Sum up of mortal engines projects

Now that i have completed all 3 projects based on the novel Mortal Engines, i think its time to look back and see what i can improve on, if i can i will probably make changes over Christmas after some feedback from the assessment .The first project was to create an environment from the book. I decided to go with Rustwater Marshes. The main part of the scene would be the large tracks sunk into the boggy marshes, created by a traction city. The triangle limit for this was 20000, which was more than enough. In the end my triangle count came to 15943, which was more than expected. Below is the final outcome:

Looking at it now i feel that the overall the composition can be improved. There are several areas that can be improved as they are rather empty. I also think that there needs to be a larger variety of colours, the majority of it is just brown. I am fairly happy with the way the tracks have came out, fairly simple design but it works, although the way the side and bottom connects could be improved. As for the textures, i am happy with the skybox, came out better than i had thought seeing as my photoshop skills are amazing. The mud texture was ok, the normals worked fairly well, but it could have had a bit more variety in colour. The main part i need to improve on the texture allocation. Heather said that i could have saved a lot more texture space with the bark and reed textures by the way i unwrapped it, and making the most of tillable textures. The material for the water turned out nicely, but it a bit too expensive due to using a raytrace material. I am going to try and achieve the same results using cubemaps instead.

The task for the second project was to design a vehicle which could transport at least 2 people under earth's gravity conditions. I decided to design a 'bug' the vehicles used on traction cities as a way of getting around. The triangle limit was 9000 which included both exterior and interior. Here is the outcome:

First i textured it as if it was new, and then i textured it to look rusted so it would fit in my scene.

Overall, i am happy with the shape of the vehicle, with a total of 6380

triangles used.

As for the textures, the new one needs more detail to help break up the blue. The rusted texture looks ok, and i have placed some joints where the parts of the body are connected with bolts. The normal map helped a great deal to help bring out the detail in the texture, especially on the wheel hubs. Below are some larger pics:

New Version renders : 1 2

Rusted Version renders : 1 2

The third project was to create a character based on the novel, an

d be a self portrait. The triangle limit for this was 9000, and i was also required to make a Level Of Detail model (lod) which had to be under 2000. As well as this the model had to be rigged. The triangle count came to 7128 and 1992 for the lod. For me, this was probably the most difficult of the 3, as i have only modelled 2 character beforehand, and have never rigged a character before. The biggest challenge was to get it to look like me, i spent quite a while working on the head alone, constantly tweaking it. The hair proved rather difficult too, especially the fringe. Below is the end result:

I am pretty happy with the textures, seeing as texturing is my weakest area. I also spent some time editing the normals and specular maps, which i need to do more of in the future.

Rigging wasn't too difficult, some areas were rather tricky, especially the fingers and the shoulders. The shoulders don't deform that great, i think i needed a few more edge loops, but everything works so its a start.

From these 3 projects i have learnt a lot, especially with the character project. It has also shown my strengths and most importantly my weaknesses which i can begin to improve on.

Violence stepping up a level

Well as I'm sure you are aware, the new Call of Duty Modern warfare has been released and has had record breaking sales. However, one area of the game has been highly scrutinized and has resulted in the game being taken off the shelf in countries such as Russia and Germany. This is the part where you are undercover as a Russian terrorist. You are sent to an airport and told to kill every innocent civilian you see. Now, there are many other games out there where you can kill as many random people as you wish, Grand Theft Auto being the obvious one, but in that you have the choice to do so. In this situation, you are forced to. If you don’t then the terrorists become suspicious and if you fight back, then you fail the mission. You do have the option of skipping the level in the first place, but then why put the level in the game in the first place, if you know that it will be looked down upon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NMnnMRWJ-0&feature=related

I think one of the main reasons it makes people shiver is the fact that you know that you are the good guy, but you have to act like a bad guy. When it comes to moral gaming, people will choose what they feel is right. For example, i have been playing a bit of Dragon Age Origins lately, in where you can decide how to respond in conversations. You can be a decent person, being kind and helpful, or you can be a complete arse. Now when i see some of the responses you can see which is the mean response, they do me me laugh a bit, but i still go with the kind option simply because that's who i am, and i will feel bad afterwards. People can argue that it is only a game, its not real, unfortunately it can affect some people and has done, kids acting out games which results in serious injuries or even death.

