A step in the right direction imo, but to be honest, I wouldn’t be against more “realistic proportions” such as trees branches getting thinner the higher you go and the trunk being overall slimmer for types of trees where it would make sense (like birches).
It still wouldn’t be enough to me though, because there is one thing that irks me
One thing that I think should get a makeover in the medium to long term is a how trees are implemented on maps. They currently feel like mere reskins and most maps have the same trees (pine, birch, oak) with the occasional palm tree and we end up on the map editor with dozens upon dozens of “tree_X” that pile up…
I would find it more interesting and easier to manage to have a single birch resource, a single oak, etc… and eventually new trees species (for example: cypress, poplar, lebanese cedar, hemlock tree, etc…) added but giving them options for fine-tuning.
Perhaps we could in the vegetation setting choose between different materials to apply to the trees (exeple: orange and green for birches) and possibly their sizes and then bake those on the map. Fairly similar to how houses used to only be available in one colour but can now vary. Such an addition could come with a “changing” material that mimics season or something.
This post is more in the mod/map creator pov but reducing the number of tree “resource objects” while giving each some variations in materials and size would feel like a welcome addition, eventually opening the way to a bigger overhaul. The end result would probably look something like that, with the birch tree as an example:
Tree selection
- [Birch]
- Pine
- Palm
- Spruce
- Oak
- Cedar
Tree customisation
Leaves colour
- Light green
- [Orange]
- Dark green
- Seasonal variation (dynamic texture)
- None (dead)
Size selection
Example above shows a setting for the birch tree which allows it to spawn in all sizes with an orange colour. Say the colour option chosen was seasonal variation, then it would cycle between a few materials to mimic seasons
It would take time to implement and may be difficult, but such a thing would help in the long run.
Eventually, the same kind of tweak could apply to all foilage (grass, flowers, bushes, dead branches & logs) and also other resources (for example: you might have a single “metal node” object for which you can edit the stone colour to match the map’s material).
Aside from that, how do you feel about this level of detail for vanilla trees? Too low? Too high?
Though, the LOD0 model is hopefully pretty optimised as well. Something closer to Legacy, (more rounded leaves to give the impression of volume) might help keep performance up & making it look more classic unturned.
