Understand visual recording in others’ work

This is the famous piece, Vulcan by Eduardo Paolozzi. Having researched the piece it seems that it was based on the god of fire and the blacksmith that forged weapons for the gods. It seems as though by using theses pieces of material, Eduardo is trying to bring in the concept of an industrialising world. He is half man half  machine, a take on the modern world.

Andy Warhol is a famous artist. This is one of his pieces "Campbells soup". Warhol, when asked why he painted the soup cans, said this "Because I used to drink it. I used to have the same lunch every day, for twenty years, I guess, the same thing over and over again. Someone said my life has dominated me; I liked that idea" Critics gave the painting mixed reviews and some said that it was a take on  modernization. I think that he painted it for other reasons. He said he used to have this every day for lunch, so maybe he decided to paint it because only he could see the beauty of it. Of how something every day is so special.

Using the can of soup as an influence. I have tried to mimic the style of Warhols peice. By using a simple filter on Photoshop I have given this coca cola bottle a simple and effective style the same as the painting.

Be Able To Record Visually

 

These are the three photos i took of the figure at different angles. This is so i could draw three different line drawings that would have different lighting and shading.

This is also known as a profile and is a good way to start desinging concept characters.

Using the images above I drew a line drawing of the figure. By making the lines bolder the closer to the foreground of the image, it makes the line drawing more legitimate and gives a sense of depth. I positioned the figure at three different angles and then drew these line drawings on a graphics tab in Photoshop.

This is the side view which I have shaded and coloured. By using the brush tool and by change the opacity i was able to shade it. Then bu creating a new layer and setting the blending mode to overlay. Then by slecting a colour, on the new layer i simple painted over the figure to create the colour and shading effect.

This is a grey scale version of my drawing. This is just to show the shading in more quality.

This is the photo manipulated image that i took at Dartmoor. By splitting the image i wanted to make it into a rolling background for the game. By generating some simple image adjustments like colour balance and and exposure it gives a mystical effect that i could use for the game.

This is the source image for the image above.

Source image for below.

I have added a texture blur on this image to give it a more vector based feel. This is just an alternative look and i may or may not use it.

Source image for below.

By adding a lens flare this gives a really nice introduction feel. I like this image and may use it as an alternative title screen.

Source image for below.

I used a few different adjustment layers on this image i wanted to give it a mystical feel.

This is a lady bug that i drew. 

This is using different filters and adjustment layers.

This is another angle of a Ladybug.

This is a vector style lady bug becasue i was wondering if it would look right in my game. I was trying to decide wether to do a vector based graphic game or bitmap based graphics. I thought that the best way to go after drawing this was go with the bitmap drawings.

This is a foz i drew jumping after a mouse.

This is a more detatiled fox i drew focusing just on the head.

I then drew a basic body and a background scene so that you can visualise it in a different scene.

This is a close up of a flower.

This is the same flower but a different part using a different drawing style. I thought that the thick brush stokes of the flowers petals give it a cool effect. I then also put more effort and detail into the centre of the flower because that is what your eyes are drawn to.

Reference images:

Game Screens

This is an idea that I had to use as my title screen. This is more of a vector look and i kept in mind the mobile version of the game while designing this screen. The reason that i have gone for a more vector look is to make it look more like a game and make it less serious. Also you have to consider file size when working with mobile devices.

This is an alternative screen for the title. I used an image i took of Dartmoor mainly becasue it is where the game is set. It is also quite a nice image with the background out of focus and the stone is in the foreground in focus.

I went for simplicity when creating the introduction screen. Rather than transitioning to another screen o thought the instruction text could just appear. What i failed to put in though was a back button that when clicked will return you to the main menu. 

Here i haev created some in game screen shots of teh game so you can see what it looks like when running. I have used one of the backgrounds that i created 

Tokens

Here are two examples of tokens that i will in the game. The top one is a "+1 Coin". This entitles the player to an extra point. However there are other areas that i could look into on how to use this token. One other idea that i had is that the player starts with 3 lives, and every time you hit an obstacle you lose a life. This token, if collected, can redeem a life. The token below is an exact opposite of the positive one. The reason behind this is to have a counter balance of tokens. Making the game slightly more challenging. 

Whilst doing research into road signs and symbols i found out tat one of the key elements in creating them is making them visually recognisable. For example, if some one is in their car doing 70 mph, they do not have the same amount of time to read road signs or signals. So the traffic signs are designed so that you can identify shapes and colours. I have used the same principle when creating my tokens. So my token that only takes things away from the player is red and a triangle. In road signs triangles are warnings and usually in red. 

The reason i am doing this is so that when the game speeds up and the game play becomes faster, the player will still be able to tell the good tokens from the bad ones.

Know how to identify sources for visual recording

    The use of movement in this line drawing creates an action scene. This would make a good front cover of a comic because the action is aimed at the audience. This image would grab your attention and stand.

