Year 2 Review - Self doubt and Crazy talk

So, we have just come to a close on our 2nd year at De Montfort University.
This sure has been a big year, I feel I have developed so much. Just putting our final submission disk together was making me really see how far I have come. Looking back at our very first projects, I am crying to myself, thinking ' what the hell was I doing??'
My artistic judgement has come on in leaps and bounds, and with Mitch joining the teaching staff, we have been learning techniques I never thought even existed.

This year has been so exciting, yet at the same time very sobering. It seems that everybody has had their little epiphanies, realising that actually, what we are doing is freaking hard.
We called it the 'mid game art crisis' after the first term, a lot of us became very existential and were strongly questioning whether this is what we should be doing.
Am I good enough? Is this what I really want? How much work can I put in without killing myself?
After watching John Cleese's talk on creativity I have realised we were all very stuck in the closed mind mode, especially as we were all in the same place, it was hard to get out of.
The way I looked at it was; what else am I passionate about?
Turns out, this is the only subject that I truly care about. I question myself daily on whether or not I am crazy for wanting to pursue Character Art; Watching Rich (last years graduate) struggling for some time, and seeing the standard I am expecting to get up to is absolutely terrifying.
But Rich made it, he worked his ass off and he is now in a position he wanted to be. It give me hope, after speaking to some character artist's and receiving some feedback and helpful tips, it started bringing me out of my closed state of mind.
Gradually we all relaxed a bit and managed to get back to our open minded state.
Once we got there, the rate of our development rocketed, we were all at full steam, pushing each other to achieve more than we ever thought we could. I am so thankful for what we have here at uni.

Yet, with people I am close to getting jobs, and the potential of me doing some internships (possibly a year long) I am starting to feel myself slip back into that closed minded state. I don't feel am I ready to go out into the big bad world yet. I mean, I am still in my safe game art bubble, the majority of it got popped compared to my euphoric mind set in first year, but I still have the stability of the people I trust and the creative environment we thrive in.
Luckily I am looking to do internships with my close friend Ben, so I am not completely alone, but I am still so afraid that my skills still aren't good enough. One of Emma's feedback for us when we presented our work, was that our confidence doesn't show. I agree, I say I have started to relax to feedback, which I certainly have, but I still find myself making excuses all over the place. I talk my work down, it is silly really as when you are in the presence of somebody working in industry you sort of automatically put yourself lower than them. Which isn't completely bad, but it is hard to over come that lack of confidence in your own work. It is something I need to work on.

As John Cleese said, confidence is one of the keys to getting to that open minded state. Not ego stroking, but just believing in yourself a bit. I guess it stems from education on the whole. My entire educational career (up to uni) has been people telling me that I should be doing something sensible like maths or science, that I will never make a living out of Art, what I love. It is not that I want to prove them wrong, I am purely following this path as it is what I care about, it is my passion, but the implications of that are that sense of self doubt. With opportunities presented to me like this, it seems that maybe I may be able to make it, that I do have potential.

Either way, I still feel I have matured in my outlook on things, as Anna often says what seems to keep getting us down is that fact that we can now see the bigger picture. That hill called university we have to climb seems minuscule compared to the mountain that is the games industry. I do have more confidence in my abilities, but I also doubt myself regularly. While this can be bad, I do not see it is a completely awful thing. For every time I doubt myself I remind myself why I am doing this and I tell myself that I am doing the right thing. That keeps me going, along with all the amazing people that I surround myself with.

On the whole, this year has been very 'eye opening' I feel I am developing my work ethic as well as my artistic judgement. I am happy with my progress, but I know I still have a long way to go. Pray it never ends as I don't know what I would do if I was not constantly trying to better myself.

Life Changing or Career Building?

As the games industry is constantly changing and developing, it is often hard to know what to teach students on specialist courses to go into the games industry. It is hard to keep up with what the industry is doing, but there surely are skills that are always going to be necessary.

As most students join these courses with little or no 3D modelling experience, so it is something that undoubtedly needs to be taught. It takes time to learn new software and get used to the pipelines and processes of 3D art. Unlike traditional artistic skill, learning 3D is more of a mechanical process. 

