GDC 2018 Level Design Workshop - How To Light A Level - slides.pdf
- 1. Level Design Workshop, “Invisible Intuition…” How To Light A Level Robert Yang @radiatoryang www.debacle.us
- 2. ABOUT ME
- 3. IN THIS TALK: 1) a brief history of light 2) what is game lighting? 3) intro to three-point lighting 4) how to light a level
- 4. 1. a brief history of light
- 5. the sun gas light fluorescent fire incandescent LED Various light sources through the ages
- 6. Real-life lighting design today
- 7. 2. what is game lighting?
- 8. What is light vs. how games simulate it REAL-LIFE LIGHT: ELEGANT VIDEO GAME LIGHT: MESS OF HACKS
- 9. Game lighting: also… cascading shadow maps, refraction shaders, caustics projectors, fog, glow sprites, HDR, SSAO, bloom, SSSSS, SH light probes, light maps, reflection probes, etc… IT’S UP TO US TO MAKE THESE HACKS COHERE.
- 10. FOCUS ON THE FUNDAMENTALS!!! Directional light Spotlight Ambient light Point light
- 11. Game lighting and 4 basic light types...
- 12. Game lighting: ambient light
- 13. Game lighting: directional light
- 15. Game lighting: point light (“omnidirectional”)
- 16. Game lighting: use all (4) types at once!
- 17. Game lighting: the fundamentals Global, affects everything Local, affects nearby things Shines in one direction Directional light Spotlight Shines in all directions Ambient light Point light
- 18. 3. three point lighting
- 19. COMBINED Key light Fill light Rim light Standard three point
- 20. Back/rim light Fill light Key light Background light (optional) Camera A standard three point setup:
- 21. Three point in film from: http://lightingpixels.blogspot.com/2013/01/tutorials-does-three-point-lighting-suck.html
- 22. 3 point = 3 types, not always 3 lights from: http://lightingpixels.blogspot.com/2013/01/tutorials-does-three-point-lighting-suck.html
- 23. Three point example (in Unity) TO FILL OR NOT TO FILL? ← no fill light is too dark! When in doubt, fill it. KEY FILL RIM How most games light people: Key: Directional light Fill: Ambient / SH probes Rim: Fresnel / reflect probes
- 24. Where three point theory fails for games KEY FILL? FILL ??? RIM KEY? Three point depends on fixed camera perspective... … but many 3D games have a free camera perspective!!
- 25. Your level layout is a lighting tool You can suggest a view / frame a composition if you know where the player can go
- 26. 4. how to light a level
- 27. STEP 1 blockout with basic realtime light Unreal: Use temporary “Stationary” lights “Force No Precomputed Lighting” Unity: Use temporary “Realtime” lights Disable “Auto Generate” Lighting
- 28. STEP 2 big mood? (ambient, directional) Big mood: safe, scary? KEY LIGHT: Directional light FILL LIGHT: Ambient / light bounce Unity: check Light Settings Unreal: check World Settings (“Diffuse Boost”) and SkyLight No GI or bake? Hand-place faint point lights to fill rooms.
- 29. STEP 3 highlight exits and critical path Spotlights act as key lights to draw attention to exits Make a hierarchy - Important exits get more light - Take layout into account too
- 30. STEP 4 highlight NPCs and setpieces Spotlights act as rim/bg lights, pick out silhouettes Blue-green lights run perpendicular to critical path, highlight areas for encounters
- 31. STEP 5 texture pass; use lighter albedos! from: https://docs.u nrealengine.co m/udk/Three /TexturingGuid elines.html Levels cluster on upper midtones
- 32. BTW: LIGHT IS POLITICAL!!! https://waypoint.vice.com/en_us/a rticle/78qpxd/black-skin-is-still-a-r adical-concept-in-video-games Skyrim example from “Black Skin Is Still A Radical Concept in Video Games” by Yussef Cole and Tanya DePass BAD LIGHTING - Flattening - Very dark shadows, no jawline? - Dim key? - Zero fill? OK LIGHTING - Depth to entire face - Consistent shadows - Has visible neck
- 33. STEP 6 iterate, but know when to move on Keep iterating and tweaking lights… explore variations!!! But also recognize when it’s good enough, and move on with your life!! “Sci-Fi Bunk Lighting” variations, Guillaume Lauer https://www.artstation.com/artwork/yrGlR
- 34. to review….
- 35. To review: 1. Lighting sets mood, evokes culture 2. Directional, ambient, point, spot 3. 3P: key light, fill light, rim/back light 4. Light globally, then for gameplay 5. Know when to stop and move on
- 36. THANKS FOR LISTENING. Robert Yang my twitter: @radiatoryang my games / writing: debacle.us I work / teach at: gamecenter.nyu.edu
- 37. bonus slides
- 38. Don’t take my word for it Magnar Jenssen (Valve), “Functional Lighting” http://magnarj.net/article_funclight.html
- 39. Random lighting tips - Don’t rely on blue and orange lights (“blorange”)... there are more than 2 colors! try googling “bisexual lighting” - Fewer lights is usually better, creatively and technically - But use more than one light, for god’s sake, I’m begging - Avoid overlapping 4+ lights in Unity or Unreal - You don’t always need a light fixture or visible light source… but still, think about the plausibility of the light!
- 40. Read this Architecture: Form, Space, and Order by Francis Ching intro to architectural thinking / breaking down shapes Moving Frostbite to Physically Based Rendering 3.0 (course notes, SIGGRAPH 2014) by Sebastien Lagarde technical primer, you won’t understand most of it unless you’re a graphics programmer, but try to read it anyway
- 41. Tips for lighting in Unreal 4.xx - “Mobility” matters A LOT… Stationary is VERY different vs Static https://docs.unrealengine.com/en-us/Engine/Rendering/LightingAndShadows/LightMobility - To reduce lightmap / shadow bleeding: - Test build lighting on “Production” quality, make sure it’s a real problem - Redo the UV unwrap, allow for proper padding between UV islands https://docs.unrealengine.com/en-us/Engine/Content/Types/StaticMeshes/LightmapUnwrapping - To get sharper lightmaps: - Adjust LM resolution on static mesh (see Static Mesh Editor) - Change global ratio to a bigger number (higher res is any # > 100%) (see Build > Lighting Info > Lightmap Resolution Adjustment) - Read “Lighting Troubleshooting” guide on Unreal wiki https://wiki.unrealengine.com/LightingTroubleshootingGuide
- 42. Tips for lighting in Unity 201x.xx - Mark level geometry (walls, floors) as “Static” (especially as Lightmap Static) - Use “Progressive Lightmapper” (in Light Settings)... I’m sure there are some masochists who like Enlighten, but the rest of us think Enlighten is too slow and gives worse results. https://docs.unity3d.com/Manual/ProgressiveLightmapper.html - Disable “Auto-Generate” (in Light Settings)... it’s often distracting when Unity constantly rebakes the lighting. https://docs.unity3d.com/Manual/GlobalIllumination.html - To reduce lightmap bleeding / seam problems: - Bake with higher Lightmap Resolution, make sure it’s a real problem - Redo the UV unwrap, allow for proper padding between UV islands https://docs.unrealengine.com/en-us/Engine/Content/Types/StaticMeshes/LightmapUnwrapping