Environmental Game Assets

EARLY CONCEPTS

After a meeting with the group, we assigned different environmental assets for each of us to do. I was assigned:

- Burnt Flowers
- Bees
- Butterflies
- Smoke
- Lily pads

I explored different references before I began concepting, as I don't know how to draw burnt things! I also wanted to keep what I was drawing accurate to how it looks in real life.

The other references were for style, that I wanted to try and implement into the concepts.

FINAL CONCEPTS

After going through the concepts, I selected a butterfly design and a burnt log, as I wanted to create assets for the contrasting environment the character goes through.

For the butterfly, I had the idea of a flock of butterflies that could fly in the background of the game. I began to draw out the flock, and think how the butterflies could fly among each other, however, thinking of multiple things to have animated began to confuse me. I struggled and fussed over how each butterfly should travel in comparison to each other, and so I decided that instead of having a bunch of butterflies with a very simple design, I should create one that we can duplicate to our liking. ENDLESS BUTTERFLIES.

For the final concepts, I tried different colour schemes for the butterfly, and in the end I settled on blue tones. I felt that the blue hues had a more mystical or magical feel, that was suited to our game.

When it came to drawing the log, I really needed reference. I wasn't sure how to approach colouring it, let alone knowing how it was going to be animated. At first, the final concept was going to have a crispy burnt leaf, that would rattle from side to side. However, after seeing the concepts that the group had produced, I decided to make a change. Tea had made it so that the burnt bushes had glowing embers as animation. I felt that for unity in the environment, that I would change it so that the log also had glowing embers, to show that the surroundings had recently been burnt. FIREEEEEEEEEEEE!

I liked the result of this much more than that crispy leaf.

Creative Studio: Brief and Schedule

Production Schedule for Term 4 Experimental Animation.

Production: Interactive - TEAM SPROUT

This week we got into the teams we will be in for the rest of the year (scary!)

We went off straight away to brainstorm ideas, and was very much inspired about sprouts, and thus, our game is going to be about nature too. We decided that we didn't want the forefront focus to be about the conservation of nature, and rather about the journey and development of the main character we design for the game.

We each are going to produce a moodboard for environment, an environment concept and character concepts each for the presentation we have next week on tuesday.

For my moodboard, I tried to cover a range of colours for what we had discussed, although not all of them will be used in the level we design. In the meeting, we discussed that there may be multiple area in the game that will have different guardian characters, although we will only be building one. I wanted to think ahead though, to try and visualise how the stages would progress.

I decided to consider time of day in my environment, as the variation in colour would be appealing, as well as showing the passing of time.

When it came to character design, I wanted to explore variety in both plants and figure. My designs have both bipedal and quadruped variations, and different plants that the character could be based off and how they could bloom.

Production: Interactive - Tower

I did it

PRODUCTION CINEMATIC: Matte Painting Pt.1

This week I began matte painting, taking one of the layouts Michelle C did, and simplifying it a little to make it less cluttered in the shots, as a concern was that too many objects on the shelf may be distracting.

I simplified it down onto a list, and tweaked a few of the designs of the objects and placement.

Michelle C's Layout I referenced

I did a rough layout of how the shots could be composed, and ran it by the team, who agreed with my choices. I also got feedback from Keat, about the positioning of the grapes, as in a feedback session Dane mentioned his preference for the grapes being in the foreground of the shots.

Quick Layout I drew to use as reference for myself, and to show my group my intentions.

 I asked Jerwin and Michelle C if they could export an image of Butter and the plate for me to put into the matte painting shot, so I could keep the perspective consistent as well as the proportions of the objects in the fridge in relation to Butter. After this I began blocking in the objects, most importantly on different layers. I originally began to paint all on one layer, when I remembered Thaw's tutorial and that for composition the objects have to be individual!

These were originally all together, but with a quick fix they're correct now.

After completely blocking in the objects in this shot (Shot 5), I moved onto blocking the other three shots, getting the perspective changes as exact as possible. I started with Shot 8, as it was a simple zoom shot, with the slightest change in perspective, to the point it is hardly noticeable.

