Character Development

For this project I have decided to redesign my female assassin character from our previous interactive narrative project. I liked my original design, but I wanted to develop it to see if i could create something better and really think about the clothes she wears, how she wears it and why. This was the original design, very simple, but not very good for blending into crowds or hiding her identity.

Below are the silhouettes and original thumbnail designs I did for the character. They are very rough because I just wanted to create loose forms at first.

These are some thumbnail sketches I did of possible headwear for my character. I liked the idea of the assassin to be able to have a scarf she could wear multiple ways, one way to hide her face, another more for blending in with crowds etc.

After creating my thumbnail images and silhouettes, I created some black and white, developed thumbnails.

For the next stage of development, I chose 10 designs I liked from all previous designs, and developed them, experimenting with colour and adding more detail to her clothing. 

Image 1. I like the head scarf in this, and the jacket could be buttoned up for her to blend in as a man, but i feel like she is showing off too much flesh to blend in believably.

Image 2. The best thing I like about this design is the cape, it covers her up for disguise yet could be folded into a head scarf for combat. 

Image 3. I like the style of the top as it looks more Moroccan than the other designs, but I don't like the colour scheme and she does not look very deadly.

Image 4. This design looks far too comical and the colours are very "girly" However, I like the shape of the jump suit with the belt hanging behind.

Image 5. This is one of my favorite designs, I like the colour scheme, it represents hot, middle eastern, I like the head wear because it provides coverage of her face, and overall it looks practical for running across deserts and rooftops.

Image 6. I like this design, however, I feel it looks more asian ninja, than middle eastern assassin. I designed the hair with the idea that she could use it as a weapon, with a sharp implement wrapped to the end.

Image 7. Again, I dislike the colour scheme, its too cold/ Alice in Wonderland. I like the cape but it seems as if it would be unpractical with little arm movement. It is important for me to create a character where the assets and clothing are both practical and realistic.

Image 8. I like the colour scheme, but it reminds me of being a bit military.

Image 9. I really like this design, she is covered up well, yet can still be identified as a woman. If I were to develop this idea however, I would change the colour scheme to warmer colours.

Image 10. This design was influence by a minor character in my interactive narrative, I think the green works well, but she looks more like a maid rather than deadly assassin. 

Taking influence from my designs, particularly 2 and 5, I developed this character.

The left image is how I depict her everyday clothes to be, the right image would be used for blending into crowds etc. I like the idea that the orange cloth she is wearing would be really versatile and be used to alter her appearance.

Thinking about how she could use her "top" to disguise herself, I also thought about how she could use it to distract in combat, or conceal weapons. An idea I had was thin needles/throwing daggers would be sewn into the bottom edge, so when she whips it like the image above, weapons would fly from her cape into the enemy.

This is the final model sheet for my assassin character, as you can see, her top is pinned up with a needle, which could also be used as a weapon.

I drew these images to show the different ways she could wear her clothes to suit her surroundings or to blend in.

Learning Agreement

For this project I have decided to carry on from the previous project and create concept art for my interactive narrative. Here is my learning agreement.


Proposal


What?
For this project I am going to produce different pieces of concept art for my interactive narrative from the previous project. I want to take my original ideas and turn them into a more realistic style. I would like to study digital painting and idea development to create better quality and more detailed pieces of work. I will produce three pieces for Character concept, Environment concept and Asset concept. For my character concept art I will produce a character sheet and model sheet with accompanying development sheets. For environment I will produce one piece of environment also with accompanying development  sheets For Assets concept I will produce one model sheet of an asset from my Interactive narrative with accompanying development sheets and finally I will produce one final piece showing the final character in the environment interacting with the asset. 


Why?
I am doing this project because I want to create a character that breaks the stereotypes of most video game heroines. I believe the character is so important in games because it is the link between the player and the alternative reality, therefore we as players need to be able to relate and understand the character. The issue of female depiction in video games has an ongoing debate, some people feel women are sexualised in video games and this has been countered with strong females appearing more in games, but I feel the solution still has not be found. I am not trying to make and un-”sexy” feminist character, The point I am trying to make with this character is that characters can be good looking as well as realistic. Lara Croft is an excellent example of this, yes she looks nice, but her personality and independence make her a respectable female figure. The only problem is Lara Croft is 20 years old now, and we haven’t seen many female figures in video games that reflect a similar respect. The point of the environment, a middle eastern setting known for its very oppressed women, is purely to exaggerate the dangers and therefore the characters bravery as a female.


How?
I will use Photoshop to create my work and produce a single PDF for assessment along with a reflective journal.


Assessment work.
My specifically targeted area of specialism will be concept art which is what I will be producing. I will present; 50 silhouettes, 20 developed silhouettes a Character Sheet and a Model Sheet for the character,  20 silhouettes, 10 developed environments and one 1 final environment for the environment, 20 silhouettes 5 developed designs and 1 model sheet and finally a piece showing the Character and Asset in the Environment. All of this will be presented in a PDF file along with a Reflective Journal.


Schedule of Work
This is a rough schedule of work.
Character Concept Art will be finished by 2/4/12
Environment Concept Art will be finished 16/4/12
Asset Concept Art will be finished by 30/4/12
Final Piece will be completed by 7/5/12

Can Digital Games Change the World?

The brief we have been given for this term is to consider the potential for games to be a persuasive medium for something other than entertainment, which poses the question Can Digital Games Change the World?

My initial reaction to this, is to think about what games can do already, it terms of their effect on players. Early games such as Pong and Pac-man, were basic and provided fun entertainment, similar to most other games such as board games or Children's games (for example hide and seek). Once video games began to develop, so did their complexity, they became more than just a game, they told stories and immersed players into a whole other world which made them care about characters and success wasn't just to "win the game" but to succeed and overcome the initial problem. Most recently, games are now pushing the boundaries of the meaning of video games, some games create similar emotions in the player that you would feel more in reading a book or watching a film. Video games and the Industry are still young, but have come so far already in content and popularity, so I believe there is an extreme potential for them to be able to change the world.


This is a talk on Ted of Jane McGonigal and her idea that Gaming can make a better world. In her 18 minute speech she talks about how online gamers spend hours dedicating their time, skill and self belief to saving the virtual world, and how these factors can be implemented to help us save the real world

Interesting sites.

http://www.casualgirlgamer.com/articles/entry/22/Ten-games-that-make-you-think-about-life/ 
http://gamerwho.wordpress.com/2011/04/17/games-that-really-make-a-difference/ 
http://www.forbes.com/2010/05/04/farmville-minimonos-mangahigh-technology-videogames.html 

Research of roles of a Concept Artist

This project has given us the freedom to write our own brief and focus on enhancing the skills we would like to learn, in order to get a job in the Video Game Industry. I know that I would like to be a 2D artist, or concept Artist, so to start I have decided to research what these roles require, and whether there are different kinds of artists within these fields.