tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19644178896954013352024-03-18T21:55:21.223-07:00Jen Betts Uni blogJen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-23896087153018060032013-05-27T15:29:00.002-07:002013-05-27T15:29:31.802-07:00War of the Worlds Poster<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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I tried various different scenes for my War of the Worlds
project, but eventually decided I wanted to do something stylised.</div>
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<br /></div>
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I decided I
wanted to produce a movie poster, and so I took a look at various 1950s horror film
posters. I wanted to try to capture the style they used, with bold colours and
simple layouts.</div>
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</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqiLVVI7WuQPptMCnp5l06CH6xNJUJInHSP-2tlvxziGcTMclXhKdSro0dtWLJa6AngMQP7PuCCJKwrUrbt2UYiUXEcNA2aUbyqABDOnBrtiN0WJ2jXdbreqzdsYYD0yPxPd-MxK37Jng/s1600/waroftheworldsfinal.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> </div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ38uIXb-ZdaM4XwKdOvEhaRJuy2S5RhoIiLVhV8sTYTQW7P3QIiVyi0QlCb0T2M8QX0HmU_mkt1-0wpJUejjE0ypMfGsj_F-73NKOB7TcTfIESx3UYhdvtWSKGOFpCNLM7AIGslMJFqA/s1600/wotwposterthumbs.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="298" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJ38uIXb-ZdaM4XwKdOvEhaRJuy2S5RhoIiLVhV8sTYTQW7P3QIiVyi0QlCb0T2M8QX0HmU_mkt1-0wpJUejjE0ypMfGsj_F-73NKOB7TcTfIESx3UYhdvtWSKGOFpCNLM7AIGslMJFqA/s640/wotwposterthumbs.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I had a vague idea of how I wanted the poster to look, so I
drew up a series of thumbnails to try different compositions. I eventually
settled on the one with two tripods, one of them looming over to give a sense
of scale and one further away, that was seen fully, as most of the poster I
looked at clearly showed whatever the monster was.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYkdqOsoNUXblLMUyIE-0Kv2sLuPUV-cU4YOsAB2_dNQR7XRy6KL0YtO4s9rLbDmn273UE5DYQoZLffDq4qpMdP4P_uhgdhtM9Dci73n0OnRC0pomVWfnyTR9ZGSRJCpDi1WSkpD1cG0k/s1600/wotwcolourthumbs2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="364" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYkdqOsoNUXblLMUyIE-0Kv2sLuPUV-cU4YOsAB2_dNQR7XRy6KL0YtO4s9rLbDmn273UE5DYQoZLffDq4qpMdP4P_uhgdhtM9Dci73n0OnRC0pomVWfnyTR9ZGSRJCpDi1WSkpD1cG0k/s640/wotwcolourthumbs2.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I then had to pick a colour scheme. The poster I was using
for reference had a large variety of different colours, but usually they were
bold, with at least one primary hue and the different colours clearly separated.
I narrowed it down to blue/turquoise/yellow/pink as I really liked how the blue
metal tripods looked against the turquoise, and tried different compositions of
those colours, taking into account how the title text would look against the
background.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZR2cTx-9X4bdICuVvIYWqXjaQv39JPxajV4BYIq2_vu0g9-Dv8ye_3W66Uz43pYilGQCofdiHIbwu62LkxkaJqDrWnMSag3wdTasb8PdB6oSQLhlOETnFSslnuxRy5-tEL9_IMjbB1m8/s1600/wotwcolourthumbs1.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="364" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZR2cTx-9X4bdICuVvIYWqXjaQv39JPxajV4BYIq2_vu0g9-Dv8ye_3W66Uz43pYilGQCofdiHIbwu62LkxkaJqDrWnMSag3wdTasb8PdB6oSQLhlOETnFSslnuxRy5-tEL9_IMjbB1m8/s640/wotwcolourthumbs1.png" width="640" /></a> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The biggest difficulty was trying to make sure the legs of
the tripods were distinct from one another, since they crossed over and were
oddly shaped. I tried to make the places where they crossed were separated so
it was clear which parts were continuous.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqiLVVI7WuQPptMCnp5l06CH6xNJUJInHSP-2tlvxziGcTMclXhKdSro0dtWLJa6AngMQP7PuCCJKwrUrbt2UYiUXEcNA2aUbyqABDOnBrtiN0WJ2jXdbreqzdsYYD0yPxPd-MxK37Jng/s1600/waroftheworldsfinal.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqiLVVI7WuQPptMCnp5l06CH6xNJUJInHSP-2tlvxziGcTMclXhKdSro0dtWLJa6AngMQP7PuCCJKwrUrbt2UYiUXEcNA2aUbyqABDOnBrtiN0WJ2jXdbreqzdsYYD0yPxPd-MxK37Jng/s640/waroftheworldsfinal.png" width="492" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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All in all I’m quite pleased with how it came together.</div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-87759001659600659822013-05-26T12:48:00.002-07:002013-05-26T12:48:27.271-07:00Task 17: Documentation (part 2)<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://jhbdmuga.blogspot.co.uk/2013/03/task-17-documentation-part-1.html">Part One</a></span><br />
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<![endif]--><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><span style="font-size: large;">Vehicle – planet terrain buggy</span></b></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSHR1bb1YzJ3gujk3QciHy4pAUs86nnsZ8KwADjeWwLlKBeYlrx2IRYLAYy36ImEtp6M8jCabBJtRmqHABRanPfrmAij_-J2aW2YeD9jz5RgpDEPWTBX9GcEsZmd8YC26DhveIVWX0VnA/s1600/concepts+10+copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="228" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiSHR1bb1YzJ3gujk3QciHy4pAUs86nnsZ8KwADjeWwLlKBeYlrx2IRYLAYy36ImEtp6M8jCabBJtRmqHABRanPfrmAij_-J2aW2YeD9jz5RgpDEPWTBX9GcEsZmd8YC26DhveIVWX0VnA/s640/concepts+10+copy.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This will be a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">single-person</b>
vehicle modelled after a<b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;"> </b><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">dune buggy</span>
– an open-top all-terrain vehicle suitable for travelling over a planet’s
surface. The vehicle should continue with the retrofuturism theme and visibly
take inspiration from 20<sup>th</sup> century vehicle designs while still
looking futuristic.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkJdevHRM7bohykZgldXZiVn-eJEdXWl34rGbsLrox_mJ6lSo-S3wAyAoxAgAF2AvAY4Z_ZcTwnEMei17hZVT1HIaK54zOyKITN_KrSPrLQIzBBNH9BML66z39It4rFgcsJyH_nHfX73A/s1600/6+copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhkJdevHRM7bohykZgldXZiVn-eJEdXWl34rGbsLrox_mJ6lSo-S3wAyAoxAgAF2AvAY4Z_ZcTwnEMei17hZVT1HIaK54zOyKITN_KrSPrLQIzBBNH9BML66z39It4rFgcsJyH_nHfX73A/s640/6+copy.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">There needs to be three versions of the vehicle: one
undamaged, once slightly damage, and one very damaged. Each mesh should be
under <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">15k tris</b>. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Since the vehicle will be seen both from a zoomed out third-person
view and from inside over-the shoulder, it needs to be readable from far away,
and also have enough detail to look realistic from closer up. In particular,
the dashboard needs to have detail that looks interesting from closer up, and
some of the damage needs to be visible from the over-the-shoulder view so the
player can still gauge the condition of their vehicle. The vehicle should also
have a <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">mud splatter decal </b>that can
be applied incrementally as the buggy travels over different types of terrain.<span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">The mesh should be textured using the following maps:</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span>
</div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">2 1024x1024 diffuse
map with alphas</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">2 1024x1024 colour
specular map</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">2 1024 normal maps</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 512x512 diffuse with
alpha decal</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><span style="font-family: inherit;">The textures should be produced digitally with Z-brush and
hand painted in photoshop. The textures need to convey the different textures,
especially the smoothness of the metal/plastic and how it is dented or broken
in the damaged versions of the model.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span>
</div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"></span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Environment – Artefact chamber </span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><span style="text-decoration: none;"><br /></span></u></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">One of the environments in the game will be an abandoned
alien city. The architecture should be based both on real architectural designs
and sets seen in science fiction. The building should feature a strong circular
and geometric aesthetic with plenty of smooth metallic surfaces. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqn8KGyDet7n5WEKYVGdlxjEPX6GBbY4_0-kGjkAuh7ysx_K6pNL8EHhoHKQMD1rRTKLfWzyFeV5w1RFCYkXdG4GoHOOo0fisppCzxsfVbfD5eKne0cgD0BtSZ4gr7w-CytIGTshJoPKo/s1600/Futuristic-Architecture-1948010.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="210" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqn8KGyDet7n5WEKYVGdlxjEPX6GBbY4_0-kGjkAuh7ysx_K6pNL8EHhoHKQMD1rRTKLfWzyFeV5w1RFCYkXdG4GoHOOo0fisppCzxsfVbfD5eKne0cgD0BtSZ4gr7w-CytIGTshJoPKo/s640/Futuristic-Architecture-1948010.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">One environment in particular will be the room housing an
alien artefact that the player has to collect. The room will be tall and
circular, with the artefact on an elevated pedestal in the centre. Parts of the
scenery will be damaged and broken, requiring the player to complete a series of
platforming manoeuvres to reach the artefact. The path the player takes should
not be obvious, and the parts of the scenery facilitating the player’s path
should blend in with the rest of the architecture. The collapsed parts of the
scenery should take into account the underlying structure of the building to
make the damage look realistic.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4ozh7vptaKrVnhNvQEPS_sBYTsWPaMrEnkt7WlxA2_bBcYryZ5loleJnCNYQqVWso6FpoFWwB4GK_lfFEGGWZOFORqscsMgeJW9D2bEbFW82rwAsqWBaY8-G8MBKFs0ufChaQqWMiCnk/s1600/forbidden.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4ozh7vptaKrVnhNvQEPS_sBYTsWPaMrEnkt7WlxA2_bBcYryZ5loleJnCNYQqVWso6FpoFWwB4GK_lfFEGGWZOFORqscsMgeJW9D2bEbFW82rwAsqWBaY8-G8MBKFs0ufChaQqWMiCnk/s640/forbidden.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The environment should make use of both repeating assets to establish
continuity, and unique assets to make the room feel individual. These assets
need to be designed to fit together without any gaps of obvious seams. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">There is no set polygon limit, but the meshes should take
into account the polygon density of both the player character, and of other
meshes surrounding them. Higher polygon density should be used for more detailed
scenery objects, and lower polygon density for more simple shapes. Decals and
varying lighting should be used to break up any tiling textures. </span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">All textures should be produced with z-brush and
hand-painted in photoshop.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Scenery object – Control console</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIWe5cvgmf_vMTRJHFWsGptKvBGvcMDLIFhlH-_Po2kYPf4TUVcRse7JG7YRbh8Ny0jakreVawrH6rZRdsXgWcEHV8wa4Mf4FiCVElQZSPc6FxGtZWrOwABxgOHuIOjOcnKyyrQPjjp_E/s1600/tumblr_miumr0HeCJ1r6fy85o1_1280+copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIWe5cvgmf_vMTRJHFWsGptKvBGvcMDLIFhlH-_Po2kYPf4TUVcRse7JG7YRbh8Ny0jakreVawrH6rZRdsXgWcEHV8wa4Mf4FiCVElQZSPc6FxGtZWrOwABxgOHuIOjOcnKyyrQPjjp_E/s640/tumblr_miumr0HeCJ1r6fy85o1_1280+copy.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"></span></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Many of the levels in the game will require the player to
activate part of the scenery. One of the ways the player can do this is through
an alien control console. These will open doors, deactivate security systems,
and so on.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">These consoles will be repeated throughout the level, and
their presence will be a clue to the player that part of the environment can be
changed. They must therefore be visually distinct so the player can recognise
them, although they must still fit into the overall design on the environment.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ4cm9U7XnpI5a_0VJNoLsx8X2XrlrvVUsO8h6M_bshcc0v8QX7XhPPR3qQODuGe6f0_Mjn2ecRWQhvAwp2vtDcjgtl0t5gE8paiDOYL63RGI4reyB6U0iNEuEs8bSrJXsaFuqvZOEBFs/s1600/280209___retro_PC_by_600v+copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="268" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJ4cm9U7XnpI5a_0VJNoLsx8X2XrlrvVUsO8h6M_bshcc0v8QX7XhPPR3qQODuGe6f0_Mjn2ecRWQhvAwp2vtDcjgtl0t5gE8paiDOYL63RGI4reyB6U0iNEuEs8bSrJXsaFuqvZOEBFs/s640/280209___retro_PC_by_600v+copy.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The consoles must give feedback to the player – they are
unreactive when the player has not yet activated them, react negatively when a
player has not solved a puzzle yet – for instance to indicate that another
console must be activated first – and finally react positively to indicate when
a player has correctly solved a puzzle and can proceed.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The consoled will do this both visually and through sound –
for instance a green light display for a correctly activated console.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The model needs to have some part that can be moved by the
player – for instance a lever. The console needs to look simple enough that it
will not look strange when repeated. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The
mesh should contain no more than <b style="mso-bidi-font-weight: normal;">3k tris</b>.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The mesh should be textured using the following maps:</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 1024x1024 diffuse
map </i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">or <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 1024x1024 diffuse
map with alphas</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 1024x1024 colour
specular map</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">1 1024 normal maps</i></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The textures should be produced in z-brush and photoshop.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-41288443936560227532013-05-24T15:11:00.001-07:002013-05-24T15:11:16.438-07:00Task 23: Life Changing or Career Building?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
There’s no denying that the game industry moves quickly. The
expectations of the graphics for a professional game are very different from
what would have been expected a couple of years ago, and will likely have
changed again in a few years’ time. It is important to acknowledge this increasing
push for realism and that as consoles become more and more capable of producing
complicated graphics, the high standards will not just become expected, but mandatory
for any game that wants to exceed. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
However, that doesn’t make technical skills learnt now obsolete.
Future developments in game graphics are only going to build on current technology,
and while some techniques may be dropped because they are inefficient or
unnecessary, they could still give a valuable insight into why certain things
are done in a certain way. Knowing how to optimise a lowpoly model will help someone
use resources more efficiently even when the tri count is in the tens of
thousands. </div>
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"></span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Many skills are transferable, for instance between different
modelling software or between game engines; learning one makes it quicker and
easier to learn how to use other programs. Even models for next-gen games use
the game basic programs; it is only the techniques that are different. Next-get
character models are still created using software such as z-brush and blender.