You can learn pretty much learn anything if you invest enough time and effort into it however. With a structured learning course and being surrounded by similar minds looking to learn similar thinks, the rate or learning can be accelerated. For example, sat on your own trying to learn 3D studio max can be a daunting task, but when in an environment surrounded by people working towards the same goal, you all learn it easier and collectively.

But what is necessary to succeed in the games industry? Often learning the technical side (once you have a basic grasp of 3D modelling) is a case of doing a little research and practising. Learning core traditional skills takes a lot longer, and will serve you much better in the long run. Technology is constantly changing, but with great traditional skills, they can be transferred no matter what the situation. 

Game developers will look for employees who have strong 2D skills as well as technical skills. Flexibility of style is also important, as in smaller companies you may be expected to work on various different projects in various different styles. 

I think that a strong foundation in traditional skills is very important but having the technical skills is necessary to take on a job in industry. It varies on your role, some jobs need more traditional skill than technical. For example if you are working on developing a game environment, you are all well and good having some well made sound assets, but if you have no understanding of composition or other traditional skills, you will find the overall environment will look disjointed and wrong. 

I think one of the strongest things about my course is that we are very much based in 2D, our fundamental skills are in observation, composition, perspective, etc. But then we also get to learn a lot about 3D modelling, game engines, sculpting, etc. We treat 3D as an extension of our core 2D skills.

Interactivity design

Companies are always trying to find ways to innovate and involve the player more with the game. They want them to interact more and create a bigger sense of immersion.

Motion control has been on the rise over the last few years with the PS2 introducing the ‘Eye toy’, Nintendo creating a whole console around the use of the Wii Motion controller, and moving on to the Wii U. Microsoft and Sony have been playing around with the Kinect and Move.

The Wii U features a touchscreen pad which can supplement or replicate the television.  For example, when playing Mario the pad gets the maps as well as having the playable area on the television screen. For first person shooters you can buy plastic replica guns that the Wii Motion controllers slot into, which requires you to use it to aim and shoot the targets.  Using it like an actual gun.
This is all very interesting, but since its release it shows that people are less into the physical exhaustion to play a game and opt for the sofa and a bowl of crisps.

Playing an aircraft simulator, you a buy a joystick, because pilots use those right?  You buy s racing wheel to play a racing game (or truck driving simulator in my boyfriends case) and pedals and a gear stick. Devices like these were popular because they were accurate to the game and helped immersion.  Things like rumble controllers have a similar appeal, they just add that bit more depth to the playing experience.

This kind of interactivity is quickly getting out dated, with technology moving at record paces there are new exciting things coming out all the time. The most exciting and relevant at this moment in time is most certainly the Oculus Rift.

‘The Rift is an upcoming virtual reality head-mounted display, being developed by Oculus VR. During its period as an independent company, Oculus VR had raised US$91 million for the development of the Rift.’ - Wikipedia

So with so much money being pumped into this project it hold a lot of potential. It allows the player to actually be within the game, there have been many interesting and exciting examples of its use over the internet, my personal favourite being;

The Oculus in addition with omni treadmill seems to be the most exciting and most immersive gaming platform to date. The potential for them both will give a really immersive experience (even if you might look a little bit silly!

Creativity

So, I will just start with this video. It is quite a long, and I am sure nearly every other person writing about creativity has used this an an example too, but it is well worth a watch. John Cleese makes some invaluable points on creativity; I want to discuss what he had to say on the matter.

Firstly it is important not to treat creativity as a talent, because it is not. It is more like a way of thinking, a way of life, Cleese discusses this and then goes on to discuss the different states of mind. He narrows it down to two types of thinking, the open mode and the closed mode.
So the main traits of each mode are; in the open mode, you are relaxed, you are playful, both of which are key to being creative. Where as the closed mode, is usually under pressure, you are questioning yourself, being critical and makes it a struggle for yourself to be creative.
As I am well aware being under pressure and being a bit anxious makes it incredible hard to be creative, pressure stops natural creativity. But of course, sometimes we are under pressure and are expected to be creative and do work, can we adapt to work under both modes? Or just avoid the closed mode all together?

