[Inspector Lagomorf]

I think the question stands on its own, but just to expound on it further, I see a lot of map reviews of all sorts of maps being critical of its shading. How important is it really to the gameplay of a map? And what's the fine line between "decent" shading and "great" shading, and how do you find it?

[Merlijn]

Well it depends on the goal of the level.
But generally speaking it's an important tool to create atmosphere and immersive environments.

As an experiment, you could take 1 of the orginal DN3D maps and change every wall/sector to 1 default shading.
The map would probably look dull as hell.

[juvenite]

In my opinion, the shading has a important role in the ambience of the map, which is also important for the gameplay, mainly if the map tells a story. I can only have a good experience playing maps if they are immersive, if they have a strong atmosphere, and shading can make a big difference.

[Robman]

When I see angled shading on the walls, generally I assume the mapper was reasonably advanced in their shading knowledge.
It's funny how you start observing shadows in real life when you're a map maker.

A map isn't finished if it has no shading

[Mike Norvak]

Let's not go so far... How important are light and sound in real life?

Wall and sector shading tell the player he is on a game world with light, if there is no shadows something is wrong since he still is able to see the game world. No light = shadow.

Same with sounds, if he can hear weapons, enemies and explosions why couldn't he hear waterfalls and jets passing by? No sound = silence. But silence doesn't even exist so there should be something always making noises in the background (like in films)

So imo there's no way to avoid shading and sounds in your maps or any game, if You don't want to make it feel buggy.

[Micky C]

Shading adds contrast, and any form of contrast can make an otherwise empty map look more interesting. I'm talking more in terms of shadows and having different levels of light in different rooms (which in turn helps break up the feeling you're playing through the same area over and over). But in terms of simple wall shading, it's essential in that it makes areas 'pop' out of the screen more. Rooms suddenly look like they have more depth, and complicated sector cliff terrain looks fantastic. Without shading, that complicated cliff might as well be a flat wall because that's kind of what it looks like with a uniform shade.

[Forge]

agree with Micky.
Depth.
Without wall shading everything looks flat and washed out.
Might as well be standing in the middle of a desert at high noon.
Sector shading and things casting shadows takes it to the next step.

[Gambini]

-Posting before reading replies-

Basic shading is necessary to achieve a believable environment and advanced shading can do wonders on the design of a map, it can fill a room better than any tricky decoration you could add. I think it´s not only important, it´s crucial.

[quakis]

Lighting is important for many reasons as already discussed. Depth is the most important since we're working with three-dimensional environments.

Without any lighting or simply the same shading value throughout, a room/location will look monotonous.



The bare minimum is to shade walls of one plane a different value to another. We can now clearly see the columns in this room at a glance, where they start and end. This is important for navigation.



Taking this one step further by adding a light source and adjusting sector visibility accordingly offers a lot for the scene. Atmosphere.
Lights used this way in darker environments can potentially grab a player's attention or point them in a direction. Depending on the methods, lighting will enhance your levels gameplay and immersion.



The previous lighting effort already did a lot for this room so in theory I wouldn't need to go overboard with decoration.
Throw in a few sprites, slope a ceiling, lower a segment of the room and break up the floor texture creates a decent looking room to work with. The lighting alone helps to achieve this.



Lets reset all shading and visibility values back to their defaults in the exact same room. How important is lighting? I think the screenshots above and below provide plenty of reasons.

[Sanek]

I wonder if this theard was started after all my DoomBOX controversy.

[Mike Norvak]

Sanek, on 31 March 2016 - 08:27 AM, said:

I wonder if this theard was started after all my DoomBOX controversy.

The important thing is, we aren't gonna avoid shading anymore for any reason, right?

[Inspector Lagomorf]

quakis, on 31 March 2016 - 06:05 AM, said:

Lighting is important for many reasons as already discussed. Depth is the most important since we're working with three-dimensional environments.

Without any lighting or simply the same shading value throughout, a room/location will look monotonous.

The bare minimum is to shade walls of one plane a different value to another. We can now clearly see the columns in this room at a glance, where they start and end. This is important for navigation.

Taking this one step further by adding a light source and adjusting sector visibility accordingly offers a lot for the scene. Atmosphere.
Lights used this way in darker environments can potentially grab a player's attention or point them in a direction. Depending on the methods, lighting will enhance your levels gameplay and immersion.

The previous lighting effort already did a lot for this room so in theory I wouldn't need to go overboard with decoration.
Throw in a few sprites, slope a ceiling, lower a segment of the room and break up the floor texture creates a decent looking room to work with. The lighting alone helps to achieve this.

Lets reset all shading and visibility values back to their defaults in the exact same room. How important is lighting? I think the screenshots above and below provide plenty of reasons.

This post needs to be stickied on every forum in this site.

[Hank]

^ maybe, but those not wanting to shade, will not.


This is from like way back, when I started mapping, now it's even engraved in the wiki.
http://wiki.eduke32...._Art_of_Shading

[Micky C]

quakis, on 31 March 2016 - 06:05 AM, said:

Lighting is important for many reasons as already discussed. Depth is the most important since we're working with three-dimensional environments....

This is essentially the most powerful, effective, clear, yet succinct and simple explanation of anything ever.

Not only does it quickly convey why shading's good and how to to it. But it basically explains how to make an entire classic style map with minimal time and effort.

Stickied on the forum? It should be added to the wiki.

[Sanek]

Mike Norvak, on 31 March 2016 - 01:41 PM, said:

The important thing is, we aren't gonna avoid shading anymore for any reason, right?

I guess so.
Yeah...

[Forge]

Sanek, on 01 April 2016 - 04:53 AM, said:

I guess so.
Yeah...

april fools!