For my final design for the character diversity project I decided to stick with the project B as I have had many ideas. At first I decided to use a similar idea to the video below but then I thought ideas like that have been used before and I wanted something different.
Then I researched lots of different methods of changing the appearance of characters (which is featured elsewhere on my blog in the creative futures section). Then I thought about how these ideas have characters that move, however, not all of the joints move with great ease. As I was sat at my art desk one night I looked to my left at the wooden mannequin realising that would be great for a character.
I drew the mannequin and the little squares represent the attachments in which the clothing will attach. The mannequin will be made from either plastic or wood. I was thinking plastic would be the better option as it would be cheaper in production as well as easier to attach items.
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Here is my final concept which I drew in Illustrator. Here it shows to different colour options for a male in the office environment. The brief required me to make a concept for a specific environment so I chose office. In the hand I decided to place a pen as the characters will have accessories rather than just clothes.
A really fun task given to us by tutor Paul was to choose an object from the table and model it with the least amount of polys possible. As a first year I am in the process of learning how to texture and this is what Paul wanted us to figure out. At first we all started modelling as we would normally but we all had the problem of too many polygons; we all put our minds together to realise that we don’t always have to use polygons as we can use textures instead. I achieved the correct number of polygons which was 30. I modelled the xbox 360 which is a cube but it has slight curves that define its unique shape.
Firstly I created my own texture using just colour and the xbox disc tray.That didn’t look too good at all so I tried something else.
Here I used images from the internet to create a UV Map for my final texture.
That proved really well and I am very proud of this 3D model because it is one of my first proper textured objects as my previous objects have always been a basic cube.
Our task here was to create one of these shields. We had the choice of which one we wanted to do and then after completing this task we also had to make a weapon and a helmet that would look good along side this shield.
I decided to choose two shields; no. 2 as a quick starter task and no.15 as my final shield. Firstly I broke down the components of each shield so it would make it easier for me to model it in 3DS Max using floating Geometry. (As shown below).
Breakdown of my first chosen shield (no.2) All components.
Breakdown of my next shield (no. 15). All components.
Shield no.2. Basic shapes. (Mainly made up from cylinders and a rounded cube to create the sphere-like shapes).
Shield no.2. Basic shapes. I mainly used cylinders and a turbo smoothed square to make sure there was no tri polys in this objects wireframe.
My Final Shield. I really like my final shield but it should have been textured. A wooden texture would make this shield look realistic, but overall I like the shape and think that there is plenty of room for improvement.
I did some research first on what games use what type of melee weapons. I found this really interesting as most games allow the player to look at a full 3D model in-game.
I also did research by going to the local museum that features weapons from a large variety of different eras as well as scanning in some images I found would be helpful from a book in the classroom. (These images have been handed in via memory stick as they would not upload via wordpress). Also I have handed in some sketches of my Mace Development.
Above is my 3D sculptures made from clay. I decided to mock-up a staff and a mace; I decided to go with the mace as it looks like more of a weapon due to having the spikes and the spooky skull on the face of it.
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Above shows my progress in making my weapon. I decided to make a Mace as the shield I made was quite large and thick so I thought the two would go well together. I tried to texture part of it, however, I did struggle with texturing. This was my first model put into the sketchfab program and I didn’t really understand the texturing system in here but I still tried.
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Above is my final renders. This model is one of my favourites as it has so much detail because I used the array tool to duplicate certain aspects such as the spikes. As well as learning how to use the array tool I also learn hoe to use then bend tool. Overall a great experience in 3D modelling.
Helmet
Looking at helmets from games I decided to do a chunky helmet that covered most of the upper part of the face and also took aspects from different cultures such as viking, world war and medieval. Below is my final render (I have submitted sketches along with the rest of my work as they could not be uploaded due to technical errors).
The helmet is my least favourite 3D model as I didn’t do as many sketches as the others and I should have done a breakdown first. I was looking for a more rounded shape and I maybe should have used a rounded cube for the top of the helmet. Although I’m not a fan of the 3D model I am glad that whilst making it I learnt how to use the symmetry and mirror tools. Both of these tools are very useful but I do prefer the symmetry tool as I find it quick and simple to use..
