-bit quad-core processor with SSE2 support. RAM: 8GB of RAM. Graphics card: 2GB RAM, OpenGL 4.3
Unreal Engine - OS: Windows 10 64-bit or Latest macOS Monterey or older. Processor: Quad-core Intel or AMD, 2.5 GHz or faster (minimum), Six-Core Xeon E5-2643 @ 3.4GHz (recommended).
Graphics card: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 (minimum), NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 SUPER (recommended). RAM: 8 GB (minimum), 16 GB (recommended). OS Drive: 256 GB SSD. Data Drive: 2 TB SSD
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Pacific MGroup LLC
18653 Lemarsh Street
Los Angeles, CA 91324, USA
info@gamecreationschool.com
+1 (818) 626-8424
Contact
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