Presentation (DD1000)

Here is the the first page of the Power Point I have made for Ben's presentation! I surrounded the background with different social games and logo's to give a look that they are scattered across the desk. I have also used some nice transitions between slides that are subtle and flow nicely!

Traditional Social Games - Poster (DD1000)

Here is my third of the poster presentation, We will join all our parts together to create the final piece. I need to alter the text to a bigger size so that its easier to read.

Traditional Social Games - Key Points (DD1000)

Here I have included a summary of the information used in the poster presentation so it is all in one place:

Senet

·         One of the oldest known board games in the world – competitive, 2 players

·         Sticks were used instead of dice

·         Winners were supposedly under the protection of gods

Chess

·         One of the world’s most popular games – Turn based strategy

·         Played in social clubs, by correspondence, tournaments, schools

·         Originated in India in the 9^th Century with some differences but the modern game mostly stays true to the original

Warhammer

·         Miniature war gaming is a recreational hobby using miniature models of characters and scenery to play out battles

·         Offers more freedom of play and more aesthetically pleasing scenery

·         Painting the miniatures is a hobby in itself

·         Social interaction as games can consist of teams with up to five players on each side, working together and discussing tactics

·         Turn based strategy like Chess

·         The first game was in the form of a Rulebook written by H.G. Wells named Little Wars in 1913. This was to be used with toy soldier figurines.

Dungeons and Dragons

·         Role-playing game – players take the role of a fictional character in a fictional world

·         Game follows basic guidelines and rules but players can make their own decisions and bring up ideas

·         Table top RPG’s are a matter of discussion.

·         Players take an individual role of a single character while one player is the game master who acts as a referee for all other aspects of the game

·         The first commercial game was Dungeons and Dragons which was published in 1974

Commercial Board Games

·         Commercial board games are created and sold under a brand name as opposed to traditional games which nobody owns the rights too

·         Examples of this are Monopoly, Sorry and Scrabble

Trading Card Games

·         Trading cards have been around for over 100 years (some of the first found in cigarette packets) and were generally used for collecting.

·         Magic: The Gathering was the first game of this platform, designed by Richard Garfield in 1993 and published by Wizards of the Coast

·         Tournaments are held around the world for card and cash prizes

·         Japanese TCG’s like Yu-Gi-Oh and Pokemon have spawned several videogames TV series

Tactics - The First Wargame (DD1000)

Looking at early board games I came across Tactics, a war simulator game that was designed by a genuine infantry officer. Below I have found an exert that explains the game in detail and also some interesting facts!

Tactics is a landmark game in that it was the first cardboard-counter commercial board wargame that was intended (albeit with limited success) to accurately simulate warfare and command.
The game was self-published by infantryman Charles S. Roberts, who would go on to found of Avalon Hill Games. The original edition of Tactics was published by the Avalon Game company, with a print run of approximately 2000. Roberts sold Tactics by mail order out of a garage in Avalon, Maryland.
The game portrayed a modern day strategic conflict between the forces of two hypothetical countries. The opposing units included infantry, armor, and airborne forces. The game was played on a mapboard which used a square grid rather than the hex-based style map which would later became preferred in the board wargaming industry. However, many of the conventions and mechanics established in Tactics still live on, in one form or another, in many of the wargames published today.
Based on his success with Tactics, Roberts decided to expand his operation and in 1958 he formed Avalon Hill Games. The initial line-up of games from Avalon Hill included Tactics II, a revised version of Roberts' original wargame. Avalon Hill would go on to publish a 25th Anniversary edition of Tactics in 1983, which represented a modified version of the original game in that it used a prototype mapboard which had not previously been released.
Other than a few graphical changes there are some functional changes from the Tactics map to the Tactics II map:
Going over the 1954 Tactics and 1958 Tactics II boards square by square the only functional changes are:
- The squares around the edge of the map for 1958 now have numbers 1 to 43 from North to South and 1 to 55 West to East.
- Cities for 1958 had unique numbers added.
No numbers are present on the 1954 board in the cities or the grid.
- There is no map compass on the mapboard label like there is in Tactics II
- The mountain pass in the large mountain range on the board label edge is not present on the 1954 map. Also there is only one single clear square, same place as in Tactics II, 7 squares in from the Blue coastal city near the map label in that mountain range. There are none of those longer dead end corridors in the big mountain range like on the Tactics II map.