The difference is that there is more freedom, because the graphics are less restricted
by the technology. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Besides, just because top-end graphics set a standard for
console games doesn’t mean there isn’t still a place for low-resolution
graphics, such as on tablets and phones. There is a high demand for portable,
casual gaming, from an audience that has become accustomed to almost
photorealistic quality graphics. At the same time, hardware in tablets is still
at a much lower level than consoles an PCs, and so if game produces want to
compete in the same market they much make the best use of the available resources.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At the same time, basic art skills are also important. The
principles of colour, composition and anatomy don’t change just because they’re
in the medium of 3D game graphics. In some ways, these skills are more
important, because they are more fundamental. Furthermore, it is artistic
ability and creativity and that will set someone apart in the industry. The
ability to plan ideas, to concept them and convey them efficiently will always
be a part of the visual side of games. As much as realistic graphics are
important, stylisation and compelling design are what really draw players into
a game.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
However, without knowledge of how to implement them, these
skills have a very limited use. The ability to use the available technology to
best effect allows underlying artistic skills to be fully realised. It is much
more constructive to think of them as two different tools that have to work
together for the same goal. With technology improving, technical constraints
move aside to allow characters and environments to be fully realised, and to be
used effectively requires people who know how to make the best of the available
resources.</div>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-91580801933299917742013-05-24T11:37:00.000-07:002013-05-27T10:25:58.609-07:00Task 20: Interaction Design<!--[if !mso]>
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<![endif]-->When you’re so focused on the visual side of games it’s easy
to forget that, at their most basic level, games are built on interactivity.
It’s easy to measure visual quality by what you see on the screen, but how easy
a game is to interact with is much harder to quantify. <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Certainly, it’s easy to tell when a game responds badly – to
someone used to playing games it can be obvious within a few minutes of
gameplay how responsive the controls are. However, this assessment is hardly
objective, because it’s based on the perspective of someone biased toward games
they have already played.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are certain controller mechanics that have become
standardised across multiple games, but it’s unclear whether these continue to
be used because they’re the best way of doing things or simply because they’re
what people are used to. Nobody likes change, gamers less than anybody.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1964417889695401335" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1964417889695401335" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>Even with PC games that all use the WASD movement keys,
something as simple as a different key from jumping can feel off-putting when
switching from one game to another. In something as diverse as combat mechanics,
what one person finds fluid might feel clunky and restrictive to another, but
that doesn’t mean those mechanics are bad.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
The question is, what do we really mean by intuitive? For
someone used to using a computer, when they’re controlling the cursor, they
decide where they want it do go and move it – they don’t think about the
mechanical aspects of their hand pushing and pulling the mouse. For someone used
to playing a certain kind of game, the controls may become second nature. For
someone who is not familiar with games, almost any game will feel clumsy at
first. <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Possibly then, one measure of how intuitive a game is could be
how quickly the average person can get acclimatised to it, but that is
difficult to measure. Simple games might be learnt in a few minutes, but then be
limited to very basic input, while other game could take several days to learn
fully, but once everything is learned fully and being used in the right way, be
a lot less frustrating and a more enjoyable experience. Think of it as
comparing ‘Rock, Paper, Scissors” to Chess.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<br />
Of course, this is where a good tutorial can help to ease
someone into the controls, allowing them to learn simple interactions at first such
as movement and working up to more complicated functions such as hotkeys and the
like.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Personally, I can’t stand using a console controller. I made
it through Assassin’s creed II on the PS3 simply because I wanted to see what
happened, but found it a lot more enjoyable playing subsequent games on the PC,
simply because I wasn’t fighting with a controller that felt like it wanted to
jump out of my hands.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
On the other hand, playing the first Assassin’s Creed game
on PS3 for a short while was what convinced me to actually get the game for PC.
I managed to actually pick up the base mechanics pretty quickly. Assassin’s
Creed did actually make an attempt to change the way its mechanics worked, with
the context-sensitive controls, and compared to other console games I’ve tried
playing I found them fairly user-friendly.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Its controls are certainly different; if I play assassin’s
creed and they switch to a more typical game, it takes a while for me to stop
pressing the mouse buttons trying to sprint.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There have always been attempts to introduce new ideas into
gaming mechanics, especially in the early days of consoles; it’s just that few
of them have been financially successful. The few that were successful carried
on and evolved.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This could be taken as proof that the most common mechanics
we use now are just the best way to do things, but equally those consoles’
failure could be down to the limitations of the technology of the time, or the
limited market back then.<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <span>Look at the <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virtual_Boy">Virtual Boy</a> for an example, which was
basically the Oculus Rift MK 1, and was a commercial failure.</span></span></span><br />
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
More recently there have been innovative new consoles which
have been a success, such as the wii. One thing to note though is the audience
for these games is somewhat more broad than for other consoles – in particular,
it targets families and children, people who are less likely to have tried more
generic consoles, and experience the games without preconceived notions.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
However, perhaps it’s more fair to attribute the wii’s
success simply to how easy it is to use. Compared to other console handsets,
with buttons on every available surface, the WII controller looks relatively
unintimidating.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1964417889695401335" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1964417889695401335" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhECHzJYondC4qKEdqLo0vkbtaJkcQBCfC-X9ev7Dr__EgqbbqvY4X5vgLf7xJnpymIDEL5KANPfGElt2PTbn68KFXGgqbYx3qbFqKAOIvB9Cz09CPBGIDEuQf-lTl3pwhrga_KQZ-nT38/s1600/controllers.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhECHzJYondC4qKEdqLo0vkbtaJkcQBCfC-X9ev7Dr__EgqbbqvY4X5vgLf7xJnpymIDEL5KANPfGElt2PTbn68KFXGgqbYx3qbFqKAOIvB9Cz09CPBGIDEuQf-lTl3pwhrga_KQZ-nT38/s640/controllers.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The games are fairly simple, if the one game I’ve played is
anything to go with (Wii bowling, for ten minutes or so while I was doing work
experience) and tend to have easily understood concepts, such as sports, which
people are already somewhat familiar with. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Kinect, like the Wii, is another non-typical method of controlling
games. It detects both movement and voice commands, and can be integrated into
some pre-existing games.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The oculus rift is another recent introduction. It’s mainly
caters towards immersion, but it also allows the player to look around my
moving their head. This is obviously a much more instinctive way of looking
around than manipulating a joystick or a mouse, and it frees up part of the
control for some other use, such as moving around of selecting objects in-game.
It does, of course, completely obscure the player’s vision. While there are
plenty of people who can use a keyboard or controller without looking, many can’t,
especially if trying to use hotkeys, or buttons that are used infrequently. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sometimes it simply comes down to whether you want a
simulation that mimics reality as closely as possible, or something with more
options. Not all games are looking for the same things.</div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-82109690335380847232013-05-24T11:04:00.001-07:002013-05-26T11:03:47.160-07:00Task 22: Creativity, the talent myth and craft<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;">The
idea of creativity is often rather ill-defined. It’s often used in the sense of
generating new ideas from little or nothing, or at least ideas that nobody else
has thought of first. The phrase “be creative” is usually intended this way –
that is, it’s an invitation for someone to make their own choices about what
they do.</span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;"><br />
There’s the seemingly conflicting concept that limitations boost creativity. Plenty
of sources recommend this. To give a few:</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;"> <a href="http://www.fastcocreate.com/1682521/embracing-the-shake-why-limitations-drive-creativity">http://www.fastcocreate.com/1682521/embracing-the-shake-why-limitations-drive-creativity</a></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;"><a href="http://lifehacker.com/challenge-your-creativity-with-limits-not-freedom-484496043">http://lifehacker.com/challenge-your-creativity-with-limits-not-freedom-484496043 </a></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;"><a href="http://www.wired.com/culture/design/magazine/17-03/dp_intro">http://www.wired.com/culture/design/magazine/17-03/dp_intro</a></span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When taken in that context, creativity can be seen
as the ability to explore all the possibilities of I situation. I think this definition
is a better example of my own type of creativity. If something it too
open-ended, I have the tendency to be indecisive. Think of it this way: if
people are allowed to, they will go with what it familiar. Imposing
restrictions pushed them out of their comfort zone and forces then to do
something unfamiliar.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;">Possibly
creativity is instead the ability to actively seek out inspiration, and to
implement self-limitations. After all, inspiration works much better as an
active process than a passive one. This might explain why creative people can seemingly
be better at coming up with ideas from nothing; they’re actually just better at
looking for them, and seeing potential is things that others wouldn’t. </span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;">Talent
generally refers to an innate ability or aptitude for something. It is often
used interchangeably with skill, but talent really doesn’t say anything about
someone’s ability to do something, only their potential. In terms of visual
art, someone who is talented my find it easier to learn certain things, or they
may automatically be able to do something that others have to learn.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;">Talent
only goes so far, though. For instance, someone who has an eye for composition
may be able to arrange elements in a scene without having to know why they look
best where they do, but unless they learn the technical aspects behind what
they’re doing they might never get any better. At the same time, someone without
a natural eye for composition may have to learn what looks best, but through
actively trying to understand composition, gain a much deeper understanding of
the subject, one that isn’t just based on whether something feels right.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;">Given
how broad the definition of creativity is, it’s difficult to say what isn’t
creative. Programming might not typically be thought of as something artistic,
but it shares many of the same creative properties, such as thinking of new
ways to achieve tasks.</span></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="mso-layout-grid-align: none; text-autospace: none;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;">Who is more creative
– the person coming up with an idea, or the people who expand on it? Within video
game art, in very simplified terms, you could see the art directors as the one
who sets limitations, and the artists who defer to them as the ones exploring the
possibilities. They are all creative roles, even if they show different types
of creativity. Similarly, the initial concept of a game may seem like the big
creative factor, with artists just churning out content that fit within a set
parameter with no input it what it looks like, but unless what they are
producing has been rigorously predefined, then any input they have on the final
product could be considered creative.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;">Games tend to be
defined by large ideas, but more often than not it is the entire scope of them
that defines the experience.</span></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: TT1B1t00; mso-bidi-font-family: TT1B1t00;">For an example of
creativity, take Portal. The idea was one that had not really been explored, at
least not as a large game, and was created within the restrictions of a
first-person shooter engine. In turn, the levels and puzzles in the game were
created within the abilities of the in-game world.</span></span></span></div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-27039161873490093842013-05-24T05:36:00.000-07:002013-05-24T05:36:06.798-07:00Task 21: An introduction to the Game Industry<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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Video games are now a huge industry, with all the associated
risks and rewards. No longer is game production something done by individuals;
the success of a game affects the jobs of hundreds of people, and if a game
fails it can be a devastating loss to many people.</div>
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<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As games become
larger and more complex, it’s inevitable that larger teams are needed to produce
them. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Not only that, but the demand for increased
quality has to be met by introducing specialists into the industry, meaning no
longer is the person working on coding also producing the sound, or the
animation. Instead, people with vastly different skillsets have to work
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Sometimes two individuals will have vastly different jobs –
for instance a music writer and a character animator, or sometimes the jobs
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the same environment. Either way, these individuals still need to be
coordinated in a way that will produce the best final product, with the most
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Usually, production teams are split into their specialised
groups, with each smaller team having a leader who is responsible for content
specific to that area, and another person overseeing the co-ordinating of all
those groups. Sometimes, within these groups there is further specialisation:
for instance, the team producing concept art will have some people designing
environments, some designing characters, and some designing vehicles. In that
example, even with a wide array of different subjects, there still needs to be
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Game production is an industry that is very time sensitive.
