Elements of Game Design- Planning and Concepting

The difference between doing projects on this course and working in an actual development studio when creating concepts is that I am working solely on my own and not being instructed by an art director or being restricted by any executive meddling. This is good for the creative freedom but it makes things more difficult when it comes to finalising ideas. Other than that though, the process is more or less the same.

The first step once the brief is set is to start collecting inspiration and researching the subject matter. The level of importance research into the specific details whatever you’re designing must have depends on how realistic the concept is meant to be. Most people on this course like to use Pinterest to collect reference but it can be quite helpful to save reference images you think you will want to use again.

Once you’ve started to get some good ideas you can start with silhouettes, thumbnail sketches, or both. It is important to come up with as many designs as time will allow, but also consider that you will start to run out of good ideas eventually . Krome Studios’ Adam Nichols says “I find the first idea is the most generic idea and has been done before , but by idea 6 you are rehashing ideas or running low on time”. However, it really depends on what you are designing. I have a habit of getting stuck on ideas fairly quickly and then regretting it later when I realise it could’ve been better. You won’t regret your decisions if you properly weigh up all your options so before you decide on favourites do as many sketches as quickly as possible.

 In this interview, Bioware concept artist Matt Rhodes explains that you’ll only need to do a couple of designs for something unimportant like a bartender, but more important characters can go through hundreds of designs and iterations.

If you were working in a studio you’d have shown whoever is directing you your ideas and been given advice on what ideas to develop before continuing development- many artists like to size their thumbnails differently to try and highlight designs they like to the director. After doing as many iterations as possible you would usually create presentable production artwork with the final design. This may be in-situ or on its own depending on the brief and purpose of the artwork. Sometimes artists choose to create a model of the design -especially with vehicles and other mechanical subjects- and paint over them. This of course takes extra time but allows for the final piece to be planned properly beforehand, ensures there won’t be any errors in perspective, and allows you to do multiple angles accurately and much faster. Sometimes the model can even be used as a base by the 3D artists when they make the asset. If you choose not to create a simple model, you can also make the 3D team’s life easier by providing orthographic drawings.

Personally, if given the time I like being able to model things first before painting them, though that is in part due to my current lack of drawing skill. Comparing the final pieces from my vehicle project last year I didn’t model first and the one this year which I did, I can see how the template helped an awful lot in allowing me to accurately portray more detail.

I think I still need more practice in going through the design pipeline as I have a tendency to rush ahead or put too much detail in too early. The thumbnail stage is the most important one, so it requires a lot of deep thought and there is no room for perfectionism.

Other references-

RSI forum

Reflection on Year One, and Ambition for Year Two

The first year of Game Art has come and gone and the second year is now in full swing. This year is different for various reasons, in both learning environment and goals.

I found first year to be quite the learning experience not just for skills but for finding out how I work best. It was of course finding out the hard way, but it was worth a lot. The main flaw with my work ethic last year was the complete lack of structure. I was too keen to take advantage of the independence I’d been presented with and simply thought that as long as I got the work done, I had nothing to worry about. Now this sounds fine, it sounds like it would force me to finish things quickly and possibly leave time for fun at the end of the week, but really, my self-discipline is not nearly strong enough to work solidly without any visible end. There is no reward in sitting around procrastinating when you can’t force yourself to work anymore, and not doing anything you actually find fun as you don’t feel you deserve it yet. I tried to use the stress of deadlines as motivation but working until stupid-o’clock in the morning really wasn’t doing any favours for my general wellbeing.

I knew that being in a more work-oriented environment would help me to focus more, but I was reluctant to use the labs when there were so many other people in there, especially when scheduled lessons were going on. I also, of course, would need to get there at a decent time every day if I wanted to get a lot done as they closed at 7pm.

The biggest difference this year is the new labs, which give us much more space and stay open later, making regular use a far more viable option. There is always at least one room without a scheduled class so there is definitely enough space for most of us, though of course not everyone. This is where structure and time-management will be important- the only way to ensure a place in the lab is to arrive earlier than most, especially when deadlines loom and everyone wants to be in.

So far I am managing to stick to a good routine this year, although weekends end up being very much lacking in productivity as the labs are shut then. It’s reaching the point where I feel lost when given too much free time at home(not that that happens a lot) whether  that’s a good thing or not I have yet to decide!

