Task 12 – My personal review of the first year

I have enjoyed this course for the first year, it took a while to get used to at first and I didn’t get to a good start after breaking my arm in the 2^nd week and not being able to get any sleep whilst in a full arm cast. But I’ve pretty much settled down now, although I really need to work on my time management. 2D is my favourite part of the course because I like drawing, but I need to do more personal work and remember to upload things to Facebook once I’ve finished, and not all at once just before the deadlines. I also need to work more with colour and traditional media other than pencils.

I also like 3D, but struggle with it a bit, I need to look at more tutorials and take more advantage of the help available. I tend to underestimate texturing and spend too much time on modelling, which leaves me rushing it too much, I know I can do better I just to spend more time.

For someone who really hates writing and never feels confident doing it, I am enjoying the blog writing more than I should. But I realise I need to proof read my work more, and upload it on time. I also need to start writing personal things, which I always have ideas for, but never get round to actually writing them down.

I have always enjoyed life drawing, and was looking forward to starting it in the 2^nd semester because I had done a lot of it in college, but never really been taught what I was doing write or wrong. I enjoy life drawing when I can see, and most of the time I can’t, even when I come in early to find a good space it seems there is a pose I can’t see or the model moves. It is simply just too crowded and I know things are trying to be changed, but the pillars are very annoying. Also sometimes it is unbearably hot in the life drawing room, I understand it needs to be warm, but it’s hard to concentrate.

I haven’t really got much to say about 3D except I think most of the class find it difficult as it is a steep learning curve. I’ve kind of got on with 3D myself, because I have 3DS Max at home and I do most of my work there because I have two monitors and my keyboard shortcuts are customised to my style.

I found the guest lectures really useful, it’s good to have a realistic insight into what we could end up doing. I also found many of the guest lectures to be motivational, and ease my mind on certain aspects which I was unsure on.

I think I need to do more personal work, really get to use to 3D and practice everything I have learned so far and make sure I fully understand it for next year. I also need to continue drawing things so I don’t get rusty.

Task 11 – Environment

Level designers are responsible for creating the environment in which everything goes in, it’s probably going to be the first thing the player sees and takes interest in. The process the designer goes through will change depending if it is for the single player or multiplayer part of the game. If it is multiplayer it is likely they will concentrate on the core elements and layout before focusing on then art side of the level. They will also try and create a variety of different levels so everything is unique.

When creating a single player level, they will have to create the level based on where they are in the story and the brief they have been given. Which will include, which kind of style it will be, where it will be, what happens etc. If it is a scary level, they will have to create something which will usually be dark, limited lighting, tight corridors and places for characters to jump out. They will have to guide the player to a certain point, so some doors will have to be closed for example, while a room will be open with something interesting inside, usually with a light source to draw the player in.

The colour pallet and lighting will be a big part of creating the atmosphere for a level. Bright and bold colours will give a feeling of warmth and happiness. Whilst dark less saturated colours will give a scary and grim feeling, which means the player will be more cautious.

Like any part of the game design process, level designers will have to fit their levels around the genre of the game, for example a kids game will probably have simple level structure, with a friendly colour pallet and bright lighting. Whilst a shooter game is likely to have realistic environments, like warn torn city’s, lots of places for the player to take cover and a more complex layout.

The game levels must match with the overall style of the game, but also make the player believe that the world could exist, this can be done by using a realistic setting and adding objects and buildings which are unique to the game. 

Game designers will often go through a lengthy research process, no matter how talented someone may be, real life references are always useful to the designer. Little details on objects, buildings and textures may be overlooked if created straight from the imagination. If the designer was briefed to create a level based on a certain town in a certain country, they will likely go to the place. They will explore, take photos, pay attention to the layout, textures, buildings etc.

I quite like the level design on the gears of war series. I think it is very interesting, although maybe a bit grey and colourless, but this adds to the overall feeling of the game. Because it is not set on earth Epic Games have used different types of buildings and artwork which we don’t see every day. It reminds me of my trip to Barcelona, with similar types of architecture. I think some of their level design looks a lot like Antoni Gaudis architecture work.

Task 10 – Characters

I think the best characters for me, are the ones which I remember the most, the ones which are instantly recognisable. Most of which are from films as I don’t read many books and game characters often seem to be very cliché.  Some characters i remember are: Travis Bickle played by Robert De Niro in the 1976 film “Taxi Driver”.

