Plimenary shmenary!!

1. Initial Plans
Joe Duffy

2. Pre-Proposal
The area of interest I plan on continuing in my FMP is Video Game Animation.
The format of the game would be RPG based directly off my previous Video Game
project but with a much more enhanced look and and a cleaner interface and
hopefully a further advancement in plot with a complete battle. It would be like the
Super Mario All Starts version of the NES games on the SNES or the 3DS ports of the
N64 Zelda games, Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask.
The techniques I would like to use in this project include the ability to proficiently
animate a smooth motion, especially on the characters so that they flow nicely instead
of being jolty. I would like to practise my skills at pixel art, by having detail that can be
maintained through different frames of animation therefore bettering my
organisational skills of the layers of art I make so I don’t get confused in making the
animation.
Inspirations for my project are from video games, more specifically Role-Playing
Games (RPGs), of the 16-Bit era whose art style and general layout could provide some
examples of how to portray the concept without much clunkiness. These games
include Final Fantasy, Chrono Trigger, Persona as well as Fire Emblem and even some
modern takes on the retro style like Undertale especially with its atmospheric
landscapes.

3. Skills Audit

4. Initial ReactionI thought about what I would do for my FMP for a few weeks,
deciding to create my Video Game project in an enhanced
appearance in both the art style and the sound. This is because
I really enjoyed making the Video Game Project, and with
added experience could improve upon the ideas I created then.
I am hoping that I can get as far as I wanted in my previous
project, without having to cut anything due to time restraints
and make any parts that were a little rushed cleaner. However,
as I recently learned I got a Distinction in my Video Game
project, I am slightly concerned about how this project can
exceed my original work. I am hoping that what I have learned
since will aid me in creating a successful product.
I plan on practicing models and motions of the environment
before production officially starts, so that I don’t fall
under stress, due to time restraints, as I did in the previous
animation production.
I am attempting to not think about how crucial this particular
project is so that I can reduce the time I worry about all the
tiny intricacies of my work throughout the project and get on
with what I know is right for me to do, allowing more time on
what I consider to be the most important aspects. However,
this may work the opposite way and cause me to ease off a
little, as I am not anxious to do as much as I possibly can. I will
do my best to avoid this completely blasé attitude.

5. What I love about Video Game
Animation
I really enjoy planning out how I am going to make the animation look in
pixels and practicing the overall look, leading up to the final design. I find it
particularly satisfying when I have made all the assets and they flow well with
and into each other, and completing the entirety of the slides, therefore
completing the animation. The implementation of audio is nice, especially
with more complex pieces that work very successfully with the visuals. When
the product is completed is the most enjoyable moment of the project as I
can be completely satisfied and see the flow of the movement and the music
be incorporated well. The key part of the technique I get really infused with is
translating my imagination into a seeable work of art, learning what I can and
more importantly can't do, and how I plan to overcome such obstacles to get
as close to my concept story as possible.

6. What I dislike about Video Game
Animation
On the other hand, I can easily find the production tedious in multiple segments. Creating
multiple versions of the same piece can take a lot of work for a small change to move, and
can be confusing as to which part of movement I should be producing. The multiple versions
of a set piece in the animation can also take an insane amount of effort to keep tidy,
otherwise being a complicated mess to move around while animating. This progresses into
the final struggle with the visual progress of controlling the slides. Every slide has to move
the entire scene at least a fraction so I need to know how long to make each part of the
environment keep on screen. However the programme has difficulty not slowing down with
more slides added so only when the video is made, can you analyse the pacing of the
animation. I also find it terribly tedious to know what slides should change and into what.
With the different times for the changes I cannot keep every slide rotating at the same time,
making all the parts have their own clock to keep to. Due to the lack of restriction in art, I
believe my own drive to make the work look as good as it can, makes the workload heavier
as since one piece is sophisticated every other part has to look similar. This means I have to
rush and therefore the product can look worse in places when I had to rush. This gripe is
more personal so I can't blame to technique too hard. Finally, the audio can be a tough bit of
work to sound memorable and fit well into the scene. The websites I use to make the music
are not bad but don't give much of an idea as to how to make a great flowing track,
therefore making most of my work pretty stilted. They work and fit the atmosphere but I
would like to feel more liberated when making the songs.

