Reflecting on my first year...

End of Year Review

Before I started on this course, I didn’t really know what to expect. I’d heard great things about the course, being Skillset accredited, having students blasting off to places like India and America, I couldn’t wait to get started! I had an idea of what a game artist did from images and watching loads of videos on the internet, but I thought it was mostly doing concept art, digitally and traditionally, which is why I wanted to come to DMU and study Game Art. However the first couple of weeks into the course we were getting to grips with a 3D modelling package called “3D Max”, I won’t lie it was very daunting! I couldn’t seem to get anything done without spending days on end at particular aspects of the program; I was becoming paranoid of how good other people’s work was, compared to mine, which dented my confidence levels and even went so far that I was ready to quit by Christmas. This was made worse by getting stuck on a technical issue when doing the house project, that couldn’t be solved by other students and communication with the lecturer broke down, meaning this project was marked inadequate and I was not able to include it in an end of year game engine project.

After having a heart to heart with my family over Christmas, I decided to get on with it! So I made as many friends on the course as possible, which turned out to be a great move, because not only were they easy to get on with, they didn’t mind helping me at the things I struggled most with…….3D Max. By the time February came, I was gradually working more independently and finding out solutions to problems on my own, which helped me to produce a Ford Transit Van. It’s amazing to be talking about how much I struggled with the 3D side of the course when, at this moment in time, I have just handed in a fully textured post-apocalyptic weapon as my final project for the year. Oh not to mention putting all of my created assets into UDK, one of the best industry used game engines! I think the thing that stops me from working sometimes is self-belief; however I have had so much feedback from my friends in the group and one of the tutors about how I’ve progressed, it’s definitely increased my self-confidence, which has ultimately made me enjoy 3D work just that little bit extra.

On the other hand, the traditional side of the course has been incredible, instead of having lows and highs, such as 3D, I’ve spent the first year really getting into every project I get set! I’ve always been confident in scribbling down ideas, about anything, because I can get things across to people with ease, rather than struggling to say or write my thoughts. Coming into this first year of visual design with a foundation diploma in Art and Design, I thought this side of the course would be easy? How wrong could I be, firstly getting a brief every week for a whole year is ridiculous; sometimes I do rush or go brain-dead every so often, but because I know I got accepted on this course for my drawings, that burden never stopped me. However something I have noticed is that I’m starting to use colour, especially on the most recent projects, such as; 1970’s character and the Masters Copy project. I think is because some people in the room are better than me at what I do, which really does push me forward to experimenting and doing things differently to what I would. Another element to the traditional part of the course has been life drawing. Like others, I have done life drawing before on my foundation course so I wasn’t scared by the sight of naked men or women in the room. Somehow this degree level life drawing is completely different than what I learnt in the foundation course. This year I’ve learnt that if you draw with a relaxed hand and get the contour of the body stance as quickly as possible, it makes your work more fluid and believable, rather than using measurements to accurately draw a model, which is what I was originally taught in Foundation.

The only thing that I think needs to happen in the second year is for lecturer’s/students to start putting on classes for digital art, because for someone like me, who has never done anything decent on a tablet, doing tasks traditionally sometimes puts me at a disadvantage compared to others in the class. An example would be the last task of the year, the Masters copy. Everybody, I mean literally everybody was using digital painting to enhance their re-creations, because it only takes them a couple of seconds to use the colour sample tool, it takes me hours sometimes to mix the correct colour.

Anyway onto the last section, because I’ll end up moaning about being crap at digital art forever. We have a third part to the course, named critical studies. Critical study has been surprisingly enjoyable, because at the introduction to it, when the word “blog writing” was said, I and everybody else yawned! But without it we would have no knowledge about anything apart from ourselves and our own work. It really does teach you a lot of very interesting stuff, such as; learning about Game history (Pac-man through to next-gen games), and how to write blogs in a new games journalism way, which is hopefully the direction in which this blog is going. It’s a very lesson to have once a week, because I bet if Monet got asked about his water lilies painting, he wouldn’t respond with “I dunno?” That’s the point critical studies is getting across, that we need to have knowledge about every possible aspect of the game industry as well as being able to evaluate your own work and other peoples.

