In this test I am testing out how to light and lead the player for a multiplayer type of map. For multiplayer map you need to focus more on readability around the map but also the characters moving around. Since I still do not have my graphic card it gets difficult to do too much intensive work.
Right now I decide on the colors I want first before I pick the HDRI sky and generally the time of day. So if I want more yellow and orange, I know my time of day is earlier or later in the day etc.
I decided to have one side identified as the brighter area and the other one in the shadow. So for that the light from the sun was coming into the left side.
As you see the lit side is easily identifiable. So I allowed the purple to dominate more on the shadow side.
The shadow side as seen above is dominated by the color purple. And does perhaps become flatter than intended. The overall values are okay in some of the other areas though.
Even though some areas as inaccessible I wanted it to feel bigger. For that reason the blocked areas are lit up a bit.
You can see in the image above that the brightest area is under the dome by the bridge, to encourage people to go there. And there is a contrast with the background that is dark on the right, where the players can not go. The light in there does however give impression of scale and something going on outside of the play space.
The darkest area is under the map and also where it can be hard to spot the players, but for now it is readable enough. This area is darkest so players will know by the layout, design and lighting where they are. Overall it could use more brightness and contrast to deal with the flatness. To show this I have recorded a short video running around the level with and without color in it. The character and weapon are not working in the lighting right now due to capsule shadow bug.