Cleese also addresses this; to stop pressure on oneself, planning and reviewing our progress would help with that. Planning and reviewing can be done in the closed mode, being more critical of oneself and being more organised. Where as when actually working you want to be relaxed and have an open mind.
'To be at our most efficient we need to be able to switch backwards and forwards between the two modes. But here is the problem, we too often get stuck in the closed mode'
We must learn to use both modes to progress and influence our creativity. But it is very true that we too often get stuck in the closed mind. You know you have a problem to solve, yet you sit and worry about it, and every other mundane problem that pops into your head.

He also goes on to discuss the best way of getting back into the open mode and to let yourself be creative.
He states that you need these things; space, time, confidence and humor.
You need your own space, somewhere quiet, secluded and private. You need to create a little oasis for yourself where you can relax and let your mind wander.
Secondly you need time, give yourself enough time to relax, let the other problems fade and then enough time to let some creativity happen. Undoubtedly as soon as you have time to yourself your mind will buzz, worrying about day to day tasks you need to have done or other projects you also need to work on. Getting into the right mind for precisely what you are working on is the hardest part.
Cleese says that part of being creative is having the ability to over look these little problems, to tolerate them for the time being so that your mind can relax and be free to create. If you can achieve this, you will spend longer looking at the problem, which in the long run can lead to more creative outcomes.

Once you have your oasis and you have let your mind be completely open, it is still important to have some confidence. The worse thing for crushing creativity is the fear of being wrong, the fear of failure. It is important to look at creativity as subjective, it is never wrong and never right. It is important to believe that whatever happens, whatever brain farts you have are ok, anything may lead to a breakthrough.
A good way of helping your confidence is through humor, the best way to get to the open mode is through laughter.
I can strongly relate to this, the amount of times I have been sat around with friends, laughing over silly ideas we are coming out with, that then may lead onto a sound and strong idea, especially throughout our group project.
'Humor is an essential part of spontaneity, an essential part of playfulness, essential part of the creativity we need to solve problems no matter how serious they may be.'

To lead on from that, surrounding ones self with creative open minded people, always helps increase your own creativity. I am incredibly fortunate to be constantly surrounded by people I trust and am relaxed around, who all have wonderful creative minds. One of my favourite things about our community at university is how we all bounce off of one another, our ideas are pushed further and we all develop as a group of creatives taking pride in each others success.
In my opinion, getting into the open mode is easiest in that environment, I would not have developed as an artist as fast without that surrounding me.

Sorry guys! (No regrets)

Sounds in Games

Sounds, be that effects or music, in games can make so much difference to the atmosphere of the game; A well placed creak can create a sense of tension or a somber song may get them close to tears. Sounds can have a very powerful effect over the player, when used intelligently. In my opinion a good soundtrack and thoughtful sound design can make a game timeless.

One of the most important parts of a game is creating the immersion, that sense of being a part of the game. Things like bad level design, bad visual design and bad sound design can break that barrier and the player will not be able to connect with the game as the developer planned. I would argue that sound has one of the most important part to creating this sense of involvement within the game. Making sure all the surrounding sound effects are accurate are key to this. Sound is also a big part of level design as intelligently placed sound can help make the player progress in the preferred way through the level, it is an important part of triggered events.

If done well and successfully sound can help to create a sense of tension, stir emotions and even play on nostalgia.
Some games execute the tension very well through their sound; one game that stands out to me as doing this is Outlast. Even from the start up menu you have this horrible sense of tension and dread (even to those who do not know what they are about to inflict upon themselves.) Whenever I play this game with friends, the moment we hear the opening sounds we are straight back to feeling on edge and unsure about the whole situation. Even when in the middle of a level, you are constantly questioning what all the sounds are; some of the levels even revolve around the use of sound. For example, the guy we are avoiding at the moment has a chain that drags on the floor as he walks, so as soon as you hear that sound you know you have to hide as fast as possible. Then once hidden it is a question of whether it is your own breathing you can hear or someone else!

This game gets me every time! 

Possible SPOLIERS! 

Sounds also help to create emotions in the player; one too many games have had me bawling my eyes out and I can bet you that music in the game has helped achieve this effect. A good example of this, is in the opening of The Last of Us.

SPOILERS!

This opening is so well done as it established this personal relationship with the characters within the first few minutes of meeting them. In addition to this development the sounds and visuals support this well; when the music starts at the part where one of the characters is dying in the opening, it really stirs those emotions (makes me cry every time.)