Again there has been only one point of concern, and that is there weren’t any lessons at all a month prior to the deadline, I don’t know why this was, but I would have liked to have had those lessons, because like I mentioned they are extremely helpful with my development over the course.

Overall, this year has flown by. I’m ready to start again next year and push myself even more to try and get the most out of this course, because “the more effort you put in, the more you’ll get out of it” quote from the seminar at the beginning of the year. I’ve learnt so much useful information and techniques from all three parts to the course; I just hope I don’t forget it all before I start back.

 

Environmental Issues

 

How do level designers construct and decorate the environment to assist navigation through the level?
 
The environment of a game is the base of the pyramid, which the assets and characters sit on top of. It’s the most important thing when it comes to producing a decent game, because the environment of the game has to make you believe you ARE that character and that you ARE in space (or anything other world/environment).

 

To an environment designer in the games industry, it is vital that you treat your level/world the same as if you were designing a maze, because you need to know where to go, how to escape and even find, shortcuts to get there or get out of there! The designer also needs to think about of the game and what the player sees through the eyes of the character. So depending on what kind of genre of game you were designing, you would look into setting, date and time of the event or fictional world, lighting and most importantly atmosphere. Games of this time and age have a story to tell through their environment, some even mix the reality of past or future events with fictional complications. Another element to consider is making levels that gradually get more difficult and testing, so you won’t find the player getting bored or completing the game in a day! That creates a bad game and bad reputation *cough cough* Fable 3.
 
How does the environment influence the atmosphere of the game?

The environment must be extremely relevant to the plot of the game or character (if the game is about one person or event). You need, as a level designer, to create a good atmosphere within the game, because you want the player to go through all emotions and facial expressions when they play. For example, I’m playing “Dead Space 3” I wouldn’t want the sun to be out and a slight wind blowing flower petals across my face! I want a distressing experience, with little natural light, caverns and tunnels with no exit, and messages written in blood across the walls of the level, doesn’t that sound better than the first option!? As a player you want to be in a new world where nothing is impossible, making the environment as realistic as possible, but keeping some stylisation throughout, this will create steadily flowing levels, with a huge amounts of interest, that’s if the player actually stops and takes a break from fighting “necromorphs” for example.

Is there a balance to be struck between realism and stylisation that supports or hinders the player’s belief in the game world?

I think there is a very slim line between realism and stylisation in the environments of games. Stylisation is a key factor in a game, because you need parts of the level to be an assist to the character such as having messages/symbols on the walls. If you apply those types of assets to the majority of the levels, players will start to use their surrounding world more often, there for bringing the environment into play, making them notice the place they are walking though. On the other hand a good level designer needs to know where to put the realistic factors into the game and how realistic do they want to make it! I have played a wide selection of games in my time, and as the years have gone by they have got more and more realistic, which is great, but sometimes you want the weird and wacky to still exist. For example “Modern Warfare 2” is based on real world events, WAR. And most of the environments are real, a level on the game is called “Afghan”, where do you think they got that from, Afghan……..istan. There was a lot of talk when Modern Warfare was released that it was a mockery of real soldiers and how they perform on the battle field. So I think when you have stylisation and realism to pick from, have half and half, because otherwise the game will be too truthful and real or so un-realistic it’s given a “U Certificate”.

 

Illustrate an example of an Environment you particularly like – who designed it, what real life equivalents does it pay homage to, does it reference existing film or literature genres?

 

If I had to verbally illustrate a particular environment, it’d have to talk about the underwater horror-show, which is Rapture from Bioshock and Bioshock 2. Steve Gaynor was the level designer for Bioshock 2 (which is my favourite out of the bioshock trilogy), he worked closely with a level artist who comes up with the sketches of the stylisation of the levels. In terms of real life equivalents, there are lots of people dedicated enough to make props and even short films from “Rapture”, but there are no real environments like it! However there is a blog online, which mentions that, the PayPal billionaire Peter Thiel, wants to build an underwater or floating city. So Bioshock is not really based on existing places but it might inspire something REAL to be made from it.

 

What makes a character?

Elements of Game Design – Character.

