Final Major Project Update – 21/05/20 – Main Character master dump

 

It’s been a long time since my last post, the world has been strange, and everything has become more difficult. I have been working from my university house now for almost 2 months and it has been anything but relaxing and easy going. Doing work in the same spot you also relax, play, eat, and sleep in is not the most effective way to get things done and it has been a real struggle, hence me momentarily neglecting my blogging duties.

But, here is a compiled post of all the work I haven’t posted of my main character design development, as I realised a little bit ago that I had actually forgotten to post about her after I had done some work on her.

So, after I finished the general block-out for her outfit, I actually came back to the design of her face after taking feedback from my tutors. I needed to give her face and hair a bit of wear and tear, and so I sketched a whole new face for her and experimented with scars and dirt etc.

I chose the far right face, and the added detail of greyish hairs and metal accessories in her hair to keep it tied up.

Next I sketched her in more detail in her outfit, and tried a couple slightly varied colour schemes.

From this, and feedback, I gathered that she needed more detail and a colourway that wasn’t so murky, so it wouldn’t blend in with the “enemies” which have a muted colour scheme.

I also had to concentrate more on the design of her back, because this is the area that players will be seeing most of the time. After sketching a design for the back, I decided to add a knife, because what kind of wilderness-exploring creature-hunting person would she be without a simple hunting knife.

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After my formative feedback (which I found very helpful), I came back to my main character to work on the colours and details. Inspired by Horizon Zero Dawn concept art, I drew the character with her layers of clothing and detail being added in steps so I could compare easily and see how everything would fit together and add to the previous silhouette. I found using small silhouettes helpful. This is why I added details like the claws on her leather shoulder guard, and the feathers on her sleeve.

I then used photos of fabrics to create a more tactile looking texture, which I then adjusted into a desired colour. I realised it was still looking mute, so I made a copy and turned up the saturation. I also adjusted the brightness and contrast of certain garments, after using a colour layer to view what the values were like in black and white.

I did the very same process for the back of the character. I’m quite pleased with the outcome, as I think it is a good combination of practicality and visual interest. 

Of course there’s a lot more I could do and improve and continue upon, but I needed to hop to the next task. I decided early in my project as well that I would not be doing a male version as I felt in no longer made sense, and would eat up time I could spend on developing things like my creatures and native more.

Thanks for reading!

Final Major Project Update – Enemies - 14/3/20

Since my last post (less than 2 weeks ago) I have started working on the enemies of the game. Here is my design reference board:

I wanted these people to have a military, strict, practical feel to them. I used military uniforms and geometric shapes as my inspiration. I started by sketching faces and costume, then began creating silhouettes, incorporating simple but sharp-edged shapes into the designs. At first I liked some of the more complex looking designs but then decided it would be better to simplify them and make them look practical, simple, and easily manufactured/made over and over again.

I took the iterations I preferred and made small further changes. After I chose a front design that suited my aims I did a few back designs and then chose to simplify the uniform even more by taking away the long back and making the coat more of a jacket. I did a couple rough sketches.

I then took the previously favoured designs and started making the enemy leader’s design. I aimed to make his attire fit in with the rest of the uniforms but stand out as its own important outfit. I decided to give him a long coat and played with the front asymmetrical shapes and hard angles. I wanted it to feel military without resembling existing uniforms too much. Next I will create a symbol to reflect the hard nature of the enemies and I’m thinking of giving the leader a walking stick of some sort, more of a sceptre than an actual walking aid.

Final Major Project Update – Natives – 3/3/20

Over the past couple weeks, I have been working on developing the native race for my concept. I began simply with sketching and after I produced a few I came across a head idea I really liked, so I moved to Zbrush to sculpt it to determine if it would work in 3D. It also made drawing the race over and over again easier. I stuck with the idea. It matched the rest of the fauna of the environment by having the nose-bone be a crest with nostril holes.

I painted a page of quick heads to work out colours and expressions and how individuals can vary or how genders vary.

I decided that they should have natural markings across their body. Females would have green and males would have red. I also played with the idea of hair dyes.

I went on to create the basic body structure/proportions. I wanted to make them very close to humans with slight differences, the same way dwarves, elves, and humans are similar but different despite living in the same world. I made the natives slightly taller than the average human and also decided that both males and females would be of similar height to each other. I wanted to change the feet and made them hardier looking as this race of people are more accustomed to walking around bare foot on difficult terrain.

Then I designed what kind of body markings they would have, and after choosing one, I created a reference page for the design of the natives.

