BA7 Research: Game studies

Brief studies on video games

Brief studies on video games that possess qualities I want in my scene.

A brief study of Alice Madness Returns

Looking for some similar game environments that relate to my studio work is somewhat difficult. One game that I have studied is Alice Madness Returns. I remember seeing some screenshots of the game through a presentation that was made by one of my friend; Jess Smith. The environment that I saw was bizarre and this intrigued me.

This image is a screenshot of the game taken from (g4tv.com) http://www.g4tv.com/games/xbox-360/62949/alice-madness-returns/articles/71503/american-mcgee-r-j-berg-on-alice-madness-returns/

The walkway seen just to the right I feel can relate to my scene with the bridge. If I were to walk on the bridge/walkway in the game I wouldn’t necessarily feel safe, I’d feel uneasy. I really like the art style of this game also, the grunge, dirty textures really work well in contrast to the environment. The environment is very surrealistic but still I find this intriguing. 

Another screenshot from (Neo Seeker) http://www.neoseeker.com/Games/Products/PC/alice_madness_returns/userreviews.html?reviewid=35479

A quote from Neo Seekers user reviews ‘The graphics and atmosphere for this game are very well done. I would sometimes just stand there and look at Wonderland, because of how lovely it looked. The atmosphere and noises sometimes put you on edge at some places, but since this is a horror game, it was pulled off rather well.’ – (haalyle's Alice: Madness Returns Review)

The image above I feel is one that relates to what I want a player to feel if they were in the environment, on edge. Although seeming quite the obvious and Alice being on the edge this element of being so close to edge and being able to fall off again relates to the bridge in my scene as well as the walkways.

The main design element with Alice Madness Returns is surreal, although my scene won’t be surreal the design elements of the environments in this game are really inspiring and very intriguing. I feel this is because it’s so different, it make me question why it looks like it does.

A brief study of World of Warcraft

World of Warcraft might not spring to mind when thinking of horror games or ones that may make you feel uncomfortable however the design of the buildings have a peculiar construction. I will say however though that parts of WoW are quite creepy thus relating to horror in some ways. Below are pictures that I have taken from ‘The Art of World of Warcraft, Cataclysm’ book. Each image I feel in some ways represents a connection to my studio environment scene. 

This concept piece is of a small house in WoW. The perspective and architectural construction of this house is different from the norm. Given the obvious design work flow for World of Warcraft is has a very distinct cartoon design however I really like the way that it has been designed, the odd angle in which the roofs take shape intrigues me for my environment scene.

This concept piece I chose because I felt that it was creepy and if in game could potentially be scary. The street scene on the top right I find especially interesting is because I find it resembles my scene somewhat, the buildings are within the same design genre as mine. 

The image above I picked out because of the broken floor, this same design will most likely be found in my scene along the walkways. This design is something that I feel will help to make my scene in particular uneasy and hopefully uncomfortable. The way the concept has been designed so that the broke rocks can be found beneath it suggests that it isn’t safe and so therefore you would be cautious about walking over it. 

This piece I chose because of the dangerous environment that it has. Being a top of a rock tower with no guard rails around from what I can make out to be a house would make my or the viewer nervous and very cautious about walking around it.

The next concept piece has similar attributes to those above with no guard rails. The broken indent in the floor on the right signifies some erosion is happening. 

These two concept pieces represent a bridge before and after destruction from a creature in game called Deathwing. This destruction design is interesting and something which I hope to achieve within my scene.

  

A brief study of Silent Hill’s environment

 

A screenshot of Silent Hill: Homecoming

This image can be found at: http://my.spill.hollywood.com/profiles/blogs/947994:BlogPost:337109

In the image above it represents a typical seen that can be found in the Silent Hill franchise, a decaying and eroded hallway what can presumed is either a hospital or a school. The level of detail in the grunge texture and the decaying walls is what I aspire my scene to look like. I want my scene to have a similar quality of texture.

A screenshot from Silent Hill: Downpour. This image can be found at: http://xba.psuni.com/new-character-art-and-screenshots-for-silent-hill-downpour-1387/

Another screenshot from Silent Hill: Downpour. This image can be found at: http://www.twcenter.net/forums/showthread.php?444943-Silent-Hill-Downpour-%28And-General-SH-Discussion-Thread%29

The screenshot above shows the fog used in game, for my project I studied a way in which to create a fog material in UDK, this method can also be applied to my scene along with the water material, although I may achieve the same depth of fog as in the screenshot above I still find inspiring as it really changes the gameplay and how the player may feel when playing the game. 

All three games possess the qualities, design and technical elements that I desire for my scene. They inspire me to create a piece that conveys the same story, the same rich history that they have. Through looking at these games briefly it has given me an insight into what can be achieved, what I can potentially achieve with my project.