Hi, I was wondering if someone can give me opinions on this topic. Basically I want to see if people prefer sprites or particles when it comes to special effects. I am really sorry if I''m wasting anyone''s time. Just looking for a second opinion. Thanks a lot Basically here is how it stands: Sprites: + Much Easier since they are bought on CD rather than coded as particles + Much more detail as there is no particle count limitation + The quality will certainly be higher as in my project, I have used alot of polys in characters and scenes and really can''t afford to use more wiht particles - Camera up and down view limitation! This means that how high and low a character can look must now be very limited in order to use the sprites seeing as they are 2D + Having the camera limited, also allows for textured grass rather than mesh grass which makes things a whole lot easier when it comes to nature scenes Particles: + Fully 3D!!! No more camera up and down view limitation. Character look as high or low as required therefore enhancing gameplay when it comes to times when he is trying look down from a mountain or up at something above him The pluses of sprites are high in number in my case but the single plus of particles is very important. Can anyone tell me what they prefer. Do you guys use sprites or particles when it comes to things like special effects? And why? What should I do in my case? Thanks a million for any comments

well i think it solely depends on the type of game, and how the sprites fit into the gameplay. for instance, a 2d fighting game would widely use sprite animations obviously. im assuming that you are talkin about 3d games though? i just want to suggest another point that would have to be considered in order to decide. do you want the special effects to have alpha blending? if so then sprites just arent going to cut it

quote: Original post by st0ven
im assuming that you are talkin about 3d games though?

Yes. 3D game that uses camera view similar to shooters. That is why the problem of view limitation comes in when looking up or down as the sprites are only available from the side angle.

quote: Original post by st0ven
i just want to suggest another point that would have to be considered in order to decide. do you want the special effects to have alpha blending? if so then sprites just arent going to cut it

The sprite CDs have this written in bold and colored letters on their website:
ALL TEXTURES CONTAIN
ALPHA CHANNEL
TRANSPARENCY

Thats what they say. That means things like shadows and all will still work right?

Thanks alot