On one hand, the games themselves take a long time to produce, and on the other
hand companies are continuously competing with evolving technology, trying to
get a game out before progress in graphics or other areas makes their current
project obsolete.</div>
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As such, companies almost always use a pipeline to structure
their development and to ensure that the game will release on schedule. There
is a very distinct order which tasks have to be completed in, as further steps
are reliant on previous ones. For instance, 3d artist cannot start working
until they have something to base their game assets off of, and game testers
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This dependency also means that any type of delay with have
effects further along the chain. Delays in releasing a game could potentially
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Having certain part of the company working at different
stages like this does create the problem of some teams having nothing to do for
long periods of time. There are a few ways companies can get around this. They
can overlap pipelines, meaning once a section of the game is completed, they
immediately start work on the next project.</div>
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Parts of production are sometimes outsourced; individuals or
teams are hired only during a certain period of time, sometimes to create a specific
set of content. Outsourcing means that companies only pay for them when they
are needed. Sometimes part are outsourced because the people being hired are
specialists and can create higher quality work, or sometimes the outsourcing is
undertaken by a group working in a different country where labour costs are
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<![endif]-->Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-19957721119888629572013-05-23T05:43:00.002-07:002013-05-23T05:43:39.830-07:00Task 24: Personal review of the second year: Where do you want to go, and how do you get there?<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">This year has
been a learning experience in many ways. I’ve expanded my artistic skills and been
introduced to several new types of software, but I’ve also learnt about how
important it is to manage my own creative process. I’ve had a fairly hands-on
lesson about time management, and what happens when it goes wrong, and I’ve
come out of it with a better understanding of how to approach tasks in future. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">A lot of the
time, it was down to my inexperience with a certain program, or underestimating
how long something would take. Obviously, on the other side of that, I can now reflect
on what happened and use the experience to plan better for project I do over
the next year, and even further on.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Last year,
over the summer, I’d intended to learn how to use UDK. I put it off while
working on other project, and as a result the building project during the first
term was the first time I ever used the software. While I did manage to learn
what I needed, I still felt very unsure of what I was doing, and that had a big
impact on my ability to work efficiently. I had exactly the same problem after Christmas
– I’d had no prior experience with Z-brush, and therefore I wasn’t able to
anticipate what would be involved when incorporating it into my workflow.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">A lot of the
time, I was simply overwhelmed with the amount of information there was to sift
through. Mike Pickton’s video tutorials were often very helpful, but I still
felt quite lost at times. There are plenty of tutorials out there, but most of
them go into much more detail than I needed for what I was doing, and it was
often difficult to find the small piece of information that I was looking for. I
also tend to have trouble working up the confidence to ask for help when I
really need it.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Therefore, if
I want to get the most out of the projects we’re set next year, then I need to
be better prepared. I’m intending to spend the summer better getting to grips
with both Z-brush and UDK. I want to work through some of the more extensive online
tutorials that I didn’t have time to go through when I had a deadline. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I also want
to get more confident at using Photoshop for digital painting. I’ve found
myself using pen and paper much more this year, simply because I find it so
much easier, and I’d like to be able to produce digital sketches and thumbnails
with the same level of confidence.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">One thing that’s
surprised me this year is how much I enjoy character design. I wasn’t much
interested in it previously; I was much more interested in environments and
buildings. However, despite all the problems and frustration I had with the
Mortal Engines character I very much enjoyed the project, and I’d like to
follow through and improve on the skills I picked up.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I have a tendency
to be a perfectionist and to obsess over detail, and from what I’ve experienced,
that works much better for characters than for environments. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I also enjoy drawing people much more than
environments. At this point, I’m strongly leaning towards doing a
character-based project for next year’s FMP.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Next year, I
want to make more of an effort to keep on top of my work, not just to reduce
stress but so I can make better use of the formative feedback sessions. This
does mean I need to be a lot stricter with myself about deadlines and how I use
my time, and also possibly be less overambitious. I am terrible at estimating
how much time a given task will take, and as a rule of thumb I should probably always
allow twice as much time as I think a task will take. That way, if I do finish
a task to schedule then it just means I have time to improve on it further. When
I do come across problems, I need to address them sooner, instead of just
hoping they will solve themselves and letting the work build up.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">I feel that I’ve
gotten somewhat better over the last part of this year, especially with the
group project where I managed to keep on top of the work quite well. I’m much
more aware of the need to manage my time, and more recently have had more
success sticking to a schedule I set myself. I’ll try and continue this over
the summer, to stay in practice and just to make sure I spend the time
efficiently.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Arial","sans-serif";">Ultimately,
universities are for self- development, not just learning set skills, but
finding out how to improve on what skills you have, and to build on what you already
know and enjoy.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-55707161276480415292013-05-22T05:09:00.000-07:002013-05-22T05:10:12.796-07:00Task 18: Game EnginesGame engines are software that provides development tools
for the creation of video games. Game engines are widely used, by both
professional studios and indie developers, and the variety of engines available
is huge. They provide a framework for the developers to build on, with common
features including rendering, physics, collision, sound, scripting, artificial
intelligence and networking. <br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Game engines allow someone with little or no knowledge of
coding languages to start building a game level. For professional companies,
they provide a structure for the to build on, giving them tools to efficiently
port games to consoles, or an platform in which to test models and environments
while their own custom-built engine in still in development. (<a href="http://www.gameinformer.com/b/features/archive/2012/05/25/why-the-elder-scrolls-online-isn-39-t-using-heroengine.aspx">link</a>)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The most commonly used type of engine is the FPS (first
person shooter) engine. These engines produce a fully 3D environment the player
typically sees from the point of view of their character, although plenty of
third person games use FPS engines, too.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are also engines which cater to much more niche types
of games – for instance RPG engines that use tiled or isometric graphics, and 2D
engines for point-and click games.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are a lot of factors to consider when choosing between
engines; while most of them share an array of basic features, they may have
individual pros or cons such as the quality of the rendering technology, the
ability to add middleware, or the adaptability to different consoles.</div>
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<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br clear="all" style="mso-special-character: line-break; page-break-before: always;" />
</span>
<br />
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<b>Unreal Engine</b><br />
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Unreal engine is one of the most popular game engines,
and quite likely the most widely used. Unreal Engine 1 first appeared in 1998,
and the Engine is currently on its third iteration, with several games
currently in production using the upcoming Unreal Engine 4.<span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdkK4-F9yWx0MLLZpcFXK1z5eqoIs0ufjvwdoS0jfX8hyecesV0blao6vo6XX_nomrjJhEWNAgIvUxhXV6J1boCPvROE1fqDIPNmvPiWMXYo7vOM9-vQTz7BT4YpzbpXHyKo_BQml9bwE/s1600/Unreal_Engine_Comparison.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdkK4-F9yWx0MLLZpcFXK1z5eqoIs0ufjvwdoS0jfX8hyecesV0blao6vo6XX_nomrjJhEWNAgIvUxhXV6J1boCPvROE1fqDIPNmvPiWMXYo7vOM9-vQTz7BT4YpzbpXHyKo_BQml9bwE/s400/Unreal_Engine_Comparison.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Side-by-side comparison of a character from different versions
of Unreal Engine, from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Unreal_Engine_Comparison.jpg">http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Unreal_Engine_Comparison.jpg</a></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<br /></div>
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Unreal Engine is the only game engine I have actually used,
apart from playing around with TES: Oblivion’s construction kit, which is a
heavily modified version of the Gamebryo engine.</div>
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<br /></div>
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The editor is free to download, and the engine itself is
free to use for educational and non-commercial projects. Using it for a
commercial project requires a licencing fee of $99, plus 25% royalties after
the first $50,000 earned. The low entry fee makes Unreal Engine a viable choice
for indie developers, although the high royalties may put off larger projects
with much higher predicted earnings. (<a href="http://www.unrealengine.com/udk/licensing/commercial_license_terms/">link</a>)</div>
<span style="font-family: "Calibri","sans-serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-ansi-language: EN-GB; mso-ascii-theme-font: minor-latin; mso-bidi-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman"; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-fareast; mso-hansi-theme-font: minor-latin;"><br clear="all" style="mso-special-character: line-break; page-break-before: always;" />
</span>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One this that might put developers off Unreal are its graphical
limitations. While they’re not bad, necessarily, the style of the rendering is
fairly recognisable. There is also no real-time lighting, meaning lighting maps
have to be used, which not only can slow down production time but can also mean
lighting might not ever look as good as you want it to. Thankfully, unreal
engine 4 is introducing real-time lighting.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>That said, UE3 can still look pretty good, and there’s a whole host of
games out there that prove it; Bioshock, Mass Effect 3 and Deus Ex: Human Revolution,
to name but a few.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Unreal engine is also very customisable. There is plenty of <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>middleware available and the engine itself is
very customisable. Most commercial games will be using a version that is
heavily modified.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Cryengine</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
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Cryengine is another popular engine. Developed by Crytek,
the engine was first used by the first person shooter Far Cry and its various
remakes and sequels. Cryengine 2 was then used for the game Crysis, before breaking
the theme-naming streak by licencing out the engine for the development of several
unrelated MMORPGs.</div>
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<br /></div>
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The big advantage that’s usually put forward in favour of
Cryengine is it’s graphics. Cryengine is pretty, very pretty, especially when
it comes to natural lighting. Since for a large proportion of gamers, appearance
of the game is a top priority, there are predictably multiple videos and image
sets demonstrating Cryengine’s graphical superiority.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/NXNvmvaBNiY" width="560"></iframe>
<br />
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<br /></div>
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Personally, I think it’s just a matter of taste. Cryengine
has pretty bloom lighting and fog effects, and will help a lot with something that’s
striving for photorealism, whereas UDK would work best for something that’s
going to be a bit more stylised, especially since you can customise the shaders.
</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There’s more to an engine than graphics, however. Cryengine
is a lot less flexible than other engines. It does have a lot more inbuilt
capabilities when compared to UE, but much fewer optional add-ons. It also
requires plugins to import assets, and online connectivity to use both the
engine and editor. Cryengine also lacks vertex painting, which I the main
reason my group chose not to use it for the queens building project. However,
if you want to focus on your assets, it is a nice way to make the most of your
3d models.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b>Other notable enigines</b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Unity engine is sometimes recommended as an alternative
to Unreal. It’s not as good-looking as Unreal, but it’s more user friendly, especially
when working in a team. Assests can be imported in blender or photoshop file
format, so it saves time that would be spent converting them. Also - like UDK -
it has numerous plugins that can streamline it further, and as a result can be
used to produce content much more efficiently that in other engines. However,
it does lack the primitives and BSP brushes that UDK has, so placeholder meshed
will have to be used to start off with.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Source Engine, created by Valve, is the engine used for
the Half-life and Portal games. Like UE and Cryengine, it is frequently used by
individuals bothe to mod pre-existing games and for non-commercial projects.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Anvil Engine (formerly Scimitar engine), an in-house
engine used by Ubisoft for the Prince of Persia and Assassins creed games, currently
in its third iteration as of assassin’s creed III. It is specifically geared
towards character animations and interaction with the environment, as would be
expected from titles with such a heavy emphasis on platforming. The engine is
not available to licence for companies, not is it available for private use.</div>
</div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-35420040928121800982013-03-13T02:36:00.002-07:002013-05-29T09:46:31.137-07:00Task 15: Visual composition<!--[if !mso]>
<style>
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<![endif]-->Composition, as a general term, can extend to cover every
aspect of an image, including the use of colour and tonal values. More
specifically, it describes how things are arranged within a picture, relative
to each other and relative to the edges of the images.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Depending on how you define them, there’s any number of
different elements to consider when composing an image, but one way the key
components can be broken down is into line, shape, colour texture, form, value
and space.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Line is an illusion created by the edges of objects. Many
drawings styles use lines to define the boundaries of objects within an image, as
even though lines don’t actually exist it’s the easiest way to convey form. Whether
the lines within an composition are actual lines or merely the edges of
contrasting tones or hues, they’ll be one of the most easily identifiable
features.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Shape is self-explanatory, and refers to both individual
objects and combined objects. Colour is deceptively difficult to use properly, it
does little to define objects, rather creates mood, warmth or cool. It can be
used to bring attention to certain areas of an image, but not as well as tonal
value.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Tonal value describes how light or dark a part of an image
is. Tonal value is arguably the most important part of an image, since it’s the
most visible part. Form describes the 3-dimensional qualities of an element,
which is expressed through shading and perspective.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Texture is similar to form in that it can describe
3-dimentional qualities within an image, except instead of describing the overall
structure it describes the tactile qualities. Texture is the difference between
a reflective surface and a matte surface or a smooth surface and a grainy
surface. Mostly texture adds detail and realism to an image.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Space is the proportion of an image that objects occupy;
conversely, negative space is the portion of the image surrounding them or
between them. Usually the focus of an image with be the positive space – the object
or person the picture is focusing on – but sometimes the negative space can be
the subject, for instance if the image is focusing on a piece of sky between
trees or buildings. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRLxdJV-1Ni1RdG3rpq7TqRqjILM1YV-9J5xAR6YJEBouQ3RcG7vP6NiFVRDv1Tr7iYT5-cb321k0iSusNSBqI4PYJercDKRh46CULVADJHYHpjiKvOCMm5NsFZTDXk6gD02CXGbsqXyg/s1600/composition1a.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRLxdJV-1Ni1RdG3rpq7TqRqjILM1YV-9J5xAR6YJEBouQ3RcG7vP6NiFVRDv1Tr7iYT5-cb321k0iSusNSBqI4PYJercDKRh46CULVADJHYHpjiKvOCMm5NsFZTDXk6gD02CXGbsqXyg/s640/composition1a.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So, how do these all work within an image?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are eight elements of composition to consider: unity,
balance, movement, rhythm, focus contrast, pattern and proportion.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
There are established principles for composition; some
things work and some things just look ‘wrong’. The easiest principle to follow is
the rule of thirds. Elements within an image will look best placed a third of
the way up an image, or a third of the way along. By dividing an image into nine
equal sections, you can identify the four focal points.</div>
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<span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"></span></div>
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<span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZxtOIns0Ia9KLSn6k30sxAkcusaYiOJxaYUjrHZmEACQotEyjzLVSSjHZHeqnozdbo9NwcmHNFqfbBwJqarcnXcSNjNM6-8MBrVKIC2cmFdiZ0ptdha-vWtQT4oZ9GxLrIPBabQj2po8/s1600/composition1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="234" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZxtOIns0Ia9KLSn6k30sxAkcusaYiOJxaYUjrHZmEACQotEyjzLVSSjHZHeqnozdbo9NwcmHNFqfbBwJqarcnXcSNjNM6-8MBrVKIC2cmFdiZ0ptdha-vWtQT4oZ9GxLrIPBabQj2po8/s640/composition1.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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Focal points are places in an image where you intend the
viewer to spend the most time looking. There are certain things people’s eyes will
naturally gravitate towards, such as faces and hands. More detailed areas will
also draw more attention, as will bright colours and contrasting hues.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
If there is more than one focal point, they need to be
arranged so that they are balanced. To some extent, symmetry in an image makes
the composition feel grounded, but can also make it look unnatural. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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</div>
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</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifc4CAQhWviIc6fyMm_Dg6Nre3NsUx0qVJNDbSLExFOdIsZpumEqlcXJJ4yzMP5TudftRrX_KE0XpJhpHEz5oIHoiEp4mV7rsGalFBkoWLAYHslqslP1TrfYgEoar8XmAVyNvnD7cJe6U/s1600/composition3.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifc4CAQhWviIc6fyMm_Dg6Nre3NsUx0qVJNDbSLExFOdIsZpumEqlcXJJ4yzMP5TudftRrX_KE0XpJhpHEz5oIHoiEp4mV7rsGalFBkoWLAYHslqslP1TrfYgEoar8XmAVyNvnD7cJe6U/s320/composition3.png" width="320" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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Asymmetrical balance, which uses elements which are equal, but
different, looks much more natural. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCeJGfnH4w2pUcYiwA3W9ToVgJeNPx8-GOXuZ2zWyM2DF3UOBuFsrcW9hG1xh8oCbLZlCWKxT1yD3ptWFHZVx7YiAin9ks3oBwWszTNDfLbto-ExmAec0mz0f1cXoUdqq6TJ_ltPVlU6c/s1600/composition2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCeJGfnH4w2pUcYiwA3W9ToVgJeNPx8-GOXuZ2zWyM2DF3UOBuFsrcW9hG1xh8oCbLZlCWKxT1yD3ptWFHZVx7YiAin9ks3oBwWszTNDfLbto-ExmAec0mz0f1cXoUdqq6TJ_ltPVlU6c/s640/composition2.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<br />Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-6709360095889806412013-03-12T17:46:00.001-07:002013-05-24T11:38:06.013-07:00Task 19: Sound for Games<a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1964417889695401335" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a><a href="http://www.blogger.com/blogger.g?blogID=1964417889695401335" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"></a>Sound has been present in games from the very beginning of
their history, and in some ways has evolved parallel to the graphics as the
capabilities of the systems have improved. The ability to synthesise sounds has
been around for quite a while longer than video games, but for a long time was
primarily stored in an analogue format, which required delicate physical components
and was therefore greatly limited by practicality. Digital sound was much more affordably,
but for early handheld game devices, sound was limited to synthesised music
with very few notes and subsequently basic tunes. PC games were also limited,
because producing sound took a significant amount of processing power, and even
in modern games audio is demanding.
