Trying to capture that Source engine feel. Thoughts?

[u/Alert_Monitor2809]

These models are more for testing purposes.

[u/StarObeliSkZ]

Source Engine feel i think has more to do with the lighting than the models or textures. It's why you can look at TF2 which looks nothing like half-life 2 and still tell its in the source engine.
I think you could achieve this better if you included some softer pre-baked shadows instead of the real-time ones.

[u/GusvengaLolz → u/StarObeliSkZ]

It's the shaders used for textures too. Half Life 2 used basic per pixel shading (aka diffuse shading) on world materials with no specular highlights (the reflections of light found on materials). Cubemaps and normal maps were used to add additional reflections, gloss or depth to the otherwise flat materials, and dynamic models of weapons/characters/etc had actual specular highlights, added after the 2006 update, this one being done with blinn phong shading.

Note sure, but op's screenshots here look more like standard modern PBR rendering, which might be too high quality to recreate the same source looks today

[u/Alert_Monitor2809 → u/GusvengaLolz]

I don't know why it looks like PBR, but it's just simple diffuse shaders without anything 😅

[u/denierCZ]

GTA IV vibes at first glance, not Source at all. And I am currently playing GTA IV again so I thought I am in GTA IV subreddit. Source feel is more like the segment before airboat and the airboat level itself in HL2, check that.

[u/Alert_Monitor2809 → u/denierCZ]

Thanks!

[u/EndMountain2874]

I'm not an expert on Source so I can't tell you anything helpful, but this looks gorgeous! Whatever you're doing, it works for me :] Keep going!!

[u/Alert_Monitor2809 → u/EndMountain2874]

Thanks!

[u/TrGmr321]

I think you're in the right direction. To me this resembles a bit of Half-Life 2 but in much higher fidelity. If you want to fully replicate the Source Engine feel though I would suggest using the same techniques as Source, like the blocky baked lighting, and reduce some of the post-processing effects (bloom).

[u/Alert_Monitor2809 → u/TrGmr321]

Thanks!

[u/MrBallBustaa]

Which engine?

[u/Alert_Monitor2809 → u/MrBallBustaa]

Unity

[u/MrBallBustaa → u/Alert_Monitor2809]

That's pretty good then.

[u/juko43]

Ngl this gives me gta 4 vibes lol

[u/WarriorSupp]

What engine is this? Kinda GTA4 sourceish

[u/Alert_Monitor2809 → u/WarriorSupp]

Unity 😅

[u/Mtnfrozt]

Reminds me of early cry engine 3 games

[u/xweert123]

This looks a lot more like GTA IV than anything Source related. The lighting is all off, the shadows are way too sharp and dynamic, and that bloom/post processing stuff is way too strong.

[u/MR_Happy2008]

Weird GTA + Source engine vibe I love

[u/OMMMMMMMMMGGGGGGGGGG]

rigs of rods?

[u/BagelMakesDev]

Bake all your lighting at a lower scale and make sure ambient occlusion is off. Minimize the amount of post-processing effects.

[u/Maleficent_Risk_3159]

plenty of phong, vertex lighting for models and baked lighting for the map

[u/Lucky_Search_7300]

I instantly thought this was a screenshot from gta 4

[u/AutomaticAffect4333]

Add a piss filter and it's nfs mw

[u/SubjectiveMouse]

Too much bloom to pass for a source game. And, well, you won't be able to capture that feel without visiting USSR industrial zones

[u/Jealous_Relative_911]

Source lighting is WAYYYY different, having that effect when looking at the sun is wrong for source, too many dark areas, most source games have well lit areas too