Recently in Sci. Vis. we have started to learn about different file types and their strengths and weaknesses. I have learned a lot on when I should or shouldn't use different types of files. To start off I learned about TIFF files which are really high resolution. They support the most colors and look the best when seen on the screen or printed onto paper. For this reason they are mostly used by printing companies to get the best looking images possible and for editing images in a lossless format. However, TIFFs are large with little capability for compression and shouldn't be used for web images. Next we learned about JPEG images. We learned that because of JPEG's high compression capabilities and versatility it is the main choice for pictures on the web. It is a lossy format though which makes it so that after several compression cycles the images loss color depth and start to look pixelated. GIF and PNG files use the same compression formulas giving them lossless compression. However, GIF files can only support up to 256 colors making it bad for realistic photos. PNG files are good but aren't supported under Internet Explorer so they can't be used on the internet unless you direst your viewers to a more usable browser such as Mozilla. Specific file formats such as PNG are good for when you are using the software they are built for as they can store information such as layers but can't be viewed outside of those software and are generally not compatible with the internet.
While creating a video game I should use TIFF or PSD files to maintain picture quality while I edit and work on a picture. Once I'm done I should export it into a more versatile format such as JPEG or GIF/PNG. (if there is large patches of color.)
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Drawing Basics and Video Game Art: Character Design by Chris Solarski Summary and Application3/12/2016 This article starts by talking about how game art and classical art is similar. It emphasizes that just like the old art masters in order to make your game art truly great you need to practice daily through quick small sketches. The article also stresses that keeping up good studio practices such as daily presentations and open feedback. It then begins to talk abut designing your character. To start it says that you should always create a high concept first in designing anything. This should include descriptive words on how you want your audience to feel. After that you need to start collecting research materials. You can do this either by taking quick sketches of things around you that give you a certain emotion or through researching images on google and creating quick sketches that way. Then you need to design the basic body shape of your character and use it as a mannequin to apply your rough sketches to. Eventually by combining many of these shapes you can design out the rough sketch of your character. To make sure that the features used in this character are obvious it is a good idea to silhouette the character and make sure you still get the same feeling out of it without all the details. Last you can redraw the character leaving out any unnecessary details and add colors and shading.
This article taught me that it is important to not only research The obvious things such as clothing while designing a character but to also research other things that evoke strong feelings and can be used in a more abstract form in my character to evoke those same feelings. It also showed me that it is the concept of how I want my audience to feel that is most important in my artwork and I should focus on that if I want my artwork to look truly emotional and real. On Monday of this week I was working on making posters with different layouts for our layout project. The game I based these posters off of was Magic the Gathering as I usually do when I get to chose a game I like. More specifically based these posters off of the upcoming Shadows Over Innistrad block that will be coming out in April. This offered a unique challenge to me as there were very limited relevant images to use in these posters and finding ones that were the right size was truly a headache. In the end it worked out through extensive google searching and I was completely done with the posters on Tuesday and the slideshow on Wednesday for that project.
The next project I started on was the Aesop's fable game project in which we chose an Aesop's fable and had to make a pitch for a game based off of it. I chose the story of The Seller of Images (link below) and finished the written outline and comparison for it on Thursday. On Friday I started designing the player character. This is where I learned how I could create smooth hand-drawn looking lines on Photoshop by Making a line with a good strike then using the warp tool to bend it into place. This technique is easy and has helped me create great looking characters even with my limited art skills. |
AuthorSamuel Henry is a Senior at DSA in NC. He has 3 years of prior experience in the game design pathway and he's looking forward to becoming a great game designer. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are solely those of the author and do not represent those of Durham School of the Arts or Durham Public Schools Categories
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