Hingeway Streets
Isometric Overview
This render shows an isometric overview of the whole scene, as you can see there is just enough environment modelled to block off sigh lines between any of the cameras and the infinite void of 3d space. The “Old City Wall” described in the flavour text below, and seen in the lower right of this image is a structure which came into being purely to block the sight-line from the Middle Kingdom Road view, creating the suggestion of further detail in the distance.
This view also reveals the largely untextured nature of models, any surface details had to be achieved with geometry for the most consistent results once the render was processed, traditional surface texture maps resulted in an overly fussy final product. The only textures employed are ones which have an effect of the play of light in the scene, i.e. glass, water, and emissive surfaces.
The Old City Wall
Part of the medieval defences of Hingeway, the City Wall still stands strong in many places, but has undergone modifications during the various phases of Hingeway's construction. The basic structure of the wall is simple, three gently tapering sections of rendered stone, each thirty foot high, stand atop one another, and periodically along the walls length, sturdy watchtowers a further thirty feet in height stand in defensive positions.
With the expansion of Hingeway outside this perimeter several passageways have been cut through the stone to allow pedestrian, road, and rail traffic to pass; these passages are lit with domed electric lights which are set into the walls. At many points along the city wall the watchtowers have been converted into clock towers, restaurants, apartments, and even lighthouses to provide illumination to the street below.