<br />
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<br /></div>
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However, better technology does not equate to better music.
In fact, sometimes the simpler tunes are the most memorable. Plenty of basic
tunes have accompanied game along their development, becoming synonymous with
the games themselves. They evolved alongside the graphics into theme tunes
which in some cases are still used in those games. Theme tunes are an easy
shorthand to represent a game even if it goes through major graphics
reinventions, and create some amount of nostalgia for long-time players. </div>
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<br /></div>
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My own gaming experience has been solely limited to PC
games, which for some don’t seem to produce the same scope of memorable theme
tunes. The nearest thing I’ve probably experienced is hearing the Elder Scrolls
theme song in the Skyrim teaser trailer and thinking “well, about time”. The
main theme music for Skyrim purposely uses the same melodies as the previous
games. Subsequently, the lack of the TES theme music in the recent Elder
Scrolls Online <a href="http://youtu.be/0jNT5cMwxw0">cinematic trailer </a>has been one of the most common complaints –
as people have rightly pointed out, without the signature music it could be
advertising any generic fantasy game.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
While sound for games is still system-intensive, the main
limitations for quality are mainly down to skill and budget. This is part of
the development of games into a large industry, with increasingly large budgets
and production teams. There’s been a demand for the quality of the music to
increase alongside the graphics, to a point where it’s no longer feasible for a
single person to produce sound for an entire game.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sometimes it’s not just ingame music or theme tunes that get
associated with a game title. The Assassin’s creed: Revelations cinematic
trailer featured a vocalised song by a group called Woodkid, which has become
irrevocably associated with that particular game. You also get songs written
specifically for the game, such as the songs during the end credits of the
Portal games, which were written specially for the games.</div>
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Y6ljFaKRTrI" width="420"></iframe></div>
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Composing for video games is now not all that different from
film, and some composers working in games, such as <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Michael Giacchino, also work in multiple other genres</span> such as film
and TV.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Music for games is increasingly gaining the recognition it
deserves. In 2012, for the first time, the Grammy awards included video game music
as contender for Visual Media awards, </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
For a large part, sound in games is used much the same way
it is in film; to convey mood and to create tension. This happens right the way
from the title screen – action games have heroic or upbeat title music, horror
games will play something creepy to set the mood. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This works within the game too, on a more specific basis.
Thematic or more neutral music might play when the player is just travelling
around the map, but when the player meets an enemy more fast-paced ‘combat
music’ will start playing, drawing them into the action. As in films, the
choice of music and sound has a huge effect on players’ experience of the
games, and really shouldn’t be underestimated. Amnesia, for example, is much
less scary without the player character’s rapid breathing, but with the sound
on that alone can get your heart racing, even when there’s nothing to be afraid
of.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<br /></div>
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Sounds can be used to convey information to the player much
more quickly than visual information can, especially during situations where
the player has to focus on multiple things at once. The combat music mentioned
above also serves to alert the player to the prescience of enemies that the
character would have noticed, even if the player did not. During combat, there
will be different sounds for the player getting hit, and for the player landing
a hit on an enemy, and even for different types of attacks. Having different
sounds leaves the player free to focus on aiming and moving around, and only
checking their stats when prompted.</div>
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<br /></div>
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Sounds might also inform the player about things happening
in their environment, such as telling them a gate has opened, whether a lever
or button has worked or not. Footsteps of enemies alert the player to enemies
they can’t see, especially in first person games. Sometimes musical cues are also
used to tell the player they’ve completed a task or finished a level. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Voice acting in games is a fairly recent development,
although it’s quickly become expected in any large-budget title. It’s not particularly
vital, since there’s little that can’t be conveyed through text, but it adds
another level of realism and depth to the game. On the negative side, it limits
the amount of dialogue and greatly adds to production costs. If done badly, it
can be worse than having no voice acting at all. This is more a problem in
games with dialogue options than in linear games where voice acting is scripted.
It’s very difficult to make conversation seem natural, and if you play a game
for 40+ hours anything the characters say more than once will become noticeably
repetitive unless it’s only said once. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
One way games get around this is to create a made up language,
since if the player doesn’t understand what’s being said it doesn’t become
repetitive. The most well-known example is The Sims, where all the characters
speak ‘<a href="http://sims.wikia.com/wiki/Simlish">Simlish</a>’ –<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>which has since been coined as a general term
for any conlang used in games for the purpose of remaining ambiguous. </div>
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Other examples of this include Magicka, where – unlike in
The Sims - the (mostly) nonsense words are accompanied by English subtitles. In
this game, the use of simlish is mainly a way to reduce voice acting costs and
to make the game easier to translate into other languages, although it also
adds a certain charm.</div>
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<br /></div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-14126836905805301232013-03-12T14:21:00.002-07:002013-05-26T12:49:25.170-07:00Task 17: Documentation (part 1)<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Overview – <b>Space-themed Platforming Game</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">This brief details the creation of assets for a game with a
‘<b>retrofuturistic</b>’ theme.
Retrofuturism is 20th century aesthetics applied to science fiction; it creates
a style that looks both space-age and old-fashioned, and is instantly
recognisable.</span></span></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbTLHjFH55-nUdSKpclLg5VLH2EAOuUijzkm_I1auACcLlOPXzJHtbthP_QFCt0meI_YElyE1Utbh5faVPIPl1xaelK18Jau7nZ7nhi2ugy_s1fKUyD_zMy72rjc3VEMgLZG55C8m3J8E/s1600/documentation1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbTLHjFH55-nUdSKpclLg5VLH2EAOuUijzkm_I1auACcLlOPXzJHtbthP_QFCt0meI_YElyE1Utbh5faVPIPl1xaelK18Jau7nZ7nhi2ugy_s1fKUyD_zMy72rjc3VEMgLZG55C8m3J8E/s1600/documentation1.png" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The game will be for PC, and be aimed as <b>casual gamers</b> and <b>younger players</b>. It will primarily be a <b>platforming</b> game with an emphasis on puzzle solving. The gameplay
will involve interacting with the environment via various tools such as
grappling hooks, magnetic boots and jet-packs.</span></span>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir1X1BuhOWiAY5C9uj-mcf9QhvCXuWqaCu2QtROkW_suyKMiexjzt9FPokqI8lF07wJfR6AWzMnpJpJtALBBgHQtwP9up8DleELqckEHGfssu5DTQDdI09VU4RtS_VLPCyC23ICOFnfjc/s1600/japanese-retro-futurism-039.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="324" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEir1X1BuhOWiAY5C9uj-mcf9QhvCXuWqaCu2QtROkW_suyKMiexjzt9FPokqI8lF07wJfR6AWzMnpJpJtALBBgHQtwP9up8DleELqckEHGfssu5DTQDdI09VU4RtS_VLPCyC23ICOFnfjc/s640/japanese-retro-futurism-039.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The overall look of the game should be clean and bright,
with emphasis on primary colours to emulate the ‘pop art’ feel of retrofuturism
artwork. It should aim for a simplified
‘cartoony’ look rather than gritty realism, but retain realistic character and
environment proportions. To create and maintain a unified stylised appearance, all
textures will be primarily digitally hand painted. The game will take place in
a variety of different themed levels, so assets that will be present throughout
the game - such as reoccurring characters, need to be versatile enough that
they are suitable across several different colour palettes.</span></span>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The game will be produced for the <b>Unreal Engine</b>, using the Unreal Development Kit. The models with be
produced primarily in 3Ds Max, with Z-brush or similar software used to produce
normal maps. The textures will mainly be
produced in Photoshop.</span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span></span>
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<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"> Lead Character –<b> </b><b>Space
Explorer</b></span></span></div>
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh7V1jphWI-XGNxJUSUrkSwrWSJy8sub1lhOi_SBQzZ_dBtwz1o9MZ5twkbfXu_cKhQBiHNVzBpQZKcHr4c_xBjVwb6uynGR4hiZ81s69-n2YxHdPCRpLMT2mnJkvksh97nWFHb0dxRM4/s1600/documentationfemchar1.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="204" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgh7V1jphWI-XGNxJUSUrkSwrWSJy8sub1lhOi_SBQzZ_dBtwz1o9MZ5twkbfXu_cKhQBiHNVzBpQZKcHr4c_xBjVwb6uynGR4hiZ81s69-n2YxHdPCRpLMT2mnJkvksh97nWFHb0dxRM4/s640/documentationfemchar1.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><u></u></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The lead character is a female space explorer. She will be
wearing a space-suit with helmet that obscures the face. The space suit doesn’t
have to look realistic by modern standards – in fact it is preferable that it
is obviously influenced by science fantasy. The suit can show minor wear and
tear, but should for the most part look clean and new.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjbXqQL1paFDBsernxwcgjKgGRRzBULpBqNJrNP8C2l9c6OS3Hc1UK-T0krwbR9H_XYRBfEWenwKqRNG13Fr90lqwh6NgNKgGALDIoANeTX_plB3OlxQt16LDlGPXjd22WTJokWmscIA/s1600/documentationfemchar2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="328" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRjbXqQL1paFDBsernxwcgjKgGRRzBULpBqNJrNP8C2l9c6OS3Hc1UK-T0krwbR9H_XYRBfEWenwKqRNG13Fr90lqwh6NgNKgGALDIoANeTX_plB3OlxQt16LDlGPXjd22WTJokWmscIA/s640/documentationfemchar2.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The character model
should value readability over detail, and be realistically proportioned -
although some exaggeration is allowed to aid readability - with a primarily
blue or grey colour theme and plus a highlighting colour such as orange if
needed.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Since the character will be in the foreground of the screen
consistently during gameplay, only one Level of Detail is needed. </span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br clear="all" style="page-break-before: always;" />
</span></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></span><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The character mesh should be <b>under 20k tris</b>, and the mesh should prioritise the silhouette and use
appropriate polygon density. Since the character will be very visible and will
constantly be moving, the topology needs to be built so that it deforms
smoothly when the model is rigged. </span></span>
</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The mesh should be textured using the following maps:</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>2 1024x1024 diffuse
map with alphas</i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>2 1024x1024 colour
specular map</i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><i>2 1024 normal maps</i></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">The diffuse map should be hand painted in Photoshop, with
photo references used sparingly to convey the different textures of the
materials such as metal and plastic. Mirroring the textures should be avoided
as should obvious symmetry, except in areas where it will not be noticed. </span></span><br />
<br />
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</span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: large;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">NPC – <b>Robot Helper</b></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">This character will be present in various levels, to be
directed by the player. It will be mostly humanoid, although not necessarily
with accurate proportions, and has to be visibly mechanical. Most importantly,
the character needs to look like it could realistically move, with jointed
segments where the limb bend<span style="font-size: small;">.</span></span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
</span></span>
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqHbNN5W1ZODCkKkDuS0n5ly3ATZP5StHC1p3zqlcWNRS9zyG1A21KpxxYRtZwUCc6RXHYPYxEc9qldMAexs9A9KzQV-Vt37kxpHlWe5YZFdOw3dUnyyscFFwBzD2dxuvodl8PXew14js/s1600/documentationrobotchar2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqHbNN5W1ZODCkKkDuS0n5ly3ATZP5StHC1p3zqlcWNRS9zyG1A21KpxxYRtZwUCc6RXHYPYxEc9qldMAexs9A9KzQV-Vt37kxpHlWe5YZFdOw3dUnyyscFFwBzD2dxuvodl8PXew14js/s640/documentationrobotchar2.png" width="640" /></a></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span></span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: small;">The character mesh should be </span><b>under 15k tris</b><span style="font-size: small;">, and the mesh should prioritise the silhouette and use
appropriate polygon density. Since the character is mainly made out of metal, the
majority of the mesh will not deform when moving, so the topology should take
into account where extra geometry will be needed for it to deform cleanly and
where it will not.</span></span></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;">The mesh should be textured using the following maps:</span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<i>2 1024x1024 diffuse
map with alphas</i></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<i>2 1024x1024 colour
specular map</i></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<i>2 1024 normal maps</i></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;">The diffuse map should be hand painted in Photoshop, and the
normal and specular maps need to realistically display the different materials –
metal, plastic, rubber, etc – that the character is mad</span>e of.</div>
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://jhbdmuga.blogspot.co.uk/2013/05/task-17-documentation-part-2.html">Part Two</a> </span></span></div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-6099091039004345542013-02-22T14:50:00.002-08:002013-03-12T19:08:01.589-07:00Task 16: Level Design<!--[if !mso]>
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<![endif]-->At its most basic, a game level is the space a player moves
around in.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In most games, the path of the player is actually fairly
linear, and in simplest terms the level involves guiding the player from point
A to point B. This means that when designing levels, the most important aspect
designers have to think about is how the player will move through the
environment, including how their movement will be directed or impeded by
obstacles such as secondary objectives and enemies.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Many games only have a single path the player can take if
they wish to advance the game. Sometimes this linear gameplay is obvious
because the player is funnelled towards their goal by the scenery, whereas
other times a seemingly open environment will have invisible constraints that
force the player to visit certain sections in a set order with - most this
often simply the player’s limited ability to jump.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Linear gaming like this is not necessarily bad, and such
railroading is generally judged differently depending on the genre.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In platforming games especially, discovering
the limits of these constraints is a large part of the gameplay, and with many
combat-orientated games the player doesn’t <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">want</i>
to be constantly getting lost while fighting enemies. (Conversely, some puzzle
games will use combat specifically to make the puzzles arbitrarily harder – the
puzzles in Amnesia take very little brainpower, but are difficult to complete
while your character’s curled up in a corner crying.)</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Non-linear gaming can take several different approaches,
with different types of dynamic gameplay. Games such as sandbox games make
every effort to give the player freedom, at least within the set parameters,
while some games simply provide more than one path for the player to take.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sometimes this is a feature built into individual levels,
with multiple ways of solving a given puzzle. For instance, in Deus Ex each level
environment is fairly open with multiple paths the player can take depending on
their preferred play style, whether they decide to sneak around and pick off enemies
one by one, or to charge in head first.<br />
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY1Mq2AUlp70HVkEaExYAV0aSMagwEHDu6_m-jS7sjYZiiHZL8e5itXHnB7mVpOL-oQGPkkNnE02xogyU5_2qr74G8UEM0NHm8OSntW94B1Ype-rOVwjds32BzoSMHs1E00EWubUASR3c/s1600/deus+ex+copy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY1Mq2AUlp70HVkEaExYAV0aSMagwEHDu6_m-jS7sjYZiiHZL8e5itXHnB7mVpOL-oQGPkkNnE02xogyU5_2qr74G8UEM0NHm8OSntW94B1Ype-rOVwjds32BzoSMHs1E00EWubUASR3c/s640/deus+ex+copy.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">1) Kill now or 2) Kill later</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It could be argued that - by nature of giving the player
control - any game is non-linear, as no two players will do exactly the same
thing. However many games actively work against this, for instance by blocking
off areas the player has already been through or killing the player if they try
to go off course, so from the point of view of a level designer there is
certainly a conscious decision.<br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It’s difficult not to think about the context of a level
when you think about level design, partly because the environment will have a
large impact of how the level feels to play. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>A good demonstration of the difference between
<i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">level</i> design and <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">environment</i> design can be seen at the beginning of Portal 2.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The first few levels – the puzzles and the positioning of
key elements - are often identical to those at the beginning of the first game,
but with the overgrown scenery, open spaces and organic lighting, the <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">environment</i> is very different.