7. Audience
I believe my audience will be around my age, approximately from 14 to 26 in
both genders but stereotypically, with the large fantasy element I will place,
the male side would have a bigger preference. Due to this, I have reason to
believe that they would enjoy the more narratively focussed design with the
character interactions being a large focus of progression. The general RPG
element put into the fighting system would also be engaging for this
demographic with more complexities put in for the audience to think ahead
about where a younger player would be bored. From personal experience, I
would expect the audience may spend a lot of time involving themselves in
the game so the structure needs to be solid and I believe having an
interesting visual and audio appearance would help keep the target
audience‘s attention.

8. Key Words
Fantasy, Ancient, Mysterious, Anxious,
Worried, Dangerous, Mythical,
Teamwork, Fighting, Monster, Arrogant,
Stern, Magical, Determined, Fiery,
Terrifying, Imposing, Suspenseful,
Heated, Steely, Argumentative, Snarky,
Heroic, Relatable, Ferocious, Timid,
Distinct

9. Mood Board

10. Mood Board Analysis
How does your mood board inspire your project?
The use of vivid colour allows an environment or battle sequence to become memorable as
brighter colours will stay in with you far more than purely duller greys or blacks. This more
subtle layer of theming connects the player with the surroundings, as each location,
character or option they view has a distinct colour the player can identify with. The use of
colour can work well to show what is happening during a part of the plot without having to
tell the player directly, leading to possible expectation subversion with the player thinking a
certain colour will be prominent only to be put on guard by even the slightest change in
tone, both in colour and mood.
How will your mood board influence your final product?
Originally, I was thinking of using the same idea with a completely lava based cave to
associate with the fiery foe of the area (which is still on the cards). However if I can draw up
a good idea of the appearance, I may attempt to use colour more prominently to signify the
monster at the end by having a more icy cave with it progressively getting hotter so the ice
turns to water and eventually becomes the fiery area found in the previous project. The
colour would go from a whitish blue, to a water blue into a red. While I do like the idea, it
would take a lot of time to come up with a decent idea of how this area would change
slightly subtly.

11. Mood Board

12. Mood Board Analysis
How does your mood board inspire your project?
The depiction of ancient history appears worn down and forgotten, with the creators
moving on. This makes the rediscovery of these objects feel special as they are relics very
few see. It should feel like a reward to look at the artifacts, more so as an imposing
presence as Dinosaur skeleton and the Sphinx statue appear. On the opposite side of the
spectrum, ancient writings and stories appear far more in the culture of modern day, telling
people about events long past, real or in legend. The stories are lessons hidden in
fantastical fables so anyone person can understand their principles. Prehistoric drawings
and ancient Egyptian letters require more deduction to understand and therefore seem
more mysterious, making them far more intriguing than the well known teachings of the
Bible despite it’s long history.
How will your mood board influence your final product?
I enjoy the idea of ancient objects in hidden places as they look epic, especially if the
viewer is far smaller. Due to this feeling, I plan on building off my previous Dragon skeleton
found in the previous project but increasing it’s size significantly. I may change the
perspective of the characters into a more platformer appearance, at least for the part with
this enormous figure, so that the full scope of the structure can be felt by the player when
put by the heroes despite the perspective making the character look huge anyway!! A part
of the environment I think I could add is art or ancient lettering to add a sense of mystery
or foreboding for the player to feel more cautious about. The inscriptions would give a real
sense of history to the place along with the skeleton, adding more personality for the
player to remember.

13. Mind Map

14. Mind Map:
Design
To enhance the appearance of the characters I spent more time thinking about the
design of the clothing and how it would fit with their personality. For example, the
brashest character is adorned in flamboyant attire, such as heavily patterned body
armour and a flowing, vividly coloured cape, reminiscent of a super-hero.

15. Mind Map:
Personality
To make the game more interesting, I decided to give each character a strong
and opposing personality. Fletcher is an overly confident show-off but will
always do good whereas Arwynn is a gentler, more timid character who would
rather stay on the side lines.

16. Mind Map:
Arsenal
I diversified the skills each character would have, so the players would have
more options to choose from during a battle. These skills could be combined to
get the full effect of the co-operative element of the team. I thought that by
having, for example a bow and arrow and a sword, each use would serve a very
different purpose.

17. Mind Map:
Flaws
As with the personalities, I thought giving each character a flaw would make
their choices interesting to watch. For example, the usually calm Celeste, can
on a rare occasion explode into a furious temper, leading to often
problematic situations.

