OVERVIEW
In 2020, I set out to recreate my original GTA 5 Online apartment. Switching to Unreal Engine provided an opportunity to explore advanced rendering techniques, complex lighting, and new engine systems. It also allowed me to stay current with Unreal Engine a tool I prefer while continuing to work professionally in Unity.
Driven by the scene's high model density, I aimed to curate a selection of assets that could be modeled in a single evening slowly making the scene piece by piece.
Before starting the build, I compiled in-game captures and used Rockstar Social Club to upload screen captures for reference. I began by blocking out the space in Unreal Engine before moving the geometry into 3ds Max for detailing. This process provided immense growth in poly modeling, Quixel integration, baking lightmaps efficiently and working with Unreal lighting generally.
GTA Apartment 4401 Procopio Drive (Unreal Engine)