Thursday 24 November 2016

Year 1 - Undertale. Hit or miss? - Games Review

Undertale. Hit or miss?

Was Undertale one of the role-playing best games of 2015 or was it a flop?





Undertale was released on September 15th 2015 for Windows and Mac with an extremely small release price of $9.99 or £6.99 in the UK. Linux later appeared as a platform in July of this year. Steam gave it a 10/10 review and a critique on YouTube, under the channel name Zero Punctuation, made it the best game released in 2015. It was developed by a man named Toby Fox over the course of 2.7 years. He used the website Kickstarter to crowdfund the development of the game from June 25th 2013. However, the campaign ended a month later on July 25th 2013 raising $51,124, well over the goal of only $5,000, so it was clearly popular even before it was released. Fox worked on the development of the game independently apart from some of the art to avoid relying on others. It was inspired by the Mario and Luigi Series as well as bullet hell shooters. It is influenced many internet gags (memes) and comedy shows like Mr Bean. Many YouTubers have done playthroughs of this game including; Jacksepticeye and Pewdiepie and given it a very positive gameplay.
From left to right:
Name, Level, Minutes played,
Current position.

He introduces a mother character called, 'Toriel,' a goat like figure (shown in the thumbnail of the video above next to the character you play.). Her name, of course, is a  play off of 'tutorial' as she shows the player the basics of the game. She is a character that although having very little development you cannot help but learn to adore her. Unfortunately she is not in the game for very long as about 30 minutes into it you get brutally ripped apart as you must fight her to carry on the adventure. Throughout the game you control a small red heart which represents your soul when in battle and you must avoid anything that attacks you. 




This brings us on to how you choose to defeat the enemies, kill, flee or befriending are the options you are left with throughout the game. You may attack the enemy using the FIGHT option (involving timing your attacks, earning EXP and gold if you do defeat them) or use a non-violent action under the ACT option which things you can do may change due to the enemy. If you choose the right actions you may spare them and end the fight without killing them. A lot of battles may only be spared if the player can survive through all the dialog the enemy has to offer, it is possible to finish the game without killing a single enemy. 

Your character is a 'fallen human,' originally named Chara
that you get to choose the name of.

Year 1 - CPU - Understanding hardware technologies for game platforms

CPU - Understanding hardware technologies for game platforms

Task 1:

Clock Speed:

Intel Core i7-7Y75 - 3.6 GHz
AMD A10-7890K - 4.3 GHz
Xbox 360 - 3.2 GHz
Xbox One - 1.75 GHz
PS4 - 1.6 GHz

Cores:

Intel Core i7-7Y75 - Quad Core
AMD A10-7890K - Quad Core
Xbox 360 - 3 Core
Xbox One - 8 Core
PS4 - 8 Core

Cache:

Intel Core i7-7Y75 - 4 MB
AMD A10-7890K - 4MB
Xbox 360 - 1MB
Xbox One - 4MB
PS4 - 4MB

Task 2:

What are CPU's?:

Central Processing Unit - It gathers and processes instructions that it collects from deciphering the code in programs and other files. It's four primary function are made up of: fetch, decode, execute and write back.

CPU Speed:

The clock speed is generally measured in GHz which is decided on how many clock cycles it can perform per second. 1 GHz is 1,000,000,000 clock cycles.

Cores:

A processing unit that reads instructions to perform certain actions which are chained together so they make up a computer experience when out into real time. A core can run a single program unless it supports hardware threads like hyper-threading on on Intel CPUs, then it may run multiple. Tasks that are run tend to be software processes and threads that the OS schedules.

Cache:

Reduces the average energy or time to access data from the main storage of memory. The cache is a faster but smaller memory, storing data copies from the most used main memory locations.

FSB (Front-Side Bus):

Connects the computer's processor to the RAM and other components on the motherboard such as: system chipset, AGP card, PCI devices and other peripherals. Because of it being the main path from the processer to the rest of the motherboard it is also known as the System Bus. It's speed is also measured in MHz and GHz but the computers' processors run faster than their System bus.