During a Games Design Lesson one day we all got split into groups. Our group consisted of Ryan Chaytor, Joe Mathers, Josh Edwards and me. We decided to create a game based on the ragdoll effect and give it a haunted mansion theme. The first part of the day me and Ryan thought about the design process of the game and got a basic game concept; we then started generating ideas using images. Ryan designed props and objects, Joe created the H.U.D and I put the two together to create a final design. Josh did the research, however, he had to leave our group due unfortunate circumstances. Below I have categorised all of the work we put together by name.
Ryan Chaytor –Â https://ryanchaytorgamesdesign.wordpress.com/
Great visual designs of haunted objects. Spooky broken mirror, large coffin-like throne chair, unique candelabra, creepy moving portrait above a warm fireplace and finally an old yet antique grandfather clock. Very well done creating basic template model sketches for the game.
Ghost and slime creature concepts. First print model idea for main character.
Joe Mathers –Â https://jbattlehound.wordpress.com/
H.U.D design by Joe. Three basic ideas including H.U.D made from bones, antique/medieval H.U.D and a ghost/slime H.U.D design. We all decided as a group to go with the middles design (antique/medieval) because it works well with the environment and is easier to read.
Cursor sketch ideas quickly produced in PhotoShop. Our game is mainly a concept for ipads or phones, however, if we was to consider making the game compatible for computer we would need a cursor.
Quick sketch of a Bat and a Zombie. Possible main character or enemy.
A ghost, a spooky face, a spider, a voodoo doll and a pumpkin/Jack-o-Lantern.
A spider (possibly going to be considered as the main basic playable character.
The objects Ryan made put into an environment using perspective. Could be improved by use of better perspective. Paul taught me to prduce the work in 3D first so I have a basic idea of what the final product will look like.
The final animation (quite short) shows the fire flickers and the painting changing.
I created a survey for the members of my class to fill in so that I could gain an understanding of certain aspects in which I would have to explore to create a fully functioning/well-designed game. As my game is aimed at 10-14 year olds and can include IP tie-ins I decided to ask the following questions.
Name one of your favourite childhood television shows.
Thunderbirds
Winx Club
SpongeBob
The Angry Beavers
Yu-Gu-Oh
Pokemon
Happy Tree Friends
Tazmanian Devil/Looney Tunes
The Simpsons
Wacky Races
The Rugrats
2. What Environment would you suggest as a main hub area?
Some sort of room where the character can interact.
Interactive map that the player can navigate to each game level.
Interactive Map.
Warner Bros. style portals.
Toybox.
Book pages or mystical book with images
Disney Castle.
Kaibu Land.
Scooby Doo haunted house.
Palet Town.
Ghost Town.
Castle (Disney Themed).
The Avengers.
Penguin Cafe.
Different themed rooms depending on characters.
3. What game mechanics would you like to see in the game?
Points.
Discovery.
Discovery.
Collectables with points.
Time Countdown.
Bonus.
Anything.
Collectables.
Collections.
Secrets.
Countdowns to rewards.
Specialise the characters for different uses in different levels.
Temporary weapons, enhanced enemies, points system, leader-board and rank.
Countdown, bonus, points.
Bonus rounds, boss fights and puzzles.
4. What would you rate my presentation skills? 1 being bad and 10 being great.
10 as always.
8.5 because there is always room for improvement somewhere.
9.
9.
10.
9.
8.
10.
9.
8.
8.
8.
9.
10.
8 the involvement was great.
5.Any advice? Any game examples research? Any sketches?
‘World of Illusion’ – 1992.
Mickey’s Wild Adventure.
Tom & Jerry Fighting Game.
Crash Bandicoot.
Kingdom Hearts.
Super Smash Bros. (Lots of characters)
Research different art styles.
Animation.
Principles of animation.
I would like to say a big thank you to everyone that managed to take the time to fill out this survey; it has been of great help.
Below is my research that was influenced by some of the advice from the survey. I really appreciate all of the help.
Question 1 Research
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Question 5 Research
World of Illusion was realeased in 1992 by Sega on the Sega Mega Drive Console. This is a 2D game in which Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck are magicians and one day the stumble across a magical box. This box takes them to a magical world and now they have to find a way out. This is a great game to research as it is 2D and involves the use of much loved cartoon characters.
One suggestion I am grateful for is another Mickey Mouse game called Mickey’s Wild Adventure. This game is also known as Mickey Mania and was originally released on Sega Devices and then later released via PlayStation. The game consists of playing as different types of Mickey Mouse characters from his previous roles in the original cartoons. Levels include Steamboat Willie, The Mad Doctor, the Lonesome Ghosts and more. This is also great to research as the game is 2D (as well as it trying to perform 2.5D motions) and again it includes an IP tie-in.