Of course the game does have an age rating of 18 and only suitable for adults, but this wont stop 10 year olds from playing it. At a younger age games can have a strong affect on children's minds, making them believe that because its only a game it makes it ok to carry out such acts. Personally i don’t see why people complain about the amount of violence or swearing in games, the age rating is there for a reason and the same can be said about films and even music. I guess what separates the games from the films and music is the fact that you actually control what happens, where as in a film it is already been done and is displayed to you, where you have no interaction whatsoever.

Anyway, gone off at a slight tangent. Usually, games such as GTA don't bother me at all when you can drive around knocking people down at you own will, shooting endless cops knowing you are in the wrong, but for some reason it doesn't affect people as much as CoD:MW2 has. I suspect it is partly due to the realism of the event. The animations and the screams and cries of innocent people, its something that looks like it could actually happen.

Infinity Ward, the makers of MW2 are in the process of making a patch that will remove the mission altogether, until then, it wont be available in Russia. This could be a valuable lesson for game developers, they may think that with the technology available they can create ultra realistic games, but sometimes people can go too far.

Meet the Spy

This video by Valve is simply awesome. Enjoy.

 

End of year sum up

I really can't believe 24 weeks have pasted, I can remember the first day as clear as anything, I can even remember my interview as if it were yesterday. It truly is scary at how quickly time flies. I guess it’s true what they say, 'time flies when you're having fun'. I have really enjoyed my first year on the course and look forward to the challenges of the second year.
At first everything seemed a little daunting, what with having 50 people on the course, rooms were a little crowded, but hey, it gave me a chance to get to know people easily. It was a shame the computer labs weren't ready by the time we had arrived, I thought they would have been done during the summer. It didn’t bother me too much as I got Photoshop and 3ds max on my computer here in my flat.
I like the overall structure of the course, having projects set for a week or two allows us to get into the habit of working with deadlines, something that is crucial to meet in the industry. The trips out to places with Chris was a nice change to college, just sat in a class room all day, it is certainly nicer and more effective drawing from life. I have certainly learnt a lot over the past 24 weeks in all areas. I enjoyed the Wednesday sessions too, although i am a rather quiet, shy person, I found everything Mike had to say very interesting and inspiring. Every time I left the room I had something to think about and has helped me realise things that I wasn’t sure about before.
3d studio max seemed a little scary at first, I think a lot of people found it hard and still are getting to grips with it. As for myself, I really enjoy using 3d software and spent a lot of time at home messing around with it. Plus Heather's tutorials were a great help for the projects we have covered.
There really weren’t any bad points over the past 24 weeks. Oh and facebook is working well I think, it’s good to see the 2nd years work too so we can see what to aim for next year.
All in all, jolly good show chaps.

GDC

The GDC is a pretty big event that happens each year, consisting of conferences from visual art to management. I was having a look around the website http://www.gdconf.com/index.html and found some things that i would love to attend. One that stood out to me was the conference about how the landscapes in Farcry 2 were created. I've always been really interesting in level design; I’ve even made a few maps for Team Fortress 2, one of which is being used in a league soon.
Anyway, I’ve always wondered what process is used to create such vast landscapes such as the 50 square km world in Farcry 2. It must be almost impossible to create it in 3ds max. I can’t even image what it would be like to texture. I guess the same situation applies for a lot of rpg/adventure games such as oblivion and fallout 3, even though fallout 3 probably on had one texture, just grey and gritty.
I remember many years ago using a world editor for Command and Conquer Generals, you could deform the ground with a simple up and down tool, with different settings. I should imagine something similar could be used for Farcry, although a lot more time and effort would be needed, as the player is on the ground, not flying above it.
I reckon I would find this conference really interesting as level design is my favourite area of games and I would love to learn the techniques used.

