Seth’s site

SUMMARY

Role

Character Artist

Intention (SMART Goal)

By March 1, as the character artist, I will learn how to UV Unwrap in order to apply textures by following this tutorial.

PRE-PRODUCTION – INQUIRY

Leader(s) in the Field / Exemplary Work(s)

Training Source(s)

• 1:33 Add Texture onto Object
• 3:49 Default UV Map on Objects
• 5:00 Object Editing Effects the UV Map
• 6:11 Preview the UV Maps
• 7:48 Editing the UV Maps
• 9:46 UV Unwrapping the Mesh
• 12:31 Smart UV Project
• 14:21 Project From View
• 17:12 Adding Seams (UV Map a Cube)
• 22:28 Adding Seams (UV Map a Cylinder)
• 27:07 Ripping the Faces
• 29:15 Applying Objects Scale

Project Timeline

• Select edges to unwrap
• unwrap edges
• Fix any mistakes
• Choose either Find Textures or Make textures

Find textures

• Find free textures to use as cloth, skin, hair
• Apply textures

Make Textures

• Color in Texture Edit
• Find a way to export in high res
• Apply texture

Evidence of Team Planning and Decisions

PRODUCTION – ACTION

The (FILM, SOUND, or GAME Creation)

Our game is still in production, and we don’t have a prototype yet.

Skills Commentary

Here’s our slideshow

POST-PRODUCTION – REFLECTION

21st Century Skills

Ways of Thinking (Creativity, Innovation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving)

In this session, I had to make a hard choice. I completed my SMART goal a lot faster than I thought I would, so I dived into the next thing I had to do, which was animation. I realized there was a problem, to make animations for an FPS, the arms and legs have to have completely different animations. Neither Arlo nor I know how to do this. On top of that, the model I made didn’t look good next to the gun models we were using. We realized to complete our project with functional animations and cohesive art, we’re going to have to use public sources. So we scrapped the model I made and decided to use models and animations from mixamo.com. We will still be making animations of our own, as we will be modifying the current animations for each gun.

Ways of Working (Communication & Collaboration)

Arlo has been a big help this session. Since we’re going to be making reloading animations for each gun, Arlo has taught me a lot about animating. He’s been a big help, and I’m glad he’s on our team.

Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)

I’ve been learning how to export assets from the unity store and Mixamo. For the unity store, it will send the asset to a unity project, and you have to export it from there. To download an asset from Mixamo, you can download it in FBX and import it to Blender that way.

Ways of Living in the World (Life & Career)

This session has taught me that sometimes, you have to completely scrap something. We could have kept the model I made, and ended up with a worse project but maybe I learn a little more, or we can use a model online and make a better product and I still learn a lot.

Reactions to the Final Version

Our game is still not ready to have others playtest, but the advisors, Lin and Nellie, said they wish to see our game when it is ready and that our game seems promising.

Self-Evaluation of Final Version

Even though we’re scrapping my model, I’m still proud of myself for making it. I had to learn a lot to make it, rig it, and texture it, and I think I did a good job. However, using Mixamo models is logically just the better choice, and they should work great for our game.
I’ve gotten to play the game we’re making, and it’s really fun. Somethings we need to work on further and fix, but hopefully, it should be ready for others by the end of the next session.

Grammar and Spelling

Grammarly

Editor

John Zickuhr

Summary

I chose Hades because It’s a really fun game with a ton of amazing characters. The music also really enhances the overall experience.