Subsequently, while in Portal these levels felt almost claustrophobic, in Portal
2 the exact same level designs give you a brief sense of freedom and healthy
dose of <span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">déjà vu.</span><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold; mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-fareast-language: EN-GB; mso-no-proof: yes;"><br /></span><span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;"></span></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMeD5SDLpeZXRQRH1WUGTcPUQRvDmZ4m7iuIeS9-oZLI9vHxEqzhG7X8ObLV5CWxzTtg2Pa_Hho1laEGER2bOCz5eADZfomfxORdQg1-wGM4EUZ48vbOAKUOrTGMSft0cm096b2qsMIIg/s1600/portalcomparison2.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="211" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMeD5SDLpeZXRQRH1WUGTcPUQRvDmZ4m7iuIeS9-oZLI9vHxEqzhG7X8ObLV5CWxzTtg2Pa_Hho1laEGER2bOCz5eADZfomfxORdQg1-wGM4EUZ48vbOAKUOrTGMSft0cm096b2qsMIIg/s640/portalcomparison2.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Portal 1 vs. Portal 2</td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiOjILkDvDhje9qJU-R4qviWzlE5BtCt0pmmHbIqL-pr90jVf4oqt1uu3NC2fd0DPByN8O1bOlgDkT6kHI1n0BsvePdUOMT4Lqfk7gZEmH-4gSFIqF8kLkoaML22GePiwQNEJGu5KNev8/s1600/portal1v2+copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhiOjILkDvDhje9qJU-R4qviWzlE5BtCt0pmmHbIqL-pr90jVf4oqt1uu3NC2fd0DPByN8O1bOlgDkT6kHI1n0BsvePdUOMT4Lqfk7gZEmH-4gSFIqF8kLkoaML22GePiwQNEJGu5KNev8/s640/portal1v2+copy.png" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">I only just discovered you can add captions.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Portal is in fact
often taken as a parody of the idea of level design over story; highlighting
the lengths games sometimes go to explain level design and puzzles within the
context of an environment. The game makes little effort to disguise the purpose
of the ‘testing chambers’ as anything more that the puzzles they are, leaving
the developers open to fully explore the possibilities of the genre without
having to justify everything. In fact, the developers published <a href="http://gamedev.tutsplus.com/tutorials/level-design/portal-2-level-design-creating-puzzles-to-challenge-your-players/">some tutorials detailing the process</a>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">I’ve found that
games often fall into one of two extremes – although that might be due to my
own polarizing preferences for genre, since I tend to go for either RPGs or
platformers.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">On one hand you get
games like Portal, where the puzzles seem to have been given the most leeway
and the environment has been slotted in around it. In particular, I remember
one of the Prince of Persia games where there are some <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">very</i> conspicuously placed tree branches. Sadly I don’t have a
screenshot, but take my word for it that their attempt to incorporate the
environment into the level design failed spectacularly. Games like Uncharted
are also occasionally guilty of this, although they do seem to be getting
better at it, perhaps because of more flexible game engines.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">At the other end you
get games such as Skyrim and other RPGs, where a large proportion of the
gameplay mainly comes from the context of the story and the visual aspect of
the environment. Not to say that the environments in these games aren’t somewhat
concerned with playability; in my post about<a href="http://jhbdmuga.blogspot.co.uk/2012/08/game-design-environments.html"> environment design</a>, when discussing how level design is blended into the environment I talked about
how most Skyrim dungeons provide a shortcut back to the entrance. However, in these games level
design often takes a backseat to put narrative behind the wheel.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYN8AT0WN8k5XBKBkwfZQmhlE7mor_i_wYeX_Am1UtBk0WnX7EokAks7C2MyAoKd9MKWDQ_B2cr3860jJ9TjWnSI8rtsoxpUN8J3mZ2hci_PIUahC5o8Wn6BakFzHlnmwaxddg9zVsrWE/s1600/skyrim.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYN8AT0WN8k5XBKBkwfZQmhlE7mor_i_wYeX_Am1UtBk0WnX7EokAks7C2MyAoKd9MKWDQ_B2cr3860jJ9TjWnSI8rtsoxpUN8J3mZ2hci_PIUahC5o8Wn6BakFzHlnmwaxddg9zVsrWE/s640/skyrim.jpg" width="640" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Following the path to the right and jumping down takes you back to the entrance.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">That’s not to say
context is entirely removed from level design. Some portion of the feel of a
game still comes from the layout of different elements, and both environment
and level design can lean on one another. Narrow spaces can create a feeling of
urgency, or give the player a sense of objective, and large spaces can either
give the player a feeling of freedom or leave them feeling vulnerable. </span><br />
<br />
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Vertical
space can also have an effect on the player, climbing up and climbing down
invoke different emotions, and can be used to support the narrative. A player
will probably perceive moving upwards as more effort than climbing down and
expect a larger pay-off, even if the gameplay is almost identical.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-bidi-font-weight: bold;">Often the context of
the environment inspires the level design, for instance Assassin’s Creed takes
the concept of climbing buildings and weaves it - seemingly effortlessly - into
the environment, the gameplay and the level design. Rather than using buildings
simply as props or background scenery, the game takes the concept of a
sprawling city and tailors the gameplay towards the environment. There <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">are</i> some conspicuous gameplay elements,
but these are mainly minor things, such as boxes and flagpoles placed to help
you move fluidly.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Much of level design is simply about balancing different
interactions, constantly giving players something do without the tasks becoming
repetitive or boring. This is where predicting the path the player takes
becomes important, as it allows the level designer to make a vague timeline of
player activity. Long distances between points translate to long periods of the
player just moving around, and forcing a player to backtrack through the same
place multiple times becomes tedious.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Of course, it’s impossible to fully predict how a game will
feel without playing it through, which is where blocking out levels and play-testing
comes into play. Creating fully fleshed out environments is expensive and time
consuming, so to get a feel for the gameplay early on the development designers
create a white-box, a very basic outline of the level without all the visual
aspects. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
White-boxing levels allows play-testing almost from the very
beginning of production, and most importantly the environments can easily be
changed to improve the player’s experience. The developers get a better idea of
what the game will be like to play, and when the art team begin to flesh out the
visual part of the game, they know all their assets will actually be used.<br />
<br /></div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-83157467222194837822012-12-04T20:03:00.001-08:002013-03-12T19:08:44.050-07:00Task 14: Planning and Concepting<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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Planning and concepting is a necessary process for any
project, and is often just as important as the finished product. It is partly
about generating ideas, but equally about analysing choices, making decisions
and rejecting ideas that don’t work. The exact steps vary depending on what the
final outcome is going to be – producing a 3d model has a different work flow
than producing a 2d painting – but the ideas behind the steps are the same.
Concepting is an iterative process – that is, each step builds on the last. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU8gYme1wFKqwgQzMA4GFSOlFQFb3YIZXvQGTqJW_aWJvpaQuJB2NM5x7TF3Xp9d_GtL4DheD2C385eDwN8kuVImvTDz-1FOQ79afCuqFAVoQqcAZ_ERdyGASXALG0hxOzWu0Sr80Zu-0/s1600/blogabbeypark.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="259" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhU8gYme1wFKqwgQzMA4GFSOlFQFb3YIZXvQGTqJW_aWJvpaQuJB2NM5x7TF3Xp9d_GtL4DheD2C385eDwN8kuVImvTDz-1FOQ79afCuqFAVoQqcAZ_ERdyGASXALG0hxOzWu0Sr80Zu-0/s640/blogabbeypark.png" width="640" /></a></div>
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<br /></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
In terms of visual design, that means working out the
overall composition of an image before starting on the details, and then using
those different compositions to start looking at details. When making 3D game
assets, this planning is even more important since there are so many different
aspects that come together to make a scene, and unlike in a single 2D image, until
everything is put in place the concept art is your only accurate idea of what
the scene will look like as a whole. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Establishing a consistent method for working through the
planning stages is important because it gives you an estimate of how much can
be achieved in a certain timescale, as well as letting you set benchmarks for
your progress throughout a project. </div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The concepting stage has been one of the hardest things to
get my head around over the first year, and it’s still a bit of a stuggle at
times. I’m a visual person, and when I start thinking about a new project I
tend to rush ahead and start thinking in terms of the finished piece. It wasn’t
until fairly recently that I really began to appreciate the value of planning,
and to understand that concepting is not simply documenting your thought
process – rather, that the exploration of ideas should be done on paper and not
just in your head. I’m still guilty of getting attached to a certain idea, or
getting fixated certain scene before I’ve even started doing thumbnails. I find
it hard not so see something that seems impressive at the time and think ‘wow,
that’s what I want to draw’.</div>
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<br /></div>
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However, I’m getting better at it. By forcing myself to slow
down and try different things before I start narrowing down my idea I am
starting to see the benefit, even if while I’m drawing the thumbnails it
sometimes still feels like I’m just going through the motions. The more
planning I do the more I’m finding myself thinking about what I’m drawing, making
aesthetic decisions that I might not have thought about, and it’s now at the
point where I feel the need to plan things on paper, whereas before I’d want
jump headfirst into Photoshop or 3DS Max.</div>
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<br /></div>
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That said, it’s still the biggest area I need to work on. A
large part of this is that everything I do is still at least fifty per cent trial
and error, even if I thought I knew what I was doing. At this point I just have
to accept than anything I do will take at least three times longer than I think
it will.</div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-17169969505669240662012-10-11T17:43:00.005-07:002012-10-11T17:43:54.506-07:00Reflection on year one, and ambition for year two<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
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<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Game
production definitely took the most of my time last year; a lot of the things
we learnt I’d never done before which meant that not only was everything trial
and error, but the work itself was more interesting. Now that I’ve got a better
grip on the basics of 3DS Max, I hope I can focus a bit more on my visual
design skills, which to be honest I made minimal progress on.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In some ways, I feel that I went backwards a
bit, because I was scrambling around trying to use digital painting and
neglecting my traditional art skills. It’s easy to want to use Photoshop for
everything because it’s so quick to get started, but in practice I find that
the actual process of using it to create an image is a lot less intuitive than
when you’re physically putting something onto paper.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Digital
Painting has the unfortunate tendency of turning me into a perfectionist, which
means I never get anything done because I’m agonising over every pixel instead of
looking at the image as a whole. I might try to make more of an effort to do
some of the assignments in traditional media I or do preliminary paintings and
then trying to replicate the techniques I used in a digital version.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I also want
to make more of an effort to bring my visual design skills into my 3D work.