As for the actual skills we are learning this year, it is going to be quite hard working to less constricted briefs as I worry a lot about the possibility of doing things wrong. I want to get better at finishing projects well and on time and I want to produce work that shows I have made progress. Small, hopefully achievable goals; another important lesson from last year- don’t allow yourself to lose hope.

Personal Review of the First Year

It’s the end of the academic year, and as of writing, hand-in is in less than a week. Somewhat worried, knowing my track record when it comes to completing things on time. I think my work ethic has slipped a little this term too. It’s probably because of how much work I have left over from the first term that I need to go back and finish, I’m honestly kind of overwhelmed. I know that back then I was working very hard and definitely putting the hours in but I was also working very slowly. My perfectionism has… not really gotten much better, more that it has been somewhat overtaken by the urge to get things finished. I wish I could just do the work and not care about the outcome. For example for the Space Centre project last week I did my final piece in the labs so that I wouldn’t get distracted, and I did work pretty solidly, but I was worried that I’d do a bad job from the start and it really does show in the outcome. Not pleased with that final at all.

Term 2 I had things all worked out, sure I lost a lot of sleep but I had very little work to finish off during the Easter holidays. Next year I want to work to the same standard of… somewhere between term 1 and 2. See, I was generally much more responsible with things like getting up on time and staying focused and motivated back then, but I was so stuck to that routine that it became more important than the work. Term 2 on the other hand was basically a whole lot of sleep deprivation but then oversleeping and… the balance still wasn’t right. So now I’m just freaking out a little as for the last couple of weeks I’ve been failing to grasp the scope of the task I must complete, and I’m suddenly remembering with one week to go that I just cannot fail.

It’s so much easier working with others around you, pretty much why I’m looking forward to living in the same house as some of my peers next year. It’s a double-edged sword though; I often observe my friends doing their work much faster than me and then going off and having fun. I’m aware that often the fact that I’ve worked on things for longer pays off in the result, but I still can’t help feeling a little deflated when that happens.

Any gripes about the course itself? Not really, it would be nice to have somewhere to go and work with people even while other year groups are using the labs, but that’s not really an issue with the course itself. As someone who takes a long time with final pieces I can’t say I’m 100% sure about not being taught digital art and speed painting until next year, but if it helps in the long giving us more experience with traditional art then I can’t complain.

Next year’s goals- Become better at keeping a half-decent sleeping pattern, do work away from the computer so as to minimise distractions, juggle having multiple assignments at once more effectively and just… try to have actual fun when not getting things done rather than turning all potential free time into dull procrastination.

Elements of Game Design part 4- Environment

Level design is incredibly important in leading the player through the game in an exciting way. Most games that feature a predominant story are essentially linear, but the way the game’s world is designed can be used to generate a sense of exploration and discovery. That is not to say that games that don’t try and make things into one big adventure are bad- there is more to level design than telling the player where to go. However those other things, such as enemy placement, aren’t what this entry is about. Rather, I’m going to focus on the environment. No ranting about that one car park level in No More Heroes 2 with the over-abundance of enemies today!

I've killed at least 50 of you, can I go yet?

At the beginning of a game, the most important part of a level’s design is to show the player what they can do with their character. Sometimes this is done as a tutorial, sometimes the level will be specifically set up to imply what the character can do to encourage the player to experiment with the controls. This, of course, isn’t always completely successful but it does help the player to get immersed in the game.

Immersion is the biggest payoff for great environment design. Things like incorporating level boundaries into the environmental topology rather than the use of invisible walls and making beautiful scenes that the player has incentive to interact with will aid in engrossing the player in the game’s experience.

If only looking around this place wouldn't lead to my death.

Believable, realistic environments and unrealistic, crazy environments both have their place in level design, though it’s important to try and keep things consistent. Things like floating platforms would fit perfectly in a Sonic the Hedgehog title as said series doesn’t strive for a feeling of realism. If you wanted to have suspended platforms in something like Assassin’s Creed they’d have to be supported by something else the player would immediately notice something out of place.

One of my favourite game environments (and I’m sorry to bring up this franchise yet again but it really does make a great example) is the Chozo Ruins in Metroid Prime- particularly the main plaza. The area is navigable by the interesting scenery, with a bridge made of rock and trees intertwined (a consistent architectural feature, re-enforcing the culture of the former residents and subsequently aiding in world-building). 