Game Play Analysis

Formal Elements
The Basics
Name of the game	Hades
The platform	Nintendo Switch, Steam
Time played (should be at least 30 minutes)	125 hours
If you could work on this game (change it), what would you change and why?	I would fix the glitch where you some players can’t max out their bond with Dusa. It’s been like 30 runs since I did everything I was supposed to do.
Players
How many players are supported?	1 Player
Does it need to be an exact number?	Yes
How does this affect play?	1 player can play at a time
Player Framework	Single Player
Objectives/Goals
What are the players trying to do?	Escape Hades (the realm), defeat Hades (the god)
objective	Destroy
Rules/Mechanics
There are three categories of (what the book Rules of Play calls) operational rules:Setup – the things you do at the beginning of a game.Progression of Play – what happens during the game.Resolution – How an outcome is determined based on the game state.	Setup: Choose weapons, talents, conditions Progression of play: Beat enemies, choose rooms to go into, choose boons resolution: If you die, return to House of Hades. If you win, return to House of Hades, but with more stuff.
Controls
What controls are used?	Stick, A,B,X,Y,L,R,Zl,ZR,+,-
Was there a clear introductory tutorial?	The game tells you what button to use
Were they easy to understand or did you find yourself spamming the controller?	easy to understand
Resources & Resource Management
What kinds of resources do players control?	darkness, gems, charon’s obol, titan blood, diamonds, nectar, ambrosia
How are they maintained during play?	You beat people up, solve quests.
What is their role?	A variety of things. Some get you new abilities/powers, some are cosmetic, and some allow you to bond with characters.
Other Resources	Other resources include health, heat, death defiances, keepsakes, chthonic companions, weapons, aspects, and time in certain runs.
Game State
How much information in the game state is visible to the player?	A lot of information, such as what resources you have. Other info is hidden until you do a certain something, such as you can’t see what rooms are ahead until you beat every enemy.
A snapshot of the game at a single point is the game state. The resources you have, the un-owned properties in Monopoly, your opponent’s Archery skill all count towards the game state. Some example information structures are:Total Information – Nothing is hidden, like Chess.Info per player – Your hand of cards is only visible to you.One player has privileged info – Like a Dungeon Master.The game hides info from all players – Like Clue, where no one knows the victory condition.Fog of War – In video games, where certain sections of the map are concealed if you do not have a unit in sight range of that area. You also cannot see other players’ screens, so each player is unaware of the other’s information.
Sequencing
In what order do players take their actions?	1 player
How does play flow from one action to another?	You have to wait until 1 animation is completed before you can do another
Structure	Real-Time
Theme & Narrative
Does it have an actual story structure?	Yes, the story in unlocked as you complete more and more runs and talk with the characters.
Is it based on a historical event (or similar)?	Based on greek mythology
Does the theme or narrative help you know how to play?	Yes, It helps me know I want to beat my dad up.
Does it have emotional impacts?	Yes, such as when you character beats the game for the first time
Also, look for en media res (does it start in the middle of the game)?	The games starts when Zagreus tries his first escape attempt
The Elements in Motion
How do the different elements interact?
What is the gameplay like?
Is it effective?
Are there any points where the design choices break down?
Design Critique	NOTES
Why did the designer make these particular choices?
Why this set of resources?
What if they made different decisions?
Does the design break down at any point?
Graphics & Sound
Does the game art pair well with the mechanics?	Yes, very well
Did you find any bugs or glitches?	Not in the graphics
What about sound?	The sound was amazing, from the fight music, to Orpheus and Eurydice, it all sounded really nice.
Can you spot any technical shortcuts?	No
Various Stages of the Game	NOTES
To wrap up, some things to keep in mind (as if there aren’t enough already) as you play:	You’re always want to consider what boons you have, and how they can lead to other things such as power duo boons or legendary boons.
What challenges do you face, and how do you overcome them?	You face the powerful wretches that live in Hades. You overcome them fighting them, and you get better at fighting using practice and the various different currencies in Hades
Is the game fair?	Some people feel the game is unfair in the beginning, and that it should be easier to escape on the first attempt. I disagree. I think it really adds to the narrative for Zagreus to have to work so hard just to escape once.
Is it replayable? Are there multiple paths to victory or optional rules that can change the experience?	It is very repayable, each escape attempt is basically replaying the game all over again.
What is the intended audience?	Teens who are willing to try a rougelike
What is the core, the one thing you do over and over, and is it fun?	Yes, fighting through the hordes of wretches that live in Hades is very fun.