Music from older games really starts to play on nostalgia these days, music from games we played when younger really stir our emotions when we hear them. When you hear a song from a game you played years ago it fills you with that sense of excitement and enjoyment you got from the first time you played it. Prime examples (at least for me personally) are the Legend of Zelda theme and the Elder Scrolls theme, whenever I hear these themes it makes me want to go play them all over again. When a song has this effect over you, you know that the games soundtrack was a very well done and successful one as it still remains in your memory.

My inner adventurer is crying with excitement!

Game Engines

So, what is a game engine? My understanding of a game engine is that it is the place where all the elements come together to create a playable game. The main thing I use them for is to create a playable level to showcase assets I have been working on. Things like 3d assets, textures, terrain, sounds, AI and other scripts come together in one place to create a final product.
There are many different engines to choose from so it is important to choose correctly as things like lighting and shaders are dependent upon your choice.
The amount of different effects and elements you can achieve also depend on the engines features.

So, most engines are based on licencing and again prices can vary depending on which you are looking at. So some companies choose to create an ‘in-house’ engine; ‘In-house’ engines can be a very viable option as it gives the developer the freedom to have any features that are necessary for their game. If they have the time, money, staff and patience to create one (and make it usable for more than one title) it can be very effective in the long run as they will avoid licencing and royalty fees.

While some developers may opt for ‘in-house’ engine, a lot of companies will still choose the licencing as it may often work out easier and cheaper. The benefit of using well established engines means that the bugs have already been fixed and there are often lots of tutorials available. While some engines can limit the visuals or features of a game, more commonly used engines like Unreal Development Kit (UDK) is known to have adaptable styles. While UDK is relatively easy to use and offers great features especially for first person shooters, it may prove a challenge for other types of game (not unachievable, but more of a challenge.)

All  above created using UDK (Bioshock Infinite, Dishonored, Mass Effect 2)

So, UDK still one of the most used engines boasts a variety of different titles and different visual styles, it is popular because of its flexibility and versatility. Because it is so widely used there are plenty of online resources to help with achieving a variety of different features and styles.
Another reason it is so popular is because of its node-based shader system, the layout is somewhat similar to other texture and shader compilers and is easy to grasp.
The lighting in UDK is not real time and is baked onto a lighting map. While this does not limit the lighting effects you can achieve, plus it is a lot cheaper than real time lighting, but it does take up extra time making sure all the lighting maps are correct.

All above created in CryEngine (Crysis 3, Far Cry, Ryse)

Another popular engine is CryEngine which was originally developed as a tech demo for Nvidia, which after its potential was realised was made into a full game engine. Crytek are re-known for creating beautiful games with ground breaking graphics and their Engine sure doesn't disappoint. The real time lighting is stunning and it has an easy to use flow graph system for shaders and in-game events. While it is relatively easy to jump into (with a bit of prior knowledge of other engines) it still requires a bit of adjusting to get used to importing assets. It makes it easy to create levels that look pretty good and as an artist it is pretty simple to get triggered events and other effects working without having much knowledge of programming.
However, CryEngine is not nearly as flexible as other engines and the lighting is set up for photo realistic styles. So trying to create a more stylised or cartoon-y effect can be a challenge. Also, because of the lighting it is often easy to distinguish when a level has been created using CryEngine.

All of the above created in Unity Engine (Guns of Icarus, Kerbal Space Program, Anna)

Although I do not know much about this engine, I feel it is worth a mention; Unity. Unity has long since been regarded as an engine for hobbyists and amateurs, but since its development it has drawn the attention of many companies. It’s vast tools for mobile games and has a pretty cheap licencing fee have helped build its popularity. It is easy to access and is surprisingly versatile with plenty of shaders and tools available. Unity is also well rated as it works for browsers; the Unity web-layer enables Unity levels to be accessible via internet browsers, as well as created and played over the internet with hardly any download necessary. Another important thing to look at is the fact that it imports max and maya files which helps speed up the work flow.
However as it is still being improved the lighting is not amazing, especially when competing with CryEngine and UDK; but there are plenty of plug-ins available from companies like Marmoset, which help improve this tenfold.

