Task 10: Elements of game design, part three: character

I think each character in TV or in films that play their character need to act totally different to their own personality, which I think is a very difficult task. There are some actors who have to live in a completely different environment to get comfortable with a certain characters personality. For example; an Indian movie called Radio, the protagonist had to live with radio presenters to get to know how to act like the radio presenter. I think this is a huge task for actors to change their personality for a role in a movie which lasts for about an hour and half, and what makes it harder for the actor is the fact that he spent weeks in a completely new environment and the TV show, film or even a game was not successful.

I think actors that play a role in an action movie where the hero has to defeat the villain is the one that I feel that really connects to me, as I always want the hero to win over the villain. I think this is because most films have the character do good deeds at the beginning to make you like the character from the very beginning and then a villain comes along and kills his parents which make you hate the villain and then begin to love the hero even more. Stuff like that really gets me to feel for a certain character.

In order for the character to be popular the script needs to be strong and be understandable to the actor and the audience. The script plays a huge role on a character as it shows what the character needs to act as and make his personality his own. The character also needs to wear suitable costumes to fit in with the mood of the script to show the audience how he is feeling through the use of his clothing.

I find action and adventure movies the best, as I love it when the hero and villain are battling it out for something they desire. I have come to love this sort because I have been watching it from the very beginning of my existence and I love to watch movies that have some sort of action in it.

Task 9: Elements of game design, part two: art direction for games

The art director is in charge of the main visual designs that are seen within a game and how it connects to the audience through the art side. The art director also works closely with the art team to be a member of the team and also be the inspiration to the team. The art director works directly under the production designer, however the main director of the game is responsible for the art director he needs to report back to the main director on how the project is coming along, so it is vital for the art director to give feedback to the director.

The role of an art director is a creative role as I think anything to do with the word ‘Art’ means being creative so I do think that art director means being creative. He needs to be full of ideas and be an inspiration to other art members.

There are various similarities between games and films in art direction, as they both need to have a creative mind and have the knowledge and urge to make it the best. In films the Art Director needs to create something which is real and can be touched by the actor and is made in a much bigger scale than games, however in games the art director needs to create something which is not real and therefore can create an object which may not have existed in real life.

If I wanted to become an art director then I would need to have loads of experience in working in a game company as a lead artist and need to have a game published in to the market. I also would develop on my skills as an artist and try to build my knowledge as being a creative mind. As I believe an art director needs to be creative to be successful.

I am getting used to the amount of work I am given each week as at first I did not know what to focus more on visual design, game production or critical research. But it’s getting better, trying to get most of it done within the required time.

Task 8: Elements of game design, part one

The term Gameplay is used to distinguish how a particular game is played, whether it is something original or something different. I also think Gameplay is used by reviewers to give scores or to rate a game. It’s mainly to see the experience in which the player had whilst playing the game. I think the companies who are making good games that turn out to be popular in both sales and reviews are the leading companies with the best Game design, some worth mentioning are Square-Enix, Epic, Valve etc.

Game developing takes place after the normal procedures are complete such as the initial sketches and designs, then the developer can know and understand what to work on. A game designer needs to accomplish and achieve a variety of issues alongside loads of calculations to develop a game. Game developing is not about singularity however some developers do prefer working on their own which is understandable as they would rather develop something which is entirely in their own concepts and ideas. But I would prefer working as a team and it broadens the ideas and thoughts.

I think different genres do require different game design as they would all be the same in the way the game plays, moreover game design is a vital part in creating a game so being the same in all games can be a bit repetitive in the way the game plays and looks.

When a game is released every game has its own unique game play, this is a must so it is very important. For instance; Gears of War has its own sort of game play, its targeted towards the older generations looking at teenagers and above. Parents will not let their 9 year old play this game because of its violent game play. Parents will know this by looking into the games game play and game design.

I really do not mind if a games graphics is like totally bad, however the game needs to have a seriously good plot line and needs to have smooth game play. A game that had a really good story line was a classic Final Fantasy VIII, I know the graphics are not very good but the story and game play still makes me want to play it.

Task 6: Writing about Games, Previews, reviews, commentary and lies

One of the issues that games journalists face is that not everyone or should say not every gamer would be on the same side as the journalist. What I mean by this is that if a journalist wrights a review and gives a game a rating of 6/10 and mentions a lot of bad aspects, a gamer can say that the review is wrong and should be given a higher or lower rating. There’s even a few times when there have been conflicts between reviewers as to who is right and who is wrong. Some journalists can also be biased, as they can review a game which they like and give it a high score just because they like the game.

If a journalist is part of company such as IGN; then IGN would pay them their salary. However if a journalist is a free lance then he/she would put their review on some sort of webpage or even send a copy to companies. This in turn might make the company see if he/she is a good reviewer and hire them.

There are lot of games that are incorporating the use of the ranking system this is mainly because it allows the users to rank their characters according to their desired needs. I do not really think it is necessary; however I think it does drive sales. This is because a gamer could rank up as much as he wants due to the time he spends playing the game. A gamer can also become emotionally attached to the character he/she has built and nurtured for so long equipping him with new items and perks. Even the big developers have incorporated this technique such as Activision with Cod: Black Ops. They see a potential in the ranking system and more developers are going to use this technique.

I think as a writer there’s a lot of aspects I can improve such as; they way I write and using the right term to explain things. But I think I need to improve on trying to get my point of view to the reader and also trying to implement my feelings across to the reader.