What are the best practices for optimizing input parameters for different platforms and engines?

1 Know your target platform and engine

Different platforms and engines have different requirements and capabilities when it comes to rendering materials. For example, some platforms may have limited memory or bandwidth, which means you need to reduce the size and resolution of your textures. Some engines may have specific shaders or lighting models, which means you need to match the inputs and outputs of your materials. Some engines may also have built-in tools or features that can help you optimize your materials, such as compression, LODs, or material instances. Therefore, before you export your materials from Substance Designer, you need to know your target platform and engine, and adjust your input parameters accordingly.

2 Use input parameters sparingly and smartly

Input parameters are great for adding flexibility and interactivity to your materials, but they also come at a cost. Each input parameter adds a bit of complexity and overhead to your material, which can affect its performance and quality. For example, input parameters can increase the shader complexity, the number of texture samples, the memory usage, and the loading time of your material. They can also introduce artifacts or errors, such as seams, aliasing, or precision loss. Therefore, you should use input parameters sparingly and smartly, and only expose the ones that are essential or meaningful for your material. You should also avoid using input parameters that have a high impact on the texture resolution or the shader complexity, such as tiling, scaling, or distortion.

3 Combine input parameters with texture baking

Texture baking is the process of pre-computing and storing some of the information or effects of your material in a texture map, such as ambient occlusion, normal, or curvature. Texture baking can help you optimize your materials by reducing the shader complexity, the number of texture samples, and the memory usage. However, texture baking also has some drawbacks, such as losing some of the dynamism and flexibility of your material, and increasing the size and resolution of your textures. Therefore, you should combine input parameters with texture baking, and use them for different purposes. For example, you can use input parameters for controlling the high-level or global aspects of your material, such as color, roughness, or metallic. You can use texture baking for capturing the low-level or local aspects of your material, such as details, patterns, or variations.

5 Document and organize your input parameters

Input parameters are important for you and other users or collaborators who may want to use or modify your materials. To make them easy to understand and access, you should document and organize your input parameters. Use clear and consistent names and labels, avoiding abbreviations or symbols that may be confusing or ambiguous. Add tooltips and descriptions to explain the purpose and effect of your input parameters, providing examples or guidelines on how to use them. Group and categorize your input parameters by function or theme, using separators and spaces to create visual hierarchy and clarity. Choose appropriate controls such as sliders, spinners, checkboxes, or dropdowns for your input parameters, limiting the range and values to avoid errors or undesired results. Icons, colors, or thumbnails can also add visual feedback or information to your input parameters, such as indicating the type, the channel, or the preview of the input parameter.

6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?