Art Direction - Projects

 25/08/20 - 24/11/20 (Week 1 - Week 14)

Atiqah Farzana Binti Syalleh Karimyee (0336740)

Art Direction

Projects

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INSTRUCTIONS

Module Information Booklet:

FLIP CLASSROOM

Flip 1: Introduction to Art Direction

Week 1 (25/08/20) - Week 2 (01/09/20)

Ms. Anis briefed us on this module and our projects. To start off, we had to group ourselves into 3 members and work together. We were told to research on the following topics which will be presented next week:

1. What is art direction?
2. How does it benefit designers?

Here is my group's flip presentation in Google Slides:

Flip 2: Game Study

Week 2 (01/09/20) - Week 3 (08/09/20)

Our 2nd flip topic was on game study. We were required to choose a classic retro game and conduct a game study for it, including the brand, logo, typeface, colour scheme, mood, environment, playable characters, NPC, assets, and the UI/UX. My group chose the Pokemon Red (1996) Gameboy which is the first Pokemon game released (alongside Pokemon Blue). 

Here is my group's flip presentation in Google Slides:

Flip 3: Issues and Concerns on Game (Visual Aspects)

Week 3 (08/09/20) - Week 4 (15/09/20)

This week's flip presentation was on the issues on a game's design. First, we had to search for a game on Steam, play it, then take note of the problems and negative aspects of the game design. 

Ms. Anis suggested that we find a game that looks like it may be lacking on the visual side (compared to a popular, well-made game). My group chose a game called 'Progress Game' and below is our presentation slides:

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PROJECTS

Project 1: Project Proposal

Week 4 (15/09/20) - Week 6 (29/09/20)

Jumping from the flip classroom to our 1st project, this project is to redesign and improve on a game's design. We could continue off by using the same game from flip classroom 3, or we could choose a new one. Jessica and I both decided to change to a different game titled 'Croppy Boy' because the previous game was too confusing and difficult to play.

 Ms. Anis gave a short lecture about the style and themes of games. Our first task is to identify the theme, positioning map, artistic target, etc. before we propose our game.

Next, we had to start sketching our ideas for the game to create a game proposal. Jessica and I divided our tasks to explore the range of art styles for the characters before choosing one. Aside from the characters, we also had to sketch out the environment designs.

Fig. 1.1 Character Sketches 1

Fig. 1.2 Character Sketches 2

Fig. 1.3 Environment Sketch 1

Fig. 1.4 Environment Sketch 2

Fig. 1.5 Environment Sketch 3

Fig. 1.6 Environment Sketch 4

Fig. 1.7 Environment Sketch 5

Fig. 1.8 Environment Sketch 6

Project 2: Project Management

Week 6 (29/09/20) - Week 14 (24/11/20)

Ms. Anis suggested that we create a project/time management chart so that we could divide the tasks and plan out our project for the upcoming weeks.

We planned out our tasks by Priority (P) by hierarchy: (P1) must have, (P2) should have, (P3) nice to have, and (P4) extras.

With a clear view of what we need to do, both of us worked on our tasks. I did the main menu screen, 3 character designs, 2 environment designs, different seasons of the environment design, tools, and 1 UI/UX design. Jessica worked on the rest, and we compiled all our work together.

Here are all of the final redesigned game elements:

Fig. 1.9 Final Game Title Screen

Fig. 1.10 Final Main Menu Screen

Fig. 1.11 Final Characters Redesign

Fig. 1.12 Final Characters Redesign (Close Up 1)

Fig. 1.13 Final Characters Redesign (Close Up 2)

Fig. 1.13 Final Environment 1

Fig. 1.14 Final Environment 1 (Nighttime)

Fig. 1.15 Final Environment 2

Fig. 1.16 Final Environment 2 (Nighttime)

Fig. 1.17 Final Environment 3

Fig. 1.18 Final Environment 3 (Rainy Day)

Fig. 1.18 Final Environment 4

Fig. 1.18 Final Environment 4 (Nighttime)

Fig. 1.19 Final Environment 4 (Different Seasons)

Fig. 1.20 Final Environment 4 (Autumn)

Fig. 1.21 Final Environment 4 (Winter)

Fig. 1.22 Final Environment 4 (Spring)

Fig. 1.23 Final Tools 

Fig. 1.24 Final Item/Bag

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Fig. 1.25 Final UI/UX Design

Fig. 1.26 Final UI/UX Design 2

Here is the final project slides in PDF:

Final Reflection: 

I found this semester to be very packed and heavy, but this module felt like almost a break from everything because we got to play/research games and even redesign one. Overall, I think it was a fun and new experience because I got to see the details I would have never noticed if I was just playing a game. Knowing how much time and effort it takes just to design a game, I surely appreciate my favourite games even more now.

However, I faced some issues in this module as well. I think the main challenge I faced during this project was the time-management. Although Jessica and I made a time-management chart, we didn't really stick to it, or at least, I didn't. Like I mentioned earlier, this semester was very packed and so I was often unable to balance out my work properly. Also, because my group only had two people, each of us had quite a lot of work to do compared to other groups where they could divide the work more. Nonetheless, it was still a great experience working and playing with games!