 This is a good example of a cartoon concept line drawing. The first thing that you notice is that the movements are very exaggerated. This is so you can tell what is happening even in a still image. Also the emotions of the character are simple yet evident. For example the happy emotion needs to be immediately recognisable as you cant use motion graphics to put it across. Also it does appeal to the target audience.

 This concept comes with colour. This can give you a good idea of what the character is like. Using block colour makes it appeal to a younger audience. Also the use of prime colours makes it easily recognisable and the colours are contrasting so they mix well. Showing the character in a variety of actions makes the animating or drawing of it easier. You can visualise the character in different situations making it a good profile to get references from.

 This image has used a vector based drawing style. Its the same as line drawings however using a more digital approach. The use of vector makes it appeal to things like games or cartoons. Already i could see it being a character in a flash game. With some simple animation it could become quite a cool character. Simple colours make it easy on the eyes, however there  is use of shading which gives the detail which makes the image even better.

 Plants Vs Zombies is a game originally created for the iPhone. It has become one of the most popular games on the internet and is playable by all ages. Therefore the characters in the game have to be liked by the entire audience. By once again using the vector graphics we can see that the characters are identifiable and also not too scary for young childeren. The idea of zombies may be scary to younger children but by the use of the happy and colourful flowers, it sort of cancels it our.

Dartmoor research

Above I have created a mood board and a mind map of quick thoughts that come to mind when you think of Dartmoor. I also have thought about ideas to base a game around making it for children. I looked in to things like legends and myths. This way I could base the game on an idea and develop it as such.


Ideas

My ideas are to create a game that is simple and fun. I want to base it on an idea around a real myth or legend. I have already gathered research so that I can base my idea upon one or more of them. For example we could have some of the enemies be some of the beasts of Dartmoor. Also you could travel through different zones where the ghosts are. these could also be boss fights.

The general idea is to create a flash game that is a simple platform game. with basic controls you can get points the further you get into the game. Maybe by making the game endless you can have a competitive edge to it. By avoiding things along a path you can get a higher score.

Another idea might be to create a storyline. Rather than having a simple one direction kind of game, it could be level based like a platform game. By progressing through the level you could face a boss at the end that sort of thing.
               


After thinking a lot about how I want to produce my game and how I want it to look i have decided the following. I am going to create a non platform game in which the ultimate goal is to collect as many points as possible. By running along a rolling background screen which can change to different pictures of Dartmoor you must collect coins or "tokens" to get more points. There are obstacles such as enemies and debris. The enemies that you will have to dodge are described as myths and legends of Dartmoor which I have done research on above. By simply jumping by clicking or touching the screen, you can avoid these objects that if you hit would end the game. There would be a high score system that you can save your scores to and view previous scores.


Road signs

Road signs are more instructions than graphics. And as instructions they must give clear and to the point instructions to tell road users what to do. Therefore they must be able to be easily identified. Clear to see and also visually simple. I have some examples below.




This is a road sign indicating that some roadworks or instruction may be taking place some where along the road. This sign is clearly represented as a warning to drives because of the triangle shape. Perhaps shapes are a good use of recognisable tokens and therefore I should consider using them in my game. Triangle signs are used as warning signs, also the fact that it is in red means that it is a order and has to be obeyed. The simple stick man vector look makes it recognisable at speed. This is because the most important thing that road signs have to be is recognisable at speed.



This is another order sign. This is indicating quite simply and clearly that the speed limit is 20 miles an hour. The text plays an important part here as it would have to be a sans type. This is so that whilst driving past it you do not need to look at the sign to know the speed limit. Your peripherals will pick up the simple shapes that your brain will determine that is a 2 and a 0. There is a lot more behind the meaning of the choice of text on road signs than just simple choosing something that looks nice.



This is another instruction sign. We can see that because its clearly shown in red. However this is slightly different to the other instruction signs. This is because this sign is mainly used at a junction and requires you to stop the car before exiting the side road. This sign is very harsh on the eyes and is an octagon shape. This may be so that it is very noticeable next to a junction because it is very important that you stop.



This sign is indicating that motor vehicles are not allowed in the street or area. What is important to notice here is the graphics used. They are very basic and in block colour on and opposing colour background. Black on white. This is so that the graphics stand out more. Also the reason they are so basic is so that they are easily recognisable. For example there needs to be some differences between the motor bike and a bicycle.



This sign is slightly different than the others. One thing that you realise straight away is that is is mainly blur and not red and white. Although the colours are different it is still an instruction. This particular sign means "left turn only". This is blue because it is telling you there is no other way to go. It is some times nearby a  no entry sign. The simple graphic arrow is white on blue and can be easily distinguished between a straight arrow and a right arrow. This is important as it is a direction.