 
Think of the characters you've encountered in books, TV and in films. What are your feelings towards them?

I think the Lord of the Rings is a great way to identify characters, through the series of books and the series of films. I, myself haven’t read much, well any, of the Lord of The Rings books, however I have seen and loved all three of the movies. There are three main characters in the Lord of the Rings, they are; Aragon, Gimli and Legolas, who are the protectors of the main (but somewhat subsidiary character Frodo). First of all these three warriors are very different in terms of their character. Aragon, he must be the best character to watch on screen, purely to admire his brutal skills when killing all those Orcs. However because his backstory is revealed in the later films (2&3), you seem to understand why he didn’t show much emotion or involvement with the other characters, being his family tree is made up of kings and queens of the land, understandingly, putting a lot of weight of his shoulders.  I think this is interesting choice to make in films, books and even games. By having one of the main characters put to the side, in a sense, creates a lot of apprehension and mystery, which makes the viewer, reader or player want to delve deeper into the story behind characters, in this case Aragon. I think games are being left behind with character development and role, because it’s harder to visualise emotion watching some sort of coding input and out of sync speech, compared to someone showing real life emotions in film or by reading about the particular character in a book, which lets your imagination decide on the looks, style and personality of the character.

What techniques do you think are being used to make you respond to these characters?

There is a one techniques which makes the viewer, reader or player connect to the character, but this technique are nearly almost used in each form of media, be it a film, game or book. The best technique is description, if you really go into every detail of how the character looks, reacts, speaks, then you’re in for a good chance that the viewer, player or reader will believe this, thus creating a sense of interaction and believability to what/where/whoever the character is.

 “Chaucer invented a list -- of six ways -- for analysing characters:” This list really explains my point clearly and effectively.

·         What the character said

·         What the character did

·         What the character thought

·         What the character wore

·         What the narrator said about the character

·         What other characters said about the character

So in simple terms;

·         Speech

·         Thought

·         Actions

·         Looks

·         What other characters think of them

How much is dependent on the script? The acting? Appearance?

 

Firstly, the script of the Lord of the Rings, is one of the most compelling but complicated things you’ll see in films, books and games. Having the script balanced between Tolkien’s very own language Elvish and normally spoken English, does create a boundary between realism and fiction.

 

Secondly, the acting throughout the Lord of the Rings, does make all the difference when you’re watching the films. The main actors who play characters like Frodo, for example (Elijah wood), really grasps the movement to play alongside his use of words. He plays a very fragile, scared character, which takes some serious practice to recreate onto the big screen. He only moves when he thinks he needs to, unlike other actors, having hand gesture and lots of movement even when acting out the simplest and most delicate spoken lines.  Although actors need to become the role they play, it can sometimes distract the viewer from the basics of the film, such as; Storyline, action scenes and even the overall cinematic experience. Too much time spent on the characters, doesn’t always pay off, so getting the balance right is key.

Lastly, the appearance of the film. There is a distinct aesthetic element to the trilogy of films. This is probably the most important aspect in the Lord of the Rings, having attire, settings, and actors that relate to the original writings of J.R Tolkien was a definite way of collecting some of the harder audiences (ones that have read the books), because if it’s close to the description, the further  praise it’ll get. The Lord of the Rings appearance was helped tremendously by the amount of artists working on parts, ranging from sculpting weapons through to creating the imaginary sections of the world by using SGI. In my opinion, this is where the money was well spent in the production of the three films. If you imagine the film without any artistic input, it’s like seeing an orc wearing a pair of braces, because without imagination, it’s just a pile of words.

 
What sort of stories do you find completely irresistible? Why?

I find lots of stories irresistible or memorable, it depends on how much effort has been spent on the making of such a title. I don’t read that often, but I do adore watching films, so I’ll list some films that compare to  the Lord of the Rings, they are; James Bond, Star wars, Transformers. These three are also blockbuster films, old and new, but they contain good story and plot, brilliant aesthetics, but overall excellent characters. James Bond, Sam Witwicky and Luke Skywalker are all totally different characters in reference to their personalities, traits and roles within the films.  

 

What an art director has to say...