Although the room is not exactly huge, there are many power-ups that can be found here. Some can be seen but cannot be reached when you first arrive, and you can make a guess what kind of equipment you’ll have access to later in the game by observing this. For example there is a half-pipe structure that leads to a morph-ball sized indentation in the wall, hinting at the boost ball upgrade. When it comes down to it, the area is just beautifully designed with much thought put into the colour palette and good use of textures making every element fit perfectly. The influences of various established settings such as those of Alien (a well-known influence of the series since it began), studies of real-life ruins, and the well thought out artistic direction of Android Jones and the rest of the art team would have built up to this. 

Elements of Game Design part 3- Character (alternative title- Another Rant about Other M)

When tasked to write about character, I suddenly thought of a pretty recent bit of conflict about a certain new installment to a popular series, in which part of the problem was the portrayal of the main character.

The issue I refer to is of course Metroid-Other M.

Like all Metroid games, it stars Samus Aran, the orphan turned intergalactic bounty hunter, raised by bird aliens and with a history in the galactic federation. As her, you experience discovering alien worlds and fighting various enemies along the way such as your arch nemesis Ridley.

Now I won’t touch upon whether Other M handled the gameplay well or not because that’s not what this entry is about, but the new way to gain power-ups did directly reflect on Samus as a character in it’s execution. However I’ll return to that later. First things first- character appearance.

Samus does her job wearing her iconic power armour, which has had several versions and redesigns over the years. The bulky Varia Suit with its huge arm cannon combined with Samus’ body language makes her give off a powerful and confident impression despite rarely showing her face. Other M gave the suit a redesign. Prime’s version is covered with little details that make it interesting to look at and give her an imposing silhouette. The new version is much less detailed, instead going for a sleek, modern look. It has no weathering whatsoever, the colours being very bright and glossy looking. On its own it looks quite nice, but it just doesn’t give off the same strong impression. In my opinion, the removal of the fins on her shoulder pads changed her silhouette too much- that was my main gripe upon seeing the suit the first time. Plus, the way she moves in it doesn’t suggest it having much weight, and her stances when in cutscenes do not make her seem confident at all.

Samus in Prime 3

Samus in Other M

Samus Aran’s backstory involves having her parents killed in front of her by the Space Pirate commander Ridley, being raised and trained by the highly mysterious Chozo, and after leaving the Galactic Federation, becoming the most infamous bounty hunter probably ever. In previous games she has blown up space colonies and planets, and you can be sure that throughout the Galactic Federation she is well known for her achievements.

When you meet the GFed team on the space station in Other M, however, nobody really seems to care who she is. In fact, her former commander seems adamant that she will be a hindrance until she busts a door open for them. It just makes no sense, and just makes all the things that you as a player did in the previous titles seem unimportant.

Then there’s Samus’ voice. If you don’t know why this is getting its own section- this is the very first game in which Samus has a speaking role. The Prime games had her mute even when other characters spoke to her, allowing everything she did, and every decision she made, to be done by the player. Peoples’ main gripe with her new voice from what I have seen seems to be how monotonous it sounds. Personally I would somewhat disagree- I think it makes sense as it makes her seem quite serious in a way, though it does drone on a bit sometimes. She really doesn’t sound like one would have thought- I can excuse her younger appearance (to a point) due to seeing her in the later prime games, but I expected a more mature sounding voice. Her grunts from damage etc. in the Prime series were voiced by Jennifer Hale, and that will always be the best voice for her in my mind. There’s also the fact that the scriptwriters deemed it necessary to make her talk far too often, to the point that she’s constantly pointing out the obvious. She sounds more like some young, unsure GFed newbie, and it really doesn’t help that she seems to need to be told what to do the entire game.

As I briefly alluded to at the beginning of this post, in Other M, Samus receives power-ups not by finding them scattered around the world like in previous games, but by being authorized to use them. I approve of the developers trying to break the mold and make the game work differently for once, but the execution of this mechanic was handled very poorly. Samus never asks for permission to use things. She will wait, even with the smallest things like self-defense related functions in her suit that couldn’t possibly pose a threat to anyone and therefore shouldn’t have been de-activated in the first place. I’m referring to, of course, that one level where you run through a huge, intensely hot area (causing you to take constant damage) and aren’t authorized to activate your heat defenses until the boss at the end of the level. It makes Samus just seem stupid.

