games

I've only worked through to Chapter 4 so far, but everything is steady as she goes. The main reason I bought the book was because of the writing style (easy-going and with the odd anecdote thrown in) and the fact that the entire book is based on developing one specific character (called Callisto). Too many times I see books that show you how to do anything and everything with the software, but fail to link it all together under a common theme. This book seems to avoid that by getting into the nitty-gritty of creating Callisto from the initial concept drawings to the final texturing.

The other bonus I personally am thankful for is the fact the instructions are still applicable with 3D Studio MAX 3. I know release 4 is out but I can't afford to purchase a $4K piece of software at the moment...

Finally, since I'm a newbie at 3D Studio Max, some of the discussion is a little over my head at times, but as the author warns, this book is written as a companion to the instruction manuals.

If you're new to character modelling and have an entry-level grasp of the 3D Studio Max interface this book was designed for you, without a doubt. If you're more advanced you will very likely get a lot out of it as well, as it's a medley of different techniques and riddled with very helpful hints, but really this book is tailor-made for the novice.

Paul has made a point of screen-dumping every step, every dialogue, and making explicit the reasoning behind what he teaches. This makes for a detailed and clear step-by-step map of the process and methods he uses to create his characters.

I should add that Studio users may have some difficulty and would be well-advised to familiarise themselves with the Max interface before tackling this one, but unless you know every possible route to character creation it's probably worth the effort.

A nice touch is the sprinkling of anecdotal gems thrown in. Steed has had a very public career as a character modeller/animator, and there are a few excellent star-studded stories in the mix as well as the actual education.

If you want something that you can sit in your lap and work through you want this book. I recommend this book unreservedly to anyone interested in pursuing this branch of digital art. The design chapter of the book alone is invaluable to you, let alone the technical side, and Paul is amply qualified to hold forth on the subject matter.

This is a great book from Quake 3 legend Paul Steed and its incredibly detailed with sujects that range from pencil designs to skinning plus many other helpful tips and tricks along the way. Unfortunatelly the book fell short in the illustration department and its kind of hard editing every vertex, line, face and edge on a 1500+- polygon model with confusing black and white pictures. Atleast for me, a beguinner that doesnt understand edges very well. All in all this is a very complete guide from beguinning to end but unless you have nerves of steel or completely understand how to handle edges without relying too much on the illustrations i wouldnt reccomend it for everyone.