This short video link has an insight into the life of Ian Milham, who is the art director at Visceral games. In my previous blog post, I had written about art directors, what purpose they serve, how they manage their teams of people etc. But I couldn’t find much out about what they want from artists/developers who work for them? What they like to see in a portfolio? And do they actually do any work, or is it their job just to sit and shout orders? Well this video goes deeper into acknowledging what an art director is, what they look like, sound like and how they behave. Plus it’s a bonus for me, watching a video on Visceral games, purely because they create Necromorphs for a living!

Anyway, I hope you enjoy the link, and I hope you can see reference from my blog post "Game Design - Art direction..."

The minds behind..........Visceral Games

Art direction for games...

Elements of Game Design – Art direction for games

 

What does an Art Director do?

 

An art director, in the games industry, is the “the captain of the ship”. “Art directors are generally responsible for setting the visual tone, quality, and style for the game”. The role of the art director is to view everything to do with the game, such as; “how each character, prop, set, and location will look from any possible place in any level of the game. Everything has to be checked, because sometimes the smallest details can be as important as the main character of the game”.

 

Quotes taken from the book, “Beginning game graphics”, by Harry J. Evry.

 

Who are they responsible to?

 

Most art directors are members of a “board of directors”. Other board directors may include the financial director, human resources director, and IT director.  In the majority of companies these board members all report to a managing director who has overall responsibility for the company.  This is the formal structure of the company.  However, it is quite possible that for particular projects, the art director may well report to another director who has specific responsibility for that particular project.

 

Do you think it’s a creative role?

 

I can argue both ways for this particular question.  In principle the art director needs to be a creative individual who understands the creative processes needed when design a game and is able to empathise with the creative development team. On the other hand, the art director has to have key managerial skills to enable him to monitor and control the development of the game effectively.  So I think that the role has to be balanced between creativity and business management.  However, I think that it would be hard to be an art director without having a creative background which enables you to understand and manage the creative team.

 

How is art direction in Games similar to or different from Film, for example?

Art direction in games is very similar to films.  The creation and communication of an overall artistic vision is vital in both game development and film production.  Both mediums use story board techniques to develop and convey ideas and to plan the overall plot. Both mediums also require the creation of written scripts that actors can use to create the character’s dialog.  Props are also critical to both films and games.  For example in a game, props could be weapons, clothing and vehicles; the same is true of films.  Both mediums require defined locations.  On a game this is in the form of a 3D environment and in a film it takes the form of a physical location or set.  During development both mediums require trouble shooting.  In a film this is achieved through scene rehearsals and in a game it is done by playing discreet elements of the game. And finally both mediums require formal testing.  In a game this is done by knowledgeable developers actually playing the finished game and in film it is done at the final edit where the “rushes” are viewed.
 

 

What qualities do you think you’d need to develop if you want to become an Art Director in the future?

 

To become a successful art director I need to develop three key skills.  These are:

 

Creative skills - This includes the ability to create novel ideas and concepts and to develop these into exciting storylines, environments and characters.

 

Technical skills –These include the use of advanced modelling and animation software.

 

Managerial skills – This includes the management of people, time and finances, the development of my self-confidence and improving my communication skills.

Game Design?

Elements of Game Design – From Pong to Next gen...

What is meant by Gameplay?

I believe that gameplay can be best described as the way in which players interact with a game. The elements that make up gameplay include; the game’s rules, the game’s controls, game challenges (overcoming them), the game’s plot/ storyline and the connection it creates with the players.

 "A good game is one that you can win by doing the unexpected and making it work” Quote from Rollings, Andrew; Morris, Dave (2000) Game Architecture and Design New Riders Games.  Defining the word gameplay is quite hard without listing lots of different variants; however in summary I think gameplay is the overall experience a player gets from playing a game.

Who are the leading lights in Game Design?

 

In my view, the biggest and most innovative game design companies are those that have the best game design “track records” and consistently deliver gripping story lines. These include; Rockstar North, Ubisoft Montreal, Nintendo EAD and Bungie. These companies have produced many major titles including; Grand Theft Auto, Assassin’s Creed, Super Mario Bro’s, Halo and many more. These titles have been around for a number of years and have established themselves as “Classic” games. All of these companies have developed unique brands and have their own “Money Makers”. For example Rockstar North’s is Grand theft Auto, and Bungie’s is the “best seller”, Halo.

