Anchor 1

Jellyfish Controller
an underwater diorama

Download Link

Alpha build

Info:
In the pursuit of creating something that resonates with my creative experience and endeavors, I challenged myself to make a diorama that serves as a testament to my consistent drive and passion. Initially, my focus was on developing a jellyfish deformation shader that synchronized seamlessly with player inputs. As the project unfolded, I turned my attention towards constructing a rigid body controller with "rocket controls" characteristics, granting players thrust and Y vector direction controls. Moreover, by tinkering with the deformation shader and the VFX graph, I managed to populate the scene with relative ease. Ultimately, my goal was to craft a visually cohesive diorama with a compelling atmosphere and art direction. Each step of the way was enjoyable and served as a profound educational experience.

Goals:

Creation of a physics & ShaderGraph based jellyfish movement controller
Craft a compelling underwater atmosphere
Setting clear deadlines for myself
Enjoy the process and create something that I like doing

Development time: 5 weeks

Status: Released

Roles and contributions:

Solo project

Main areas of focus were:

VFX
3D art
Simulation Physics

Tools:

Unity
Autodesk Maya
ZBrush
Visual Studio
Photoshop
Git

Development Snippets

I always start any project by gathering references

first iteration of the shader using the formula:
aSin(X)=(X-h/b)

second iteration using vertex position rather than UV to remove the pinching

To get a better idea of what to look out for in my finalized model, I made this test mesh in Zbrush model to observe the geometry deformation behavior.

Deformation looks good although the tentacles need to be straightened. Translucency also looks good.

For the second, more detailed model, I improved the deformation behavior by adjusting the poly groups. This refinement specifically enhanced the cloth simulation, resulting in a more realistic and visually pleasing outcome.

UVs using Maya. It is important than the seems were "hidden" so it wouldnt break the illusion of the procedural texture.

UV top

x-ray

adding cloth simulation to the arms and tentacles.

cloth simulation + shader in real time.

Coded a basic rigid body movement controller with quaternions to avoid gimbal lock.

Improving the feel by playtesting and adjusting the different paramters.

adding cloth coliders and fine tunning the parameters.

Basic VFX of fish and other creatures reacting to the player player position.

Everything together

I used the same shader principle for the whale, however, I masked specific parts of its body using math nodes to control where the displacement occurred. In addition, I added vertical and rotationary movement to make it appear as if the whale was gracefully gliding in the direction of its head.

I always start any project by gathering references

first iteration of the shader using the formula:
aSin(X)=(X-h/b)

second iteration using vertex position rather than UV to remove the pinching

To get a better idea of what to look out for in my finalized model, I made this test mesh in Zbrush model to observe the geometry deformation behavior.

Deformation looks good although the tentacles need to be straightened. Translucency also looks good.