Whaa...

The year is over already?! Well the academic one atleast :/ It seems uni is in a different time zone to the rest of the world, it goes by too fast!! Or maybe that's just because I'm having way too much fun :D 

I'll admit once you get behind on things it gets very hard to catch up again, I would have been fine if I had kept up in the first place... To be honest I don't think having a 3 month summer holiday helped much as it is hard to break out of routine and regain the motivation to work again >.< 

To help with the transition back to uni I have decided to try and get at-least one drawing a day done in the summer, just to keep my drawing skills up to scratch and perhaps even improve them. Another thing that I will target is the subjects that I am weakest in, for example I would like to experiment a lot more with 3d studio max and turn it into something that I enjoy rather than struggle with :/

I am extremely grateful to have met so many people and made so many new friends this year, it just makes the experience a whole lot more enjoyable so thanks guys :D

See ya ~Emi ^o^

Inspiration

Actually turned out to be true... started trying to write this blog post and ended up doing some ink drawings ^_^

Seiken Densetsu: Japanese for 'Legend of the Holy Sword', known as the Mana series in the west. Square Enix has produced some of the most beautiful artwork that I have ever seen in a game. I absolutely love their style of drawing; the signature contrast of the cold and warm colours, the way the wash of colour is layered to produce stronger tones and richer shades... 

So this is kinda my attempt at their technique, starting with shells as they seem to be a frequent 'accessory' in mana characters... I did use a similar style in some of my a-level art work however I incorporated orange and blue hues into these ink studies.

Meh mine are nothing in comparison... obviously they aren't as vibrant or detailed... was just testing out some ideas anyway ^^ I think I will definitely start using watercolour pencils in my work more, they give such great colour pay off :D

See ya ~Emi ^o^

GDC

AKA 'Game Developers Conference'... well one of the things that first caught my eye is that the conferences taking place in March are being held in San Francisco! I've only been to America once and that's where we stayed for a week ^_^ though that was 2 years ago now eek!

Anyway on with the game conferences! Now it's not just handheld gaming consoles that will allow you to game whilst on the move, with mobile phones becoming more advanced they now provide the necessary battery power, graphics and memory storage to make game playing appealing and accessible. 

Also, with the latest designs in phones such as the iPhone bringing free internet access and 'applications' getting games on your mobile is now simpler than ever. Does this jeopardize the handheld gaming market at all? I think that with the better quality of games available for the consoles and with a more convenient control system they are safe for now... With practically everyone owning a mobile nowadays if they released a decent game for phones it would probably be quite successful. Another factor that would contribute to good sales would be that there is no need to buy a £100 console plus so far mobile games have been relatively cheap to download compared to the mainstream gaming consoles. 

Oh, and download this to your phone you know you want toooo ;)

http://zeldamobile.gorthwogh.net/News.php

On a different note, I remember when I came for my interview at DMU and my lecturer showed us one of the 'serious' games that was being developed ('dying dave' I think it was called? or something...) for educational purposes such as training to be a nurse. The idea is that you can simulate the situation without having to face the consequences if they go wrong. I think it's a great way of improving their experience without the risks of doing it in real life, so they can practice until they feel they are ready.

See ya ~Emi ^o^

Personal aspirations and goals

I think somehow I've always known that I wanted to be an artist, it has just always been something that I'm good at and can thoroughly enjoy. There are so many different divisions that art comes into, which I was really made aware of when applying for university- I didn't even know game art existed as a course until I looked through courses at DeMontfort uni o_O 

I think it is so important to question if you are truly happy on the course that you are on... I mean if you decided later that it wasn't for you would you consider it a waste of 3 years or a learning experience? 

At the end of the day art is my passion and even so far this course has made me develop my drawing skills immensely because although previously employed tone, light, line, composition etc. into my artwork I wasn't as aware of perspective and to get the form right you need to be able to judge the angle effectively. 