 

Where does Game Design take place in the modern Developer? Is it a single person’s responsibility?

From a creative perspective, game design takes place in a multi-disciplined team where each member of the team is directly responsible for his or her own role, but is also responsible for ensuring that their work fits in with the rest of the team’s efforts and contributes toward the overall design objective.



However, from a business perspective there is also a need for managerial structure which enables key creative and project management decisions to be made quickly and effectively.  This requires a level of “senior management”.

Do different genres require different design principles?

In my view different genres of game do not require different design principles. All next generation games need atmospheric music (requiring live recording), complex level and environmental designs (requiring the creation of side missions and interactive 3D environments), very complex plots (requiring in depth script writing and control logic) high resolution characters (requiring complex 3D character generation) and high levels of control interaction (requiring the use of sophisticated software techniques and powerful game engines). Irrespective of whether it is a Horror, Sci-fi, Action, Puzzle or Sport game these design principles remain the same.

What’s important for you, when you play?

 

When I play a game, I look for several key attributes.  These include: effective and responsive controls, level’s that flow well, a gripping plot, realism in all aspects of the game and a good reward/ achievement system? Because at the end of the day, what I want from a game is to be entertained and immersed in an imaginary world without the distractions of poor or inappropriate game design.

Reviewing Bioshock 2.

Game Review – Bioshock 2

 

I’m Elliot and my review is on the bestselling game from 2K………………Bioshock 2.

Firstly I will say that Bioshock 2 is the best game I’ve played on the Xbox, which is a pretty big statement, because I’ve played lots of games in the past such as; Dead Space, The Call of duty series, Left for Dead, Fable and loads of others, but Bioshock 2 stands out from the crowd. That’s why I am reviewing it today, with so much passion.

Bioshock 2 is the sequel to the original Bioshock. When the city of Rapture was first unveiled as the underwater world ravaged by civil war and self-destructive genetic mutants, it turned a lot of heads. This strange and unforgettable world was also one of wonder, that’s why Bioshock 2 was one of the most anticipated games of 2010. Set nearly a decade after the events of the original, BioShock 2's Rapture is just as atmospheric the second time around but the sunken derelict city of Rapture has lost much of the mystery that made it so memorable in the first game.

Everything seems kind of the same playing through, and the story that accompanies your journey is not as impressive or shocking as the original. However, BioShock 2 plays host to several enhancements over the first, including an expanded set of moral dilemmas, improved shooter mechanics, and a surprisingly fun and multiplayer aspect. Whether or not you've had the nerve to enter Rapture before, BioShock 2 is an all at once beautiful, thought-provoking experience that stays with you even when you turn of your Xbox, PS3 or other platform you have. It will leave you thinking for days on end; about what should I do, play stealthy, go out all guns blazing, harvest or adopt the little sisters?

Essentially it’s a first-person shooter. The key component of BioShock 2 is its story, and while it features a powerful narrative with a satisfying conclusion, it is not without its issues.

Whereas much of the first game focused on the city of Rapture and the mystery of how it fell out of the hands of Andrew Ryan (the creator of rapture).  BioShock 2 barely touches on these aspects, and as a result, you really need to play the first game before diving into the second one. There is reading on the big details buried within the menus for those who haven’t experienced the might of the original, but unfortunately, this isn't brought to your attention, so pretty much, they expect that you know about the original plot from Bioshock to fully experience the stunning city of Rapture and all its inhabitants in this second installment.

I think the only problem with the story is that you don’t know everything you want to know such as;

·         Issues with the way certain story elements or characters from BioShock were grandfathered in.

 

·         To larger problems with your very existence as a Big Daddy. It never becomes clear why you alone among the Big Daddies can use plasmids, for example.

 

But to be honest you only want to know those details after completing the game, because frankly Bioshock 2 has a seriously addictive story line.