Then I began to work on the clothing. I just wanted to get and give a feeling for what sort of clothes they would wear. I decided the use of rope and simple lengths of cloth was best. Not too fancy but not boring. I applied some colours to see which sort of dyes would look best.

I wanted to do a shaman design as well because it is an important character to the game as it is the character who will conduct the power of the ancients into the main character. I started with sketches and then found a design I really liked. It’s unique to the rest of the natives, and has a big pop of colour with the feathers and has the bug wing nose piece worn only by shamans.

The last thing I have done for this race is some drawings showcasing day to day life and people.

Final Major Project Update – 31/1/20

After my last post, I have produced work that has finally been whittled down into a final design for my main character. I also had my FMP assessment/feedback session. I got some very useful feedback and direction from the talk, and I have gone ahead to make ‘rule-boards’ for the upcoming designs. I have found that this seems to be a very good way to keep designs focused and has made it easier for me to stay contained and get a better vision for the end product.

So, after I had asked my peers for their opinions, I picked 3 designs that would feed into the final design for the main characters outfit. I placed these onto a page where I then produced two more designs, children of the three.

I gained opinions and evaluated which ones would speak to the character’s personality more.

I thought the layered shoulder piece with the cloak looked more confident. The high boots and legging/trouser detail was also more professional looking, considering that this traveller-hunter type of character would spend a lot of their time traipsing through thick undergrowth, swamps, mud, and foliage, and would probably need some shin protection at least.

She is wearing plenty of pelts as well, rewards from her previous hunts. I haven’t done a final version of her hair yet, but it is tucked well out of her face in thick strands, possibly braids, or something close to dreads, or just tied up. I have two sheets of hair designs:

So I took my favorite design, and added the elements that I preferred from the first design, and tweaked the combinations. I then chose the best of the two and there we have it. Final design. I will go on to create a final version of this design, with photobashing and rendering.

For now, though, I will move on to creature design. I made a rule-board for every creature which has given me a solid starting point. I also have the photobashed environment pieces to guide me, as the creature design will be adapted to their environment.  

After, native and enemy population designs. Rule-boards for those:

Final Major Project Update – 20/01/20

I started this project with a plan. Here’s the idea:

·         RPG Action Adventure

·         Fantasy – Monster

·         3^rd Person

·         Style:  Semi-Realistic, Semi-Stylised

You have come in search for your friend, a scientist, who has not been contacting you for a little while now. You find their home ransacked and disheveled, the clear signs of something malevolent. You go on to speak to the local natives who tell you what has happened: The water source has become polluted with some kind of disease-causing infection which leads to violent and fatal outbursts. Furthermore, a neighboring country has come to help in the time of need, and has created a settlement where research for a cure is supposedly happening. As time went on though, some of the native’s suspicions grew and found the helpers to have ulterior motives. You are granted with the power of the ancients to help in the cause of freeing the native’s homeland, find your friend, and defeat whatever creature or enemy may stand in your path.

And here are the deliverables:

·         X2 Main Character (Male and Female)

·         X2 Native Race

·         X2 Enemy Race

·         X4 Creatures

·         Examples of infection in humanoid race, creature, and environment

·         Material call-outs to communicate shader considerations for the 3D artists

·         X3 Mechanic demos/effects for abilities

·         X2 Environment examples

·         X2 Final pieces

I created a calendar specifically for the project time plan as a base. I left some space for error too. I then gathered a lot of references and compiled them into mood boards.

So, to begin with, I started making sketches just with pencil on paper to get some gestural drawings flowing. I did some shape exercises, where I drew shapes with a marker and then drew on top what I could see, and some pose studies. Here are some examples:

After, I moved onto Photoshop to do a rough starting look at the environment I wanted my game to be set in. I photo bashed and then colour edited a basic environment and decided on the colours I wanted to use.

Then I went on to determine what overall body shape and proportions I wanted. 

After choosing, I started developing the costume design for the main character, starting with the female (They would both get the same outfit and I felt it was important to get the female outfit looking right first).

I created a silhouette and sketched on top. I felt however that this wasn’t the best way to start the design process, and after finishing a page of these, I completed two pages of tonal blocking out. I used the lasso tool to layer shapes onto one another and asked for feedback during, to determine what should be carried forward or left behind.

There were some designs that I liked but that weren’t appropriate for the essence of the main character, such as the skull or spiked shoulder pads. These felt too aggressive and barbaric. I wanted to create a more serious appearance coupled with the aura of someone who has worldly experience.

I took inspiration from Aloy (Horizon Zero Dawn, Guerrilla Games) and the character designs from Dauntless (Phoenix Labs), as well as my mood board.

I started doing some face studies as well and I will be doing more on that as well as hair designs today.