18. Mood Board

19. Mood Board/Mind Map Analysis
How does your mood board inspire your project?
Character design is integral to visually representing to the audience what the individual's
personality entails. The most obvious example of showing a person's identity is via their facial
expression, that being a smile to show positivity, confidence or perhaps even a more sinister
approach. However, a combination of the mouth and eye motion often give the player an
immediate impression of what they believe the character's exact thoughts are at the time. This
allows the player to make assumptions based purely off the faces and therefore applies a layer of
depth between the game and the player. The character's attire, the part that is least likely to change
except within dramatic story points, also allow the player to take preconceived notions as to how
the person identifies themselves but perhaps more importantly, what the player thinks of them.
Since fashion is very subjective, each person playing the same game has a subtle to extreme
difference in reaction on a character just based on the clothing. This makes every game unique to a
person as they can put their own take on the initial thoughts of the character In question. For
example, Link from the Legend of Zelda in his Green Tunic may seem silly looking to someone and
therefore not take him seriously, while someone else think the design is cool and feel confident
playing as him. The same ideology can be referred to when looking at the idle stance of the
individual, with a slouched pose signifying to the player laziness or carelessness while on the other
hand, an up straight position portrays some ready to go.

20. Mood Board/Mind Map Analysis
How will your mood board influence your final product?
As seen within the mood board and mind map, I have already had strong
thoughts about what parts of the character design I appreciate, with that
being expressive faces to give the characters more personality. This can be
seen with the drawn of examples of my Archer, who had a broad grin across
face to show his over-confidence and the Sword girl who holds a small frown
to show concern while having the eyebrows give the impression she is serious
at that moment. The Hydragon, as it has three heads, needs to have distinct
looks for each head so they stand out from each other as well. I also wanted
all my characters to have clothes fitting to their personal style as seen in the
mind map. The Mage, for example, wears an elaborate cloak to represent her
complex magical abilities while the swordswoman wears a simple puffy coat
and bots showing that she is prepared to face the elements but doesn't care
for style. On the direct other hand, the cocky Archer wears an elaborate set of
clothes to further accentuate his gloating demeanour.

21. Key Influences: Undertale
What I like about the RPG Undertale are the distinct
character designs as well as their matching personalities
that make each individual very memorable. An
important part of the character's distinct feels are how
each of them interacts with one another, creating
interesting story points for the player to enjoy.
I will attempt to implement this via the protagonists of
the story by conveying the general characteristics of
each person purely on sight. For example I will show a
cocky, happy-go-lucky archetype with a broad grin and
an over the top set of clothes to portray their showing
off attitude. This would be off-set by a timid, less
aggressive character who wears only the essentials for a
long journey and remains far from flamboyant. The use
of dialogue would also show how each character's
personalities bounce off each other in either a positive
or negative way, so the player can feel more involved
each the protagonists arc. I plan on also including some
form of unique personalities and small visual
differences for the main antagonist as the monster is
planned to have multiple heads so should have
somewhat distinct characteristics.

22. Key Influences: Celeste
A key part of the platformer Celeste is also pretty subtle in
it's depth to the narrative. Each level of the game has an
according soundtrack to make the area feel more alive, with
a couple of my favourites being the Hotel with a spookier
atmosphere to go with the ghostly presence and the Mirror
Temple. The reason I enjoy the Mirror Temple is because a
tense segment of the level includes a quiet vocal
accompaniment in reverse that describes the main
character's anxieties through her terrified speech. This
hidden detail adds a layer of depth to interest the player.
Each level's music changes depending on the area the
player is in portraying progression without blatantly
pointing it out. This change can also make the player more
tense which is a nice touch in my opinion.
I plan on using music to involve the player's emotions more
with the overworld having a slower beat to allow the player
to relax but during a more action heavy segment whether
through gameplay or a cutscene, increasing the pace and a
more sporadic beat therefore making the player more
frantic. The fight would clearly need this type of music so
the high energy action has a matching tune.

23. Pros and Cons
Starting off with a con of my ideas, I believe that trying to incorporate so many
characters, each with their own set of animations, may prove too difficult to complete
in the time we have. While I appreciate my ambition, it may not be wise to stretch
myself thin in the character department and perhaps makes another part like the
audio less of a priority, and therefore worse.
However a pro I can see from my character ideas, is making sure they're expressive.
This idea is good as I want my characters to be memorable and giving them big
personalities is a big part of that. The most effective to show the personality of each
person is to give their overall design a clear depiction of how their character is.
On the other hand, managing to express the characters personalities in both a positive
and negative showing might be too difficult to make. I think the animation will already
have a lot going on in a short amount of time so trying to give a lot of depth to the
characters could possibly feel too forced or unnecessary.
A pro I found in my writing would be depicting ancient items as a rewarding sight for
the player to see. I think making an artifact of some kind would give the area some
personality of its own, making it memorable and worth another look.