Blocked in Shot 5

Blocked in Shot 5 with butter for size reference

Shot 8, without Butter

Shot 6 was harder to complete, as it was a reverse of Shot 5, and I had to flip the perspective. The angle in this shot is higher too, and it's important that the objects don't block Butter. I had to talk with the group on how we wanted to approach it. Considering Butter is left screen side for Shots 5, 8 and 10, when it is reversed for Shot 6, should it remain on the left or move to the right? The issue with placing Butter on the right is that the rules of screen side is being broken.

PRODUCTION CINEMATIC: Title Cards

This week I began concepts for title cards, taking into account the opinions of the group. Jerwin and Jonathan pointed out that it would be better if there wasn't too much of a reveal about the butter and his character.

From this, I took examples from my moodboard, and tried to implement it whilst thinking of the mood.

I tried to keep the colour scheme in the warmer palette, but I wanted to experiment within this, having some cards be pinkish hues, while others were darker purples. I also tried to look at the styles on the moodboard I had made. I felt that the simpler styles were more  appropriate, so I tried to work that into most of the titles, trying to hint at what the animatic is about without revealing anything.

After feedback on the very first title card I produced, I played around with how I could add what was maybe missing from it! I thought about smog and mist, like when cold objects are exposed to warm air, and made a moodboard of smoke in spotlights to reference.

I ended up using this research as well to look into how the light could pool out of the fridge door too. And so, the title card I gave to Michelle Z as a placeholder, was this.

The final title card is not yet decided, as they await feedback due to loss of work (through my own foolish mistake). This should be implemented this week.

INTERACTIVE NARRATIVE: Gameplay Blog

WEEK SEVEN: Never Alone

One of Never Alones strongest assets is it characters and its narrative, Nuna and the fox spirit, and how the two unlock a new world of culture in video games. The story and gameplay follows Nuna, a young Inuit girl who is accompanied by a helpful fox spirit, as they try to find the source of the "eternal blizzard". I think what makes her so strong as a character, beyond her design, is the stories that are told through her. She opens up the player to receive more than just the in-game narrative, but it feels like it is a retelling of a traditional Inupiaq myth or legend, which leads to a door that can be opened about a new culture. Nuna's story and development is actually based off a Inuit narrative known as The Story of Kunuuksaayuka, about a young boy who's home was plagued by an everlasting blizzard and he went out to find it's source. This traditional narrative has been implemented into the game through Nuna, who we follow through her trial in her icy landscaped world.

The culture and its belief systems shine through in the cutscenes, which both take on a traditional Inupiat artform as well as a narrated voice over in the traditional Inupiaq language of the Alaskan people, which not only aids the immersion of the player, but the cultural context. Everything put into the game is not only fitting to the narrative, but also to the culture that is being explored. As stated in the reading by Egenfeldt-Nielsen, Smith and Tosca,  "characters in games are not just the people that the game is about, but also the people who are making action happen and thus

producing different stories.", which I think is an apt description of how Nuna, the fox, and other characters found in Never Alone play a significant role. Nuna and the fox spirit are more than just a vessel for game play, they are a tool in revealing a story to the player, through a series of mini puzzles that befit the narrative. In example, the mission that involves the Owl Man, and retrieving his stolen drum. The ones who stole it are The Little People, and Nuna and the Fox must work to get it back, in which they receive a bola for their success. All the elements within this small section of gameplay are not simply there to create a crisis, but hold a place in the Inupiaq society. The Owl Man is a shamanistic representation, relating to the beliefs within the culture, furthermore so are The Little People, which is relevant as well to the believe that a lot of spiritual forces were against human beings. The bola and drum are instruments to be found within the society, for hunting and shaman practices. This is how the characters are important and a main driving force in what makes the game unique, and turn what could be a simple game into a learning experience. As the narrative progresses, we not only learn more about Nuna's story, but about the people who helped make the game, and why the design of certain characters and objects are the way they are.

Reference: Egenfeldt-Neilsen, S., Smith, J., & Tosca, S. (Author) (2008) Understanding Video Games [Book] Retrieved from: http://animation.onlearn.co.nz/pluginfile.php/2710/mod_resource/content/0/Egenfeldt-Nielsen%2C%20Smith%20and%20Tosca%2C%202008%20-%20The%20fictional%20world%20settings%20and%20actors.pdf