This was a pretty brief overview of how they made the character hard to relate to, but I think it sums it up enough. Characters are easiest to empathize with when their behaviour and mannerisms stay consistent and true to their backgrounds. The way they act affects your opinion of them, and usually you want to go for the kind of main character you’d respect. I am particularly fond of the kind of character Samus was portrayed as before Other M, kind of like Motoko Kusanagi in Ghost in the Shell in fitting the frame of “strong, independent female character”. If Samus’ ramblings in Other M had been of more substance then maybe I would’ve liked her more. Have her say things to make you think, rather than think things so you don’t have to.

Elements of Game Design part 2- Art Direction

The role the Art Director plays is crucial to the visual style of their team’s game. They work with the game designers to visualise everything, from characters to the tiniest piece of scenery. It is very important for every element of the game to abide by their design principles such as levels of realism or use of colour, all to ensure the game’s universe is consistent and aesthetically pleasing. Poorly developed visual style would be immensely detrimental to the impression a game makes, and it is important for netting a target audience and generating an atmosphere that people will remember the game for. Art Director is a highly paid, high-ranking role within the developer, as it requires the most creativity and skill to ultimately define the visuals of an entire game.

Alongside a Lead Artist, the Art Director will analyse the Design Document and create a second part to it called the Art Specifications Document. They use this as a way of conveying their vision to the other artists working on the project, therefore descriptions must be thorough. This is also where the technicalities such as texture budgets and Polygon counts are defined. These technical specifications are mostly decided on by the Lead Artist who has more interaction with the development team, and works with scheduling and assigning tasks. This is only how things work in the game development environment- in Film, the Art Director has essentially the role of the Lead Artist, with the real visual mastermind being referred to as the Production Designer. While the terminology may be different, the importance of the roles is basically still the same.

If I were to focus on ultimately becoming an Art Director, I would of course need to work my way up the ranks. Ultimately I would essentially need to become really good at my work, while expressing creativity without deviating from the boundaries of my assignments.

As well as artistic talent, being “good at” one’s role in the company would involve general desirable working qualities such as ability to meet deadlines and communicate with others. Basically be really impressive at everything you must do, and make sure you get noticed.

As I stand now, of course my general skills need a lot of work. So far this year I feel I have really been improving in my ability to generate ideas, at least when it comes to the speed in which they become designs I’m happy with. However my speed in recording these designs leaves much to be desired- my greatest weakness in my opinion is still my drawing speed.

Time management is a difficult one, but it’s something I know I am able to work on. The most difficult abilities to develop are those concerning people skills as of course I’m naturally pretty introverted and not much of a team player! But of course, part of the process of moving up the development hierarchy would involve working with the same team for a long period of time, so I’m sure I’d get used to how they work and taking on different roles within the team… who knows. Maybe it could happen.

Elements of Game Design part 1

The term “Gameplay” is a very general one, encompassing multiple aspects of a game’s mechanics that contribute to the player’s experience. Good gameplay is essentially what makes a game “fun”. Some companies have developed reputations for having created games with great gameplay, such as Valve with the Half Life and Portal series. New examples of great gameplay are being released all the time, though some genres people latch onto as they are seen as a winning formula. For example the current market contains a lot of notable FPS games, though this doesn’t mean that their kind of gameplay is always superior.

In the Design Document stage of development, the greatest factor that affects the gameplay of the final product is the genre of the game. While really all game mechanics can be boiled down to the same kind of thing (such as collision detection- don’t hit this wall in this racing game or don’t get hit by this bullet in this action game) it’s the application of these little bits of code that make games feel different.

Of course, different genres can also afford to be weak in certain areas of game design and still be considered good. For example, a game’s story is highly important if the game is something like an RPG or maybe a stealth game, but with racing or fighting games? Sometimes a story isn’t even featured at all. Character backstories are usually at least implied to flesh them out but in the end even they can be done away with if the gameplay is strong enough. Note that the more a game lacks in some aspects the more the consumer will expect it to compensate in others.

