Week 11

• an LOD is the level of detail present in a model, depending on the camera position (Denham, n.d.) 

• LODs can be used for increasing game performance, as the amount of detail decreases as the camera moves further away from the object 

• to set up an LOD system: 

  • have multiple copies of the object with varying degrees of detail 

  • you have to maintain the order of duplication

  • make sure they will all be in the same place at the end 

  • the highest-quality model is LOD_0, followed by LOD_1 etc. 

  • create the LOD group and export 

    • when the camera zooms in, the detail should increase and vice versa 

  • once in Unity, it will look like a mess because the objects are all piled on top of one another - this is normal 

  • to make the camera work, add "LOD group" to the parent object and drag each LOD into the correct slot. To add more slots, right-click on the levels bar and select "insert new" 

• change the official title of the game and other build details under Edit > Project Settings > Player 

• the cursor can be changed from here 

  • you must first have an image for it, and the image settings should be cursor not default

  • this adds another layer of professionalism to the game 

• can also add a custom splashscreen 

For next week: 

1. Mid-project reflection 

• try to have a theoretical reference rather than technical e.g. UI and audio

2. Finish UI 

• title screen 

• pause menu 

• end-game screen

• inventory counter 

• dialogue 

  • two box sprites for player and NPC

• interaction prompts

3. Finish audio 

• NPC voiceover 

• title screen music 

• on-click sound 

• main music 

• end-game SFX 

• pause menu music 

• item collection

4. Change title of project and add custom cursor