Final Three Artstyle Pieces (DD1101)

Here are my final three artstyle pieces for Mark based on Sean Galloway's, Ashley Wood's and Marek Okon's artstyles.

Game Design Document - Game Mode Exert (XB1000)

Here is a small exert from mine and Sam's game design document for Fall of Erabus!

Battle Mode

This mode allows players to compete against and cooperate with a number of A.I/human players or both. A variety of game settings are available which allows players to customise the game to their own preferences, make a game more fast paced or simply more of a challenge. 

·         Skirmish – The standard game mode where 2 or more players have one simple objective; annihilate all enemies! (free for all and team options available)

·         Conquest – This ‘capture the objective’ based game consists of key locations on the map that must be captured and held by the players units. Points are gained overtime for each location held and the player who reaches the maximum score wins the match!

·         Tug of War – This exciting game mode has players building units within a select area which are then brought onto the battlefield every 30 seconds in a wave. Choosing what units to create to counter the enemies is the key. If a player loses their main base building to the enemy then they lose!

The Arena

This unique mode allows players to choose a hero unit and fight one on one with other human heroes to earn experience and upgrade their unit with new abilities and spells. This single unit is controlled just like any regular unit but with an array of spells and attacks to unleash on rivals. Players can also team up to take on waves of enemies with boss levels spread in-between for a fun and exciting cooperative experience.

Game Design Document (XB1000)

For Stephen's final assignment, me and a fellow classmate must create a game design document and give a selling pitch to the class. I have been playing a number of different strategy games recently to get some good ideas for game features. An interesting one that I came across was while playing Starcraft 2. This game mode uses the arcade game bejeweled to score points for players to spend on units to send to an opponents base, so effectively you are playing to games at once. I found it interesting and very fun to play as you are required to move very quickly between both games.

Our game is more like Starcraft meets Naruto meets Total War. It has identical mechanics to starcraft's gameplay, characters, units and abilities are similar to the action packed manga Naruto and the campaign map is similar to the Total War/Civilization series.

Card Game Variants - Collectable Trading Cards (DD1000)

Trading cards have been around for over 100 years (some of the first found in cigarette packets) and were generally used for collecting. These tend to be based around sports such as baseball (although non sports card were manufactured) where each player on a team will have his/her own card, maybe with a signature or some sort of personal addition along with some kind of statistics.

Actual trading card games are different in that they combine the collecting of regular trading cards with strategic game play. These games use sets of specially designed cards that can be used in conjunction with that specific games rule set. 

These games are generally more competitive and tournaments are held worldwide to win a variety of prizes which could be cash or a special card of some sort.The very first TCG (Trading Card Game) is Magic: The Gathering which was first released in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast. This is probably the best TCG in my opinion although I haven't played it recently. There is also a digital version of the game which is released annually that takes many existing cards from the actual game so it is more convenient for players to find rivals online.

Other popular games include the Japanese titles Pokemon and Yu-Gi-Oh which have spawned their own set of video games and anime series.

Card Game Variants - Top Trumps (DD1000)

Top Trumps is a comparing card game where each card includes a number of statistics for the item on the card and then compares the selected value with another player in order to try and win/trump their card. The winner is the player who manages to take all of the opponents cards.

I used to play this game in my childhood and a large variety of subjects were available to choose from including super cars  different film titles and prehistoric creatures.

It was first introduced in the 1970's and was mainly targeted at young children, mainly boys and grew to be a popular playground game. Packs were in a low price range so that they were affordable after a few weeks pocket money. In 1999, The game was relaunched for the modern era and has since included a much larger variety of subjects when compared to its previous first release. It is still currently in production.

Final Presentation (XB1134)

Below is the final presentation sheet that I will hand into James. I have included the Specular, Normal and Diffuse maps which are all used for texturing and then I downloaded Marmoset Toolbag to get some nice screenshots by using bloom effects and lighting. Overall I am quite happy with the outcome.