I have already considered the Tom and Jerry fighting game in a previous blog post. Feel free to have a look if you are interested as this is a great game to take notes from.
The well-known Crash Bandicoot is a classic. This game has many camera stances and certain levels can beplayed in 2.5D or even 3D. My favourite Crash Bandicoot would have to be either PlayStation 2 The Wrath of Cortex or PlayStation 2 Crash Tag Team Racing.
Kingdom Hearts is a game that uses anime characters from Final Fantasy and combines them with Disney characters. I find this game very interesting as I haven’t played Final Fantasy but I am a huge Disney fan so I like finding out who all of these new characters and it is something in which I can understand the anime art style.
I absolutely love Super Smash Bros. I play this game on the GameCube lots with my boyfriend. There is a large variety in characters to choose from also it features a really fun aspect in collecting characters and collectables. Although it is a fighting game I can take some advice from this as I love most of the game mechanics used.
 For research on different art styles I have looked at artists that have played a part in making 2.5D/2D platformers. Aymeric Kevin created some beautiful pieces for the most recent Rayman using parallax scrolling really well. I am incredibly happy someone mentioned different art styles as I started researching and discovered an amazing artist with the name of Laura Dawes. She is responsible for most of the sculptures and environments seen in Abe’s New ‘N’ Tasty and her work is incredible; it is all done in ZBrush and I am now inspired to learning more about this program. Below is a slideshow of some of the artwork that I have been inspired by.
As my aim is to create a 2.5D platformer game which includes famous cartoon IP-tie-ins I decided to research a game I used to play all the time with my cousin as a child. The game was great for 2 players as the aim was to beat the other player by chasing them or placing traps around the environment. As an example if Jerry turned the television on and Tom walked past it, Tom’s attention would be on the television for a few seconds giving Jerry the opportunity to attack Tom. I’m looking at a game where the player can only progress forward and many mini-game options will also be available as well as the main campaign.
The H.U.D for this game is nice and simple, however, I’m not really sure if I like the position in which the icons are placed. My favourite H.U.D aspect in this would have to be the health bar; the more damage the player takes equals the more damage to the character icon and health bar (a nice interactive feature). Also the power-up selection is nicely displayed as most games have power-ups in the main menu and it is usually awkward to work whereas this uses controller commands. If I was to improve this I would maybe put everything in the middle where the screen splits. From left to right Jerry’s Power-ups, Jerry’s Health Bar, Timer, Tom’s Health Bar, Tom’s Power-ups. I would do this so that the player doesn’t have as much confusion of where to look and it doesn’t take them as long to take in all of the information, therefore giving them more time to play.
This game may not be aimed at children, however, I decided to discuss this game because of the unique health bar system. At first glance you may think that the health bar is the red bar underneath the players name, it is not though. The health bar is represented by the coloured circles under the players feet. I like this mechanic as you don’t have to look to the top of the screen to examine your health, you can still look at your player and continue to play the game as normal; also the bar changes colour to what we know as the three colours of health that we automatically know (green=healthy, orange=damaged, red=nearly dead). So with the health bar being so uniquely placed under their feet, you must be wondering what the red bar is. Well the red bar under the character name is a special power meter; when the player has earned enough points the character gets some sort of adrenaline rush and can fight faster and stronger, as well as taking less damage.
Flappy Bird
A very popular game that was released for mobile devices has a simple user interface that I think would have a chance to be good for my game. It is simple and easy to use although with my game being slightly more complex I would have to consider applying more aspects. The reason I like this H.U.D is because it shows a tutorial really simple and quick at the beginning and the points system is large and bold at the top of the screen.
Going back to a great classic that is still popular to this day. This game has a nice user interface that is easy to read and very simplistic. Although there are a few numbers involved everything is easy to read and even if you can’t pay attention to the time limit you still have little gestures from the music warning you how long you have. The original had all of your stats in a line across the top of the screen whereas the classic decided to put health/lives and number of coins at one side and the point system and time limit at the other. Having to look from left to right constantly can be annoying, however, in my opinion I believe that they did this in knowing most people look more at the health and coins rather than the time limit and points. Sometimes you’re too busy playing the game to even notice.
