ASCARI STUDIOS · GARDEN STAR · SEPTEMBER 2026
A real place.
A make-believe adventure.
The monument in this prototype was rebuilt in code after inspecting public front, corner and gateway photographs. No purchased 3D model, private archive, scan or photogrammetry dataset was used.
The photographs we studied
- Front view of Safdarjang Tomb — Yash raina, 2018. CC BY-SA 4.0. Used to study the central portal, two-storey side bays, dome silhouette, plinth arcade and palm-lined approach.
- Corner view of the monument — Ujala.chowdhry, 2016. CC BY-SA 4.0. Used to study octagonal towers, cream panel grids, floral motifs, balconies, chhatris and recessed arches.
- Gateway to the Tomb of Safdarjung — Pratyush Jayachandran, 2012. CC BY-SA 3.0. Used to study the framed view and the depth of the entrance passage.
The photographs are credited reference material. They are not painted onto the game model. Downloaded originals are retained in the project’s research folder, unchanged.
Architecture & history
- IGNCA: inventory record sd51tos0001, especially page 3. Describes the elevated arcade platform, polygonal towers, white ornament, four similar façades and sixteen-sided dome drum. The record’s dimension fields are blank; it is not a measured plan.
- Delhi Tourism: Safdarjang Tomb. Supports the 1753–54 date, the association with Safdarjung and the existence of the smaller garden pavilions.
What is approximate
One game unit represents one metre. The working layout uses a roughly 280 m square enclosure, a 50 m terrace and an approximately 28 m tomb silhouette including its towers. These are modelling assumptions, not dimensions verified by an on-site survey. Façade proportions are estimated from photographs; individual relief patterns, planting positions, mosque and peripheral pavilion details, interior, stair placement and playable access are simplified or interpretive.
The tomb’s main recognisable features are built as geometry: a raised arcade, deep scalloped entrance recesses, two levels of side bays, octagonal patterned towers with chhatris, the central drum and weathered pale dome. Vegetation is made from branched trunks, curved fronds and individual leaves. Stone colour, roughness and bump maps are original procedural assets, not sampled historic surfaces.
Original game assets
Mithu’s illustrated portrait is an original AI-generated project asset from the first prototype. The new architecture, vegetation, textures, sound cues and puzzle drawings are original code-generated assets. The previous generated material atlas is retained in the source archive but is no longer used by this version of the game.