Normal Map (XB1134)

After completeing both the low poly and high poly models for my revolver, I used the baking process to project the definition from my high poly to my low poly model so that they look identical without exceeding 6000 tris.

Below is the normal map which was produced from the baking process.

Ashley Wood Style (DD1101)

The finished version of my attempt at drawing in Ashley Wood's art style

Sean Galloway and Ashley Wood (DD1101)

Sean Galloway (left) and Ashley Wood (right, unfinished) influenced drawings, examples on the bottom

Social Games: Card Games (DD1000)

After looking at several early boardgames including Backgammon, Chess, Senet and Go which lead to the hundreds of commercial board games now available, I will move on to card games which are another type of game that has existed for many years.

The origin of playing cards are shrouded in mystery as no evidence can be found to pinpoint when they first came to use. It is simply said that playing cards emerged at different times in different cultures across the ages. This was the 14th century for Europe where Tarot decks were used. You may be more familiar with these card when I say that they were later used in divination to determine the mental and spiritual pathways of individuals.

The traditional playing cards that are used to this day that consist of four suits had a few design changes with the French design of Hearts, Diamonds, Spades and Clubs being the most recent. Moving ahead in time, playing cards branched out and are being used in different types of games. 

Sean Galloway Image (DD1101)

Sean Galloway Art Style Image (Coloured)

Sean Galloway Artstyle (DD1101)

For Mark's final task of the semester we must design and draw a character in three different art styles that correlate towards three different artists specifically. Sean Galloway is my first artists and viewing some of his artwork shows that he uses angular/ jagged shapes which make an enthusiatic figure.

I have almost completed my drawing of an military general which can be seen below:

Market Legacy (XB1000)

For Stephens new assignment we must create a 4 player board game that includes a repetitive pattern. We played some digital games such as Miss Managements and Diner Dash to gain an understanding of how the game should play.

I decided to create a game based on selling goods in a supermarket as Stephen explained that a good way to come up with an idea is to think of something you find really fun or really boring and convert it into a game. For me this is working in my local supermarket.

Below I have made some brief notes that explain how the game will play and some designs for the game board and scorecard that each player will possess.

4 players

Each player runs their own supermarket that has just begun business (choose their own name)

Each player starts off with a set amount of cash and initial stock for each resource

Resources are represented as tokens that are placed on a player’s stock card

Players use their own small figure to represent their location on the board

Players move around the board using two dice, one represents the Y axis, one represents the X axis

Each player has a scorecard containing four different categories of food:

·         Meat

·         Dairy

·         Carbohydrates

·         Organic

·         These four catergories cover a wide range of products within that food group for example, Carbohydrates covers bread, wheat, flour, pasta etc

The board is made up of tiles that contain different suppliers; there are four starting tiles on the edge of the game board

Suppliers provide resources; suppliers need to be purchased by players in order to gain that resource.

Resources are increased every turn according to how many suppliers are owned by a player, one per supplier

Customer cards are drawn once per turn which declare how many units of each resource have been purchased that turn (one turn represents one day)

Event cards are drawn by landing on a tile containing the event symbol. These can help or hinder a player by confronting them with an event such as tainted meat, horse DNA so sales are corrupted etc

On a players turn they may trade resources with another player if they agree to it. There is no limit to the amount of resources that can be traded however other players cannot trade between themselves unless it is their turn.

 

 

 

 

 

Social Games (DD1000)

The final task for Ben this semester involves creating a poster about the history of social games and presenting it to the rest of the group. Our group has decided to divide up the subject into three major categories: Physical Games, Board Games and Digital Games. 

I will be looking at board games and how they have changed over the span of many years. I found a nice timeline from John Radoff's internet wonderland which displays a brief summary of the topic in its entirety. The image can be viewed below:

Radoff explains how dice represent luck and apparently stemmed from Soothsayers using bone pieces to predict future events. While different forms of dice have been used throughout history, Backgammon was one of the first which originated in Persia around 3000BC.