Gex: Enter the Gecko
This is just one of the many of my favourite PlayStation one games as it was so random yet so fun. Thinking back to most of the old games I used to play I realised that some only have H.U.D designs that only appear when necessary. For example this Gex game has no H.U.D whilst playing, but if you get hurt by an enemy your health bar will appear and take away what is needed. Also if you collect an item the number you have collected will show up on screen for a few seconds. A great feature that I haven’t seen since PlayStation One game is the camera icon. This game allows the player to change the type of camera they want to play with (Automatic/Manual). When the player presses the camera buttons to adjust the angles of which they play in the camera icon will appear at the bottom right of the screen so they know what camera they are using.
This game was very spooky at the time, however now we see it as fun and quirky. The H.U.D on the other hand was easy to read as it showed pictures as well as numbers/words. From left to right you have your weapon that is currently selected (and how much ammo you have left), your shield strength, your health bar, level percentage/progress and the amount of coins you have collected. This game introduced a quick weapon select option in which you press a shortcut key to switch weapons quickly.
The Tomb Raider Game Series
In the first original Tomb Raider Games there wasn’t much of a H.U.D. Again stats would only appear when needed. Most people used the pistols in Tomb Raider which are usually unlimited ammo so there was no need for an ammo count (unless using shotgun or desert eagle etc.) and the health would appear when damaged. I do like the way that some of the original Tomb raider games had a sprint/slash stamina bar as now in most RPG games made currently in 2016 we have a stamina bar. In the new Tomb Raider games (‘Tomb Raider’ and ‘Rise of the Tomb Raider’) there is not a health bar as when Lara is in pain the screen goes red around the edges and is covered in blood as these games are known to be more graphic also you can unlock unlimited sprint in the skills menu. The weapon select is now different as there is a larger variety of weapons and we now have to limit ourselves with ammo and no weapon is unlimited. Using the d-pad the player can choose what weapon to use and what else to use along with it; for example you can use a bow but you have many choices such as lighting the bow on fire, using a poisonous bomb or attaching an explosive to it.
Below are my designs for user interface within my game:
Quick Start-up Screen Mock-upsFor a game interface you have to take into consideration the Start-up screen as well as the H.U.D. Here are some quick sketches to where I want each aspect of the start-up screen to be positioned.
Font and Game Cover Research <—— Here is a word document that features more of my research about other games start-up screens and what type of font I want to use for my final game.
User Interface – Head-Up Display DesignsI played around with where I wanted the aspects of the H.U.D placing around the screen. When doing this I considered where the player prefers to look, how other games show their H.U.D and why also I looked at where is best for the player to look when they are needing to focus a lot on their game rather than the H.U.D.
Getting closer to a final design
Here is my first final design. I wanted to create something that was easy for the player to understand for the target audience and also very decorative. I started with a quick design an developed the design further in Illustrator. The design feature (from top to bottom) a time limit/score, power-ups, special abilities gauge, character icon and a health bar. I really like the design, however, to improve it I would rather have the H.U.D across the top or on the right as the players attention is on the left trying to control the character and avoid objects and collect collectibles. On the other hand the designs are quite consistant and very colour coordinated.
Tom & Jerry H.U.D Mock-upScooby Doo H.U.D Mock-upGarfield H.U.D Mock-up
The H.U.D Mock-ups above are going be used as my final. I like the way that each H.U.D is colour coordinated as it gives a slightly new touch to the players experience throughout the change in levels. I really like these H.U.D designs as they all have a black outline so they will stand out from the background, they are easy to read and feature no reading (just images). I feel like it could be improved, some could argue that the H.U.D is too big and too much of a distraction whereas you could understand that it is no distraction, however it is just easier to understand.
Overall I feel that I have done a really good job and I am looking at progressing further with all of my designs.
So on this beautiful and sunny morning, my step-dad Andy told me and my mum to get ready as we are going somewhere. Where that somewhere is we didn’t know. He surprised us by taking us on a day trip to the Yorkshire Dales to go view some amazing wildlife and a beautiful waterfall. Then we traveled to Glennfinnan Viaduct; the bridge that was seen in the Harry Potter films. I had so many great photography opportunities and I give credit to my step-dad for taking me. Some images here I took for research into my Game Design for ‘The Wind in the Willows’.
![IMG_0061[1]](https://hannahbalesblog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/img_00611.jpg?w=736)
![IMG_0062[1]](https://hannahbalesblog.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/img_00621.jpg?w=736)
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