nos.17 Lot Development

[rsc204 21,808]

On 28/02/2017 at 4:25 AM, nos.17 said:

Really, I'm not trying to add to any of it. I was aiming to just incorporate some of B62's buildings into the mix to help unlock items quicker (I do believe he was part of the group back in the day).

This I can support, even though personally I strip all the BTE stuff from all my lots. It's probably something that theoretically works great in the context of playing SC4, but not so much in the sense of using SC4 to make what you want. But I'd be more bothered if you were making stuff that needed to be unlocked. Since most users don't go to the extreme lengths a small majority of users do, in effect this would help them to unlock items that otherwise may never be available.

On 27/02/2017 at 11:42 PM, nos.17 said:

     4. Custom queries  ...   0% complete - Medium difficulty. Once I figure out how to create the queries, it's little effort to add them to the lots.

Whilst I do agree they provide a level of personalisation and can be neat, in practise there is a trade off for using them. Each custom image adds to the load on SC4, if every lot had a unique UI, this would soon get out of hand, even with a moderately sized number of plugins. It's another of those things I tend to remove completely from any lots I install. Nothing against the use of them, I just don't want any redundant data in my plugins folder personally, especially if it has no function.

Creating them shouldn't be terribly hard, they are just a series of PNG images and LTEXT files, with some simple code to tie it all together. This should help:

Looks like the images are still on the server too... I'll see about fixing up the formatting issues of the tutorial now I'm aware of it. Done

[nos.17 5,120]

23 hours ago, rsc204 said:

This I can support, even though personally I strip all the BTE stuff from all my lots. It's probably something that theoretically works great in the context of playing SC4, but not so much in the sense of using SC4 to make what you want. But I'd be more bothered if you were making stuff that needed to be unlocked. Since most users don't go to the extreme lengths a small majority of users do, in effect this would help them to unlock items that otherwise may never be available.

 

I think of it as a sort of win-win. It's good for those who would want to use it and does not really bother those that don't. Most who don't use/care about the BSC reward system would probably not mind having some extra OGs in their lots. That being said, it would not be too difficult to include a version without them too.

23 hours ago, rsc204 said:

Each custom image adds to the load on SC4, if every lot had a unique UI, this would soon get out of hand, even with a moderately sized number of plugins.

 

Interesting. I would never have thought about that, but it makes sense. I was aiming for something simple: maybe tweak the colors or add a small logo (e.g. NOT roe99's UIs). Although, once the query is loaded, the complexity of the image doesn't really matter. This is clearly last on the list and should I get time to look into it, I will heed your warning and not go overboard with them.

Thanks for fixing that tutorial, btw. I had taken a look at it before and it was quite difficult to follow with the wonky HTML. I ended up saving the page as an HTML file to my desktop, though, and everything worked nicely.

[nos.17 5,120]

And here we have Target. This one is the same size as the original (it's hard to keep putting a building this size on a lot small enough to reasonably grow). It's 15x12.

 

...and I just couldn't resist. Along with it comes another setup, again based on one very close to where I live.

[Harry's Place 918]

^^ i love version 2

[Fantozzi 4,067]

That's a great lotting.

19 hours ago, nos.17 said:

it's hard to keep putting a building this size on a lot small enough to reasonably grow

My problem is memory - mine, not the computers. I tend to forget what I have to zone to make certain lots grow. Was it 12x14 - 15x14? So on bigger commercials or industrials I prefer ploppables. You know, regarding brain sea stars weren't blessed by nature.

[nos.17 5,120]

@Urban Constanta ... Thanks, man. Appreciate it. 

@Fantozzi ... I totally understand. It can be near impossible to remember exact lot sizes and patterns unless I go back and look exactly what I need (e.g. some of KOSC's office parks). All of my new uploads will come with both growable and ploppable landmark versions so users can pick and choose which version(s) they want.

[rsc204 21,808]

13 hours ago, nos.17 said:

All of my new uploads will come with both growable and ploppable landmark versions so users can pick and choose which version(s) they want.

This... lots of this size are great, but they don't work so well as growables as you mentioned, so plops are always appreciated. Especially for C$/C$$ which has huge demand, so you can go crazy plopping too .

[kingofsimcity 5,739]

Whoa that second one is sublime! I like that you're playing around more with girafe's HD flora in these lots. The "add-on" bank building with the different pavement texture is a subtle but fantastic touch of realism that really caught my eye. Visually, it looks as if you pieced together a large L-shaped lot with a smaller rectangular lot, which is quite interesting and could have some implications on how we approach these larger mega-lots. Great stuff, and I look forward to seeing you roll out all your other works! 

[nos.17 5,120]

@rsc204 ... Good! Because looking back, CS$ and CS$$ seems to be all I make! 

@kingofsimcity ... Appreciate the feedback! I'm always aiming for trying out different looks. Right now, that means expanding my horizons of prop use. I have come to find dozens of packs with great props which are vastly underused.

 

No longer can I make the excuse that there are no FAR car props, and thanks to Orange, Wawa has earned a remake:

[kingofsimcity 5,739]

Well that's a +1 to my list of prop packs to start using. These lots look quite a bit more lively now that you've got plenty of *correctly* oriented vehicles at the pumps. At first glance I thought this was a slight visual downgrade over the original but then I realized it was just the lack of shadows in the screenshot throwing me off.  

