Lighting — Chains Of The Eternals

9 min readAug 10, 2023

Lighting principles

Observations

The very principles of the first region’s city is the duality between traditional architecture on the bottom and heavy technological upper floors.

We should be able to see it day and night to feel the aesthetics and ambiance of Mar.

The main issue here (and on other maps with current lighting) is the deep dark areas which prevent players from seeing huge parts of the environment and more specifically the futuristic sections.

Besides, we don’t want to hide our own work. So, let’s turn on the lights!

If we turn off only neons, windows, screens and illuminated signs (anything that emits light without being a spotlight or light bulb) we have something like that:

Contrasted picture for reference purpose

Illuminated areas are small and most of the picture is black (even the ground floor behind arches).

Rules

Never obstruct any part of the image (except if it’s intended) and avoid black/too dark areas
Emissive objects are not lights, but narrative objects. Lighting is partly independent. Don’t add light on them
Contrast should be balanced (if too dark, emissive objects will create extreme contrast which will interfere with the map’s readability)
Lower contrast doesn’t mean to flatten the picture
Set an ambiance, an atmosphere, tell a story through the lighting

Color keys

Every single map created for the game comes with its visual render reference called a color key.

They could be seen as visual intentions or guides (because some of them required a lot of compositing/post processing), but they actually are meant to be color keys. A color key is a reference picture for lighting artists that sets the ambiance of a scene, of an environment.

Lighting artists must replicate the color key’s lighting as close as they can within the game engine.

Downtown’s visual intention/color key with our strong 2D art style (edited with compositing)

Downtown’s visual intention/color key with current style and created in a real time engine

Summary and comparison

The following spots are numbered from 1 to 10 and tell different stories depending on whether they are the current version or the color keys.

Current version

The alley is completely in the dark, no details are visible. The entire building is black
The bar’s building is entirely black, no greebles’ details are visible
The street that leads to the bazaar isn’t really lit
The curved arches’ upper floor is invisible, it’s impossible to guess what’s there
The central bar has a slight lighting behind the counter and the sidewalk is only lit at the rear. Nothing is lighted in front of the barman
The ground is lighted but none of its objects
The street is mainly black, with no relief
All the arched buildings are lit the same way with upper floors in the dark
The water low wall isn’t lighted
The inside of the bar has no light and, therefore, implies that it’s closed or empty

Updated version:

The alley is highly visible with a strong red/pink ambiance. We can see details in its street and the whole building
The bar’s building is illuminated enough to allow us to see its upper floor details
The street that leads to the bazaar is illuminated and with a distinct blue tint
The curved arches’ upper floor has a slight pink lighting
The central bar has a light both for its sidewalk and inner counter
The ground is lighted and all of its objects too
Most of the street is visible, even the parts in the dark
We can see details of the office, while it’s in the dark
The water low wall is lighted by a light or by itself but with a distinct ambiance
The inside of the bar is lit and allows us to guess what’s possible to find here

Lighting principles

Lighting is not just about setting light bulbs to bring light to a dark space. Lighting is a crucial stage in the production of a video game (or a movie, whether live action or animated).

It’s used to help tell the story that takes place in its specific environment. It’s neither a mechanical process, nor a logical one based on architecture and street furniture. Lighting is both narrative (and emotional) and useful.

Identity

Lighting provides an environment with a unique aesthetic and ambiance and ensures consistency throughout the game. We should be able to recognize and identify the level of a game thanks to its lighting (even the game itself), alongside its art direction (stylization + designs).

The same way a car is not necessarily a box with four wheels in every works of fiction, night is not always synonymous with the absence of light (and therefore, with black). In COTE’s universe (and more precisely in Mar), night doesn’t always mean total penumbra. On the contrary, night is like a dark purple filter on a bright scene (like the cinematographic American night), with a moon acting like a pale sun.

The idea is to get something completely lit with a diffused and dim moonlight with a purple tint, where everything is already visible without extra lighting. This is the very basis on which we add meaningful lights that bring emotions, narrative (help telling the story) and utility.

Utility and gameplay

Lighting also plays an important role in the gameplay. It’s about story but also guidance. If we have an illuminated alley in a city’s map, players will acknowledge that it’s possible to explore this area (what they won’t think if the street is not lit, and therefore not visible).
And its ambiance also tells something about the gameplay. If the street is red, players can expect dangers, fights and enemies. If the street is blue, yellow or orange, their feelings will be different and they won’t seek trouble there (it’s part of the level design).