This analysis form was adapted from https://notlaura.com/a-template-for-analyzing-game-design/

Resources

• Playing Like a Designer – I: Examine Your Experiences by Extra Credits
• Playing Like a Designer – II: How to Analyze Game Design by Extra Credits
• Game Analysis Guidelines by MIT
• Level 3.2: Critical Analysis of Games at learn.canvas.net

Books

• A Theory of Fun for Game Design by Raph Koster
  • raphkoster.com/2014/01/06/how-i-analyze-a-game/
• Level Up!: The Guide to Great Video Game Design by Scott Rogers
• Rules of Play: Game Design Fundamentals by Katie Salen

Mr. Le Duc’s Game Analysis Resources

• Diigo.com Game Analysis Links
• YouTube Game Analysis Playlist

SUMMARY

Role

Character Artist

Intention (SMART Goal)

By January 13, as the character artist, I will make a character model following this tutorial

PRE-PRODUCTION – INQUIRY

Leader(s) in the Field / Exemplary Work(s)

Paige Carter is a modeler for SuperGiant games who created models for the game Hades.

Training Source(s)

Evidence of Team Planning and Decisions

Ideas document

PRODUCTION – ACTION

The (FILM, SOUND, or GAME Creation)

We unfortunately do not have a game prototype at this moment, as a lot of this session was pre-production

Skills Commentary

Here’s our slideshow

POST-PRODUCTION – REFLECTION

21st Century Skills

Ways of Thinking (Creativity, Innovation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving)

One problem I had to solve was the rigging. I had to bind bones to the model I made, but they didn’t bind correctly. For instance, the arm bone was pulling parts of the hip. The problem was in the weight paint. I had to go in there and change the painting so that the bones would bind to the parts of the model that I want.

Ways of Working (Communication & Collaboration)

In this Session, 4 of us were put into the “art team”. It was our job to decide on the artistic elements of the game, such as the map, music, models, and animation. I had to collaborate with them a lot for this.

Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)

I found tutorials continue to be extremely helpful for learning how to use Blender. I had to follow a couple of different tutorials to figure out rigging, but I’ve learned a lot from each of them.

Ways of Living in the World (Life & Career)

I think this session is the most I’ve collaborated with my team, which will be helpful in the future. I particularly have worked a lot with Arlo. Once the model’s done, I’m going to hand it over to him so he can animate it.

Reactions to the Final Version

We were told the advisor looked forward to the game, and that was about it, as we didn’t have any prototype.

Self-Evaluation of Final Version

I think I did a good job. Before this session, I had no idea how I would make the player model, and no idea what rigging even was in the context of models. While my process is a bit slow, I think when the rigging is done, we’ll have a very good player model. Hard work pays off.

Grammar and Spelling

Grammarly

Editor

Larry

I ended up helping to make two games this session, so some of these paragraphs may be about Ultimate Baby Tycoon, which I made pixel art for. Others may be about a racing game, which I made one 3-D asset, as the tutorial took a very long time.

Role

Character Artist

Intention (SMART Goal)

By October 14th, for the first session of game design, by following lighting and shading basics, I will make shaded people for our Ultimate Baby Tycoon.

PRE-PRODUCTION – INQUIRY

Leader(s) in the Field / Exemplary Work(s)

Training Source(s)

• 0:21 Lighting usually comes from the top
• 1:00 Because of that, the top will typically be lighter than the bottom
• 3:30 5 shades is good, most of the pixels should be the base color, with less being light and dark, and barely any being super light and super dark.
• 6:51 Have lighting be more gradual to make rounded edges, called rim lighting
• 7:28 Specular lighting makes sharper edges, by having super light edges.

PRODUCTION – ACTION

The (FILM, SOUND, or GAME Creation)

Ultimate Baby Tycoon

Here is the link to one of the games I helped make.

Skills Commentary

Slideshow

For the 1st Session, I continued developing my pixel art skills by learning how to properly shade characters and objects. You can see this in the humans I made. For the second session, I was learning how to use Blender. I made a cool purple donut.

POST-PRODUCTION – REFLECTION

21st Century Skills

Ways of Thinking (Creativity, Innovation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving)

I think my ways of thinking have expanded a lot these past two sessions. I had to figure out a whole new program, Blender. Blender is much less friendly to new artists, and I had to follow tutorials to figure it out. I’m learning to expand my mind to design three-dimensional objects, and that’s hard. But, I’m doing it, so I’m definitely improving my thinking skills.