I have learned the significance of actually getting out of the classroom and drawing from real life, as to get a sense of depth and movement from a drawing, it can really only be achieved from viewing the reference first hand.

My first academic year is only just coming to an end and I feel I have really gained a lot from it, furthering my skills as an artist and broadening my understanding of other artists techniques and influences. I am hoping to at least develop the quality of my work to an industry standard that I could apply in my future career.

See ya ~Emi ^o^

Life changing or career building?

Depending on the roll that you apply for, the qualities that are sought after in the game industry vary. I think having that experience and training in the chosen field that you want to work in must pay off in the long run. There is no end to creativity, but I fail to see how you could harness this potential without the necessary skills. 

Found this on the corporate page from Nintendo's website -

'Developing a video game takes the skills of many talented people. Programming knowledge is a must. A good background in C++ can go far. Other classes that are helpful include graphic design, computer modeling and animation, and mathematics.

There are also some helpful courses that may not seem obvious: history, philosophy, creative writing, logic, music appreciation and drama. All of these help in character and story development.'

So as you can see one of the most important requirements is an understanding of programming o_O do I learn any of that? I can use the 3d modeling software to an extent and am improving my drawing skills gradually but I don't actually know any programming as such... As for the 'helpful courses' I suppose this could count as creative writing, plus I did an A-Level in English Language which probably increased my vocabulary and comprehension of English. Oh and an 'appreciation of music', I have that too ;D It's not like I listen of one kind of music, I will actually give anything a try. I think for me it has to have a hook, where there's a certain part of a song that I will repeat it for just to hear that one part. 

For the majority of my education I didn't actually know what I wanted to do, so I stuck to both creative and liberal arts courses to keep my options open for possible career paths. I think doing this has expanded my knowledge of subjects and confirmed the fact that I will always end up going back to art.

I do think they structured the Gameart course well in that it covers the most of the requirements key to becoming a successful game artist and so hopefully will result in a high employability when I leave to join the industry.

See ya ~Emi ^o^ 

Game music

Far from the tinny sounds of past consoles, gaming music has evolved to become a key feature in today's games. Building tension, raising the adrenaline... to make a gamer truly feel part of a game. 

In Super Mario Galaxy, when you first start the game the music is understated then as you progress through the game collecting more power the music crescendos into a full orchestra. 

The live instruments are powerful and add a new found depth and expression to the game.

In each location there is a different atmosphere which is created by the music.

Game soundtracks are not something I listen to like a CD, however I do have some of the tracks off Burnout 3 Takedown... although that actually is 'real' music I guess. I think it matches the game well as it is music that you can enjoy listening to in the background but not so overpowering that it distracts from the gameplay.

 

It is important that the pace of the music is consistent with the gameplay as it would seem out of place if your character was for example fighting a boss to calm, relaxing music o_O

Especially in action games, the music has to sync with game control.

Music is integral to all games, although some rely on it more than others...

In Electroplankton, experimenting with the visual 'characters' conjures an aural simplicity that is actually extremely effective. In Zelda Ocarina of Time, the ocarina plays tunes which enrich the gameplay by offering keys and events, and is very inventive in how you make so many different tunes with just 5 tones.

Somehow got onto listening to the soundtrack of Slumdog Millionaire... It seems to produce an energy which is motivational and exotic sounding and captures the upbeat 'feel good' aspect of the film. I haven't even seen the film yet, but just listening to the music alone really makes me want to watch it!

Don't remember where I found this but they did a good job! Especially love the guy jumping around as Mario haha just shows how much of an influence even the music has an effect on gaming culture, and from the audience's reaction you could so tell they recognised the tunes:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-hh1dkFNsI

See ya ~Emi ^o^

Blue Steel

Never seen this movie before but Zoolander came on e4 last night and it has got to be one of the funniest films I've seen in a looong time :D In fact pretty much any film with Ben Stiller and Owen Wilson is always hilarious.

Watch it... it's so hot right now haha

See ya ~Emi ^o^