Final Prototype

This is a video of the final game prototype: https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Z_AaxS9MQGI

The final game prototype plays sufficiently, although I an displeased with the visuals.  Looking back over the project It has been an intense experience for me at times even demoralizing but educational. I have witnessed how important enthusiasm and communication can be in drive a project forward. In hindsight I believe that we collectively made some counterproductive decisions. Although I feel a sense of accomplishment that we were able to continue on as a team in still produce something at the end. The game would have benefited for a far longer polishing period, dues to problems and delays the time for this was drastically cut short.

Crating The Game Characters

I begain the 3D charater buy blocking out the mesh using the ZSpheres tool in Pixologic ZBrush. I found this to be a very intuitive processes and very quick despite having only done it once before.

Once the Zsphere shape had been blocked out I then started the rather time consuming task of sculpting the charater (much like clay).

After the sculpt the models topology and become so distorted that a low polygon model can you be created with nice, clean topology to me the character suitable for use in a games engine.

I created the new topology by using a program called 3D Coat. I was a very exact process, although admittedly it was more time consuming that I had anticipated.

Game Charaters

Here are the fist iterations of thumbnails I have done for the games character. After analysing the with peers it was agree that design eight would be taken further as is have the strongest shape. It also fits the look we are trying to achieve in the game. I will also be using these designs to create the 3D model I will be using for my professional specialization module where I aim to create 3D sculpt and make it suitable for use within a games engine.

Game Assests

Hammer House

It was decided by the team that the Hammer House game was a more achievable and realistic concept to meet the brief. This is why we have started development on this.

The cocept is that four players rummaged though a house as the frantically smash all objects in sight to find five items (gold coins at this time).

As the game is multiplayer a simple combat system will be implemented to allow for a more competitive experience.

Project Drop

After difficulties with development we can to a team decision to drop this concept in favor of the Hammer house one. This was decided as we couldn't created a fun to play prototype for our weekly meetings, it is believe by our designer that it would not be possible to realize this game concept in the available time left and that the professional thing to do would be to drop it for a more realistic and attachable idea.

The Wrekoning

Dominoes Idea

Repitch

After the pitching for the second time the Dominoes games was pick to be taken into prototype. The reason given was that it had more potential artistically and that it was a more creative interpretation of the brief.

The Pitch

Out of the idea's that every came up with we pitch the following four. We felt that these were the strongest game ideas, with the most creative potential and best suited the brief.

Idea 1. Bull in a China shop: the idea behind this concept is that you are a small independent seller of chinaware who is being muscled out my a large corporate super store. So, to exact revenge you go on a rampage with your bull in their shop destroying everything in sight. The game would be in a side scrolling platform style.

 Idea 2. Distraction Battleships: In this concept players would take control of one large modular ship. They would then aim to destroy the modular parts of their opponents ship. Game-play would take place in realtime and would be from a top down few.

Idea 3. Spaceship Dominoes: I this game the player would control and alien spaceship the smashes building in order to cause destruction. The aim is to knock them over in such away that they fall like dominoes, the more that fall the more points are earned.

 Idea 4. Hammer House: in this idea four players compete in a multi-player side on game where they are frantically smashing the contents of a house in order to be the fist to collect five items.

After pitching these Idea's a decision couldn't be made and it was decided that Hammer House and the Dominoes game would be further designed and on picked.

The Brief

Today we received the brief which was an open one based  on "destruction". After we received the brief it was decided that every member of the team would go away any generate at least one idea.

Games Development

This blog is for the second semester of my games development module. I'll be posting work and cataloging the the events of the experience.

Professional Specialization

This module of for AG1133A Professional Specialization, for this module I am encouraged to pick a specific discipline with is my skill set that I wish to develop to a professional level.

Finished Sculpt

I found that the most difficult part of sculpting with Zbrush was trying to wrestle with the topology when sculpting detail. If  the mesh is pushed too much the resolution for sculpting becomes less and you end up with an unattractive jagged look.
Over all I’m happy with the basic structure of my model but given more time I felt that I could greatly expand on it. I would like to add accessories and to make it suitable for a game a engine. However, it would have to be retopologised in order to do so.

Animation Showreel

Cycle 1. Heavy: Walk
Heavy Rig by Sachin Pokhriyal
Heavy rig Available from: creativecrash.com/downloads/heavy-character-rig
Cycle 2. Bull-Creature: Quadraped Walk
Rig by John Vassallo
Bull-Creature Rig Available from: creativecrash.com/maya/downloads/character-rigs/c/bull-creature-rig--3/comments
Cycle 3. Scout: Run
Scout Rig by Enkidu13
Scount Rig Available from: creativecrash.com/maya/downloads/character-rigs/c/team-fortress-2-scout/topics
Cycle 4. Krag: Double Bounce Walk
Rig by Doug Hines
Krag Rig Available from: creativecrash.com/maya/downloads/character-rigs/c/krag

Sculpting the Krogan

After skinning the maquette I begining to sculpt the base shapes and form of the character. This was done using the Clay Tube Brush and Move Brush. This are allowing me to build up the land marks of the character and begin to refine its form.

The main goal of this design is to incorporate the Krogan suit into it’s anatomy. The top heavy aspect of the original design is reduced by lowering the neck piece of the suit and making this part of the structure of the character’s back.

Creating The Krogan

I took a similar a approach to my previous builds and made a silhouette to use as reference for the proportions of the Krogan. I'm opting to use Z-Brush as the main program for this build as I want to start to develop my 3D sculpting skills. As this is to be an entirely organic character it lends its self to this process rather that building it geometrically in Maya. This will been a challenging build as I am unfamiliar with the Z-Brush package and pipeline.

I'm using Z-Spheres to build a maquette to give the form of the character. Having used Z-Spheres for the first time it is apparent the advantages they have when building the base mesh of organic characters.

The new goal I'm setting is to adapt the alien Krogan species from the Mass Effect universe for use in the medieval world of Dragon Age.

The Aim of the design is to stay true to the species’ original anatomy while losing the sci-fi nature of the character. I feel that the original design is rather top heavy and would like to adjust this in my adaptation.

In order to keep to the nature of the original Krogan design I aimed to incorporate the Krogan armour as part of it’s anatomy. This would maintain the character’s essence while allowing the character to appear at home in a medieval setting.
The character of the Krogan race lends its self to the typical barbarian class of character seen in other fantasy games.

The Krogan

The new goal I'm setting myself is to adapt the alien Krogan species from the Mass Effect universe for use in the medieval world of Dragon Age.

The Aim of the design is to stay true to the species’ original anatomy while losing the sci-fi nature of the character. I feel that the original design is rather top heavy and would like to adjust this in my adaptation.

In order to keep to the nature of the original Krogan design I aim to incorporate the Krogan armour as part of it’s anatomy. This would maintain the character’s essence while allowing the character to appear at home in a medieval setting.
The character of the Krogan race lends its self to the typical barbarian class of character seen in other fantasy games.