However, in my opinion, it has a better story to the original game, purely because you return to Rapture in the eyes of the enemy of the first game, the Big Daddy. Who in their right minds wouldn’t want to play as a big daddy, seriously those guys are like the guardians of Rapture, to play with all that authority and power, I think that is one of the biggest reasons why Bioshock 2 was a massive success with fans of the first game and with new Player’s experiencing Rapture for the first time, within the confines of the Big Daddy suit.

On to the major difference between Bioshock and Bioshock 2………Multiplayer!

Bioshock 2 introduced multiplayer to the game, I think to give the game something more than just the 10-12 hour long story. I myself was very optimistic about the multiplayer factor of Bioshock 2, how was it going to play out? What will the type(s) of multiplayer modes are there? And finally is it fun? Bioshock 2’s multiplayer ability was extremely good. The multiplayer is set to accompany the story part of the game, with the maps corresponding to different areas you visit throughout the Campaign. Although you would assume that having the same experience walking around the places you’ve already been to would be boring, well you’re wrong. The whole multiplayer world of Bioshock 2 is very much based on popular online game modes, from Call of Duty or other games with a massive fan base for online play. It has game modes such as;

·         Team Deathmatch

·         Capture the flag (well cause its Bioshock, it’s called Capture the sister)

·         Turf War (Very similar to domination in the Call of Duty series)

·         Last Splicer standing

·         Survival of the fittest

·         ADAM grab (Which is based on a free-for-all game type)

·         And finally Kill’ em kindly (Which is Bioshock’s own game mode, as in the player has to win by using Gene tonics to kill others, such as “Backstabber – Instant kill from behind”, “Death Trap – In case an enemy passes the player, killing himself as well as the attacker”, “Fast feet – Which allows the player to get away quicker”, “Slugger – This tonic allows the player to kill another in one hit, however the swing of the weapon is slowed, so getting the timing of the swing is key”

Those are the main game types featured in Bioshock 2. The Gameplay is very good considering how basic it is, the movement as a character is relatively quick and assured with an easy swapping between plasmids and weapons. The only criticism I have of the multiplayer aspect of the game, is that the servers are sometimes incredibly slow and sometimes find yourself waiting for about 10 minutes for a match making connection, However detracting from that minor error, the overall multiplayer of Bioshock 2 is incredibly fun, somewhat hard at times, but what online multiplayer isn’t!

Oh……how could I forget the trick to playing Bioshock 2 online, is to get to the Big Daddy suit if you can, whoever suits up, is in for a treat, such as becoming a juggernaut on Modern Warfare 3, you get increased health, better and more devastating weapons to dismember the opposite team in many game modes. On the other hand the movement is annoyingly slow when you’re inside the Big Daddy suit, making you vulnerable to group attacks, or even being killed from behind.

Overall, I think it was very clever of 2K to add another element to Bioshock 2, because it has been collecting players, who wouldn’t usually touch any game unless it’s Call Of duty, and creating their beloved game, but portraying it in an atmospheric and mutated way, typifying the Bioshock style.

“Andrew Ryan dreamt of a world where his fellow man could endlessly pursue self-happiness and self-fulfillment, so he chose the impossible--a city beneath the oceans. When given the opportunity, the citizens of Rapture chose self-destruction in their selfish and twisted pursuits of his ideals”.

Above is a quote taken from the start to the original Bioshock game. Precisely what any player of Bioshock 2 would picture when roaming around Rapture. This is one hell of a sequel and has the changes needed to boost 2K games into a company with power in the marketplace of modern day games.

It may not be as mysterious and intriguing this second time around, but it is never the less host to a powerful and moving script that allows you to realize--or pervert—Andrew Ryan's principles at your own discretion. Regardless of whether or not this is a return visit to the broken paradise, which is Rapture; there is plenty to be found here to make it a worthwhile, meaningful, and compelling game.

I have really enjoyed analysing and reviewing Bioshock 2. There are not a lot of things wrong with the game, its bigger and better than the original. But by sticking to their guns, 2K games haven’t taken away too much of the structural foundations that were put in place in Bioshock. This should be a game that will live long in the gaming world, purely because not many companies can pull off a sequel without making catastrophic mistakes in what the fans and consumers want. It is the one of the best and most artistically brilliant games I’ve ever played.

Rating: 9/10