Last year I ended up spending the majority of the time I’d allocated to game
production just working on the mesh, and it shows. I need to give a lot more
time over to concepting and texturing, in particular looking at better ways to
produce normal maps. Thankfully the summer projects have helped my greatly in
learning how to make more efficient meshes, as well as giving me a little more
basis from which to plan how much detail certain assets need, and how to best
make use of textures.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As with
Visual Design, my blogging was a bit neglected last year. This year I’m going
to make a real effort to post on my blog at least once a week, and to blog
about my 3D and 2D work in addition to posting the Critical Studies
assignments. By posting my work regularly, including scans of my rough work, I
will hopefully be able to get more valuable feedback, both from the course
tutors and from other students, as well as just demonstrating my creative and
concepting processes.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I’m looking
forward to the group project as an opportunity to learn how to coordinate the
skills I’ve learnt with the work of other people on the course. It will be the
first time I’ve ever participated in a group art project, so I’m somewhat
nervous about it, but I think that ultimately it will be fun. After all, the
group work will be closer to what it would be like working in the game
industry, and it will be good to get a better idea of what that will be like
early on.</span></div>
Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-1716029484267372812012-08-09T15:12:00.003-07:002012-08-09T15:13:47.323-07:00Personal Review of the First Year<br />
I’ve enjoyed this year. Yes, there have been parts that were difficult, frustrating, or just plain tedious – mostly while I was getting to grips with 3DS Max - but those are all part of the experience and I’ve learned from them, too. <br />
<br />
I do feel as though Game Production overshadowed the other two modules, simply because I put more time on it. It was mostly new and therefore more interesting, but being new also meant I was severely underestimating the time it would take me to do things. Next year I need to manage my time better and not let work from one module pile up. I definitely tried to do too much with each project, and then ended up not having enough time to finish what I was doing. Somehow modelling brings out my perfectionist tendencies. I need to aim lower so I can actually get things finished and leave myself time to tackle any unforeseen problems. <br />
<br />
That said, I learned a lot of things and I can now plan for the problems better. Next year I really need to put more work into visual design, and focus on developing my confidence in digital painting. <br />
<br />
Critical studies suffered most of all, since writing is not one of my strong points, nor is writing about things as I go along. I think I just need to accept that it’s difficult and push myself to write even when I don’t know what to say. With Critical Studies, it wasn’t a time issue exactly, but more that I’d not be able to think of what to write, decide to leave it for later and then forget about it. That said I’ve definitely spent more than four hours on each of the posts. Half of the time I’m not even sure if I’m writing the right things, if I’m being too critical of what I’m posting. I never know if I should just post what I’ve written as soon as it’s grammatically sound instead of sitting on each post for a week and then rewriting half of it, or if revising what I’ve written actually helps. I intended to post about projects on my blog, but ended up only using Facebook. Hopefully next year I’ll actually get around to doing that. <br />
<br />
Facebook has been indispensable as a means of getting feedback on work, and even if I don’t get any comments, it still reassuring to have work uploaded, because presumably if I was doing everything completely wrong, <i>somebody</i> would have said something. The Dmuga Technical group in particular has helped me out a few times when 3DS Max has done something inexplicable. <br />
<br />
I do feel like the start of the year could have been a bit more structured. I got into bad habits early on and then spent the rest of the year trying to catch up. Maybe a small group project might have helped? Either way, I’m now more aware of how the workload pans out across the year. Hopefully second year won’t be so different that I can’t learn from my mistakes this year.Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-2719436430483514682012-08-09T06:51:00.003-07:002012-08-09T06:51:51.947-07:00Personal Gaming HistoryI’ve been playing computer games for as long as I can remember. Most of the games I’ve played tended to be a rather random mix of whatever was at hand, and it’s only recently I’ve started seeking out games relevant to my interests. I don’t know what the first game I ever played was, but if I had to guess I’d say it was a demo for either Age of Empires of roller coaster Tycoon. They’re certainly both games I’ve been playing for a very long time; I still play age of empires II occasionally <br />
<br />
I know there were also some start Star Wars themed FPS lying around, but I doubt I played them much. I am not - and never have been - a big fan of first person shooters, so they were really more of a spectator sport for me. <br />
<br />
After that there was a Frogger game I remembered playing excessively. It was a 3D platforming game, and it had an arcade mode where all the levels were listed with the number of coins collected and the best time. Obviously, that was taken as a challenge, and thanks to a bit of friendly competition between my brother and I we collected every single coin, and shaved down the playtime for each level to what was probably the shortest time physically possible. <br />
<br />
The Prince of Persia series kept me occupied for quite some time. I might not have played them them as much as Age of Empires or Frogger, but then they don’t have as much replay value. The Prince of Persia were, however, what got me onto the Ubisoft forums, and from there I became interested in the first assassin’s Creed game, which was in production at the time. I started following the development blogs for the game, although it was a while after release that I actually got to play it. <br />
<br />
Around the same time I got Oblivion as a birthday gift, and that quickly ate up all my free time. It was Oblivion, more that assassin’s creed that really got me interested in what went on behind the scenes. Unlike Assassin’s creed, I hadn’t followed it as it was being produced, since I didn’t even know about the Elder Scrolls series until I started playing Oblivion, but there was a lot of content on the web about the production, and I went and read or watched every scrap about it that I could find. <br />
<br />
There are some other games I played during this time, including The Sims, SimCity, a couple of other Starwars games such as Jedi Academy and Knights of the old republic. There was also a stealth/platforming/puzzle game called Sheep, dog and Wolf, which sadly I never finished because I got stuck on a level and, what with the internet being a lot less comprehensive back at the time, I couldn’t find any way to complete it. <br />
<br />
I played a small number of online games, and came to the conclusion that online gaming, specifically in the form of MMOs, is just not for me. I like the idea of huge communities playing together, but in practice I’ve found all the things that separate a multiplayer game from a singleplayer experience are things I’ve disliked. The only fun part of the game was exploring a new world, and that’s certainly not exclusive to multiplayer. <br />
<br />
That’s probably why Minecraft is an exception to that: head onto any established multiplayer server, and there’s a whole new world to explore. Minecraft appeals to me for similar reasons as Age of empires and roller coaster tycoon; it’s a sandbox survival game with a focus on building and managing resources. However my stint of playing minecraft didn’t really last that long, maybe because it quickly stops being challenging. There’s still things to do, sure, but they’re all self-imposed challenges, whereas games like roller coaster tycoon and Age of empires are easy enough that you feel like you’re gaining some ground, but they keep you on your toes. <br />
<br />
The main game I’m playing at the moment is Skyrim. I’ve also started playing Deus Ex, because it was on sale on Steam, and I’m playing Bioshock because it seems to be one of those games everyone has played. Morrowind is another game I’ve recently started because, as with Bioshock, everyone says great things about it. So far, I’m just finding the outdated graphics rather pleasantly nostalgic and getting frustrated with the lack of fast-travel, but it is interesting to see Oblivion and Skyrim in perspective. <br />
<br />
There aren’t any games I’m looking forward to at the moment, but I’m rather glad of that, since I have plenty to play and to catch up with at the moment. I am trying to broaden the variety of the games I’ve played, and trying to replay older games from the perspective of a game artist.Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-45884349608229759152012-08-07T02:01:00.002-07:002012-08-09T06:51:58.854-07:00Game Design: EnvironmentsEnvironments make up the largest portion of the visual portion in any game, both on screen and in terms of the time and effort it takes a team to create them. Unfortunately, this sheer quantity means that where character models are scrutinised, a large proportion of the content that goes into the game world is taken for granted, even through the it’s this background content that has the largest impact on how the game looks. Character models are often continuous throughout the game, but areas are seldom visited more than once, meaning it would be impossible, not to mention impractical, to individually model every rock, tree or wall throughout an entire world. Luckily, by managing resources it’s possible to reuse assets, to create multiple environments on a larger scale, without multiplying the workload. <br />
<br />
When designing the environments for a game, there’s two parts to keep in mind. On one hand, there’s how the environment actually looks – how it creates a believable backdrop for the game world, and how it sets the mood for whatever is happening. On the other hand, and equally important, is how the player will navigate through the level. These two aspects of game environments have to coexist: they’re both equally important, but sometimes run contradictory to each other, and often some compromises have to be made. <br />
<br />
Buildings are generally not designed to be difficult to navigate – there are some rare exceptions, but there are only so many levels you can set in bank vaults or inside pyramids. Some levels will have to be set in places where logically, you should have no problem getting from A to B – or if you wanted, from A to C, D, or E. However, simply walking along a pavement to get to your next goal doesn’t make for a fun game, even if your character is getting shot at. <br />
<br />
The simplest way to direct a player in the way you want them to go is to simply prevent them going anywhere else. Many linear games simply have one set path to follow, and the player progresses by solving puzzles or defeating enemies to move along that line. There’s nothing wrong with this, but if the design of the environment suggests that you should be able to go a different way but can’t, it breaks the immersion. For example, there may be walls that you should be able to climb, water that the characters spontaneously drowns in, or even an invisible barrier. <br />
<br />
What you’ve created has to be functional within the game engine and the mechanics, which can be anything from puzzles to platforming to combat. The features of the environment which enable these have to fit into the aesthetics, but at the same time need to be obvious. Simply telling the player what to do or where to go - for example with an ingame map or a marker above an objective - is reliable, but breaks immersion. It’s much better to integrate directions into the world itself, with signs or simply objects which it is logical for the player to try to use. However, you then need to give interactive objects consistency; for instance, the player won’t think to kick down a door without prompting unless it’s already been shown that they can break certain objects. There also needs to be a visual clue that the door is one of those objects – this is where aesthetics and mechanics intersect. <br />
<br />
The need to guide players through the game world applies to both linear gameplay and open world, with the latter being used more locally; the player chooses the order in which they follow the paths, but in the long run they still take the same route through individual sections of the game. Open world games generally include areas that are more realistic in the way they are laid out, such as in towns, as unlike the more linear sections, they aren’t supposed to be an obstacle course. <br />
<br />
Often in game levels you are prevented from backtracking by a one-way obstacle – for example a ledge that you can’t climb back up, or a door that only opens from one side. Most often, this is used to trap you in an area with enemies, but is also sometimes used as a transition between different loading areas, in which case a cut-scene might be used to explain why you can’t go back. <br />
<br />
The same technique can be used in reverse to improve pacing. In Skyrim, dungeons usually double back on themselves, putting the boss room near the exit, but with a one-way obstacle forcing you to take the long way around the first time. This means the player avoids having to run all the way back through the dungeon to get out again. Assassin’s creed uses this in yet another way; once you progress far enough in a platforming puzzle you unlock a new route up, so that if you fall down – and survive – you’re not forced to go through the entire puzzle again. <br />
<br />
It’s essentially a save point; but built into the environment such as to be unobtrusive. It’s not that the player doesn’t know exactly why it’s there, but they don’t have to take themselves out of the environment by going to a load screen or even remembering to press a quicksave button. The more you can hide the fact that what you’re playing is a game, the easier it is to keep up the immersion. <br />
<br />
Abrupt changes in scenery are often used to signify a change in objectives; for instance a transition between platforming and combat. Not that the environment itself can’t be the focus. Even if the majority of the game environment is simply a stage for something else, there’s nothing more inspiring than small moment where you turn a corner and emerge somewhere truly visually stunning. Players seek out those moments, and environment can tell a story just as well as the characters. <br />
<br />
Sections of environment based on discovery also can provide useful breathing points. It’s all about pacing; if you want the main focus to be the environment, you have to time it so that those critical points of discovery coincide with a lull in combat. If the player is having to fight enemies, or is racing forward to complete the next part of a puzzle, they won’t notice what is around them. <br />
<br />
There’s going to be players who take the straightforward route, who never see the game world from any perspective other than the path that leads most directly from A to B. There are also those players who are going to explore every corner of each level and scrutinise every texture. You can’t make the game environment perfect, there has to be a balance between quality and quantity. <br />
<br />
Using assets that can be repeated and reused is the most logical method of creating a variety of areas efficiently. It’s also a way of keeping the design constant. That said, it’s important that different places are distinct enough, otherwise not only will the player notice it’s possible for them to get disorientated. It’s also best that there’s a large enough pool off assets to draw from that the player only notices them being reused if they’re looking for it. Going back to Skyrim as an example; it’s very obvious that all of the minor inns use exactly the same building, to the point where if it feels like you’re going back into the same building every time, and it detracts from the feeling of being in an immense and diverse world. <br />
<br />
Even something as simple as lighting can greatly change the mood of the environment, and it doesn’t have to use more unique assets. Recolouring assets is also a way of adding variety, although it can be fairly obvious if not done sparingly. <br />
<br />
Environments are probably my favourite aspect of games, and I have a soft spot for contrasting organic and inorganic forms. That is, I love games that feature a lot of plant life, especially when it’s combined with architectural structure. The environments are often the part that endears me to a game, and it’s the part I spend the most time admiring as I play.Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-41291285723363042792012-07-22T07:45:00.001-07:002012-07-22T07:46:01.657-07:00Game Design:Characters<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Characters
are the driving force behind almost any form of media, and there’s no reason
that video games should be any different. The characters are the part of a game
that we remember best after the game has ended, they are what advertisers use
to attract new players, and are what brings us back to a franchise for sequels.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;"> The reasoning and thought process behind the
character designs for a game are not all that different from –for example -
those of a film, but at the same time designers have to take into account how
those characters will be implemented within the game mechanics. Most of the same character devices that work
for film or even literature carry through well when converted into games, maybe
because characters are an aspect of gaming that is more closely tied to
storytelling than to game mechanics.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The most
common format for both games to follow a single character as the protagonist,
and usually the point of a game is to guide you through their experiences first
hand, with the player adopting that character’s role in the game world. The
game has to guide the player into making the actions that are necessary to
progress, without making it feel too forced. This is where strong characterization
can make a big impact to the overall enjoyment and immersion of a game, as it’s
a characters’ responsibility to guide the player into their role, whether that character is the protagonist, a mentor, a villain, or even the main
character’s romantic interest.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">If this sounds
familiar, it’s because it the same formula that is used throughout films and
literature. The important difference with games, is that you can’t just assume
a passive role watching over the protagonist’s shoulder, you have to become
them to some degree. It’s no coincidence that the most often seen protagonist is young and male, since that
also describes the demographic of the main target audience, and the
similarities make it easier to relate to the main character. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">It’s worth
acknowledging that not all video games follow this format. There are plenty strategy
games, such as Age of Empires or
rollercoaster tycoon, which don’t have characters in the typical sense, but
that doesn’t mean lessons about character design don’t apply, since game
devices are often personified.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">If supporting
characters don’t play a purpose, they can easily feel superfluous, although in
stories where the player can make choices that affect the story there are
sometimes several potential characters for each role, giving the illusion of
choice without taking away necessary components to the story. That’s another
difference between watching the main character and putting the audience in the
man character’s shoes: in the former, the character’s personality in defined be
their actions, whereas in games; at least ones where you have choices, the
character’s personality (or at least the personality that the player projects
into the character) defines their actions. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">If the game
forces you to take actions that don’t fit with how you interpret the character
– actions which you would not choose given circumstances, were you in their
shoes – it can be jarring if not handled convincingly enough. At the same time,
to establish a character as being an individual they have to make some choices
individual to the player, unless the game if giving you a blank slate, as often
see in open world RPGs. Generally games stick rigidly to one or the other:
either you are entirely free to mould your character, or you are playing as an
established character with no real control over their choices except on the
most basic gameplay level.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Although
better development tools can help populate a world, and improvements in AI can
make organic beings more convincing, actually giving those creations character
remains a very organic process. After all, you can’t procedurally generate voce
acting or stories – Bethesda may have has managed to produce randomly generated
fetch quests that aren’t too intrusive, but they only make up a small proportion
of Skyrim’s quests, and they don’t contribute anything to characterization that
hasn’t already by predetermined my the game designers.</span></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">The other
aspects of games, such as game mechanics or puzzles can, if used correctly,
allow characters that would otherwise seem excessively stereotyped. A small cast
of well developed characters are often enough to make players overlook one
dimensional enemies and minor characters. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">It should be
fairly obvious that the technical capabilities of graphics have little to do
with creating lovable, wee known characters; many of the long running
characters we are familiar with predate even 3D graphics, and have their
origins in low resolution sprites. In some ways this was an advantage, as the
limitations forced them to design characters who were recognisable and readable
at such a low resolution. Take Mario, for example the basic character design is
the same whether it’s rendered as an 8-bit sprite of a fully 3D one, but the
colourful, simple design works. Video games thrive on IP and memorable
characters, and therefore it’s important that characters are distinctive and
memorable. There’s a whole list of characters from games I’ve never played, who
I would nonetheless recognise instantly. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Certainly
some characters have evolved visually from their original appearance, but I
suspect that in many cases the designers wanted the characters to be more
detailed originally, but were limited by what the technology at the time
allowed to be displayed on screen, and that changes are simply the original
idea being fully realised.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">That’s not
to say realistic graphics don’t have their place. While the qualities of
realtime graphics are not quite to the point of having characters who are indistinguishable
for real people, we’re getting closer and closer. There’s a lot more than the
character models themselves that go into making a character look real, and
character animation, collision and physics engines are all things that help
create a convincing imitation of life, but to reiterate: creating convincing
characters is all about how these tools are used, they won’t be any help if
game artist don’t make full use of the tools available. If games can include
characters so realistic, we can effortlessly forget that they’re not real,
imagine what that could do for immersion.
