North Africa Graphics – Round Two

Hi everyone,

We received a lot of feedback regarding the proposed variation of graphics for North Africa.

Some of the items mentioned in response to our original post;

Original Post were as follows;

• The slope hex sides were too thick
• The lack of colour variation for various elevation levels
• The salt marsh/flats were too white against the new ground colours

All these points were quite reasonable, and we have attempted to include adjustments in attempt number two.

We have all new slope hex sides that are narrower and re-textured compared to the originals. This is the first time these components have ever been revised, so it is a different look. They also assume that the lighting source is from the top left corner rather than from the top of the map in the old hex sides.

There is subtle colour variation in each elevation level (see the Brevity & Tobruk Gifs below). This is not as marked as the original artwork as we wanted a slightly more ‘natural’ look, but there is increased differentiation compared to the original single colour terrain set.

The salt marshes have been redone for the new desert terrain set. There is now a ‘sandy’ layer added that softens the colour variation.

The jury is still out on whether to dump the new rough terrain that is meant to represent particularly rocky terrain. This may require further experimentation.

There was also some misalignments of some of the terrain hexes – this has all been corrected.

We have also included some examples of the changes proposed for Crete, which will include Mediterranean water as well as the new slope hex sides.

As done previously, here are some example Gifs so you can see the progression and different views. Please note these were captured at 2560 x 1440 resolution and can be clicked to be viewed at full size.

Mersa Brega – coast view. The first two slides are the version one revisions, with the version two revisions following. These show no hexes, hexes and hexes with elevation contours turned on. All new slides have a red NEW in the upper right corner;

Mersa Brega – inland view. The first two slides are the version one revisions, with the version two revisions following. These show no hexes, hexes and hexes with elevation contours turned on;

Brevity – escarpment view. This series of images show the different (subtle) colouring for each elevation level. The first two slides are the version one revisions, with the version two revisions following. These show no hexes, hexes and hexes with elevation contours turned on;

Tobruk – Carrier Hill. This series of images also shows the different colouring for each elevation level. There are only version two revisions here. These show no hexes, hexes and hexes with elevation contours turned on;

Crete – Megala Khoratia. Here is a first pass for Crete. There are a lot of elevation changes on this map and the following shots attempt to show how these re handled. There are only version two revisions here. These show no hexes, hexes and hexes with elevation contours turned on;

Crete – Galatas. More examples of elevations change as well as the Mediterranean palate for the sea. There are only version two revisions here. These show no hexes, hexes and hexes with elevation contours turned on;

We’re providing these revisions for feedback and I’m certain these will continue to be tweaked up to release. We will do our best to give players a choice on the graphics available in game.

As before, please put any feedback in the comments section below.

David