Ways of Working (Communication & Collaboration)

Throughout the second session, I was collaborating a lot with Arlo, as he was following the same tutorial I was. Often we would ask the other to look at our projects when we couldn’t figure something out. His goal is to learn how to animate 3-D assets, so I’ll be working with him a lot more in the future.

Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)

Working with Blender is definitely a helpful tool for the future. No longer am I restricted to pixel art, now I’m working in the third dimension. I followed a long series of tutorials on how to make a donut in blender, and it was very helpful.

Ways of Living in the World (Life & Career)

Lastly, this all applies to real world skills. Often in work I will have to learn how to work with a new program or system for whatever job I’m doing. being able to effectively switch programs and try new ways of working will be an invaluable skill in my future.

Reactions to the Final Version

One criticism we received from the advisor Hunter was that our Baby Tycoon game didn’t have a win or lose state, which is true.

One criticism I received from Bennett was that my manager sprites should be more original and not just references.

Self-Evaluation of Final Version

I’ll be evaluating using the SUCCESs model

My pixel art was Simple, Unexpected, Concrete, Credible, Emotional, and told a Story. If you look at the guys I made for Ultimate Baby Tycoon, you can see they’re not too complicated, and easy on the eyes. I would say a lot of the managers for it were very unexpected. Such as the killer clown that manages kids. Concrete and Credible don’t apply too much to art, but it was hard to be Emotional. I suppose if my art conveyed one emotion, it would be humor. A baby popping out of a machine will never not be funny to me. Lastly, my sprites told a compelling story. The baby that you start out making eventually age to kids, then teens, even adults, middle aged guys, old men, and finally… they die. If that’s not a story, I don’t know what is.

Grammar and Spelling

Grammarly

Editor

Leo

Game Competition edition

SUMMARY

Role

Lead Artist

Intention (SMART Goal)

My May 10th, as part of team 2 session 5, I will create a boss theme for lust using “HOW TO CYBERPUNK 2077 MUSIC“

PRE-PRODUCTION – INQUIRY

Leader(s) in the Field / Exemplary Work(s)

Thee guys who made the music for Cyberpunk 2077 giving an interview on how it went

Training Source(s)

2:00 90-110 bpm Snare and kick, with hi-hats after 8 bars

3:23 To make the guitar sound use a simple guitar pluck with an distortion effect applied

4:22 To make a bass line add some notes that sound dark and edgy

8:30 Sawtooth Synths with lots of reverb are good for leads and buildups

9:00 random bursts of sounds and voice snippets can be good

SMART Goal Schedule

1. Implement the boss by April 15th.
2. Have cutscenes finished by May 6th

PRODUCTION

SMART Goal Starting Point Evidence

Itch.io page

SMART Goal Ending Point Evidence

Slideshow

While this session I continued making sprites, I also started making music. My evidence is this slideshow is the soundtrack I made for the boss. I also worked on music for the title screen and main dungeon soundtrack

POST-PRODUCTION – REFLECTION

21st Century Skills

Ways of Thinking (Creativity, Innovation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving)

As always, I had to overcome issues this session, but now, these issues were music-related. It turns out, I probably should have watched more videos on how to put notes together, and how to pick instruments that sound good together and make melodies. Through trial and error, I found repeating notes is a strong tool for making good sounds and makes things easier since you don’t have to come up with more notes.

Ways of Working (Communication & Collaboration)

Perhaps what I had to communicate on the most, was the boss. For instance, Lust needed a melee move, but lust doesn’t have a weapon or claws. Lust does though have wings. Thus I made sure to tell the programmers that Lust’s melee attack would need two hit-boxes so that they would not be surprised.

Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)

I had to learn a lot of SoundTrap to make some songs. For the first song I made, I didn’t know how to make notes shorter. These notes then were very long, and couldn’t make a good song for the main game. I instead used it as the title screen. I then learned how to shorten these notes (zoom in), and proceeded to learn even more about SoundTrap.