</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">Bringing in well-known
actors to voice characters in games is often used to pull in buyers in the same
way of casting for films. I’ve never actually recognised a character’s voice
actor while playing, but I suspect it could break the immersion a bit. That
said, quality of voice acting is another one of those key things that you
seldom notice unless it’s done badly, but when it is done badly it can
undermine any other depth a character has because an annoying voice is hard to
ignore. Bringing in people who know what they’re doing can only be a step in
the right direction.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">As with any
media there is compromise. Apart from the technical limitations of real time there
are also practicalities. A character who is being stealthy would logically be
wearing something that lets them blend into the environment, but having a
character that can’t be seen doesn’t make good gameplay. The compromise is to
give them some sort of tell – a distinctive silhouette maybe, or perhaps
conspicuously reflective goggles.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">As the
quality of visuals starts to reach its peak, and graphical fidelity ceases to
be the main selling point behind new titles, hopefully in the next few years we
will see other aspects of game design come into the spotlight. I personally
hope to see a larger emphasis on quality of animation, and interaction between characters
and the environment. Seeing characters sliding around or hovering off the edge
of steps is, at the moment, the biggest immersion breaker to me after bugs.
Maybe better tools for character/environment interaction will come be built
into game engines, so that more can be done in the time allocated. We’re
starting to see a larger variety of character animations for gesturing and
idling, but there’s still a long way to go.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 115%;">It would
also be nice to see even more depth in terms of dialogue, but that’s something
that is very much dependant on time. However, if characterisation becomes a
larger part of what makes games sell, maybe there’ll be more focus on it in
future. Is it is, improvement is only a matter of polishing what’s already
there: there have already been many great characters in games. Hopefully there
will be many more, but only time will tell.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="font-family: "Trebuchet MS",sans-serif;">
<br /></div>Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-43453276908602154632012-06-22T08:55:00.000-07:002012-06-22T08:55:09.308-07:00Let me take you to the candy shop - pt.1<!--[if !mso]>
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<div class="MsoNormal">
Picking just two summer projects from the list seemed like a
pretty daunting task when I first saw the variety we had to choose from. There’s
a very wide range of themes there and all of them have the potential to be
pretty awesome, but at the same time none of them jumped out at me at first.
However, I’ve wanted to model some kind of old fashioned shop for a while, and
making a sweet shop seemed a good way to get that out of my system. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I started with an idea of what I wanted, but pinning that
mental image down into a workable concept has proved a challenge. Ideally what
I’ve been looking for is a shop that is a perfect match to the one I have in my
head, so I can just draw details directly from real life but it hasn’t been
that easy. Looking around Leicester city centre has provided my with some
reference material, but there’s only one sweet shop I can find and it’s quite far
from fitting the bill of what I want my final product to look like. A large
proportion of my research so far has therefore been through Google images,
which if nothing else lets me quickly skim through different styles of shops,
although it’s frustrating finding an image of a shop I like but not being able
to see the details.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
So while I still haven’t found a shop that’s exactly what I
want, I have been able to pick out lots of images with individual elements that
I like, and to create a mood board that overall shows a good representation of
my” ideal” sweet shop.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht1Pyfzu-0POyJFHzuXack-VRlbXFvMKbFWatyx6feZ4XB-WctwkqVRzSplIUg7ScKVNedpAAiiTpgZFjZznvODRoEK20Xhi4B6X5K7ifhJrkO-jGL6AJeHQ8T2CzKNyuLIN3oXB3REzE/s1600/mood+board+copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="441" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEht1Pyfzu-0POyJFHzuXack-VRlbXFvMKbFWatyx6feZ4XB-WctwkqVRzSplIUg7ScKVNedpAAiiTpgZFjZznvODRoEK20Xhi4B6X5K7ifhJrkO-jGL6AJeHQ8T2CzKNyuLIN3oXB3REzE/s640/mood+board+copy.png" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I want to try to keep within the given specifications for
the project, more as a personal challenge than anything – but also because
budgeting my projects in terms of tris is one of the many areas I’ve struggled
with. During this year’s projects, I’ve wavered between barely using half of
the tri budget, to seriously struggling to finish the model within the limit,
as was my biggest problem with the architectural project.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’d say this was mostly down to still being pretty new at
modelling – I had no idea what a given number of tris looked like as anything
but a number, and each time I was attempting something completely new. There’s
still undoubtedly going to be some trial and error involved, as this is
significantly larger than any of the coursework projects, but at least I’m now
prepared. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To try and make it more manageable, I’ve split the project
into three main chunks, and given them their own polygon budget: the shop
exterior, including two sides of the building, the roof and part of the street,
I’m giving 2k-3k tris; the interior and furniture I’m allowing 1k, and the
remaining 6k to 7k tris are going towards all the various items to fill the
shop with, mostly the jars.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
These sections are also somewhat separate design-wise, with
the idea that I can just switch between them if I get bored of one. So far that
hasn’t exactly been successful; I’ve had to settle on the general plan of the
outside of the building first before I can start designing the inside, because
the layout of the inside of the shop is heavily dependent on the overall floor
plan.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheKPEjIXgpj0OIX1dOFl2lwPz_mDh28IfQmpOnrnEC_mKyd5xFi5faPipxLiLNUg-ue2xKLXseRpeiEFMvz_Hp3aNV7BVYswgNoZOSYsK5OrBHW_-tY6n_jIFvCxMuOT39NZoSpOneCik/s1600/shopdesign1+copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="343" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheKPEjIXgpj0OIX1dOFl2lwPz_mDh28IfQmpOnrnEC_mKyd5xFi5faPipxLiLNUg-ue2xKLXseRpeiEFMvz_Hp3aNV7BVYswgNoZOSYsK5OrBHW_-tY6n_jIFvCxMuOT39NZoSpOneCik/s400/shopdesign1+copy.png" width="400" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
This is the exterior I’ve decided to use. When I was
sketching up ideas, I knew it was going to have bay window, but I also really
liked the look of the corner window. I couldn’t find any examples of shops that
had both, but I think what I came up with is a plausible design that
incorporates both. Now I’ve got the overall shape down, I can start looking at
the details. I need to find a design for the edges of the windows and door that
is consistent, and will work to neatly fill in the gap betweent he different
windows and the brickwork.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I’m also trying (and somewhat failing) to resist the urge to
start modelling the various small assets – for instance jars of sweets -
without any prior preparation such as, well, working out whether I’ll actually
need then in the scene. Making meshes is one of the parts I find the most fun, since
at that point everything is simple you can quickly see the object taking shape,
and with smaller assetsyou spend less time hunting for stray vertexes that have
somehow eluded the weld tool. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At least,
having given in and modelled a few different shaped jars, I can now estimate just
how many jars I’ll be able to having in total, and can adjust the design of the
shelving, etc., to make sure the shop doesn’t look too empty.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Partly, I aim to use this project to solidify what I’ve
learnt over the year. There’s a few skills and techniques I want to get a
better grip on before the start of next year, including quite basic thing like
lighting, and rigging, which I ended up flailing around with a bit when they
became necessary and I had no idea what I was doing. Baking object is another
get think I want to get the hang of, or at the very least have tried. I
actually wasn’t aware until recently that using a highpoly model to create a
normal map for a lowpoly one was something you could do in Max. I guess I
thought it was a ZBrush thing? I don’t think I really thought about at all, but
it’s reassuring to know that there are easier ways to produce normal than using
hand-painted height maps.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The final, big important thing I want<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>to work on is keeping my written work up to
date. While I’ve mostly kept up with the game production and visual design parts
of the course, critical studies, the third side of triangle, has been badly
neglected. I find writing difficult, or at least I find writing concisely and
meaningfully difficult. It’s something which – as much as I put it off – I know
will only improve if I practice, and for that reason, I’m going to make a real
effort to blog about this project as it moves along.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-25163050918702959632012-03-19T03:22:00.003-07:002012-03-19T03:25:43.213-07:00game design: art direction<div class="MsoNormal">Creating a good game isn’t just a case of having the right people. Large production teams mean you can get out more content, but the more people you have working on the same thing, the harder it is to coordinate. Many game series rely on an easily recognisable style to sell copies, and so there needs to tight quality control to make sure that work produced by different individuals fits into the larger picture. An art director has to has to set the style for a game, and throughout the production process, they’re responsible for making sure the work produced will come together in the final product.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">In some ways, games are a much more unforgiving medium than film. You can’t hide things with careful camera angles or cropping; everything in the virtual environment you’re creating is laid bare for the player to scrutinize. In film you can direct the viewers’ attention to a certain subject, and if they miss something, once the camera moves on it’s gone. Games have to anticipate the player moving at their own pace, and there’s no knowing or controlling what a particular person will choose to look at; at most you can try to draw their attention with visual clues.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Somewhere you have to compromise between quality and quantity, between artistic realism and practicality. There’s a limit to what can realistically be achieved within a given timeframe, and not having a clear stylistic aim once the actually work begins is a sure way to waste valuable time. This is where concept art plays a valuable role, but even that is usually produced by people, who will all have their own visual style and ideas, and will all have a different take on the same subject. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Luckily, there are tools that can be used to maintain artistic consistency. Reference libraries are invaluable for sharing ideas and quickly establishing a theme. These will probably include photographs, textures, colour palettes, a variety of artwork and even screenshots of previous games if the project is trying to emulate a pre-existing style. Modelling a few test assets prior to starting production allows a more accurate estimate of production time, and also can be used as reference for further assets.</div><div class="MsoNormal">A clearly defined pipeline for modelling assets means inconsistencies can be addressed before they become excessively costly to correct. Checklists for stylisation and overall quality can help to make sure all assessts meet the same standard.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">For efficiency, it’s likely that many assets, such as textures and meshes, will be reused. Working out where and how these assets will be used requires planning in advance. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Ultimately, the role of an Art Director is a creative one. Even if they don’t directly contribute to any individual detail, their influence is seen thought the final product, in the visual style of the game as a whole. An art director will need to be able to make informed artistic choices, and therefore it is essential that they have a solid knowledge of the basics of art, such as composition and colour theory. </div>Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-1948925264111408042012-03-17T09:54:00.001-07:002012-03-17T09:57:35.135-07:00Visual design: Guildhall<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmf1hhNj_FljvppiFagGlYvrLM-WtrXpwM50ENfK6bwHI-Nrc-XqfTbfsUFe-AwaioglYkYBeriiIw3x6_qMK6JSzrYVm2Rb8gcspFe9cQ-v1DEceU7CW-y2qTr0iUANQECaC9RYTfb4I/s1600/guildhall+final.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjmf1hhNj_FljvppiFagGlYvrLM-WtrXpwM50ENfK6bwHI-Nrc-XqfTbfsUFe-AwaioglYkYBeriiIw3x6_qMK6JSzrYVm2Rb8gcspFe9cQ-v1DEceU7CW-y2qTr0iUANQECaC9RYTfb4I/s640/guildhall+final.png" width="480" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I had a lot of fun with this, although at times it was frustrating. Probably the biggest thing I’ve learnt from this project is that not only are excessively large image sizes unnecessary, my computer hates them, especially once you bring in multiple layers. Most of the grief this gave me was because my PC had to deal with a 10000 by 7000 image with about 30 layers. Sorry computer! I promise I’ll never to do that to you again! (Spoiler: I probably will.)</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Other than that, some parts – specifically the stairs and banisters in the foreground -would have benefited from me using 3-point perspective, instead of shoehorning everything into 2-point. Maybe next time.</div>Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-596136867184735852012-03-15T21:04:00.002-07:002012-03-15T21:04:50.983-07:00elements of game design<div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I’ve always thought that the best way to divide games into categories is to look at <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">why</i> we play them. I’m a bit of a Solitaire addict, but I’m still surprised that, on reflection, since Christmas the amount of time I’ve spent playing Klondike on my phone is probably comparable to the total hours I’ve spent hiking around Skyrim.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Surprising? I’ve been eager for the fifth Elder Scrolls game ever since it was nothing more than speculation and vague, cryptic comments hidden in Bethesda interviews. I suppose it’s because of how quickly I can get into the game. I won’t play a PC game like Skyrim unless I know I’ve got at least an hour to spare, and if I have that much free time, I’ll often have some other outstanding task that I can’t justify ignoring for that long.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">It’s not just a matter of the time it takes to start up my computer and the game itself – there’s a certain amount of mental involvement too. If I haven’t touched the game for a few days, I’ve probably completely forgotten what I was doing, and it’ll take a while to get my bearings. Neither do I want to play for a short time. I’ll say this now; Skyrim does not have the best quests I’ve come across, or the best controls – but the huge world and gorgeous graphics make it extremely immersive nonetheless, and to get the best experience you need to play for a long stretch of time. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Solitaire, on the other hand, is just something I play at two in the morning when I can’t sleep. It’s kind of addictive, true, but I can sum up everything I have to say about it in a few sentences. It’s hard to objectively describe a card game in terms of video game mechanics, but the controls themselves are so simple I could pick it up and start playing almost immediately. While there’s’ definitely quite a lot that could be said about the strategy, the basic mechanics is just the absolute minimum of what is needed to be playable.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I don’t play games because I like the combat mechanics (although they have a direct impact on my enjoyment of the game) or even because of the graphics – although the art direction often has a direct impact on whether I’d play the game in the first place. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">It’s about the story.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">I don’t mean the long overarching plot of the game, either. I’ve played games with elaborate plotlines and fully fleshed out backstories for every area in game, and then I’ve completely ignored every cut-scene and lengthy charactermonologue because they haven’t contributed anything to my enjoyment of the game. Sometimes all I really want from a game is enemies to kill and puzzles to solve, and I don’t care why other than that the former are attacking me, the latter gives me better items, and overall there’s a general sense of progression.</span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">In a game demo I played years ago, one character option starts the game in a dungeon. The first thing you have to do is kick down a loose part of the wall, sneak through the sewer and kill the sleeping guard to get a key. This whole series of steps is just a way of teaching you the basic game mechanics – targeting objects, kicking, killing enemies, picking up objects. It’s just a series of buttons. There’s no choice in what you have to do – escaping that cell is the only way to progress the game. </span><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">Yet it’s immersive; the only prompt that you get to start off of how to aim and kick, you have to work out that the wall is loose. The only way you know that is that one of the blocks on the wall looks wonky. The controls and graphics work together to tell that small story of how you get out of the cell, and there’s a great sense of achievement the first time you get it, because the character didn’t work out how to escape – <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">you</i> did.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">However, that one experience is hardly enough to base an entire game on. It’s the final product of gameplay, and – like CGI in movies - if the person in front of the screen is constantly aware of the mechanics behind it you’ve probably screwed up.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;"> Explaining how a game will work, while also conveying the experience of playing it is not an easy task, but that’s what design documents have to do. Most of us have probably played a game where there’s been some quirk of the controls we’ve hated, that if <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">we</i> had designed the game we would have done differently. After you’ve played a game for a few hours these things seem obvious, but if you’re just reading the mechanics of the controls, it would be near impossible to pick these things out. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">This is an example of why game design should not be a one way process; the design document needs to evolve to overcome problems. However experiments of any kind are expensive and time consuming. That’s why, I suspect, most games seem to have nearly identical controls (speaking as a PC gamer); game producers know what works and seldom stray from it.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">That’s one of the reasons I applaud assassin’s creed. When I was following the production of the first game, my enthusiasm was for the setting and the character design, and my only interest in the game mechanics was that there would be platforming, somewhat similar to that in Prince of Persia. The first time I played Assassins creed was actually on a playstation while at a friend’s house. I played it for… <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">maybe</i> an hour or two. Bearing in mind that I hadn’t used a controller for at least a few years, it’s amazing how quickly the controls became second nature, even if I was zigzagging all over the place because I can’t get the hang of aiming with the thumb joystick thingies. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 115%;">The point is, even though the mechanics the game uses – having different “modes” of movement – was something relativley new, it quickly became instinctual, to the point where I still occasionally try to sprint with the mouse button in other games. If I see a piece of a building ingame, expect to be able to grab onto it, and find that I can, then as far as I’m concerned the game has successfully created an immersive experience.</span></div>Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-73354467712243419522012-03-08T05:13:00.000-08:002012-03-08T05:13:55.091-08:00game review: Dear Esther<!--[if !mso]> <style>
