Catapulting the Blog Further

So it's been a while since I've posted something in this blog so I decided that I should Start again. Today I decided I would try and get better at using Maya, so what better to catapult my modelling skills forward that a ........catapult D:  So without further a due here is my Catapult.
I used references from The warcraft series to model this as I really like its comic book style it has. As much as I don't like to admit it, I really neglected my 3D work when I was doing my HND and I hope to make up for that blunder. In the weeks to come I should hopefully be posting more models that I have been doing. It may end up only being one a week. This will be outside anything that I am doing for Uni to try to strengthen my modelling abilities. Also by posting them here it will aid any employers who are looking for students to do some cheap student work for them. If anyone knows of anyone looking for some cheap 3D work please throw them my way and I will happily do any work for them for a low price.
Any experience is good experience!

Conceptualising From Left to Right

Coming up for concepts for innovative game play is hard!  Even if you come up with a concept, what position should the camera be in? First person is over done, as is third person. Side scrolling or top down games look pretty flat unless the environment artist uses some creative way to add depth. A great example of this is the Oddworld games. They are side scrolling games that have a foreground and a back ground with camera passes between the two which ads depth by showing the player that there is something between the two, even though there really isn't.
Stylised games can really draw in the player. TF2 is a great example as the silhouettes of all the classes are very different from each other so there is instant differentiation between them. Talking about silhouettes, characters that are portrayed as a silhouette are starting to get used more and more in games today, especially indie games. I think a good way to make your silhouetted character stand out from the rest would be adding a splash of colour to the character two. May be one or two colours maximum. If you wanted to just have the silhouette of your character determine the character then using colour could be used to show emotion in the characters. This would add depth into the story and character itself.
I'm thinking of doing very this for my project for Christmas using flash, and using a water washed background using black detailing for the terrain, characters and enemies. Then using colour to highlight key aspects of game play. To me the sharp contrast makes it easy for the player to see what they are meant to be doing. My studies of the concept of Flow made me realise keeping the goal clear is really important, as if it is hazy then a player can become irritated and stop playing.
There is a few aspects of the project that I need to work out, one of which is how do I reward the player and make them want to continue playing?

Behold, the Baby Arm!!

Just the other day I was invited to go see the new Resident Evil film. To be honest I wasn't expecting it to be amazing but seeing as the last few were quite terrible. This one though surprised me. It decided to stick closer to the game than the others did which was awesome, seeing as most game to films just disregard everything from the game, why I have no idea, are they not expecting their main target audience to be those gamers who played the game? If they are trying to boost sales a little of the game by people seeing the game then that doesn't work in the long term if the two are nothing alike. 

Anyway, on the way home from the cinema Gary, James and I were somewhat in a giddy mood. This then lead to the creation of the so called baby arm. What is this baby arm you may ask, well let me tell you. It's not just a baby's arm, nor someone with a small arm like a baby. Imagine if your forearm was the body of a baby but its head was still your fist. Imagine the endless possibilities this could open up. Just thing of how intense your grip on things would become. you could hold all the things you could normally plus two smaller things! Tasks at hand would be dwarfed thanks to the baby arm. If you were a waiter then you could carry your main tray and two sides. or even one larger tray with added stability! If you were a boxer you would have a punch like a trident! If you were a samurai then you could wield a sword and two daggers thanks to your baby arm! All this power just from the baby arm!

Needless to say the majority of the way home our stomachs were in a lot of pain due to the endless laughing and thanks to the new creation our friend Lucy decided to walk a little further ahead of us than normal.

All in all the baby arm was an epic creation.

We shall rule the world with two baby fists!

So Far in Scotland

Ok I've been here in Dundee for 2 weeks now and I've had a pretty crazy time so far filled with both good and bad experiences. I've made a butt load of new friends which are all awesome! Even made a friend who is a snail who thinks he's a cat. Hey Gary=D The 1st week in uni has been pretty amazing as well. Nothings too hard just yet, and all my lectures are pretty sound, even though I do have one unnaturally pessimistic one for 3D. Colin on the other hand is such a legend! I foresee myself really enjoy his lectures and practices. All my course mates are pretty damn insane too which is great!
Carbon, an industrial metal bar, was pretty incredible last night. Finally two places here that play decent music and have a good vibe. Going to check out Cage next weekend as I've heard that's awesome too.
The crazy bin man General George has a mighty round house kick as I unfortunately found out on Friday evening . 21 years in Ireland and I was never assaulted by a randomer, less than two weeks here and I've already been attacked. Thankfully the crazed fiend didn't have a knife! Although I hear chicks dig scars=P Not certain about girls though, chickens seem to be reared differently than use making them a little more hardy! Lets hope the next Friday evening isn't as eventful. I quite like my organs inside my body.

In the Beginning there was Interaction Design

OK the first day is over of uni and I'm now left with an overwhelming sense of certainty that this is now what I want to do. I was slightly doubting if I should actually do this course or if this is the future I want for myself. But thankfully to the lecture today and the overview of what is yet to come I can say that I will enjoy every last moment of it, even if at times I get stressed(which inevitably will happen).
Starting off the day with interaction design was really interesting. To be honest I was expecting it to be more games driven than it was, but after the lecture I'm glad it wasn't. If it had been I would have been left how to make games more user friendly, which itself is a good thing as that is my future(hopefully) at least I know can understand the importance of trends and the changing opinions of the public.
What I had overlooked was the importance of packaging and the feel of a game in its physical form. Granted a lot of games couldn't care less about the box the game came in, or that they could buy a digital version of the game(or even just pirate the game), but there is an increase in casual gamers that just walk into shops and buy what looks good. I have a strong feeling that to those who read this will be the more inclined to get the digital versions of a game. I myself like to have the physical form of the game especially the collectors edition of it, not because I collect things, or that I want bragging writes,  but because of the craftsmanship that goes into most collectors editions. Good examples of companies that do this are Blizzard and Bunji . Blizzard gives you such goodies as art books and DVDs of the making of their games.
As someone wanting to get into the industry this gives a sneak peak into it without getting in. Granted the scenes are more than likely brushed up and polished to make it look more appealing than it is, but none the less it's an insight that people wouldn't be able to get otherwise.
Bunji on the other hand fill their boxes with little pieces from the game, like badges and swipe cards. These can make the experience of the game more immersive, knowing what the little things in the game feel like, even just knowing the weight of a security pass.
The other side to that coin is it is a marketing strategy to get people to buy their product by adding more "depth" to it or even giving the sense of getting more for your money. I personally don't mind dishing out the extra bit for them but it really is up to personal preference.
All in all it was a good start to a year. It has already made me think about a bigger picture and solidifying the future I want to achieve at the end of it all.

First!

What is this blog about you may ask? "That nob didn't say what the hell this is about in the "about me" part!!" Well the intention is to have a post about my time  in uni studying computer game design and production management, and my journey to decide if it's possible to be both a game designer and a production manager without forfeiting my sanity(well what sanity I have left).
Between each "managing design" post there will be a post/s with my general life as a student. I'll see how each one goes. If they turn out to be a load of balls then I may stop and post about something else, maybe some opinions about nerd culture rising up against the 8-bit man!
Thanks all for reading, or even browsing, or skimming, or even breathing
=D