“A mentally unstable Vietnam war veteran works as nighttime taxi driver in a city whose perceived decadence and sleaze feeds his urge to violently lash out, attempting to save a teenage prostitute in the process.” http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0075314/

Apart from the great cinematography and overall feel of the film the character is the strongest part, the acting is very believable and I think this is what really makes the character. I don’t exactly relate to him, but am still on his side throughout the movie and can understand him.

I also like the two main characters in the film Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (which is also a book {which I haven’t read}). The two characters are Raoul Duke (Johnny Depp) and Dr Gonzo (Benicio Del Toro). The film as described by IMDB: “An oddball journalist and his psychopathic lawyer travel to Las Vegas for a series of psychedelic escapades.” http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120669/ 

The characters in this film are very believable, which is mainly down to the good acting, as throughout the whole movie they are in a drugged haze. The way the film is shot also contributes to the character building. The way the characters behave and the situations they get themselves into are very unnerving but brilliant. The film itself doesn’t really have a plot, which is almost the point; it brings the focus on the interesting characters.

I think games could learn to be bolder with the characters and try different things which haven’t been done before, which may be controversial, unlike the usual characters which seem to pop up in games again and again. I think the look of the character is important because it allows people to recognise what game it’s from, and make it stand out from the rest. But the most important part for me is the script and the voice acting, as the story is ultimately what draws you to the character. Cool looking ninjas and big future army men which loads of armour and big guns may look cool but aren’t necessarily believable or memorable.

Some games such as Half Life tell the whole story of the game without the player (Gordon Freeman) saying one word, yet the orange suit and crowbar have become icons in the gaming world. Think this is mainly down to the interaction with the other characters and world, and how believable and interesting they are. Also Gordon is an unlikely hero being just a theoretical physicist, yet he fights aliens, humans and robots in a mysteries world. I think the story and the setting has a big part in creating an interesting character when it comes to games.

Task 9: Art Direction

An art director is responsible for the overall look and feel of a game. He must take the brief and make the best artistic decisions he can, he will work closely with the lead artist and the whole art team. He essentially manages everything everyone is creating and must make sure it fits the games purpose and looks how it should. But this is a much bigger responsibility than it might seem. The artists and modellers can only create things the way he wants them, including style, environments, characters, textures, lighting etc. He must make sure the work flow is efficient so everyone on the team is working when they need to be, they need to be creating assets on time, so if another artist needs to work on it they can. If there are any delays it could directly affect the release of the game as everyone is always reliant on something to be finished when it needs to be.

I think art direction is a creative role but not necessarily an artistic role. The art director will have a lot of experience with artwork as he has likely worked on many other projects in his career, but he may not be directly creating anything. They will be using their experience, knowledge and artistic judgement to make the right decisions. This includes doing plenty of research, having a lot of good ideas and being able to present these ideas to the rest of the team in a clear, understandable manner.

The art director must have good leadership skills and be an authoritative figure, so he can tell the other artists what he wants and how it should be done whilst keeping everyone as a team. The other people in the team must respect his decisions and carry them out properly.

I think art direction in games is very similar to in films. Many of the same things must be taken into account, things such as lighting, colour pallet, scale, and placement of objects. They must create believable and dramatic environments and characters. This is because the player of a game and viewer of the film are similar in ways. They will be watching/playing the film/game and need to feel immersed. Films will be linear and take you through the world/story with certain camera angles whilst games will allow you to do that yourself, but ultimately the viewer/player will want to be part of an interesting environment with interesting characters. The main difference is that with games everyone will play a different way; they might look a certain direction or go off and explore. This can make it hard for the art director to tell a story. So they must create an environment which will make the player look in certain places and go to areas without feeling like they are being forced too. Often in games there are cut scenes at important times in the story which players can’t control so they don’t miss anything, in which case the art direction is almost the same as in film.

Dead Space 2 - Blood trails leading the player into a room

 

To become an art director I will need to develop almost every quality I have, including artistic skills, people skills and leadership skills. A lot of this will come in time and experience, which is the main thing companies look for. With each role I’ve looked at so far they always require about 4 years of experience and have worked on at least one game.

Task 8 – Elements of Game Design: Pong to Next Gen

Gameplay is the core element in games. It’s the interaction the player has with the game world, it’s how they control the character, explore, solve puzzles, interact with other characters, make choices etc. Gameplay varies from very simple games to complex modern games, but always stays similar in some way. For example most games have the main character (the player), the enemy’s they must kill or avoid and the setting for them to do so.

I think gameplay is the most important part of any game. The best part for me when it comes down to gameplay is to be able to make my own choices whilst playing, and these choices allow you to complete a certain objective or level in a unique way. I like games that allow each person to play it differently, have their own experience with it and yet still want to come back and play it again in a new way.

