20130426

Modular Building Design

So here I am sitting on the train for Toyama. I'm early so we are just sitting at the platform waiting for our departure time.

Out the window is this building, just north of the station. It's the Kanazawa-eki Mae Dai-Ichi building, offices I think, with a build-in vertical carosel parking garage. Looking at it got me thinking about game terrain.

Most buildings in Japan are of modular construction. You can see that this one consists of a number of square wall sections, roughly 10' x 10'. I took the first picture from the same train last week, and tracked the building down on my way to the station today.
Interesting is that, although it is modular, it maintains a complex, non-boxy shape. That's something you don't often get with building kits.
I've been looking at Secret Weapon's Clean Streets terrain Kickstarter, most likely to go with Ameritown plastic buildings, however they can seem overscale with the true 28s I favor. Thus, the possibility of scratchbuilding is not completely dismissed.

Studying buildings like this will hopefully help me design decent buildings.

Oh, I want a laser cutter...

2 comments:

  1. At least they're not made out of corrugated sheet metal like that old apartment you used to live it. Rusted with holes, if I remember your description accurately.

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    Replies
    1. That was the stairwell. We actually swung by good ol' Americanmura a couple months back. It's been renovated and has completely new stairs, and the 7-11 on the first floor is gone!

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