References:

http://www.intel.co.uk/content/www/uk/en/processors/core/core-i7-processor.html
http://shop.amd.com/en-gb/components/processors/ecxCurUK10146853
http://uk.ign.com/wikis/xbox-one/Xbox_One_Hardware_Specs
http://www.digitaltrends.com/gaming/xbox-one-vs-xbox-360-spec-showdown/
https://www.playstation.com/en-gb/explore/ps4/tech-specs/
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/cpu-technology-explained/
http://www.howtogeek.com/177790/why-you-cant-use-cpu-clock-speed-to-compare-computer-performance/
http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/processor-core-makeuseof-explains-2/
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/19225859/difference-between-core-and-processor
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CPU_cache
http://techterms.com/definition/fsb

Wednesday 16 November 2016

Year 1 - Unit 78 P2 Assignment Digital Graphics for Computer Games (13/11/16)

Level 3

Unit 78 - Digital Graphics for Computer Games (Assignment)

P2 - Be able to Generate Concept Art Ideas for Computer Game Graphics

Client Brief:

Create a game based on the film "Big Trouble in Little China"

Own Brief:


Create concept art based on the film "Big Trouble in Little China" and give a brief on legal and ethical considerations, computer game graphics and graphics specifications towards then game and art.

Legal & Ethical Considerations:

Legal considerations are what is appropriate within the legal profession consisting of behavioural norms and morals. Ethical considerations are problems or situations that could be evaluated as right or wrong (ethical or unethical). Most of these examples are advised about in pegi ratings when used in games.



Copyright/Plagiarism - Copyright is using someone else's work without their permission whereas,   plagiarism is saying something is your work when it is someone else's or                                             using someone else's work without crediting the creator.
                                      When creating any work you must remember to give full credit to any         sources or references you may have used. Not only that, copying any work      can be illegal which could cost your company more than it gains.

Controversial - When something is controversial it can cause a disagreement between people with   different opinions.
                          If you create a piece of work with an unpopular opinion or with a very different       view it could create a large amount disruption in a community.

Sexual Content/Nudity - Using sexual images and description in a piece of work.
    If you do decide to use any sort of sexual content in your work you must realise your audience and how you want the art to be portrayed by others.

Violence - Physical force intending to hurt or damage something or someone often leaving the one showing this brutality also hurt.
    When using violence in anything you must be aware of your audience and the way they'd react towards certain acts of savagery.

Sexism - The act of discriminating, stereotyping or being prejudiced to a certain sex. Although it is thought to be particularly towards women it is common towards men as well.
    Sexism in games occurs more than you'd think with men being the main, tough characters and women being helpless etc. and can easily offend people giving you hate.

Racism - Believing that all members of a race share the same qualities, characteristics and abilities trying to cause offence towards that race, making them feel inferior to others.
    Using racism in anything would make you and your client perceived as racist making your game seem that way as well also losing mass attraction.

Religious Discrimination - Treating someone differently based on what they do or do not believe in mainly to make their opinion less valid than your own.
    When mentioning any sort of religion or belief you must be careful about who and what you address, as peoples opinions cannot be changed.

Advertising - Showing advertisements for a commercial product or service for your or an others     company or business.
    Using products in games and art is pretty hard as not only you have to use that one product instead of other alternatives as well, you must also be sure that you want to endorse that product and its suitable for your audience.


All explained in clearer detail in this blogpost: http://sarahsgamesdesign.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/unit-78-p2-intro-digital-graphics-for.html

Computer Game Graphics:
Print Media - Print media art includes anything from posters to packaging and manuals as it is anything physically printed relating to the game. Its mainly related to marketing a product, which is supposed to make it look appealing enough for its audience to actually want to buy it.
    Art used in print media may be achieved by colour use, art styles, writing and fonts as well as many other techniques. Using these methods should create an eye catching look with a good focal point or any other drawing effects.

In-Game - The HUD is a display of progress, information and general feedback. This may include: map info, health, ammo and objectives.
    For example when shooting you'd want a target in the centre of the screen and everything else should be hidden in the corners, and around the edge of our peripheral vision to avoid blindspots. A lot of people who play FPS games expect everything to be in a certain place as a sort of unwritten rule. More type of interface may include the button you can press, management, targeting, textual data, navigation and other general info on things like ammo and health etc. Be sure to make the interfaces not too big or small, has enough but not too much info or have bad artistic choices like fonts, colours or the wrong style.
    The Background Graphics sets the stage for a character and may be a blank canvas. It should show key elements of a game including where a player should go next or any other tips, hints and tricks.
    This should be one of the most highest quality of works for a game as it can often be a key focal point and is always there. If my concept art was photorealistic this would become a key aspect that I should've spent the most time on.
    The Texture Art adds detail to define parts of 3D computer models thanks to textural artists. The textures created are used in many things from music videos and films to video games.
    These artists create as realistic or accurate textures as they can to wrap them onto objects. They're mostly started from scratch although some are created from existing materials, they may scan photos in then apply these textures to the item or environment made by the effects team. If you would like to create textural art you should be familiar with the processes of UV mapping.