Ways of Living in the World (Life & Career)

This session was all about work, and I did a lot of it. I made a ton of sprites for the Lust, pumping out 2-3 sprites an hour. For some reason, I decided to give Lust some fancy gradients. Nevertheless, I made half of the lust sprites this session, while also making 3 whole songs for the game, as well as a title screen. I think I developed a good work ethic.

Reactions to the Final Version

Most of the feedback was to bugs, most of which don’t apply to me

1. Multiple hit swords
2. Funky dash
3. Moving beam
4. Beam under other things
5. Too big hitboxes
6. Max health above 12

All i have to do is remake the dash animation

Self-Evaluation of Final Version

I would say under the S.U.C.C.E.S.s model, I did succeed. My sprites were simple and to the point, and I tried to make my music at least a bit unexpected, where it had common tunes but not any “chorus” part. Still not very sure how concrete applies, other than that I tried my best to give Lust consistent colors and proportions (though some animations require distortion of the wings). Credible doesn’t apply, next is emotional. Now I’m not tearing up when looking at my sprites or listening to my music, but I do feel a bit of joy looking at or hearing them, so that’s good. Lastly is story. I think the best example I have for this is the song I made for the floor, the one you hear through most of the game. I specifically added leading notes and bass notes so that they respond to each other as if they were arguing. So if I did work that does the requirements that apply, I would certainly say I was successful.

Grammar and Spelling

Grammarly

Editor

Bryce Roberts

SUMMARY

Role

Artistic Lead

Intention (SMART Goal)

By March 2nd, as the Lead artist of team 2, I will make attack animations by following Animations for an Action RPG Character – Pixel Art Breakdown and create 3 attacks for separate entities for our Session 4 project.

PRE-PRODUCTION – INQUIRY

Leader(s) in the Field / Exemplary Work(s)

Training Source(s)

Project Timeline

1. Basic enemy AI
2. Functional Imp sprites
3. Improved room generation
4. Basic boss implementation
5. Basic player upgrades

Proposed Budget

Pre-Production edited by John Zickuhr

PRODUCTION

SMART Goal Starting Point Evidence

Itch.io

Skills Commentary

In this session, I focused on attack animations. The imp was the first thing I worked on this month, and I’m happy with this result, especially the emanata. I also redid the sword attacks to look better, made an animation for the player firing a beam, and several traps. I’ve also been working to make my animations longer so I can fully capture the world.

POST-PRODUCTION – REFLECTION

21st Century Skills

Ways of Thinking (Creativity, Innovation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving)

I had to create a couple of new things for this session. I needed to make several new assets. I think my arrow trap was creative. I made a sort of demon statue that shoots arrows from his mouth. There was a problem of how I did not know how to show a signal it was about to shoot when he was facing upwards. I solved this by giving the demon a tail that would move before he fires a shot.

Ways of Working (Communication & Collaboration)

I had to collaborate quite a bit with my team. I needed to know how other traps like the lava trap would work. If I didn’t ask Bryce how he wanted it, I would have made a completely different trap. The team leader, John, asked me to do a bit more work on the sword attack sprite, which I agreed with. I got part of it to look better, but I think I should return to it again.

Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)

I used media literacy to get inspiration for the traps. It’s a good thing I did because if I didn’t I would have made a worse spike trap. I also experimented a bit with layers on PixelArt, particularly to make a beating heart that will heal the player.

Ways of Living in the World (Life & Career)

I developed life and career skills by just getting work done. Sometimes you just have to get on the grind and get some sprites out. You need something, you get an idea, you make it, spend some time revising it, ask others what they think, and you submit it.

Reactions to the Final Version

Jim Flatmo said our game was cool so yeah, I’m the best.

Self-Evaluation of Final Version

Looking at my work under the S.U.C.C.E.S.s model, I think I did well. I kept it simple but still good. I wouldn’t say my work was unexpected, but I think it will keep players engaged. My work is also pretty concrete, one could argue too much and they could move a bit more. I don’t know how credible my art is, but the developers like it so they’re my credit. My work brings lots of emotions, from the soft feeling of looking at something kind of cute to the betrayal when it attacks you. I can also make the players feel fear, some of the work is very spooky. Lastly, my work tells a story, the story of a guy fighting demons.

