Substrate Headcrab

--scroll for documentation--

16k tris LOD0 - 44 tris LOD5
40.36 tx/cm
1 UV set - 4k Texture
1 geometry (Low-Poly)
1 Substrate Shader - 3,2k instructions
3 idle animations
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Engine Setup: Unreal Engine 5.7.4 raw renders - no external image editing.
Human-Made Integrity: No generative AI touched my final work. I only used it occasionally during the early concept phase for rapid reference research and spell-checking.
Documentation: The full 62-page Technical & Artistic Case Study is attached below. I hope it serves you well to learn from it!
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Hey! I’m glad to share my Headcrab project with you, using Unreal Engine's Substrate for the skin. Except for the extreme texel density and the shader, this asset is fully game-ready, from ragdoll to animation and geometry. It is an original redesign of the classic Half-Life 2 Headcrab by me.
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What I Did (Full Production Pipeline):
Pre-Production: Research (Biology, Fan theories, IP alignment).
Concept: Iterative 3D sculpting on the fly.
High-Poly & Baking: Sculpting, custom Substance Designer alphas for fine details, and baking.
Anatomy & Low-Poly: Topology, texturing, and fitting a functional high-poly Ecorché beneath the low-poly mesh.
Tech Art & Animation: Engine implementation, advanced Substrate shader setup, rigging, custom idle animations, poses, and manual LOD optimization.
World Building: Environment set-dressing from pre-made assets, lighting, VFX placement, and cinematography for the final compositions.