Game Design project "Have fun" - A look at colour and art-style

Because I had already decided on gameplay that involves a clash between elements I will need a colour palette to reflect this. Fire and water will be possessed by the enemies and the main protagonist respectively, so I needed to keep in mind a way I could use materials to not only represent the colours, but the moveent of elements.

These first couple of palette tests were an idea for the colours that would represent the game as a whole. I like the strong, vibrant colours .

In these next tests I tried to paint a representation of water and how it might look as a malleable forcew. I also considered movement as I painted.

In this 3rd set I decided to experiment with painting fire. I endorsed a similar technique as I did with water but obviously changed the colours. I also paid closer consideration to form in this set.

This last piece was a quick attempt to apply some of the techniques I had been practicing into a simple composition. I like the effect but feel that perhaps adding detail with a different medium such as acrylic would prove benefitial.

Game Design project "Have fun" - The work of Trey Ratcliff

I came across Trey Ratcliff whilst I was searching for oriental architecture and instantly fell in love with his work. He is a photographer by trade who enjoys exploring different parts of the globe and featuring it in his work. However he takes his work a step futher by editing it digitaly which takes beyond the confines of simply being a photograph. Underneath are examples of his work which I personally like and feel are relevant to my own work.

Game Design project "Have fun" - A look at traditional Chinese architecture

Ok, Mike, so maybe I'm not being particularly original... but you gotta start somewhere right?

I'm already worried my game idea will look like a clone of countless other oriental-themed games but I've already considered ways in which it could seporate itself from other games! For one I'm planning to have game play that focuses on opposing elements....

Aww crap this ain't gonna be original at all!

Anyways moving on I decided to look at some Chinese architecture; the slanting, layered roofs are what came to mind imedietly.

Sice I intend my game to be a 2D-side scroller I am unsure whether the architecture will be scalable or simply appart of the backdrop. Either way I feel it would serve as some pretty eye-catching imagery. Underneath I have collected a few images of a typical Chinese new year. The colours and lights are dazzling and I like chinese dragons - they may seep into my work later on.

Game Design project "Have fun" - Considering art-style

When I first thought of an art-style incorporating chinese silk painting I can't deny my mind kept bouncing back to Okami. I had been so infatuated with that game that I'm worried my own game idea would end up looking like an ode to it. So then I thought I'd actually look at chinese silk painting and see the comparisons for myself.

There are some notable similarities such as the watery brush strokes however, chinese silk pinting appears to stick to monotone colour palettes whilst simply introducing a single bold colour to create contrast within the composition. From here I'm sure I could incorporate some of these techniques and ideas into my own work.

Game Design project "Have fun" - Considering environments

When the project was first announced my mind rushed into that little space where I keep all my gaming dreams and ideas. Something I have always loved in games was the art style. I would think back to games like Okami; a beautiful, original game with a unique art-style. I love how they envisioned Japan as if it were a Japanese ink painting.

The Prince of Persia game that came out in 2008 for the 360 and PS3 was a wonder to behold with its cel-shaded graphics and dreamy colour palette. I'm not a fan of deserty terrain but I would gladly live in any of the locales created in this game.

Naturally when envisioning a concept of my own I thought of incorporating a colourful art-style into the mix.

I first contemplated gothic architecture, since I've always had a love for the dark and medievil. But then I thought there was nothing really original about that and my work would inevidebly end up looking like a Castlevania rip-off. Then I considered doing horror but realised the colour palette normally associated with horror games was generally dark and gloomy.

Finally it came as I was watching Disney's Mulan. Why not make a setting for a game based on ancient China, using an art-style that incorporated chinese silk painting. Once the idea was planted in my head my course was set.

Game Design project "Have fun"....in aproximately 4 days

I make no secret out of the fact that I chose to leave it until now to pursue this project. I could go into detail about how I was struggling to finish my current game productions project and trying to get my visual design work up to speed, but the industry has no place for whinny excuses. So this will be my attempt to produce a concept, theme and supporting artwork for a video game in just under 4 days. God help me...

I will begin by producing a list of rules I believe are crucial to effective environment design in games:

1. The environment must be relevant - by this I mean there is no point creating an explorable location in a game if it isn't worth exploring. Why create a long corridor if it serves little purpose? In Silent Hill 2 the main protagonist, James finds himself walking down a long, dark, narrow stair-well which takes almost 2 MINUTES to descend. The relevence of that staircase was that it was a metaphor for his descent further into hell. It also added to the tension, forcing the player to constantly consider whether they should have turned back by now.

2. The environment should be visually stimulating - whether its a tropical rainforest filled with lush greenery or a murky dark passageway, the location needs to strike the player as being just that. There should be a sufficient amount of detail to the environment as well as mindful judgement when it comes to a choice of appropriate props and their placement. On top of this there should be a level of artistic finesse to the location, afterall, they represent the game visually and the rest of it would suffer if the graphics weren't up to scratch. A bit of imagination also goes a long way.

3. The environment must be believable - by this I mean the player should feel complete emersion at all times. If there are any hitches, such as a horse floating 20 feet up in the air (I'm looking at you Skyrim...) then the player is instantly reminded that what they are playing isn't real. Furthermore props and other features must be carefully considered; if something minor in the background is drawing far too much attention for no apparant reason then the designer did a pretty poor job. If a switch looks like it should be able to be pressed, then it should be.

I think those 3 rules about sum up what I believe makes a good game environment. From here I will start considering the concept for my own game idea...

Elements of Game Design: Environment