Speaking of shadows, there's currently a small issue with the canopy props. Both descriptors currently have the "Is Ground Model" flag set to false, and do not cast shadows.

[nos.17 5,120]

@kingofsimcity ... Easy fix. Check the screenshots above for the updated versions. I forgot to re-enable shadows in the game, which did give a weird effect. I also changed the base texture on one of the lots that I hated more the longer I looked at it.

I'm also in the process of putting together a prop/texture catalog similar to the old one, but much more extensive with the updated prop packs in an easier to read format. I'm basically done, so I'll post it soon. I just need to batch process some titles to the top of my screenshots.

 

Might as well add Sam's Club now. There's something not quite right that I don't like about the lot, but I can't place my eye on it. I'll see if yall have any suggestions...

[RRetail 7,906]

Just now seeing these. Target looks amazing. Nice to see Wawa getting a little reworking too! 

Definitely something off about that Sam's Club. I'm not sure what to suggest....

[T Wrecks 10,209]

Hmm... maybe the base texture is simply too dark and too cool in terms of colour hue? The building looks as if California's sun was shining on it at noon (cue the bleached-out colours), but the lot may as well represent an overcast day in Northern Europe shortly before a nasty drizzle sets in.

[nos.17 5,120]

@RRetail ... Thanks! I think I may have corrected it. Take a look at the new picture below and if you don't mind, tell me what you think.

@T Wrecks ... I went ahead and changed the texture to something lighter in the front and it makes a world of difference. I think you hit the nail on the head!  

[RRetail 7,906]

That lighter parking lot texture definitely helps make it look better for some reason. Weird how that changing that can make the lot more pleasing.

[Evanjs 602]

4 hours ago, RRetail said:

That lighter parking lot texture definitely helps make it look better for some reason. Weird how that changing that can make the lot more pleasing.

I agree.

[DavidDHetzel 1,816]

@nos.17, have you thought about redo-ing @pierrebaptiste's lots? Most of them need a LOT of work (Heck most of his retail lots are education for some reason.)

[pierrebaptiste 472]

On 15/03/2017 at 3:55 PM, DavidDHetzel said:

@nos.17, have you thought about redo-ing @pierrebaptiste's lots? Most of them need a LOT of work (Heck most of his retail lots are education for some reason.)

Hello ,

I see your proposition . Yes you can modify all lots and building . You have need to the building gmax format to prepare a new lot ? .

If you look here you can found the "Alcampo" version of "Auchan" for Spain's market : http://descargas.capitalsim.net/?sitio=csc&descarga=3755

Send me a mp or an email to obtain all gmax files

[nos.17 5,120]

@RRetail, @Evanjs ... Thanks. 

@DavidDHetzel ... I agree with you there. I will look into doing some of those eventually. I'm trying to work through all of the B62 stuff first, though.

 

Out of all my previous uploads, the Red Roof Inn one had the least amount of work done to it: I only added a few more trees to the back of the lot.

[nos.17 5,120]

I think Lowe's was one of my lots most in need of a refresh. Looking back, I absolutely hate the old design. It just seems so empty and devoid of an interesting or unique character. Thus...

 

Along with it comes a remake of the Lowe's Distribution Center. This one, however, has had minimal work done to it - besides a few small prop tweaks, the only major thing is new parking textures up front.

[kingofsimcity 5,739]

It's been a while since I've seen Maxis trees being used here but they don't look bad at all! The lot definitely looks way more lively compared to your first version.

Also is that half of a work truck that's clipped into the left side of the Lowe's building?  

[nos.17 5,120]

@kingofsimcity ... Yes, I was sort of surprised too. The intent was for people to be able to use some sort of Maxis tree override, but honestly, I kind of like them without an override too. Thanks for the truck. That'll be fixed. 

 

Fresh off the line is a new ShopKo. I'm not entirely happy with some clipping at the very front of the lot...that will be changed.

[nos.17 5,120]

It's been a busy week, but I've got one new one: HyVee.

[nos.17 5,120]

Just finished up the two versions of Sears Grand. Onto the service station mega pack next...

Please click for full zoom 4 detail:

 

[raynev1 1,886]

Wow , that looks great .

[RRetail 7,906]

That looks great, though definitely on the large side for me. How did you manage to have the non-diggis version lot bend so it isn't a square or rectangle? (I see that the road curves in toward the lot)

[T Wrecks 10,209]

@RRetail:  It's probably two lots plopped next to another. In fact, both versions are likely to be two lots because there's a limit to the maximum amount of objects on one lot, and the whole complex may very well exceed that limit.

@nos.17: Wow, you really put the "grand" in "Sears Grand" with that behemoth of a lot!

[nos.17 5,120]

@RRetail ... Exactly as T Wrecks described.There are two separate lots meant to be placed adjacent to each other.

Spoiler

 

@T Wrecks ... Thanks! You may be surprised that none of the lots come close to the threshold (~850 out of 1280 max objects). It's mostly for my convenience, as things really grind to a halt in PIMX when the object count rises above about 500.

  Edited April 15, 2017 by nos.17  

[RRetail 7,906]

@T Wrecks Ah. That makes sense.

[nos.17 5,120]

Winn Dixie