Obviously there are lots of other exciting game engines out there; these are just the three I am most accustomed to. It is worth researching other engines as they can offer even more different features and effects that would be more suited for whatever project it is you are working on. It is always worth looking out for new engines as well as the market is constantly changing so new programs will be developed to suit its needs.

Mock up on Documentation

My mock up practice brief;

My project will be a 3^rd person Fantasy RPG game where it is driven by narrative and quests, there will be lots of vast environments to explore. I will write a project outline for one area in the game. I want the level to be immersive and have lots of exploration elements. All concept work with be produced at the beginning.

It will be specified for PC and consoles and will be created in Unreal Engine as I am most familiar with it. The audience is ages 15 upwards and will have a realistic style. The other programs I will be using are 3D Studio Max, Photoshop, Crazy Bump, World Machine and Zbrush.

There will be;

• ·        A lead character

o   The lead character will be either a male or female generic hero type character. The player can chose between dual wielding weapons, bow and arrows, mage’s staff or stealthy daggers.

o   Character no more than 30 000 tris

o   2 x 1024 x 1024 (diffuse + alpha) 32Bit

o   2 x 1024 x 1024 (specular + gloss) 32Bit

o   2 x 1024 x 1024 (normal) 24Bit

o   Weapons no more than 5000 tris

o   2 x 512 x 512 (diffuse + alpha) 32Bit

o   2 x 512 x 512 (specular + gloss) 32Bit

o   2 x 512 x 512 (normal) 24Bit

• ·        An NPC

o   The NPC will be one of the enemies. As the player traverses the environment they will encounter many different enemies. The NPC I will create will be the basic ‘undead soldier’ character, who will be one of the most common enemies.

o   Character and weapons no more than 10 000 tris

o   1 x 1024 x 1024 (diffuse + alpha) 32 bit

o   1 x 1024 x 1024 (specular + gloss) 32 bit

o   1 x 1024 x 1024 (normal) 24 bit

o   Should include 3 LOD’s

• ·        A vehicle

o   The vehicle used will be a small row boat that can be used to traverse over lakes and rivers in the environments.

o   No more than 5000 tris

o   1 x 1024 x 1024 (diffuse + alpha) 32 bit

o   1 x 1024 x 1024 (specular + gloss) 32 bit

o   1 x 1024 x 1024 (normal) 24 bit

o   Should include 3 LOD’s

• ·        An environment

o   The level will be a castle ruins in a forest by a lake, where the aim in to make it to the ruins as an ancient relic you player requires is hidden within.

o   Will consist of terrain and skybox

o   Including heightmap

o   4 x 1024 x 1024 (diffuse + alpha) 32 bit

o   4 x 1024 x 1024 (specular + gloss) 32 bit

o   4 x 1024 x 1024 (normal) 24 bit

• ·        Prop or scenery objects

o   Most of the props will be foliage and other plant life; so trees, shrubs, grasses, bushes, rocks, dirt, etc. There will also be the ruined castle which where possible will be modular, with more unique assets like statues and gargoyles.

o   All props minor props should be under 1000 tris and hero assets can go up to 5000 tris

o   Should all include 3 LOD’s

o   Each minor asset can have;

o   1 x 512 x 512 (diffuse + alpha) 32 bit

o   1 x 512 x 512 (specular + gloss) 32 bit

o   1 x 512 x 512 (normal) 24 bit

o   Each hero asset can have;

o   1 x 1024 x 1024 (diffuse + alpha) 32 bit

o   1 x 1024 x 1024 (specular + gloss) 32 bit

o   1 x 1024 x 1024 (normal) 24 bit

My personal aims for this project will be to develop my organisational skills, my understanding of UDK, my understanding of budgets, my understanding of artistic direction, creating a set of assets that harmonise to create a visually pleasing level, to practice using lighting well and also to help me understand good level design, so that the environment is easily traversed with a clear goal, while also encouraging exploration. 

Level Design

Level design, would seem somewhat different to the kind of things I would usually think about when designing something. Level design is driven by player interaction, and from my research I would say it seems to be about a harmony between game mechanics and visual design. I would also argue it is also about telling a story without using words or dialog.
I read an article (by Dan Taylor on Gamasutra) on key principles to good game level design; the main points seem to be that player interaction is what keeps the player engaged. While I strongly agree that the interaction with the game is what helps drive the narrative along, I want to discuss the importance of visual design in a level and how it strongly aids the interactions in a game (as this is what is more relevant to me.)
While key triggers and events keep the gamer excited and engaged, I feel that it requires visual cues to draw the player through the level and create a sense of flow.