Colors and atmospheres

Colors have a meaning, whether they are on textures or applied as a lighting. They define an identity, set an harmony, guide our eyes, create an atmosphere and convey emotions. Some visual codes are almost universal because they are biological.

Examples:

Cold colors (like blue) calm down when hot ones excite and attack. A lot of different colors at the same time will bring joy, madness or disorientation. Lack of colors will bring control, grief or desolation. Erotic scenes will have hot colors (pink, red) and thriller/suspense scenes cold ones (green, grey, blue).

Colors symbolism

❶ The alley is a dangerous place as it’s darker and narrow (that’s why its light is red). There is also some pink as it’s next to a nightclub (pink for eroticism).

❸ The bazaar is turned towards the future. It’s a peaceful place of trust (blue for confidence), so the street that leads to it is illuminated with blue.

❿ The bar’s interior is warm, convivial and old fashioned/medieval (so orange for sociability and past).

Color contrasts

Besides symbolism, colors are perceived differently by our eyes. We can leverage this perception to help direct our gaze and guide it where we want it to go. Our eyes first go to hot colors and bright areas. We perceive yellow-green colors first, but are more attracted to red.

We can use that natural order or change it thanks to contrasts. But it’s important not to push it too far, to maximize reading comfort.

We can use these tricks with lights (over other lights or objects) to tell some stories, avoid some legibility issues or guide our eyes to points of interest.

Atmospheres and genres

Sometimes, particular genres require specific ranges of colors.

For instance, the Cyberpunk genre we use for Mar is often associated with red, pink, purple and turquoise colors used as ambient or accent colors (mostly in neons). It’s therefore more important to use them for that specific reason more than for symbolism (while keeping this narrative aspect in mind).

Mar’s influences also draw from Arabo-Persian culture and architecture, which is more associated with ocres, tan, sand and gold colors, as well as yellow lights.

It’s the balance between these colors both in textures and in the lighting that will create our distinct and basic atmosphere (over which we should add local narratives with special ambiances like I did on the alley).

Lighting guidelines

The basis

As seen in the sections above, lighting should follow the same steps for every map of Mar, and every upcoming map of the whole game. It requires a common lighting basis, copied from scene to scene. This basis is made of a specific skybox and some post-process presets.

Step 3: **adding the moonlight (directional light)**

Step 1 is less black than current lighting but it’s not yet the basis. Step 2 adds identity with tint and post-process (without too much glow) and Step 3 finalizes the basis, enlightening everything.

As you can see in Step 3, the whole scene is lit, everything is already visible and understandable, without the lighting (details are visible, this environment is easy to understand). Lighting of Step 4 only adds story elements, gameplay guidance and aesthetics.

Instructions

Following these simple instructions will help to keep a consistency and a minimal optimization:

Never put light on street furniture (street lamp, screen, sign, window etc.), except if it’s associated with an area’s ambiance (like light 4)
Set a limited number of lights
Use colors and ambiances in a smart way, respecting colors symbolism, level pathfinding/waypoint system/players guidance and narrative
Don’t keep an area really dark, even if it’s intended
Don’t flatten the image with too little contrast or colors

Number and types of lights

Try to limit as much as possible the number of lights in the scene. Environments don’t need many lights to be neither visible, nor understandable and interesting. In the Downtown example, only 6 lights are used, including the common moonlight of the basis (light 1).

Directional lights should be reserved to the moonlight, which would be used only on the basis (light 1)
Spot lights should be used to illuminate specific and well-defined areas and replicate a big projector (like light 5)
Omni/point lights are the most used ones, useful for setting an ambiance to a whole area. It’s the main type of light to use (lights 2, 3, 4, 6)

Shadows should be used very sparingly on as few lights as possible and only if it really adds a dramatic and meaningful aspect to the environment.

Making it interesting

Finally, the lighting stage should provide our levels not only narrative, guidance, legibility and emotions, but also interest and appeal to give the players the desire to explore, ignite their curiosity, and instill the idea that this world is vast and diverse. All of this is achieved through lighting and various atmospheres within the same map.