What am I going to get out of three years at University

So, what do I really want out of my 3 years at uni? Of course a pass in the subject I’m doing would be nice, but it doesn’t mean it will secure me a job afterwards. I think quite a few people jump to this conclusion, if they go to uni and get their degree then they can just go out and get the perfect job. Life isn’t like that I’m afraid, especially at the moment, with more and more companies going bust, thousands of employees being made redundant. University is a big investment; you have your accommodation costs, course fees and generally outcome for food etc. You really have to make these 3 years count to really make the most of it.
Personally, I see university a chance to learn and develop new skills which you will need in the near future, to help you secure the job you are after. Sure, you can learn 3ds max in 2 weeks, by paying a couple of thousand pounds, but you don’t get the experience out of it. A lot of people who I have spoken too, who themselves went to uni, say that is has been some of the best years of their life so far. For me, it is the first time where i have become fully independent and I’m enjoying it.
Another thing I plan to get out of uni is a strong portfolio, which is vital when applying for jobs, without it you won’t be going anywhere. I should be able to build up a nice bulk of work ranging from drawings and sculptures to 3d models and digital paintings. Another good thing about the time hear is that we get people in from the industry itself, who can give us valuable advice on what to do and how to go about it.
With all these facts taking in to consideration, my 3 years at uni will be well spent and push me that little bit further to being part of the games industry.

Creativity Take 2

Right, Creativity again. Personally my views on it haven’t changed a great deal, but recently I’ve been thinking about a video we were shown in a lecture. It is a speech from Ken Robinson, you can watch it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iG9CE55wbtY
On part that really caught my attention was when he mentions that everybody is born with creativity, its just people loose it when going through education. Think about it, you are forced to do subjects such as Maths, Science and English, no matter how good you are at it. It is only until your 4th year at secondary school where you get to choose 3 subjects to do, along with English, Science and Maths. Also, creativity can come in a variety of forms such as dance and music, not just art. During education, children who are talented in dance for example, are taken away from the creativity due to being forced to study maths and science, therefore their talent is not put to use.
The other things are mistakes. Nowadays, mistakes are generally the worst things you can do in you're average job. This also applies to education for example, maths you are either right or wrong. This is the complete opposite to any form of art, in art you can never be wrong, it is just a different style or approach to a subject. This is what hurts children’s creativity early one, they begin to think that if their work is not exactly the same as an example then it will be wrong, and therefore think that they aren’t good enough and stick to the usual subjects like maths. A lot of talent and creativity is lost and not put to use because of this thought process.
This pretty much my thoughts on this subject, for now...

Life Changing or Career Building?

Getting into the industry is always going to be hard from the start, especially from a graduate’s point of view. The main reason is simply due to the lack of experience you will have when you leave uni.
When game companies are looking for a new artist, they usually spilt into two categories. The first being the people who are only interested in hiring experienced artists, people who have been working in the industry for several years. This means that they can pretty much guarantee that the person will be productive and creative enough to produce decent outcomes for the games the company is working on.
On the other hand we have companies who tend to prefer artists with a liberal arts background. This gives the chance for the inexperienced to give it a shot at the games industry, enhancing their abilities and gaining valuable experience. If you are an exceptionally talented graduate, some companies spot this, and offer students a job as soon as the finish the course. You often get people in from the industry to visit universities and have a look at some of the work produced. This gives the chance for students to receive valuable feedback from experienced artists who do the sort of stuff for a living.
Now, game art courses offer a lot to help students on their way to being a game artist, but they can't do everything for you. The courses are generally there to guide you and it is up to you to become unique to other artists. Game companies like to see a variation of styles in a portfolio; this means that the employee will be able to produce artwork for any genre. Of course, you will be taught rather a lot, the drawing techniques to produce convincing sketches, digital painting and 3d modelling such as 3ds max. However, as I said earlier, it is up to the student themselves to make that final jump, to stand out from the others and get that position as game artist.