One of the first points made is;
‘In most cases, the player’s core method of interaction with your level will be navigation – the process of actually traversing the level.  Careful layout, lighting, signage and other visual cues should create a natural “flow” to the level that guides the player instinctively through it.  From an aesthetic aspect, a game’s levels should all work together to create a consistent visual language, through the use of colour and form, that the player can learn, to progress intuitively through the level ‘

So after the level and interactive elements have been blocked out then the visual work must support this set up by leading the player to where they need to be and without being too obvious. It is important to still leave the player with a bit of autonomy, it would make sense to still have areas hidden from the player as to make levels replayable and encourage the player to explore and be rewarded for that. Again it would seem that it is all dependent on what type of game it is as to what level of exploration verses obvious direction there is. 
The main ways of trying to lead the player with design would be with lighting, signage and clear direction. Interestingly, I would argue that this relates very well back to the visual composition I was discussing in a past post; the way a scene is composed can strongly effect where the players interest is drawn. Trying to think about it as what is the first thing the player would see, and how will we get them to look over to where the entrance to the next area is. Similar elements like high contrast areas, arabesques and coincidences can get the player headed in the right direction.



I feel that thinking about level design in this way may help to improve upon the interactive elements in a playable level. If those elements are pivotal to the progression of narrative, then we need to visual cues to get the played to the right area at the right time.  Visuals are very important to level design.

Visual Composition

Visual composition was never really something I properly thought about in my past work. My uninformed approach is normally to just go with what looks right by instinct and just settle with that.

Yet after being introduced to composition techniques in my visual design classes, my mind has well and truly been blown. I have had a glimpse into the importance of design, to think smart when creating an image, and to look further than simply the rule of thirds.  To be honest overall this year has been a mind changing roller coaster so far.

So, what did I discover? Well, there is a reason that masters work is so timeless, they were using incredibly clever and structured techniques to create an image that does exactly what the artist wants it to do. They understand what draws a person to an image, where do they look first and why? Once they understood this they started using set formula that means they can make the viewer see what they want them to. This is only in regard to visual composition, not even touching the other areas they had outstanding understanding of. 

I have also been reading a blog (http://www.ipoxstudios.com/canon-of-design/) in which these techniques are much better explained. I have only just started to get my head around it and I still have a lot to learn, I’ve had a glimpse but the stuff these guys were doing was so vast.  The author has been doing daily posts regarding different areas and explaining a lot of it so that I may start to understand what they were doing. I am hoping just having a basic understanding and trying to incorporate it in my own work will help me improve. 

It is odd to think, but what exactly have I been doing in my art education up to this point? It continues to baffle me how after 7 years of art education they failed to even properly mention basic drawing techniques. No wonder society thinks we just sit around drawing pretty pictures all day.

http://www.ipoxstudios.com/the-rule-of-thirds-killed-design-and-left-it-for-dead-65-of-365/

I really enjoy the blog posts where the author take the time to sit and break down some masters paintings; showing some of the thing they were doing. The link above is an analysed painting by William Adolphe Bouguereau and it is nicely broken down into the different elements used. 

Study and composition analysis by Miles Johnstone

My own analysis and study of 'Miss Elsie Palmer by John Singer Sergeant'

Planning and Concepting

Planning and concepting are two extremely vital parts of any project. A very misconceived opinion I seem to have noticed floating around is; 'I know how to do 3D, so I don't need 2D.' Obviously this is a load of rubbish. Your 3D work is going to benefit and improve tenfold if it has started with decent planning and decent concepts. One of the main focus'/realizations I have had this year is that having a good foundation in your 2D skills is more helpful that just being a wiz at 3D modelling. Developing an understanding of form, composition, and other basic drawing skills takes a long time. The more confident you are with it the better as it is easily transferred to your 3D work. Where as learning the 3D sides is often simply a case of looking it up on the internet.

