I am seeking a highly creative 3D Character Artist and Animator to join as a core creative partner to bring The War We Built Inside to life. We are on a strict production timeline to release our public playable demo, Sector 1, by March 13th, 2027.This is a 100% original indie title. We are strictly bypassing generic asset-store packages to craft a distinct, unsettling, and raw atmosphere modeled after classic retro/PS1-era survival horror.The Visual Direction:The entities in this game are highly visible and are the core source of dread. Your role will be translating written lore and concepts into low-resolution, high-impact 3D models. The cast includes:Protagonists: Survivors navigating a dark, claustrophobic environment.Entities & Enemies: Grotesque military-biological hybrids featuring fluid, regenerating slime traits, massive demonic shapes, and tragic mutated humans.Because we are aiming for a classic retro horror aesthetic, we favor gritty, low-poly geometries wrapped in raw, high-contrast textures (rusted metals, organic tissue, corrupted tactical gear) that react dynamically to dim flashlight beams.What You Will Be Doing:3D Modeling & Texturing: Creating original, stylized low-poly character and monster meshes optimized for seamless import into the Godot 4 engine (ideally exported via .gltf format).Rigging & Animation: Rigging character meshes and animating their movement loops. For the entities, we are specifically looking for a stylized, stop-motion, or violent “jitter/twitch” animation style rather than smooth cinematic walking cycles, creating an immediate sense of unnatural dread.Current Project State (What’s Already Built):You are joining a project with active, daily momentum. I have already personally finalized:The working 3D player controller physics framework (walking and jumping mechanics).The foundational structural layout and gray-box architecture for Sector 1.
Compensation & Partnership
Demo Phase Hourly Tracking: You will be compensated at a rate of $15 per hour for active visual development work on the Sector 1 Demo. Compensation will be calculated and paid strictly based on logged hours tracked by the artist.Demo
Completion Bonus: You will receive a flat cash payment of $50 immediately upon the successful completion, testing, and public launch of the Sector 1 Demo.
Full Game Commercial Transition: Upon the successful release and funding of the demo, the project will transition into full game development. At that stage, your rate will increase to a minimum baseline of $20 per hour for all subsequent logged production hours and a $100 bonus for each chapter completed.
Performance Pause & Project Delay: If the Sector 1 Demo does not successfully generate sufficient user plays, engagement, or traction required to secure commercial funding, the development timeline for the full game will be delayed and all subsequent hourly payments ($20/hour) will be paused until sufficient funding or traffic targets are met.If you are an artist who loves creature design and wants to help sculpt a raw psychological nightmare from scratch, please reach out via message with a link to your ArtStation, portfolio, or past game project models!
Hello buddy! I came across your post and I’m very interested in the project. I can create 3D character models and also handle the rigging and animation. Do you already have a specific polycount, texture resolution, or export setup required for Godot 4, such as a specific .gltf workflow? I also attached my portfolio with some of my previous character work for you to review. I’d be happy to discuss the project details further.
https://www.artstation.com/artwork/G1eamB
Hello handeranc!Thanks for reaching out, your background looks great! I’m really excited about your interest in The War We Built Inside. Having someone who can handle modeling, rigging, and animation all in one place is exactly what Sector 1 needs.To answer your technical questions for the Godot 4 pipeline:
Style & Polycount: We are targeting a distinct retro/PS1-era survival horror aesthetic. We want character models to stay within a tight low-poly budget—ideally around 1,500 to 3,000 polygons max.
Textures: We want gritty, pixelated surfaces, so a texture resolution of 256x256 or 512x512 works perfectly.Export Setup: Standard .gltf or .glb format with baked animations works seamlessly with our current Godot 4 scene setup.
As mentioned in the posting, the compensation structure for this initial demo phase is an hourly tracking role at $15/hour, with a $50 flat cash completion bonus immediately upon the successful launch and public release of the Sector 1 Demo.
Once the demo drops by our March 13th, 2027 deadline, we will leverage its traffic to secure full commercial production funding. At that phase, the role transitions to a minimum baseline rate of $20/hour for all tracked hours, with the safety clause that payments pause if the demo fails to bring in funding targets.If those technical specs and contract terms look good to you, let me know! I’d love to share the written lore and sketches for our first visible monster so you can see what you’ll be creating.
Hi, I saw your monster-modeling request and the Godot 4 specifications you shared.
Would you consider a fixed-price trial for one original monster rather than the ongoing hourly role? QueueRelay can offer a $180 prototype: a low-poly mesh up to 3,000 polygons, one 512x512 texture, a rig, and idle, movement and twitch animation loops exported as GLB, with an editable Blender source and one revision round. We’d check the import and animations in Godot 4 before delivery.
We don’t have a matching creature portfolio to show, so I’d suggest agreeing the first design and acceptance criteria before committing. Could you share the lore and sketch for the first monster so we can confirm whether it fits that scope?
I’m Thomas, the written contact; our company would do the modeling and technical work.
Thomas Cloarec | QueueRelay
I understand everything. I’d be happy to discuss the project further on Discord. Here is my Discord account: rinaberry1
I would love to do this but sadly I’m too young and I have my own game to work but I can help with storyline for free! How that sound?
Hey there Sword
Sure thing, we do need some better advancement to the story for the later chapters, Though you will still be paid a bonus for each chapters release ranging from anywhere around $10-$30, Though it isn’t a lot. We already have more than half the story done, feel free to add me on Discord
forgedgearstudios
Like I said I don’t want the money, I’m too young and I don’t have discord so I will send you all the story I make through messaging you but first could summarize the story so far.