What I Learned and Problems I Solved

Generally, all my problems just come from me thinking my work could be better. I can solve this problem in various ways. I can look for inspiration, redraw it, find a tutorial. Other times I just look at it for a bit, trying to find what could be improved. It’s also important to ask others for their opinions on it.

Grammar and Spelling

Grammarly

Editor

Leo

SUMMARY

Role

Character Artist

Intention (SMART Goal)

By January 28, as part of my game design team, I will have completed Flow Studio’s color theory guide to be able to indicate how items, enemies, traps, spells, and powers will impact the player for our session 3 project.

PRE-PRODUCTION – INQUIRY

Leader(s) in the Field / Exemplary Work(s)

Nick Wozniak

Training Source(s)

Project Timeline

Proposed Budget

PRODUCTION – ACTION

The (FILM, SOUND, or GAME Creation)

Game under production

Skills Commentary

Game under production

POST-PRODUCTION – REFLECTION

21st Century Skills

Ways of Thinking (Creativity, Innovation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving)

I had to think a lot while making sprites, as it is a very creative endeavor. I had to design original characters, consider the perspective of the character, solve problems such as how do you make it top down without a massive head, and make sure it looks nice.

Ways of Working (Communication & Collaboration)

I had to communicate with my team quite a bit, as when making a character you have to consider its hit boxes. We discussed things such as how we may want to limit some elements to be only 4 directional so I have less work, and then having some enemies only move diagonally just as a fun extra mechanic for those enemies.

Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)

I did all my work on pixelart.com, which is what I used the last session, so I haven’t learned much. While I would focus on trying to learn how to import my animations to Unity, I have to pump these babies out and John’s work is early development so I’m just going to let him do it.

Ways of Living in the World (Life & Career)

I suppose the biggest skill I’m developing is sometimes, you just have to deal with the fact you don’t know how to make something perfect. I’m unhappy with the sword animation, but it does function and convey a swipe of the sword, and it would take a while to make it perfect. Therefore, it’s best just to leave it be and move on to the next thing.

Reactions to the Final Version

Game did not ship

Self-Evaluation of Final Version

Game did not ship

What I Learned and Problems I Solved

Well, I learned a lot about perspective and how to make it look not bad. I also learned a bit about color theory. I solved the problem that we need sprites, and I think I did a good job solving that problem.

Grammar and Spelling

Grammarly

Editor

Cue

Notes

What is MDA? What does it stand for? What do those mean in games?

MDA is an approach to understand games. M- Mechanics D- Dynamics A- Aesthetics Mechanics are the data and algorithms of the game Dynamics- behavior of mechanics and player input Aesthetics- emotional response of player Games should be thought of as challenge, fantasy sensation, not just fun For a competition game, you want the players to want to compete. When dealing with dynamics, you want to consider the aesthetics and response of the player.

Summary

SUMMARY

Role: Artist

I was the lead artist, so I made most of the sprites and the music

Intention (SMART Goal)

Goal: Make an interesting setting for the game using sprites.

The specific skill needed for making these sprites is the ability to make cool pixel art. It’s measurable if somebody look at these sprites and say “yeah this game has a cool world”. This is also achievable, as while I still have a lot to learn about pixel art, I can create an interesting world. I’m setting this goal now because I think it’s important for the sprites you make to enhance the world of the game, so it’s best if I learn that now. The deadline for this goal is when the game releases, and I think I can make enough sprites by then.

PRE-PRODUCTION – INQUIRY

Leader(s) in the Field / Exemplary Work(s)

Below is gameplay of Jason Perry’s game Jubilee, courtesy of his Twitter

Last change to get Jubilee's launch discount! 💸

Tomorrow it goes to its regular price, so grab it tonight!https://t.co/N8e1lTOFsB#indiegame #indiegames pic.twitter.com/TEJMSe72Jl

— Jason Perry (@finalbossblues) November 23, 2021

There’s also an Interview with Jason Perry by Concept Art Empire

Jason has made a couple of small indie games by himself and specializes in pixel art. He also has several asset packs for sale and free tutorials on his website, finalbossblues. I think he stands out because, just look at his art, that’s cool. I also think it’s a neat idea to sell your pixel art to small game designers so they can make a game without having to make the art themselves.