In regards to concept art, there seems to be a massive misconception as to what it is. If you look up concept art you will usually find, beautifully polished and rendered pieces of work with a strong, well established visual style. So there is a general census that this is what concept art is right?
Well, another of my realizations this year is that actually no, what we are fed by the media as 'concept art' is not that at all. The stuff we are fed would be better named as 'promo art.'

Wikipedia says: 

'Concept art is a form of illustration where the main goal is to convey a visual representation of a design, idea and/or mood for use in films, video games, animation, or comic books before it is put into the final product.'

This gives a better explanation of what it is; while this is the general description of what it is, concepting is a lot longer and more thoughtful process than that. There is a tonne of work that goes through a process of developing thumbnails, variations or iterations of ideas before getting close to the final designs; most of it is scrapped or vastly changed. 

But this is vital to the process, it is extremely important to be critical and to be clever throughout the design process. It is not just simply drawing pretty pictures all day; it is an intelligent process where the concept artist is creating these images with a very specific purpose and idea in mind.

The fact that the public idea of concept art is warped is mainly becuase of the stuff that is relaeased as concept art. While this has a negative impact on students and amateurs who want to pursue a career in concept art; creating unrealistically high standards for them and restricting them from the real techniques that concept artists use, it is understandable why this has happened.

A company is not going to want to release concept art throughout the design process;

'Companies only release concept art when it is polished and final enough to represent the actual product. Nobody wants a design go viral, which is possibly later rejected and have customers imprint a wrong visual key.' - How not to suck at game design (explains topic very nciely.)

Planning and concepting needs to be treated as a vital part of the design process. It should be done in an intelligent and reflective fashion; seeking as much feedback and criticism as you go. This will push oneself further and nail the key visuals before processing to a more finalized product. It also should not end at the beginning, being prepared to go back and develop more is also important. For example, doing paint overs of an existing level or character is going to help move the idea further. Planning and concepting ensures that the project will run smoother but also is a constant through the whole design process.

I found a thing.

I'm Back....

Soooo, back to Leicester! I'm glad to be back! I mean I love being at home, I love seeing my family and friends, but I've been struggling without some sort of routine. This summer has consisted mainly of me hesitating to leave Leicester (I stayed in my halls until the 22^nd of July, due to work), going on holiday for two weeks, then having a month at home where I felt somewhat at a loose end as to what to do with myself.

I had planned to do a bit of a mini group project with a few of my class mates. Before leaving to go home we had decided our project, put together some mood boards, started concepting and white boxing a little tavern scene. Somehow, although I am not surprised at myself, nothing much really came of it. I did some concepts but I never really got much further past that stage. I feel a bit bad for not chasing it up, but on the other hand I found myself getting quite a lot into my digital painting. While I was in Spain for those two weeks, I found myself dying to do some work, whether that was modelling or painting. I put the main reasoning down to the fact that the place I was staying was so beautiful.

Some Summer work....

We stayed in a little village called Frigiliana. It is situated in the hills and the buildings have red tile roofs and white bricks, the pavements are all cobbled in swirly patterns, very idealistic. But, another factor is that when I go on holiday with my parents they don’t like to do much apart from sit around the garden area and read books all day. This is all well and good and I appreciate relaxing for a short amount of time, but when it was getting on the 6 day mark and we were doing exactly the same thing that the days started dragging. As I mentioned before one of the main thing I established last year was that I am pretty crap at doing nothing, after being used to the constant list of things I need to do for uni, having absolutely nothing to do was an alien concept to me.

Me, Ben and Anna all got back right at the beginning of September so, after moving into our new houses (which are super awesome) we were excited to get back to the uni timetable and start doing some work.
This year I am super excited to start the character project and the group project. I think I am looking forward to being given a little more freedom on our briefs, with us having larger budgets and more artistic choices. I am mainly hoping to improve on my speed of work and managed to get more personal projects in on the side.
I have come to the realisation that the amount of work we do for the course, isn't even close to the amount we need to be doing if we realistically want a job when we graduate.  Also this is the year that we will be applying for internships, so it is very important to start putting a portfolio together as we will need them to apply.

I am excited about this year, but also very very scared. I kind of feel like I can see the scale of things a little clearer now, and that mountain I thought I had climbed last year was merely a small hill.