This week, we're adding Construction Zone to Cargo and the KitBash3D store. Packed with structures in various stages of assembly, this Kit is loaded with cranes, towers, shopping malls, apartment buildings, and more to help tell stories of growing mega-cities, or development gone awry.
In the Kit, you'll also find props and job-site essentials like a foreman's trailer, supply sheds, and stacks of pipes. Construction Zone delivers hands-on, dynamic environments that boast the grit, grime, and genius of ground-up creation, providing you the tools and templates to craft a metropolis that's not just standing, but thriving and alive with action.
To learn more about the design of the Kit, we talked with the KitBash3D team of modelers, texture artists, and more about the assets and hidden-stories featured within. Read on for a look at exclusive blueprints, behind the scenes production imagery, and more!
What was your favorite part about working on the Kit?
“My favorite part about working on the Kit was working with our amazing concept artist, Fabio, to come up with all the different types of construction sites that would be useful and interesting for everyone. This Kit has things that we have never done before like building foundations that are meant to be below surface level, dirt pathing from vehicles, and a ton of exposed elements that normally we wouldn't do because they are hidden behind structures.” - Mike Reese, Head of Kits
“The concept stage was what I enjoyed the most. Talking to Fabio about how buildings work and figuring out how much detail would be enough to convey the idea of each asset being a building under development.” - Luis Tornel, Asset Supervisor
“My favorite part was modeling the props found on site, especially the two cranes which were very challenging and fun to create. I had to find references, dimensions, and think about them in a modular way so that all pieces would fit together like in a real setting.” - Dan Ene, 3D Modeler
“My favorite part of working on the Kit was being able to do some research into actual real-world construction principles, and then communicating that over into the 3D modeling process to make the structures feel more grounded. It was fascinating to do a deep-dive into a few construction methods, and I'll probably never look at a construction site the same way again.” - JD Havenga, 3D Modeler
Do you have a favorite model from the Kit?
“My favorite buildings are the small structures, specifically, the small apartment buildings. I think that they really do a great job representing the entire Kit. They have tons of details, show off all of the killer props that we created for the Kit, and remind me of some of the office buildings that were being built just down the street from KitBash headquarters. They are just a ton of fun!” - Mike Reese, Head of Kits
“For the Structures, I would say the modular housing, and for the assets, the cement bag pallets. Laura did a fantastic job with those textures and graphic design.” - Luis Tornel, Asset Supervisor
“I like the Tower Crane as a prop and the spheroid form of the Software Company HQ building, that's really cool - the ‘under construction’ aspect of it. JD did a great job modeling it!” - Dan Ene, 3D Modeler
“My favorite model would probably be either the Modular Housing or Wooden Office building. The Modular Housing structure has such a cool concept behind it. The Wooden Office building was really interesting to learn about, and then to model. I was completely unaware of such large wood buildings before.” - JD Havenga, 3D Modeler
Is there anything about Construction Zone you'd like to highlight or shout out?
“Mega shoutout to the modeling team for putting this Kit together. There were a lot of new and challenging concepts to tackle in this Kit! One of the big ones was that everything was exposed and out in the open so we had to be conscious of making the Kit feel dense like a true construction site while also not filling up every floor. The team also did a fantastic job with all the props and detailing them so that creators can utilize them in any scenario. Amazing job all around!” - Mike Reese, Head of Kits
“As with every Kit, this was an amazing team effort. Fabio with concepts, Dan and JD modeling, Emily with the in-kit graphics, and Alexey and Laura with the killer materials! So shout out to everyone for another amazing Kit! I am very excited to see what the community does with it!” - Luis Tornel, Asset Supervisor
“This was a very special and cool Kit, with so many repetitive elements and exposed under-construction structures which presented the challenge of handling very large scenes (in terms of elements and polycount). We had to think first as engineers and make sure the buildings we translated from concepts made logical sense structurally and had a solid grounding like in real life. Secondly, we had to think as architects about aesthetics in terms of work in progress and try to suggest visually almost how the final product would look. For example, some of the buildings are more advanced and they have curtain walls partially.
Everybody involved did a great job. Shout out to JD for the great collaboration and execution of the Kit, to Mike for the feedback, to Luis for organizing the Kit, and to the guys from the texturing team for the awesome textures.” - Dan Ene, 3D Modeler
“I think Dan Ene did a phenomenal job during the set dressing phase by keeping things interesting and by creating little narrative dioramas across all the structures.” - JD Havenga, 3D Modeler
What stories of a growing metropolis or development gone awry will you tell? Make sure to get our newest Kit included with your subscription to Cargo Pro!
