Model Peer Review (aka "How to tell if a model submission is good")

[Peardian]

I've come to realize that things around here tend to slow down when I'm not around, because many people seem to be in the mindset that I'm the only one who can tell whether or not a model submission is good enough to accept. This may have been true at one point, but it certainly isn't anymore.

This thread is a list of the guidelines I use in determining whether or not a submission is good. What I hope to accomplish with this is encouraging you, the submitters, to not only check your own submissions, but also to check the submissions of your fellow members. This should speed up the evaluation process, and keep things from stagnating.

So, without further ado, here are the guidelines! If your submission passes all of them, there's a very good chance that I'll accept the model.

1. Basic Submission Guidelines
-Does the submission include at least a DAE or OBJ model? Having extra models (PSK, MD5, SMD) is fine, as long as they are available in at least one of the basic formats.
-Are the textures all in .PNG format? I'm not allowed to accept .TGA files at all.
-Are the textures and models in the same ZIP/RAR archive? Submissions can only consist of one file. Plus, having the model and the textures in separate archives makes getting the model a pain.

2. Model Essentials
-Does the model actually work? And does it look right? Make sure to actually check your exports! I've seen some submission attempts where somebody clearly didn't look at the model they exported before putting it up.
-Does every OBJ have a MTL to go with it? They define the materials that belong to the model, so having them is a must.
-Do the MTL files have proper texture paths? Some programs will use absolute paths or similarly mess with file paths when creating the MTL file. Pop it open in Notepad, and see if it lists just the texture file names. If it doesn't, remove the extra path junk. See the other thread for details if you need help.
-Do DAE models have proper texture paths? Like with MTL files, DAEs often have the texture paths messed up when exporting. Make sure the texture paths are all defined as something like "texture.png" or "./texture.png", or wherever the textures are in your submission. Again, see the other thread for details.

3. File Structure and Organization
-Are the textures in the same folder as, or in a subfolder of, the location of the model? Having the model an textures in a separate folder just makes using the model a pain or impossible. Note that when using OBJs, textures should be in the same location of the model. Not every program can handle textures being in subdirectories, and as such the import will fail. An exception to this is that certain programs look for folders named "Textures" or "Tex", but keep in mind that not all of them do. For DAEs, this isn't as important, but it makes using the model easier if everything is in the same place.
-Are completely unrelated models and textures in separate folders? It's fine to have alternate versions of an enemy character in the same folder, but don't stick a bunch of different characters together. Try to keep things organized. Using separate folders helps.
-Is the submission free from clutter? It's fine if you want to include a render of the model in the submission, but there's no point in including the submission thumbnail/preview or the leftover TGA versions of the textures. These just waste space.

4. Textures
-Are all of the textures intact? Certain programs will get rid of alpha transparency when converting TGA files to PNG. When this happens, the data is lost from the created PNG and cannot be restored. If you find this is happening, it means you need to find a better image converter.
-Are all textures present? Make sure all of the textures used by the model are included in the archive, including things like specular maps and normal maps. It is particularly easy to forget the latter when putting together the submission.
-Are there weird textures? Many modern game engines will stick together multiple bitmaps into single texture files to save space. These are usually the specular maps and normal maps, and can be easily identified by their unusual and vibrant colors. If these are present, you might want to consider doing something about them. However, it's not necessary, and I'll still accept submissions that have these. I plan on making a thread for more details on these textures.

