Yep that is definitely the scanline detail texture. Easy as pie to fix.

Scanlines make no sense whatsoever so I don't really have any intention of shoving them on all the textures. It might create an impression, but it's not realistic in the slightest (no current display creates them) - and we've already been bitched at for not 'being realistic' so I'm not going to create a double standard.

I would object to that, but Cyber would just ban me, so uh... yay!

Hm...as always, just a suggestion but I think realism is less important then consistency within the DX-world. Although we already had an discussion about wether DX was directly influenced by Gibson's Cyberpunk or not I think it has many 80ies influences and scanlines fit into that just fine. I like scanlines.

I'd love to get one of these: http://www.artlebedev.com/everything/optimus/

Actually I am on your side here. But Snipa has made it clear that he doesn't want scanlines. I made my point that it would be best to stick to the original asethetic but he's thinking on the matter suggests that the original is simply not logical - I understand what he means and Whilst I would like to stick to aesthetics its really snipa's call and I respect his decision.

Also I'll add these images.

http://www.hpwt.de/China/WanChaiMarket.jpg
http://www.e-architect.co.uk/hong%20kon ... ong_98.jpg

These are from LeeTungStreet which is similar to WanChai's signs.
http://www.metamercury.net/images/LeeTu ... sver12.jpg
http://www.metamercury.net/images/LeeTu ... sver31.jpg
http://www.metamercury.net/images/LeeTu ... sver13.jpg
http://www.metamercury.net/images/LeeTu ... sver18.jpg
http://www.metamercury.net/images/LeeTu ... sver04.jpg

[edit] I found these neon ones
http://www.arrakeen.ch/asia2006/CIMG2863.JPG
http://www.arrakeen.ch/asia2006/CIMG2871.JPG
http://www.arrakeen.ch/asia2006/CIMG3287.JPG

This is the "Real" Wan Chai. The signs are not HD displays they are plastics with back lights hence snipa's comment makes no sense if we are doing the whole "Real World" comparison, but I will grant him that the Scanlines aren't needed either. However I do prefer sticking to the original and I think scanlines are easy to add. So there are plenty of variables. It just comes down to preference.

Jonas will probably add that "Deus Ex reality does not match the Reality of our world. It is fiction and hence does not have to be exactly the same" like he always does when this sort of debate comes up.

Really I don't care what you pick just so long as it gets done and meets the cyberpunk standards (aka Dirty and old.)

for the scanlines i always just thought it was a really old console, but judging by it's function that probably doesn't make sense, so you've swayed me.
also, good find on the market signs. i think that should clear it up for everyone.

It's not too hard to add scanlines manually if anyone wants to do it (I probably will: I love the retro-tech vibe they generate. It makes no sense for the 2050s, sure, but scanlines just SCREAM 'digital display', and I go for ambience over realism).

Simply use the editor to open coretexdetail, and then the relevant .utx file, rightclick the textures in question (I think they might all be the same texture, actually), go to texture properties, and in the bottommost dropdown box there should be a series of boxes with names like 'bumpmap' and 'detailtex': just write "dscanline" (no quotes) in the detail box. If you've done it right this should change to something like 'coretexdetail.detail.dscanline'. Then save the .utx, and you're done.

I think the scanlines should be added manually on the textures. They look better in photoshop and we can crank out better resolution. Deus Ex render the scanlines in such a stupid way. (they come up all distorted at far distance) so I prefer putting them on in photoshop as its probably just as easy.

The scanlines do make sense. The population would use back dated technology because the high definition stuff would be simply too costly and that the scanline stuff would be discontinued (meaning it'd be dirt cheap).
Lets not forget that a majority of the population are in poverty in the Deus Ex world, I would expect High Def monitors for Unatco and Versalife but not for Hong Kong because the small businesses wouldn't be able to afford it.



I was going to post that fact but yeah basically the scanlines are there for the retrotech effect which I think is essential in maintaining the "Cyberpunk" element of the game even if it is a small part of it.

Hmm..re: adding the scanlines to the texture itself..not convinced.

The beauty of the detail textures is that they really DO generate a 'pseudobumpmap' effect: the way they scale at increasing distance serves to afford a level of additional 'bumpiness' to a given texture (that being the point, after all). So I'm not sure a 'painted on' scanline effect would look like anything other than..well, painted on.

In the same manner that just covering a wall texture in a few layers of DMetal_A wouldn't generate the same 'faux-metallic' sense that an actual DMetal_A detail texture would.

I'm more than happy to be proved wrong though, so by all means give it a go. Try both and compare.

I'll look at the so called "bump map" effect and see if I can mimic it in photoshop.

Yep, the idea of detail textures is that they fade in as you approach them, so you can't see the detail from afar, but it becomes apparent up close. This also covers up the blurring of the texture as it is blown up to a way larger size than it actually is, and it looks hella neat. Adding scan lines in Photoshop defeats the purpose of the detail textures, and frankly I think it is an immensely pointless idea. No offense.

Additionally, CP, you should be aware that when we're talking about scan lines, we don't actually mean on the Wan Chai signs; those had no scan lines in the original. We're just discussing the number displays on that console Snipa posted a picture of. The original scan lines made it out to be a sort of (very primitive) LCD display, but Snipa's new texture makes it look like painted plastic or even concrete. I can live with that, just sayin'.

Okay I thought you meant the sign in the corner of the first screen shot with the scan lines. Still an issue though, I brought this up with snipa and his explanation was the high def monitor thing. There are signs in HK with scan lines.

I would like the interface to stick to the original but its really snipa's call on that too as he textured it.

Uh, it does make sense since none of the pictures you showed had any evidence of scanlines on them.

People were saying to stick to realism, so we are. No primitive LCD display is going to have scanlines, in fact, no LCD screen is going to have scanlines. There's tech demonstrations of thin flexible LCD's by Sony that don't have them, so why 50 or so years in the future they'd have them doesn't make much sense. I understand the aesthetic, but I just think they look rubbish.

I think we've established the fact that all the signs in WanChai are backlit Lightboxes. Hence why snipa's version looks more appropriate, these signs aren't meant to be solid slabs because they emit light in the game. My evidence suggest that this is how the signs should look. If snipa is serious about removing the scanlines then the scanlines will have to be removed from the signs. Thats assuming we go through with that. Thats that little bit over a done with.

Now onto the industrial switch board