Chess (being one of the most famous and classic board games) was previously thought to be a method of teaching battle strategy's to generals and then was described as teaching caution, circumspection and foresight according to an essay written by Benjamin Franklin "Morals of Chess"

High Poly Gun Model (XB1134)

Here are a couple of screenshots of my final high poly revolver model. I followed the tutorial James gave us and found the modelling process quite enjoyable. I'm pretty happy with the outcome.

Art Styles (DD1101)

For marks final task of the semester we must design a character using three different art styles that are related to three seperate artists. I have decided to make a vampire general in an army uniform and have used a reference of myself in a "standing to attention pose".

Gun 3D Model - Research (XB1134)

Our final assignment for James this semester is to produce both a complete 3D model of a gun designed by ourselves. I decided to design a revolver pistol as I am fond of this weapons aesthetics and practical design (as well as recently playing Metal Gear Solid 3). I began by searching for images of existing revolvers and gathered them together into a mood board which can be seen below. As you can see, they come in a variety of different styles as well as more recent models having a higher ammunition capacity.

I also had a look at revolvers with attached scopes which had some interesting designs although for my design I would not include one.

While researching information about how the firearm actually operates I discovered that throughout the revolvers lifespan that models could have three different loading and reloading mechanisms. I created a diagram below which gives a brief summary of each design.

 Now that I had a good idea of what my design would look like I drew out the design with turnaround views of both sides and the front of the revolver. I found a diagram that described each part of the gun and how the major parts functioned.

The latch on the left side of the gun is used to release the cylinder that contains the ammunition which shifts down and out from the weapon. The bullets are then loaded into the cylinder and pushed back into the weapon.

There are also two different firing methods, one where the user must pull back the hammer manually and then pull the trigger which snaps the hammer forward to fire the bullet. The other method is more modern where pulling the trigger will pull back the hammer automatically which allows for faster firing.

I have provided a copy of the diagram below:

I drew out a final design sketch showing both sides and the front of the revolver which is also shown below:



The materials of the gun would mostly of an aluminium alloy and a steel barrel. The hand grip would be made of a hard plastic since my design uses more modern materials used in today's firearms.



Space Tank Complete (DD1101)

Here is the final design sheet for the tank I designed. I have included the silhouettes that I produced as part of my research just to show how the tanks design developed as I drew it. I decided to name it the "Tempest" as it describes a violent storm and this vehicle fires plasma beams which have a similarity to lightning bolts.

I have also explained key elements of the vehicle on the sheet such as how the cannon works and how it manoeuvres. Overall I am happy with how my design came out, now I need to design the pilot which I'm thinking will be a group of small alien creatures who are classed as engineers.

Space Tank Continued (DD1101)

I have now completed the side view of my tank and begun to add some colour. I have decided to use the same colour scheme as a Wraith Tank from Halo as it suits the design of the tank the most.

I have also drawn a stick figure next to the tank in order to display how large the vehicle is in terms of height. The figure represents an average 6ft male human.

Vehicle Design (DD1101)

In Mark's lesson we received a new assignment to design a land, sea or air based vehicle and produce a design sheet for it. I began by researching current images of vehicles and narrowed it down to three different types that I would be interested in designing. these were either an 18 wheeler truck, a military tank or a mech (an example of this would be a Metal Gear variant such as the REX or RAY from Metal Gear Solid).

I ultimately decided to design a tank as their design features appealed to me the most. I then quickly drew out some silhouettes for different tanks, even one that would transform into a mech like vehicle but I decided to go towards more alien designs.

The tank below is the final design that I chose. Its role is mainly anti-structural support as the cannon it possesses has a wide range and can decimate several large structures with one round. The bottom section contains the thrusters that allow the tank to hover above the ground and move with agile speed and prowess. The upper section can rotate a full 360 degree angle which further increases mobility that wouldn't be possible on a conventional tank 

Four Weapons and Armour Set (DD1101)

Below are the final versions for both my set of four weapons and accompanying armour. I have given each weapon a brief descriptiona s to how they are handled and have also incorporated them with the armour to display how they would be worn.

