Sorry I haven't updated this as much as I should have done,
the group project has eaten upa lot of
my time. It's been ok, if nothing else it's made me speed up making assets. It
now seems laughable that we were given something like three weeks to make a
pile of trash.
I'm not too far behind in Visual Design either
(surprisingly). Currently doing the cultural walks project, which was really
confusing. The brief seemed really vague, unlike what we had done before, and
not very focused on game art. I'vemade
it into a small inner city garden, and I guess that'll be ok, it can be an
environment. Not been feeling so great about things in general, the other day I
was painting and nothing seemed to be going right, it just looked rubbish to me.
I know I'm progressing, but it's so slow, and everyone else just seems so much
better and to be progressing so much faster.
I've started going to the life drawing on Thursday, which is
a lot nicer than the one on Monday. I get more done, its less restrictive and
it just feels more productive. It would be nice if we could get a male model in
this year though, we've only had female models and it would be nice to get some
variety.
The games industry is a very fast changing industry. Because
it is relatively new compared to other entertainment industries, for example,
the film industry, it is constantly shifting. The technology used to create
games has gone from very basic 3d models to the high poly models that we have
today in the space of my lifetime, and shows very little signs of slowing down.
Because the industry is growing so quickly, it means new job
roles are being created. In the past, a very small team of people worked on
games. For example, two people, Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney, created pong,
which was a very early game . Now big budget games often have hundreds of
people working on them. For example, the games developer Naughty Dog employs
over 170 people. However, this company was started by just two people, Jason
Rubin and Andy Gavin. The job roles that
people have has also become more specialised. There was a time where the
programmers would make all the graphics themselves and the role we are training
for didn't exist.
An exception to this could be the growing amounts indie game
developers. They usually have smaller teams, with people taking on multiple
roles. The internet has helped greatly with this, as it allows small developers
to promote their games to a wider audience. The finished game can also be made
available for download, which cuts down the cost of distribution and allow more
people to get a copy of their game. An example of this is mine craft, which was
originally made by one person, Markus Persson, and later expanded to a larger
team . Also, the wide spread use of smart phones has lead to more mobile games,
which has been great for smaller developers as these games are smaller and do
not require such a large team to produce.
Because of the size of games, some companies use outsourcing
. The definition of this is'Outsourcing is any task, operation, job or process that could be
performed by employees within an organization, but is instead contracted to a
third party for a significant period of time.' This is used because outsourcing
companies are often in countries outside of Europe and north America, so it
costs less. They are often used on big projects were lots of assets need to be
made. However, some people are afraid that outsourcing limits the jobs
available togame artists in the uk, as
it is cheaper to outsource a lot of assets. On the other hand, it is often
difficult to tell what you might get back; the benefits of having a team in one
place can't be under estimated, as it makes it a lot easier to communicate
between people and make sure that everyone is on the same page.
Because the industry changes so quickly, it is difficult to
be able to predict what will happen in the next ten years or so. More and more
specialised jobs may be created as games get bigger, or it may be that smaller
teams will become more predominate, with employees taking on multiple roles.
Personally, because of this, I don't think it is a good idea to become too
specialised while working on this course, as you never know what developments
might happen in the future or what jobs will be available.
Just a general update this week, not really sure what to put
but I haven't done so in a while. Don't worry, I'll be back to doing my
coursework next week. Now I've caught back up with that a bit.
I was getting a bit worried, the visual design work was piling
up and I was still behind on my blog. I don't want to get bad marks like last
year. I really don't know how personal I need to make this blog, or if at all.
Anyway, completed my masters study painting, decided to go with Ivan Shishkin.
His art is so cool an detailed, I shouldn't have chosen him to be honest as my
final is nowhere near as detailed even though I spent a lot of time on it. I
also did a oil painting as well, but that turned out even worse.
The queens building project is still ok. It would be nice if
we were given some tutorials for udk, we've only had too and one was from third
years. Also there doesn't seem to be anything on blackboard to help out. It
feels a bit like starting out with 3Ds max last year, except worse. I know we
have to adapt and learn new programs, but it just feels like we could be taught
more.
This new Viking project in Visual Design, I'm not so sure
about it. I've got a feeling that people are going to go for crazy things like
huge warriors duel wielding giant battle axes. We had a choice, but the 1960's Paris
thing didn't seem appealing to me. I'm trying to take this in a realistic way,
but then it's difficult to make it interesting.
At first, arcade games had simple controls. You would usually
have a joystick, or maybe one or two buttons as well. Nowadays, with the
emergence of consoles as the main game systems, controllers that use many more
buttons and usually two analogue sticks are the norm.
One of the first things I thought of when starting this task
was this, the Nintendo power glove for the N64.
It sounds on paper like a good idea, controlling the game
with your movements. But it was so poorly executed that it just made the games
difficult to play. Each game needed a different code entered on the glove,
which was overcomplicated.
How The powerglove was ment to be
Currently, motion control has had a comeback. And once again
it was Nintendo with the wii console. This was extremely successful, as the wii
outsold other consoles on the market despite its lower graphical capabilities.
One of the differences could have been that the power glove is that the wiis
controls are easy to use and actually work. Most people can just pick up a
controller and go. However, some people have criticised that not all games need
motion control and that it is just a gimmick.
Both Sony and Microsoft have also brought out their own
motion control accessories. The move on the playstation 3 has been criticised
as being a rip off of the Wii controller. The Kinnect for the Xbox 360 is a bit
more inventive, as it uses the players bodies as the controller, but is still
now as wide spread as the games that use the wii remotes motion controls. The
real question is why. It could be because of a changing market, with a move
towards smart phone games. It is also possible that its because the wii has
gained a more mainstream following, with people who would not usually play
games owning this console. Or it could be a price factor, the wii being cheaper
than the other two motion control options.