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<div class="MsoNormal">It’s probably not the best idea for my first review to be of a game that is only debatably a game, but after playing Dear Ester, I felt the strong need to talk about it. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Dear Esther <i style="mso-bidi-font-style: normal;">does</i> have game mechanics, but they are the extremely basic WASD controls used walk around and progress in the game. This small level of interactiveness is pretty much the only thing that separates it from being a computer generated movie. In some ways, Dear Esther reminds me of the 2D point and click adventures you find all over the internet, only there are no puzzles, and the mouse controls only affect the camera. </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtwt-3BgiM85XlElyUkxRvEZDnVXF2o6y6xnGK3JAW2unTNjTXdi0mCPLgmfJNpnmmrGeDYDxU-bvihB8xRc7A6YLDiXgkHSZf7rgcv-194uX_cn_b7j40djAzldtVWklu4g-z6RfZWoY/s1600/2012-03-08_00013.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="316" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtwt-3BgiM85XlElyUkxRvEZDnVXF2o6y6xnGK3JAW2unTNjTXdi0mCPLgmfJNpnmmrGeDYDxU-bvihB8xRc7A6YLDiXgkHSZf7rgcv-194uX_cn_b7j40djAzldtVWklu4g-z6RfZWoY/s640/2012-03-08_00013.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">It’s the nature of first person games to project into the character. You see from their eyes, and for the duration of the game you are them. In Dear Esther, it is left ambiguous as to who you are actually playing as. You can project yourself into their shoes and imagine the quiet footsteps of the protagonist are your own, but then you still have no choice in what you do. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">All you can do is walk, and ultimately there is only one way to go. You cannot lose and you cannot die, nothing you do makes any difference in the end. It is an uncomfortable feeling, being so powerless in a medium that is all about control.</div><div class="MsoNormal">In a way it shows that there such a thing as too much story versus effort. Having to work to find out what happens next – be it through combat, puzzles or platforming – makes the narrative reward seem so much better.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I understand what the makers of Dear Esther were trying to do. There are small details, like the paper boats in the underground stream and the bread and fish in the caves, that give you an idea of the kind of depth the game was aiming for, but it wasn’t strong enough to make the experience stand up on its own. </div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE34ZxiPXY5oerJDrKLEXstmIie03OMruydkXoi6aGKsJRCYxC-PnN94rcP0ZThYbYF_qwxPtAMDf49WFEpyg3Sd0tkMJ3qV8NVTwdGrHcnbHM1jdK8Lhnh0w4gAPAXwoqkwzdiCEdXjM/s1600/2012-03-08_00003.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="324" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjE34ZxiPXY5oerJDrKLEXstmIie03OMruydkXoi6aGKsJRCYxC-PnN94rcP0ZThYbYF_qwxPtAMDf49WFEpyg3Sd0tkMJ3qV8NVTwdGrHcnbHM1jdK8Lhnh0w4gAPAXwoqkwzdiCEdXjM/s640/2012-03-08_00003.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">You can play through the whole thing in little more than an hour, and although there are some parts I did go back and examine in more detail, the majority of the walking around is too tedious and uneventful to sit through a second time. The whole thing feels unfinished and unresolved, as though it’s a prelude or a demo. </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">I was hoping there would be some underlying plot to uncover, but there isn’t.</div><div class="MsoNormal">The graphics, at least are solid. They’re not my any means ground-breaking, but the island does feel like a lonely, deserted island. The caves are beautiful, and there’s no doubt that whoever created the visual aspect of dear Esther took a lot of care over crafting the virtual world.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCVIIXEUdX_-EnBL3-2AZjgdrEZ5qK94i2btzuRbVvbVFtSjmWNLw0wKJ8Ey37PmJp9z7RYdjm72e3c1g3wD9dUtGcPxAdQwqXQh-GX_lJvfpVdWwvl0dPKxCTusasKdZ9b5w6Zh7MxI4/s1600/2012-03-08_00011+copy.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCVIIXEUdX_-EnBL3-2AZjgdrEZ5qK94i2btzuRbVvbVFtSjmWNLw0wKJ8Ey37PmJp9z7RYdjm72e3c1g3wD9dUtGcPxAdQwqXQh-GX_lJvfpVdWwvl0dPKxCTusasKdZ9b5w6Zh7MxI4/s640/2012-03-08_00011+copy.png" width="640" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal">It’s just a shame they chose such a boring premise. I get the feeling that had they chosen a more interesting idea, or even rewritten the story to have a solid plot, the game would have had a more widely positive reception. This kind of thing is obviously never going to appeal to people who play games solely for the action, but I went in expecting a good story, and was left disappointed.</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal">Is it worth buying? For such a small amount of content, the price is rather steep, but if you enjoy natural scenery, and don’t mind the extent of the gameplay being a virtual tour, it can be a nice break from more intensive gaming experiences. Just don’t be surprised if, at the end, you come away with a strong sense on unfulfillment.</div>Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-34974363877201109132012-01-25T05:03:00.000-08:002012-01-25T05:03:28.988-08:00writing about games, previews, reviews, commentary and lies<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-GB</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/> <w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/> <w:OverrideTableStyleHps/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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</style> <![endif]--> <div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Reviewers usually write reviews because they are gamers themselves. They’re involved and passionate about the games they write about, and want to convey their experience of playing it. Alternatively, they find a game falls short of their expectations, and want to – not dissuade other people from buying it, exactly – but to make sure anyone who does buy the game isn’t getting less than they were hoping for.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">The problem then is that reviews will more often than not be written from a biased point of view. What one person looks for in a game will be different from what somebody else finds fun. Of course you can rate different aspects of a game against a scale – looking separately at graphics, gameplay, and storyline – but how do you decide what is most relevant for the game in question?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">A RPG may be able to get away with repetitive combat if it tells a compelling story, but a first person shooter can’t get away with unresponsive controls. How do you weight certain aspects against each other? Should reviews be tailored to fit different genres, or should all games go through the same scrutiny regardless of their intended audience and function?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">On the internet, this type on informal review works fine, as the reviews are written and by individuals and posted on their own sites and blogs. However, when it comes to forming these articles in to an official publication, such as a magazine, financial backing in needed, requiring a more structured format with a business plan. A company needs to be set up which will attract revenue from banks or shareholders and advertisers and the costs need to be offset by projected profits. This cannot be achieved unless the circulation is large or the revenue will not be available. Companies such as IGN and Eurogamer are such companies supporting magazines.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Producers and editors require a salary and journalists expect to be paid, there are printing and distribution costs, and therefore the subscription size is paramount. To cover the costs it is essential to attract a large enough amount of people to buy the magazines and they are competing with the internet which is free. So what are the advantages of magazines opposed to online publications?</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">An obvious reason for buying magazines is that they are potable. They can be read on the train, on the loo, at the coffee table – although in the last few years eBook readers have started to compete with this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many of the articles seen in magazines will be just as readily available online.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">It could be argued that they are better written. This too could be questioned. Salaried journalists should be able to produce better quality articles than bloggers but the journalists have to have a real interest in computer games to bring the articles to life. To get round this and to keep costs down many magazines employ computer enthusiastic school leavers to write for one year and then terminate their contract. One computer magazine expected a turnover <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>of 450000 but sold less than half of the projected numbers. Producers have to constantly balance, balancing the costs with the quality. If the magazine is not profitable banks and investors can withdraw their support. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">New games journalism can be quite removed from the content of the game itself, whereas more tradition reviews will focus entirely on the content.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">Reviews that rate games will usually cover certain aspects of the game individually, using the same general format for every release, and them giving the game a score on a scale. However, this method of reviewing is not always as objective as it is made out to be; you can rate graphics on their technical merits, but it is more difficult to rate the immersion they provide in the game world. Most sites provide an overview of how ratings are attributed, but even these are based on very subjective qualities.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">New games journalism does away with any pretence of judging games according to a preset formula. Sometimes they aren’t even discussing the quality or attributes of the games themselves, but rather certain aspects of a community related to a game, such as in this article which talks about the social etiquette that had developed in an online game. Sometimes they are using games to comment on serious issues, whether they’re related or completely separate from the virtual world. Articles written in this style are written informally, in a way that tries to connect to the reader through common experience and often humour. This can make them more enjoyable and easier to read than a more rigid article that just gives a point-by point analysis of a game without any personal involvement,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>but is not so useful when it comes to deciding whether a game is worth spending money on.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%; mso-bidi-font-size: 11.0pt;">More straight forward and to the point style reviews would be more use to a casual gamer wanting to decide which game they’d enjoy. These type of reviews are more than anything a form of advertisement as well as a source of information.</span></div>Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1964417889695401335.post-33941019538090262102012-01-12T04:30:00.000-08:002012-01-12T04:30:57.104-08:00a history of computer games, part three: 2000s<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-GB</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:EnableOpenTypeKerning/> <w:DontFlipMirrorIndents/> <w:OverrideTableStyleHps/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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</style> <![endif]--> <div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Since the introduction of 3D graphics, the improvements in the level of detail have increased greatly. Between the PS1 and PS2, technical aspects on graphics increased greatly; the polygon counts of the games produced for the platform increased by 50 times, while at the same time screen resolution increased <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>by 2.5, vastly increasing the amount of information that must be displayed at any point of time during the game. Comparing recent releases to the very first video games, by far the most obvious difference is in the graphics. These are visible even without playing the game and many casual gamers will purchase games based on this first impression.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As the baseline for quality of graphics continues to be pushed higher, the technology it is built on must also improve. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Development frameworks such as the Unreal Engine streamline the production of the software by providing toolsets for game producers to work from, but even clever programming is ultimately limited by the hardware. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">A more recent development is companies such as OnLive, which provide “cloud gaming”, where other computers run the game, and then stream it to the console the player is using.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">At present, consoles such as the Wii and the Kinect are the exception. Their marketing is based on the novelty of the controls rather than piggybacking on established game series, but that may change as interactive controls become more common and future games are designed to accommodate them.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Games have always pushed the limitations of the current technology, but now they have the pressure of huge companies behind them, and an entire industry resting on their financial success.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">In order to maximise profits, most games publishers find it necessity to make games available to a large an audience as possible, which means porting new releases to multiple consoles. Making a game work on all machines is not straight forward; console companies have their own in-house publishers - or at least a specific company they outsource to - and therefore have little need to make their own systems compatible with their competitor’s, leaving the game developers to bridge that gap.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Unsurprisingly, several companies have risen to fill this niche, providing tools such as </span>Criterion's Renderware<span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;"> that make this task easier for producers.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Increasing complexity in games means more demand on the hardware, but technology is not improving fast enough to keep up with the demands of the market. At the moment, the only foreseeable answer to the increased demand for processing power is using multiple CPUs, but this comes with its own technical problems. Games must be designed to distribute the workload, and this mean a different approach to how the game is built, and requires skills that are not currently available.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Lastly, the length of development time means that by the time a project is finished, the technology it was based on at the beginning will not be the most up to date. With any new game, developers must anticipate and accommodate for the changes that will take place within the timescale of the project.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">As technology and skill needed to produce a game increases, so does the time and the cost. In 1982, Pacman cost one person the grand total of $100,000 to produce. Halo 2, released in 2004, cost 400 times that. True, the profits these days are greater, but not on such a noticeable scale. It takes an enormous amount of time money to produce a game in line with popular titles; the start-up costs are so high it is generally impossible for individuals to produce games in the way they once did. The expectations of games are so high, but increase in expense does not guarantee perceivable increase in quality, at least to the general public.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">With the monetary pressure hanging over their heads, companies often go for the safe option; sequels and games based of successful cinema are often produced in favour of new ideas. However with realism of graphics struggling to compete with expectations, innovative gameplay and storytelling may become the deciding factor in future games’ success.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">It takes a lot of people to produce a game that lives up to todays expectations, the sheer amount and diversity of content call for many different skills; artists, engineers, writers and programmers, and people to make sure they all cooperate. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br />
</div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">The final consideration for game producers is making their product available to the global market, and making sure it isn’t outcompeted by the many, many other available games that are all fighting for the same customers. One way of ensuring that a game isn’t overshadowed is to make sure releases of similar games are staggered. Produces also have to consider that what will work in one company might not work in another, either because of language differences, or the expectations of consumers. For instance when the Xbox was to be released in Japan, the controlled was deemed too bulky, and a more streamlined version was produced for the Japanese market.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They’re not obvious problems, but as the games industry continues to develop the need to think globally will only become more important.</span></div>Jen H Bhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01979005550193236174noreply@blogger.com0