Sound in Games

Sound in games has to be one of the most important areas when designing a game. Sound can dramatically enhance the gamers experience. The type of genre that comes to mind is horror/thriller. Games such as Doom, Resident Evil and Left4Dead all use the soundtrack to create suspence. For example, in resident evil, you will be walking through an abandoned building which is dead silent, appart from some creaks. All of a sudden you may hear objects being knocked onto the floor and growling. Then some fast paced music starts to play, but nothings happening, you hear moar growling, the music gets faster, you start to run then BAM, evil mutated zombie dog jumps on your face. The game wouldn't be the same if you had Alice in Wonderland playing in the background. Now game engines are becoming more safisticated sounds can easily be triggered at certain events, rather than constantly being played.
As for my own sound history, i remember loving the songs on the Crash Bandicoot games. They made if so much more enjoyable to play compared to if it was played in silence. My favourite soundtrack has to be the Worms 2 theme. Sometimes I would just sit there listening to it and not actually playing the game. The music of Worms has always been good up until it turned 3D. The music on the main menu was HORRIBLE, in my opinion, just so cheezy, just didnt fit the game. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AZGBDYG5aTY&feature=related
Now compare that to this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HpV28Jcmdfk&feature=related
I know which one i prefer.
Whilst on the topic of worms, who could forget this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1mqrkvc6wS4&feature=related
Anyway, for some games I tend to turn off the music completely. For example, on Dawn of War 2 i have it switched off so i can hear whats actually going on, aswell as hearing my mate speak over Vent which is always a useful thing.

Game Engines

The game engine is the software that actually makes a game work. Without it, you would just have a load of random data not doing much at all. Game engines are designed to work on a variety of platforms. For example, Valve's Source engine works on the PC, Playstation 3 and xbox 360, even though it is about 50 years old :P Still, Team Fortress turned out nicely, except for crappy hit detection and many many bugs.
Anyway, a game engine consists of several smaller engines. These include a rendering engine, physics/collision engine, sound, animation, AI and more. The actual term 'game engine' was used when the release of Doom and Quake appeared. From these, many developers brought licenses to use these engines and then simply design their own visual style, clearly saving them time and money.
Subtractive and additive are terms used for difference level creation processes. The additive process is where the designer must create the level in a void which is endless and empty. If this process is used a skybox is required to seal off the map. A map must have no leaks, otherwise this can cause lighting issues and textures becoming distorted and blurred. If you think about a fish tank, if there is a hole then the water will leak out, the same applies for a level, but it needs a roof of course. Subtractive on the other hand is where there is no void, just an infinite solid which must be carved into. This method means that there is no chance of leaks but it isn’t as easy to manipulate as the additive process. Maps such as Counterstrike and Team Fortress 2 are created with the additive process, in a program called hammer. It is a free program to download off Steam, in the Source Developer Kit.
As for next generation engines, they must have a long life span and to be adaptable for many games. This will help reduce costs, as developing a game can cost millions. Only the highly popular games will easily provide a profitable income.