There is also the emergence of 3D. A new type of 3D is used
currently, and 3D TVs have been on sale a while. However, even though some
games are compatible with 3D, the hefty price tag has dissuaded some gamers
from investing. There was also issues with the 3DS, with some players reporting
that 'the console had left them feeling
sick, suffering briefly with blurred vision and dizzy spells'. Personally, I
don't think 3D in games will last long.
Most people think in the future we'll have minority report
style computers, and that maybe that's what our games will be like as well. However,
I think that its possible that things could be getting too complicated. I know that
my mum can't use a playstation controller, it's something people that have been
playing games a while take for granted. If things become more complicated, then
it may alienate the mainstream audience.
The future
Another way things could go is that consoles become obsolete. Some people think
that playing games on smart phones is going to be the future of gaming. These
mostly use touch screen technology . Of
course, things could go all futuristic with guns and other specialised
controllers, but the problem is that these ways of playing can only be used for
one type of game. If you had a cockpit of a plane in your front room, then you
can't exactly play a plat former with it.
at this point you might as well buy a plane
Although I still hope they hurry up and build that computer
from minority report.
Sound is another elements of games, one that is often
overlooked. However, it is incredibly important. Successful sounds in games add
to the atmosphere of a game, creates tension, and adds believability.
Series of games will
often have a theme, or a recognisable style in its music. For example, the
metal gear series has its theme (I'm being biased, this is one of my
favourites) which is strongly orchestral.
As with other series, this theme has altered slightly
between games, but remains recognisable. Another example of this is the Elder
scrolls series, where the music is the same, but has been performed differently
to reflect the tone of each individual game.
Many of the current generation of games use an orchestra to
perform their scores, however, in the past this was impossible. The storage
space for games was minimal, as was the technology they were being played on.
This meant that composers only had a limited means of creating music. However, because
of these limits, some of these pieces of music are some of the most
recognisable video game themes. For example, most people will recognise this:
It shows that not all soundtracks need a huge orchestra to
be effective. Personally, I remember the battle themes from Pokemon to be very effective
at creating tension. Although I was a bit younger when I was playing them, I
still think they hold up today. (listening to this brought back a lot of
memories)
Some of the most successful soundtracks are actually the
ones you don't notice.For example, personally,
I find the Silent hill series soundtrack very effective in creating an
atmosphere. I don't think it would be nearly as scary if it had a different
soundtrack . Take this scene for example. if you watch it without sound, and its nowhere near as scary or threatening as
with the sound on.
It's the sound that adds that atmosphere. Without it the
game would not have the same effect, and this applies to all genres of games,
not just horror.
It's not just the
soundtrack that is important. The sound effects in a game can add realism and believability.
This can be the sounds of guns, footsteps, ambient noise, explosions, even
simple things like knocking a can over. If done correctly, the player shouldn't
notice these, but they really add to the emersion.
There is a lot of cross over between the film music world
and the game one. Composters that work in film or television often work in the
video game industry as well. For example Harry Gregson-Williams who has
composed for films such as X-Men Origins: Wolverine but has also made scores
for video games such as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. Another example is Greg
Edmonson, who worker on television programs such as Firefly and video games
such as the uncharted series. These two professions overlap, because both games
and films need a good score to bring them to life.
It's the second year, and we've just started the dreaded Queens building project. Its not been going to bad, but it has introduced us to game engines. Whereas before we were simply making 3D models, now we can import them into the unreal engine and make a playable level.
The definition of a games engine is 'A game engine is a system designed for the creation and development of video games'. A game engine typically contains a rendering engine, a physics engine, sound, scripting, animation, AI, networking, streaming, memory management, threading, localization support. Basically, a game engine is where you can put all the different parts of a game to create the finished playable version.
It used to be that games companies would make their own engines, for example, the Scumm engine (Lucas Arts) and SCI by Sierra. However, the cost of making your own engine has got more expensive since then, and so companies started to create engines then sell them to games companies. For example, the unreal engine. It's simply cheaper and more time efficient for some companies to buy the engines instead of hiring more programmers to create one from scratch.
There are different types of game engine availed. Here is three major types. Firstly, roll your own game engines (low level). Even though it is more expensive some companies will want to build their own game engines. The advantage to making your own is that it gives the programmers a lot more flexibility. However, this takes a lot of time, and would be very difficult for beginners.
There is also mostly ready game engines (mid level). They are already built and allow you to change things around. The main advantage is the fact that you can just start the engine up and all the tools are there. The main disadvantage is that you don't have as much customisation, so you may not be able to get things exactly like you want. There are lots of engines that are like this because they can be used pretty much out of the box without limiting you too much. examples include Torque, Unreal, and Gamebryo. This is the type of game engine we use.
The next level up is point and click engines (highest level). These are very limiting and can only make one or two different types of games. They contain everythingyou need to create a game. The main advantage is that they allow you to create a finished product very quickly, without too much work. The disadvantageis that it is very limited and it is difficult to be creative with lots of restrictions. Examples of this type of engine include GameMaker, Torque Game Builder, and Unity3d.
The main thing now for me is to get used to using game engines, which I really need to have down for next year. This queens building project is a good introduction, as we are in a group so we can help each other out. Knowing how to use UDK is necessary for the final major project, and I don't want to be left behind.