Concept Art - Any concept art is supposed to show a representation of what a design, mood, character, object, weapon etc. should look like. It is not the finished work but a general design and effect instead of the overall product.
    It should get the key visions and ideas nailed down to avoid as many mistakes or problems as it can for later. This should reduce error chances so therefore less money and time wasted. It should make a designers creative vision clearer and easier to develop.

All explained in clearer detail in this blogpost: http://sarahsgamesdesign.blogspot.co.uk/2016/09/unit-78-part-2-digital-graphics-for.html


Graphics Specification:

Audience - The audience is who your product is aimed at. They are mainly classed into different groups like age and gender etc.
    Generally when creating a game the audience is decided by what age range it is suitable for, this is often shown by the chosen age rating/pegi rating. You should however choose an audience before you start creating a game to create the prefect atmosphere for it, making sure it has suitable content.

Thumbnail Sketching - Generally a small basic drawing to brain storm any amount of ideas quickly. A basic and rough version of concept art.
    It is a good place to start before creating concept art as they do not have to be anywhere near accurate or pretty as of yet.

Visual Style - The Exaggeration style is mainly used in RPGs and is a typical style for anime and manga. As the name suggests it makes everything look exaggerated.
    If you use this style it can be used for emotions, enhancing features to create certain feelings. They tend to include eyes that widen for emotions, or a muscular character if the character is strong mentally as well as physically. Cheek and jawbones can be chiselled and more prominent for a dramatic impact. Enhancing weapons and accessories is also used very often in many games.
    The Photorealistic style is a popular choice and one of my favourites. It creates art from a photo or video taken from real life.
    The results of using photorealism should be extremely smooth and beautiful making player think of NPCs as actual people. Using this with textural art can create very realistic effects.
    The Cel-shaded style is a lot harder to find in many games even though many developers would prefer using it.
    You would use this style if you were basing a game off a cartoon or animated series as it carries the effect over with it.

Composition - The way things are laid out and put together within a video game.
    This must be well thought out and easy for everyone to understand and work with while still having detailed explanations.

Typography - The fonts used and the way they are laid out.
    When choosing a font you must think out how it would look with the colour usage as well. A bad font could make the game unplayable if you cannot read it.

Technical considerations - File Extensions are shown with a few letters at the ending of the file name e.g. .docx is a Word Document.
    You must choose file extensions that are widely chosen and easily transferrable to make the process of developing quicker.
    Compression of a file is when the original size is reduced to save disk space and make it more transferrable. This can be also known as 'file zipping'. When compressing it can take up anywhere from 50% - 90% less space.
    Lossy Compression results in reduced quality and loss of data in the file. This is typically used in image files but also audio files. Parts that are lost show up as pixelation or jagged edges that are non anti-aliased. Lossless Compression reduces file size well but does not lose quality as it rewrites the original data in a better way. However they tend to use more data than lossy compression. Uncompressed files are the original files.
    Optimizing updates, rewrites or rearranges something to make it better.
    This would make a game gain and improve efficiency, use less power or space as well as many other things.
    Storage of Assets is how you decide to store things like graphics and text styles. Hopefully in a way that means others can access it easier.
    This again makes file transfers quicker and more efficient. This ranges of file size, file-naming conventions and asset management

All explained in clearer detail in these blogposts:
http://sarahsgamesdesign.blogspot.co.uk/2016/09/unit-78-digital-graphics-for-computer.html
http://sarahsgamesdesign.blogspot.co.uk/2016/10/unit-78-part-4-digital-graphics-for.html


Mood Board:

