Normal maps for games question.

[PIX]

Hey all, just wondering when it comes to normal maps in games. Does everything in game have normal maps or just characters/hero props etc. The reason i ask is because i thought
that the art style in street fighter 4 was just hand painted textures, but the character in the game have normal maps.

I know its all about the characters in that game but do background objects/props have normal maps?

Thanks.

[Moshie]

I suppose its all down to how much detail you want from your environment.

Also what prop it is, if its say a can on a desk that isn't going to interact much with the player you could get away with a simple diffuse texture but if its a prop the player interacts with and is going to see most of the time it would 99% of the time have a normal map.

hope this helps.

[poopsterspappy]

I am by no means an expert on N Maps but the fundamental concept of LOD would suggest that if an object is fairly far away and it won't be interacted with Normal mapping may just be a waste of memory. If I'm wrong I stand corrected. The one thing I do know is that when I was taking Eric Millers online Gnomon class he was emphatic that bump maps and normal maps while very important are very much secondary to getting your spec right. Specularity sells a texture from a distance not normal maps.