/create-game-assets

3D concept-to-runtime pipeline

Use this reference when the output is a model, material, texture set, rig, animation, or 3D prop family. An appealing render proves appearance only; it does not prove production geometry.

Default pipeline

1. Lock camera/view, scale, gameplay footprint, material language, polygon/texture budgets, target engine, renderer, and platform.
2. Create or select orthographic/turnaround concepts with consistent proportions. Treat generated multi-view sheets as references that still require geometric interpretation.
3. Author or clean the model in a DCC such as Blender. Inspect topology, normals, watertightness, UVs, texel density, material slots, rig, weights, and animation clips.
4. Apply/normalize transforms and set a gameplay-meaningful origin and pivot.
5. Create simplified collision proxies. Do not use a detailed render mesh as default collision.
6. Define LODs and material/texture reuse for repeated or distant objects.
7. Export using the engine's preferred interchange path. Use GLB/glTF 2.0 as the general runtime delivery default when the target supports it; keep editable DCC sources separately.
8. Import into the real engine, check scale/orientation/materials/animation, profile memory and draw calls, and capture representative screenshots before approval.

Geometry gates

• silhouette fits gameplay and LOD transitions preserve it
• no accidental internal faces, non-manifold regions, inverted normals, or degenerate geometry
• deformation loops support the required rig motion
• pivots/origins support doors, wheels, pickups, weapons, placement, and snapping
• units and forward/up axes match the project convention
• collision proxies match gameplay intent without excessive detail

Material and texture gates

• use consistent PBR channel conventions and color spaces
• avoid baking lighting into base color unless the art direction explicitly requires it
• pack channels only when the target pipeline documents the mapping
• keep texel density consistent across an asset family
• size textures from on-screen coverage; source resolution is not a runtime budget
• reuse materials/atlases where it reduces draw calls without harming iteration
• validate normal-map orientation and compression in the target renderer

Generated 3D caution

If a tool can generate meshes, inspect the result with the same gates as an authored mesh. Never infer clean topology, UVs, rigging, licensing, or efficient materials from a preview render. Keep the tool/version and generation input in the asset manifest.

Primary documentation

• Khronos glTF registry and 2.0.1 specification
• Godot 4.7 importing 3D scenes
• Unity model import settings
• Unreal Engine importing static meshes
• three.js GLTFLoader