The big popular games nowadays seem to be very linear. The gameplay and even the story seem to take a backseat and everything is focused on how pretty the game looks. Take Call Of Duty: Black Ops for example, you can breeze through this game in a few hours, without having to use your brain. The rule for gameplay is: Kill these people, go there, kill these people, and take this objective. Popular games like this usually boast a “cinematic experience”, but if I wanted a “cinematic experience” I would watch a film. Although I think this depends on the genre of the game and what kind of people will play it. A first person shooter like COD is open to any casual gamer to pick up and play through, they don’t want to get stuck on a certain part and be too frustrated, they don’t want to be thinking too much about how to complete something; they just want to play through it. This is why I don’t blame the game developers, they know where the big market is, and they aim the game towards them accordingly. This makes money and is the ultimate reason the company exists in the first place.

Whereas other games, like RPGs or MMOs are aimed at the more dedicated gamer, who likes to spend hours on a game, customising their character, collecting items, making their own choices and playing their own way. These games aren’t always as popular but often have a loyal fan base. Game companies recently are making games with both RPG and action elements, which are personally my favourite, games like Oblivion and Mass Effect. 

Everyone has different opinions on what makes a good game because everyone has different tastes. I think game company’s produce a lot of bland shooters because that’s what they think the people want. But they fail to create the unique experience which the classic games have already done, games like Half Life.

I think the difference between a good developer and a bad one is what they focus on the most. If they start with a good concept and solid gameplay, the art direction and technical aspect won’t make as big a difference on how well the game does. I think this gives more responsibility to the people or person who decides what kind of gameplay they have in mind. The best art team and programmers can’t change the core of the game. I think this is proven in games like Minecraft, which I reviewed in my last blog, this game is very successful solely on the gameplay.

I think the balance for a good game is between gameplay and storyline. People can deal with standard gameplay if there is a good story and a simple storyline for great gameplay. But good graphics can’t compensate for both.

I think the gameplay that really makes a good game is just the replay ability. People love to get high scores, collect things and play a game over and over again. This is why games like Pac Man, which could never be completed is considered to be one of the best games ever. I think this has a lot to do with how much you can play it and how addictive it is, even though it is so simplistic. It also has a wide target audience. Similar modern games are Bejeweled and angry birds. Which are simple concepts, with a lot of replay ability, which anyone can pick and play whilst trying to beat their friend’s scores.

Task 7 – Personal game review

Minecraft

Minecraft is a sandbox game where the world around you is randomly generated; meaning everyone who plays the game will play in a different environment. It is currently unfinished and in its beta stages, but has already sold 2 million units. It was originally created by one person, Markus Persson, who has now created his own company which is finishing the game. It is a Java based indie game with simple graphics.

I choose this game because I think it is very interesting and unique compared to most games which have been released recently, it is also incredibly addictive. It is a 3D game created out of simple blocks, there isn’t a story or any objectives except to survive and create whatever you want. At night monsters come out and attack you. You can create anything using everything. There are blocks such as, trees, dirt, gravel, sand, water and all sorts of ores

What I like about this game is the fact that one person created it, and with a small amount of time it became a big hit and sold millions of copies, just because of the interesting concept.  This was all without any marketing and no budget. The game has no tutorial as of yet, which means at first it is very hard to understand, and the first thing you must do is build a shelter, before all the zombies, skeletons, and spiders come and attack you. It is recommended to search the internet for guides on how to build things.

If you want to build anything you must first mine for it. To do this you must first gather wood by chopping down trees. You then use the wood to create a crafting panel, which is what you use to create all the objects in the game. From here you can make swords, axes, shovels pickaxes etc. You must also create a furnace which you can use to smelt all the collected ore such as iron, gold, diamond etc. To find all this stuff, you must dig into the ground, find caves, fight enemies and explore.

At first this game seems very simple, but there are so many complex things to make and build. Such as mine carts, which you can use to travel quickly from location to location, you can also use them to build a roller-coaster. There is also red stone, which can be used to power devices, such as mine carts, TNT, traps, doors, lights, dispensers, music notes etc. There is so much to do in this game and it’s not even finished yet.

There is also a multiplayer aspect of it, where you can join other people’s servers and build things with them, or just attack them. With a range of mods people have made, which involve extra creatures, blocks, vehicles etc. It is also possible to get texture packs which completely change the look of the game.

I think this game is great because it’s so creative and something fun to play to pass the time. It also shows how just having fun gameplay can make a great game, with no fancy graphics, story or characters. Here’s a fan made music video which explains the game quite nicely, although it is pretty cheesy.