Training Source(s)

• 1:15 Start with small canvases
• 3:31 Make every pixel count
• 3:55 Make a silhouette first
• 4:15 Keep objects to 3 colors, each color also has a base, shadow, and highlight.
• 4:40 To make a shadow, decrease value and saturation, while also making color a bit bluer
• 4:55 To make highlights, do the opposite of what you do for the shadow to make a highlight for a regular object, but for shiny objects, you should still decrease saturation
• 5:45 Helpful website for palettes is lospec
• 5:55 For shading, keep in the top right or left corner, and keep it consistent
• 6:10 There are three main types of borders, none, solid color, and the “complex one”
• 6:55 Look at other people’s art for inspiration and learn from them

Project Timeline

• Brainstorm ideas for the game
• Decide which ideas we like and how easy they would be to implement
• Program minimal viable product
• Program additional features
• Design levels using features
• Design sprites
• Program menu
• Design song
• Fix bugs
• Present game

PRODUCTION – ACTION

The (FILM, SOUND, or GAME Creation)

Warp Wizard

Skills Commentary

Presentation

I think we did a good job. I particularly like my wizard walking animation so I included the sprite sheet. The song I composed is also really cool.

POST-PRODUCTION – REFLECTION

21st Century Skills

Ways of Thinking (Creativity, Innovation, Critical Thinking, Problem Solving)

I was creative with my sprites by choosing that a platformer where you can redirect projectiles would be best represented as a wizard. I then innovated by thinking about another group’s game, lizards vs wizards. If they have a game about lizards fighting wizards, and our character is a wizard, then he should fight lizards! I also used critical thinking to analyze my sprites and improve them. Lastly, I used problem-solving to look at how my sprites looked in movement by making a short gif of what it would look like and deciding if I liked it.

Ways of Working (Communication & Collaboration)

I would often communicate with my team to see what sprites we needed, what the sprite would look like, and whether or not they liked the finished project. I often collaborated with Leo when he was making the backgrounds.

Tools for Working (Info & Media Literacy)

I used information literacy to figure out the tools my pixel art creator had and decided how to use them to improve my art. I made a lot of cool stuff using the brush tool.

Ways of Living in the World (Life & Career)

During this project, I was developing the skill of getting work done, even outside of the work environment. I made a lot of sprites, and I even worked on a couple of them in the free time I had outside of class. I think that’s a very useful skill to have when we’re surrounded by distractions we could do instead.

Reactions to the Final Version

I asked a lot of online friends to play my game, and I’d like to use their comments. It seems they had a lot of problems redirecting the projectiles, but they liked my work on the art and music. Although one of them said “omg the music scared me” when they first started which was a sentiment shared by one of my teammates on an earlier version of the song.

Nate from class said “I really liked the re-direction mechanic”. While john

Self-Evaluation of Final Version

I think I did a good job, lets look at it compared to the SUCCESs model

• Simple- Both my art and music were pretty simple, easy to understand, but still good
• Unexpected- Well perhaps the lizard making an appearance and the scary bits of my song were unexpected, but overall I don’t think this applies much to art and music
• Concrete- I don’t know how this applies to art, so I’m just going to say my work was solid
• Emotional- Well one of my unused sprites was a very emotional picture of the wizard’s hat next to a blast mark and some blood, but that wasn’t used. Ooh! I did install the emotion of fear with my music
• Stories- I think my art did tell a story, and that was essentially my SMART goal, which I think I knocked out of the park.

What I Learned and Problems I Solved

I learned a lot about making pixel art. It’s always been a hobby I would practice but never really like my works, but getting to work on my art for a project motivates me to make my art better and ask other people what they think of it. It’s changed my perspective on my art since it turned out a lot of people liked my art, which I thought looked terrible. I’ll go away from this not only trying to make my art even better but also looking for advice from professional artists to figure out techniques I can use to improve it.

Grammar and Spelling

Grammarly

Editor

John Zickuhr