5. Model Details
-Is the model optimized? Certain ripping processes will leave the polygons on the model unconnected. Not only does this increase the file size, but it prevents the model from being smoothly shaded. Make sure you take care of this before exporting.
-Are the normals smoothed? This isn't entirely necessary, but the models look nicer when the normals are properly smoothed and don't look all polygonal. Unlike the previous issue, this doesn't actually affect the quality of the model.
-Did the rigging export properly? If you move the bones, does the model move with them? Do the parts of the model bend in a way that looks normal? Do the bones actually line up with the character?
-Is the model centered? Try to make sure the object is centered on the horizontal plane. For characters, the horizontal plane is used as the floor. This can apply to objects, but doesn't have to.
-Is the axis properly centered and oriented? When exporting to DAE, the model will retain the axis it has in your original file. If you use 3D Ripper DX and don't fix the axis, it will make the model awkward to use.
-Is the model free of junk? Make sure you get rid of extra polygons and materials from the scene. This only really applies to exporting DAEs from a model ripped in 3D Ripper DX.
-Do the UVs look good? Look at the textures and see if they are on properly. Some programs will export them upside-down.
-Does the model look like it uses multiple UVs? For some models this may be unavoidable, but for BRRES models, there's a way around it. For an example, some characters will have a normal map that requires a different UV layout than the color map.
-Is the model squashed or skewed? These can be a little difficult to notice, but they are also rather damaging to the quality of the model. This will only really occur if you are using a scene ripper like 3D Ripper DX. Below are some quick tutorials to help you if you are unfamiliar with these issues.

Squash/Stretch

Skew

If I think of any more, I will add them to the list. I will sticky this after a day or so.

[josh98]

Man, thanks for writing this! This will help with my later-on rips!

Thanks

[Friedslick6]

It's great to have some specifics on model quality.

[Garamonde]

Brilliant.
I'll try to keep this stuff in mind next time I decide to check a model. Of course, I don't do that often for the simple reasons I don't have enough experience to be able to understand a lot of the advanced model specifics and because I already take care of the three other Resources.

[Tiberious]

One thing I want to point out when it comes to PNG, and this is why I generally prefer to get textures as TGA for my own use, is you might want to be careful and make sure that if the texture doesn't use any alpha, that you flatten that puppy.

For example, if you open a PNG extracted with BrawlBox or BRRES Viewer in Photoshop, you'll see it's on 'Layer 0'. Other programs will treat this as having an inherent alpha channel, and that can be bad (causing sorting errors). For textures that do have an alpha channel, then flattening is bad, obviously.

[TGE]

I have a question. What do you think about using symmetry when T-posing a model? It's what the modelers did and it shouldn't be of any problem if the model or polygons are symmetrical.

[Peardian]

Symmetry requires the center of the model to be absolutely centered all the way through, and requires the model to be completely symmetrical. Even a subtle tilt of the head would mess things up. I recommend avoiding it.

[Tiberious]

I have a question. What do you think about using symmetry when T-posing a model? It's what the modelers did and it shouldn't be of any problem if the model or polygons are symmetrical.

Some models don't have symmetry between left and right. The Klonoa ones I ripped were like that, and it was kinda infuriating to me. I ended up fixing most of those 'bad' edges before using the models for my intended purpose (I ended up making them into a base body [having to add geometry where he didn't have any before] and his outfits).

[valforwing]

while we are talking about t-poseing

what about quadruped models?
sometimes when someone T-poses them the limbs are sticking out like it was a bear skin rug, or like an A shape
it makes it very diffulcult to give the model natural rigging.

T Poseing is great with bipedal models but sometimes animal model don't look right....hrm.....
if T poseing is for bipedal is H-pose for animals? and then there is poseing for legless or long type animals like snakes and certail kinds of dragons and sea serpents. like supose you have a Naga model do you make the lower body completely strait or do you curve it where it would naturally curve?

and what of creatures with long necks? such as storks? or bird models are the heads suposed to be a ramrod strait shoot to the moon or neutral?

[Peardian]

I'm afraid that's rather off-topic. If you want to discuss T-poses for different types of models, I suggest making your own thread.

[TGE]

Could be just a little bit offtopic, but which formats do actually support vertex colors?

[Peardian]

I don't really know, but I'd love to find out. I know both OBJ and DAE can store a solid color for a material, but not any specific vertex-based mapping.