The armour set is influenced heavily from ancient samurai battle armour but has been more streamlined to allow better freedom of movement. The armour pads and helmet are forged with a solid carbon alloy to stand up to heavy attacks without losing durability but remain a light weight.

Underneath this the user where's a special bonding suit that injects nanomahines into the user to increase their strength, speed and regenerative abilities greatly. These are injected through the glowing diamonds placed throughout the suit.

Overall I am happy with the designs I came up with as they are all relative to ancient Japanese weaponry and came out quite nicely.

UDK 20 Brushes Challenge (XB1000)

For Stephens next assignment we must construct a level using UDK (Unreal Development Kit) with a maximum of different brushes. I decided to create a symmetrical map for multiplayer deathmatch with multiple levels. Once creating the layout using a total of 19 brushes, I added textures to each object.

I then added spawn points for players with logically placed weapons and armour pick ups.

At the moment I am very pleased with the level as we performed some multiplayer testing on it and I recieved very positive feedback.

Below is a screenshot of the level within UDK:

Medium Weapon (DD1101)

I decided to redraw my katana weapon as I was not happy with the first attempt. This new version looks alot more tidy and futuristic which is the style im going for. The green in the centre of the sword is superheated plasma that conducts energy through the sword to cut through tough objects with ease.

On the handle is a trigger that activates and deactivates this function.

Tom Granger Design (DD1101)

Here is the final version of Tom Granger with his weapons and armour. I can say I'm quite happy with this assignment as I put more attention to detail in the armour and related the deisgn to the character's description in the book.

Weapons and Armour Design (DD1101)

For our new task with Mark we must cdesign a set of 4 weapons and accompanying armour with one heavy weapon, one standard wepaon, one light weapon and one concealed weapon.

I have decided to create a sort of futuristic samurai armour and weapon set so he will have weapons such as a crossbow, katana, and cannon.

I have made a start on the katana which is filled with superheated plasma surrounded by a metal alloy that can withstand the tempreture but also conducts the heat so that the sword can cut through objects with much more ease.

Leeds Royal Armoury (DD1101)

Today we paid a visit to the Leeds Royal Armoury where we were given some time to handle a variety of melee and ranged weapons so that we could get a more accurate idea of how these weapons would work with our next task. 

An example of this is how heavy they are since some games have a single character carrying an array of weapons which would be impossible in reality. They require a large amount of strength to be wielded for long periods of time.

Below I have posted some images of the trip so that you can get a better understanding of what we came across. Just to be clear - ALL WEAPONS WERE BEING HANDLED IN A SAFE ENVIRONMENT UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF QUALIFIED STAFF IN THE MUSEUM. NO LIVE ROUNDS WERE USED OR PRESENTED DURING THE DISPLAY. THIS WAS PURELY FOR EDUCATIONAL PURPOSES.

Game Design Document (XB1000)

For Stephen's next assignment we are to create a six page game design document for a game based on a cartoon from the 1980's. We were all assigned our own unique cartoon with which I received Darkwing Duck, a spin-off series to Duck Tales broadcast on Disney Channel.

The game will be a 3D sandbox game, a mix between games such as Ratchet and Clank with Batman: Arkham City for purchase on the Xbox Live Arcade and the PlayStation Network and will follow a plot created by me using the Darkwing Duck universe. Players will take the role of both Darkwing himself and his sidekick LaunchPad McQuack who have different play styles.

Below are some notes I wrote to give a round up of the plot and some other game aspects:

Darkwing run round, shoot, fly, take side quests, like ratchet and clank and Batman AC

Launchpad controls aircraft, shooting challenges

Fearsome Five steal Darkwings daughter, Negaduck In slime form, turning townspeople into  evil beings, turns out they are decoys, F.O.W.L used them as a distraction so they could successfully summon the demon Duckthula, they cannot control it, team up with darkwing to seal him back up

Bosses cater differently example, Quackerjack has metagames using toys

Strong Man Texture Presentation (XB1134)

SDK Complete Textures (XB1134)

Below are images of both my finished texture map and the textures as they appear on the model, overall I am happy with what I have produced although my experience with creating textures for clothing could be improved.