Gaming Culture

The gaming culture is growing and growing nowadays, what with more and more people having access to broadband and therefore the Internet. I remember playing games a bit around the age of 10, until the day I got a broadband connection at home. Ever since then I have been part of the online gaming community, which tends to occupy a fair chunk of my life. Now that I think about it, I didn’t really play many games online until I was introduced to Steam. This is an online community just for games, it has its own store where you can purchase and download games, as well as friend and chat system. When online, it tells you what games your friends are playing and what server they are on. I have a Playstation 3 at home and Steam is far better for keeping track of friends and joining them. In my opinion I think it is better the Microsoft Live, plus its free :P
Anyway, gone off at a tangent as always. A friend at college said I should buy counterstrike, so I did, and unlike most people I really didn’t like it. Now I’m a big fps fan but it was just so dull, slow and good at killing your morale. Run round a corner, headshot, wait 5 minutes to respawn and same again. Another friend showed me Team Fortress 2 and what a game. I’ve been playing it since it was released up to this day and I still love it. Not just the gameplay, the art direction they took, the humour...crap I’m doing it again. Right, back to steam community. If I look at my friends list, only 5 of them I know in real life, out of 50 odd. Since playing TF2 I have joined a clan where I have got to know a lot of decent chaps, some i know really well now, even though I’ve never seen them in my life.
The clan I am in compete against hundreds of other clans all over Europe; some cups even offer prize money to the winners. There are huge gaming festivals where thousands of gamers go to compete in tournaments.
Some people say that games take always peoples social life, stop them from exploring the outside world and people. On the other hand, you get to meet many new people and talk to them, not just typing, which makes things far better, you really get to know people well, and have a great laugh in game. I’m glad to be part of an thriving community and will be for many years to come, hopefully.

The Game Industry

At the moment the games industry is in a bit of a mess. Due to the credit crunch, companies have been going bust, resulting in thousands of people loosing their jobs. Just think, if one company has 3 or 5 studios, that's a lot of people who are going to be job hunting, as well as the several thousand graduates from university courses around the world. Midway are currently in debt by $75 million, which has to be paid back before February 12th.
Despite all of this, the actual sales of games and consoles are thriving. For example, Sony have witnessed a 115% increase of sales on the Playstation 3 over the past year. As well as this, 3.25 million units of Nintendo Wii's were sold in December alone. This shows that the demand for consoles and new games are still high, and so hopefully companies will always have something to produce and profit from in the near future.
Anyway, back onto employment. Another thing that is going to make life tough for graduates is due to work being outsourced. This meaning that talent is found in country's outside the US/EU, where the labour rates are lower. Of course, this is good for the companies as it saves them money, the contract is usually only for one part of a game, rather than employing someone full time.
Hopefully by the time I graduate, if if graduate, the credit crunch will have cleared up and more studios will have opened. Ideally i'd like to get into the industry straight away, rather than spending a decade working in Tescos searching.

Creativity

Creativity has to be one of the most important factors when producing a game and the work force. If there were to be a lack of creativity in the game industry then every game would look the same. If someone asked me to tell them what creativity was, just off the top of my head, i guess I'd say it is what enables us to produce new ideas, concepts and generations.
Scientists reckon that the frontal lobe of the brain is a key role for creativity. So if you think like that, then everyone should be creative right? Or not. Everyone is born with some sort of creative talent, but some more than others. These people tend to go down a creative route for their career, such as a games artist, architect or interior designer.
Nowadays, different games had different levels of creativity in each area. The Artistic side of games isn't the only creative side, programmers can also be creative in the way they program the AI, make them moving in their own way, creating their own special effects never seen before. Of course the obvious way of showing creativity is through art in games. There are a lot of different styled games out there now including survival horrors, rpgs and action. Each type requires some amount of creativity, some more demanding than others. For example, survival horrors generally take place in a dark, gritty world full of zombies of some sort. Usually these places will be based on somewhere in real life, which are then converted to look interesting and realistic. However, in some games you begin to notice the influences that the designers had from other games or films, sometimes simply copying them, which lowers the game's standards and is less interesting to look at, as you've seen it before.
On the other hand you have games such as Little Big Planet, one of the latest releases on the Playstation 3. The vibrant colours and unique levels really make it appealing to look at. Even then you can customise them and create your own, to test your creativity. Another game that pops into my head is Team Fortress 2. Your usual first person shooter from Valve. However, the art direction they took was inspired by old American styles from the early 20th century, unlike most fps' which are usually modern, grey and gritty.
It's not always how a game looks to tell how creative people can be, the gameplay is also another factor. The obvious game for me would be portal, which i believe is the first of its kind. It was just a test to see if the creators - Valve - could actually pull it off. They did with great results. They showed that anything could be possible, if you put your mind to it...