The way the player interacts with the game also can make or break gameplay. You don’t input simple commands like directions by typing full words with a keyboard. But that’s obvious, and with that in mind, the importance of intuitive, responsive controls and ergonomically designed menus is key.

In the end, that’s the kind of thing that separates digital games from things like board games. The scope of what happens upon each of the player’s actions, as the complexity of the programming dictates. That’s how video games can become much more exciting, as the player becomes engrossed and forgets that all they are doing is pressing buttons.

Why.

Art direction is important in making similar gameplay elements feel like something new. For example, many games have guns, but the visuals and sound are what really makes you feel the difference between something like a tiny pistol and a huge canon.

This is why gameplay is what defines a game. All other aspects of the design contribute to it, and it all blends together to turn the game into a memorable experience.  I love games that are visually beautiful, but if actually playing the game isn’t fun then I’m not going to remember these environments. You can have a game with barely any graphics, you can have a game with a bad story, but a game that lacks gameplay is hardly a game at all.

F-zero GX review

I always used to state this game as “the reason I dislike Mario Kart”, but honestly my opinion of said game isn’t that low at all- it’s a great party game, I just wouldn't buy it to play by myself because of my personal preferences when it comes to the genre. I’ll make it clear now that some of this review will be based on my subjective taste, but I’ll try and give a good idea of the reasons for my opinions so you’ll know whether this game is for you. Believe me when I say this game isn't for everyone.

You are Captain Falcon, the famous spandex-clad bounty hunter with a passion for racing. Oh, and we’re in the 27^th century now, so don’t expect your races to involve wheels, or gravity, or any acknowledgement to health and safety laws whatsoever.

 

Flat roads are far too boring.

Being a futuristic racing game, you might be tempted to compare it to games from the Wipeout franchise, but instantly you would notice the complete lack of weapons. You do have a couple of somewhat tricky to execute ramming attacks, but you won’t really need them until later on. This is a pure racing game, and if there’s one thing it does well, it’s the sense of speed.  You’re also given a great deal of control over your machine, although it may take a while to get the knack for the manoeuvres. You don’t have to stick with captain Falcon (unless you are doing story mode), and the ship you choose will make a difference when it comes to handling. There are over 30 and they all handle differently, plus you can custom-build your own machine with parts unlocked through doing races. There is a grand prix mode of course with various different cups and difficulty levels.

And then there is story mode.

You've made it near the front of the pack for the final lap, and Black Bull and Blood Falcon have long since been dealt with. Fingers twitching at the controls, you barely manage to retain control after an impossibly tight curve. You can see in your peripheral vision the icon alerting you to another racer following close behind you and you mash the Y button, blasting your last shred of shield energy out the back of your machine and accelerating you forward even faster. As an alarm starts to sound, your heart moves to your throat as you narrowly avoid a burning area of track. You can’t take a single scratch now or it’s all over! The icon returns to your screen, gradually getting bigger as the other ship gains distance but everything’s ok, you know you’ll hit a recharge strip in a few seconds. The track twists a bit more, and you somehow manage to take the best line, hitting the healing area dead on and letting your ship’s shields recover almost to maximum capacity as you immediately begin to frantically mash the boost button. This should be enough to last all the way to the finish line- and there it is ahead of you! Holding your breath as you keep your machine on course, you can’t believe you’re going to succeed this time!

A familiar light blue ship speeds past you.

As your stomach drops, you watch on in dismay as victory slips through your grasp.  It crosses the finish line before you.

As the screen changes to show “Mission Failed” in angry red lettering, you picture the racer in the other ship- “What the hell, Leon!” you find yourself thinking, “You’re terrible in grand prix mode!”

Indeed, the difficulty level when it comes to the story mode is not always what one would consider sensible. The most infamously difficult level being chapter 7, which is basically a normal grand prix race save for the other racers being dirty cheaters. Completing all of the chapters on the hardest difficulty is a significant achievement, but it is pretty much the only way to unlock machines from the now virtually extinct F-Zero AX, GX’s arcade counterpart.

 

It's a real shame they're gone.

As a summary of everything else- Graphics are very good, game runs smoothly most of the time, save for one particular course. Music is the kind of fast paced techno you’d expect with a game like this, with some metal thrown in.
But really, all you need to know about this game is that it is faster than a speeding bullet and tough as nails. And it is glorious.