Normals represent the orientation of a 3d surface, this video explains what normals are, and how you can take advantage of them to improve the shading of your 3d models by using custom normals and normal maps.
Guilty Gear Xrd GDC talk: • GuiltyGearXrd's Art Style : The X Factor B...
PolyCount article on foliage: http://wiki.polycount.com/wiki/Foliage
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