China -


Sunday 13 November 2016

Year 1 - Big Trouble in Little China Report

Big Trouble in Little China


    Big Trouble in Little China was not based on a specific book however it did get a comic-book series made after it (June 2014) as well as, vinyl figures (February 2015), a board game (July 2016), card game (August 2016) and a tie-in video game (1986).
    The main characters are: Jack Burton played by Kurt Russell, Wang Chi who is Jack's friend played by Dennis Dun, Gracie Law a lawyer who teams up with Burton and Chi played by Kim Cattrell and David Lo Pan an evil villain played by James Hong.
    The sub-characters are: Egg Shen played by Victor Wong, Margo Litzenberger played by Kate Burton, Eddie Lee played by Donald Li, Thunder played by Carter Wong, Rain played by Peter Kwong, Lightning played by James Pax, Miao Yin played by Suzee Pai, and Uncle Chu played by Chao-Li Chi.
    The emotional themes of all characters show big and small differences. Jack and Wang both show emotions of love, Jack's love is towards his truck mainly but also towards Wang and Gracie Law, whereas Wang's is more towards his fiancée Miao Yin.
    The characters show different motivation for what they want to achieve, Burton's motivation appears to be finding his truck that was stolen during a street fight between two ancient societies (Chang Sing and Wing Kong) and The Three Storms (Thunder, Rain and Lightning). Wang's motivation is finding his fiancée Miao Yin after she was taken by a street gang called the Lords of Death when Jack interfered.
    The beginning of the film shows Jack and Wang's journey to pick up Wang's from the airport followed by his fiancée getting kidnapped and them following the gang to find her. The middle of the film shows them trying to retrieve her from a brothel where they think she is located with them failing. They then find out that to break a curse on Lo Pan he must have a green-eyed girl (Miao Yin). They then free Miao Yin and celebrate their victory with Wang and Miao preparing to marry, and Jack leaving China and things that could tie him down behind.
    The main characters relationships don't appear to change as Jack and Wang stay friends, Wang marries Miao, Gracie and Jack stay just as friends and Eddie pairs up with Gracie's journalist friend Margo.

Year 1 - Unit 78 P2 (Intro) Digital Graphics for Computer Games (07/11/16)

Level 3

Unit 78 - Digital Graphics for Computer Games (Intro)

P2 - Be able to Generate Concept Art Ideas for Computer Game Graphics


Stimulus:

Client Brief:

  • A brief or set of instructions given by your client for you to follow or adapt.

Own Brief:

  • Your own brief or set of instructions that you either make from scratch or have adapted from your clients.

Market Research:

  • Gathering information from your peers, members of the public or questionnaires to see the viability of a product, see if it actually relevant to certain groups of people, or to assess what people the product should be aimed at.

Ideas:

Brainstorming/Thought Shower and Mood Boards: 

  • Creating a board/page full of relevant ideas and inspiration based on a subject matter e.g. colours, fonts, images, words etc.
Thumbnail Sketching and Concept Drawings:

  • Character
  • Weapons
  • Vehicles
  • Environments
  • Objects
Legal & Ethical Considerations:

  • Copyright/Plagiarism
  • Controversial
  • Sexual content/nudity
  • Violence
  • Sexism 
  • Racism
  • Religion
  • Bullying
  • Exploitation of certain groups of people e.g. Genders
  • Advertising
  • Piracy




Monday 7 November 2016

Unit 78 P2 (Part 1) Digital Graphics for Computer Games (07/11/16)

Level 3

Unit 78 - Digital Graphics for Computer Games (Part 1)

P2 - Be able to Generate Concept Art Ideas for Computer Game Graphics

What are computer game graphics?

Print media graphics like posters and general packaging for games. In-game graphics (head-up display graphics, sprite graphics, background graphics and image textures). Concept art graphics.

All are fully covered on this blogpost and other P1 exercises: http://sarahsgamesdesign.blogspot.co.uk/2016/09/unit-78-part-2-digital-graphics-for.html


What is Graphics Specification?

Client needs, also known as a brief that is given to you. The audience that it is aimed/suitable for and thumbnail sketching. The visual style such as; colour and style. The composition, typography (fonts and styles) and technical considerations, e.g. file format, file size, optimisation, file naming conventions, asset management and intended output.

All are fully covered on these blogposts and other P1 exercises:
http://sarahsgamesdesign.blogspot.co.uk/2016/09/unit-78-digital-graphics-for-computer.html
http://sarahsgamesdesign.blogspot.co.uk/2016/10/unit-78-part-4-digital-graphics-for.html