EMA in Game Art

The Game Artist is responsible for all the visual aspects of a video game: what the individual characters look like and how they are animated, the environment they move about in and its 3D modeling, the storyboard, the graphical interface, and so on.

This department will function just like a real video production workshop, and aim to market one or more games developed by students. At the end of their training, students will have acquired knowledge and experience that they can proudly list on their CV when seeking work in the field of video games.

Key points

• Making a 3D video game
• The basics of 3D modeling
• Working in 3D
• The graphical interface
• Illustration and marketing
• Distribution
• Addressing different platforms: mobile phones, PCs, and consoles
• Working with other people in the video game industry (visits, job experience)

The drawing programs use

• Photoshop: 2D editing
• Maya: 3D modeling
• Zbrush: 3D modeling
• UNITY (or some such programme): game engine and editor

COURSE PROGRAM

The training programme lasts 4 semesters (full time) and follows the production flow of a video game.

The students will see the main stages in the development of a project, from planning to completion, respecting production deadlines.

PRE-PRODUCTION

The pre-production stage consists in researching the type of game (platform, first-person shooter, strategy, etc.); the visual style (realistic, cartoon, animé, etc.); game mechanics; analysis of the competition and what's on the market; and the design of all the game elements (in this case mainly the visual ones).

Market analysis:

• Finding out what's already on the market; game analysis; assessing the demand for video games and the platforms they run on.
• Video game market awareness and placing the students' products.

Pitch:

A short document summarizing the game, its strong points, its type, visual style, story and type of platform.

Concept art:

• choosing the visual style
• choosing the characters
• choosing the environment
• choosing the effects
• the storyboard

 Game Design Document:

At the end of the pre-production stage, the students will have created a GDD (Game Design Document) that describes the game as a whole, how it works and its style. Throughout the development stage, this document will provide a guideline for all those who participate in the project.

During the pre-production stage the students will be trained in using 3D graphic design tools and familiarized with the game engine and game editor of their chosen platform.

DEVELOPMENT

The development stage is when the game is actually put together.

The artists create the 2D/3D models, texture them, create the environment and the graphical interface; then all these components are exported into the game engine.

Prototype:

A basic, simplified version of the game is created to test its playability and identify any future problems.

Creating the graphical elements:

The game is developed from the alpha version (with all the unpolished game elements in place) to the beta version (for optimizing the finished game and fixing any bugs).

• 3D modeling: environment; characters; objects
• texture
• basic animation
• special effects (particle systems)
• 2D user interface
• basic audio
• optimization
• bug fixing

Marketing:

• Creating visual means for promoting and distributing the game
• jacket; posters; viral publicity
• illustrations
• 3D rendering
• distribution

REQUIREMENTS

Students wishing to attend this training must satisfy the following requirements:

• European BA or equivalent qualification. (Persons without a BA who have trained in the arts or who submit a substantial portfolio may also apply. However, at the end of the course they will receive a certificate and not a European MA.)
• familiarity with Photoshop
• familiarity with digital tools (99% of the artistic work will be done with digital tools)
• a good knowledge of English
• a basic knowledge of 3D modeling or Maya would be an advantage
• a basic knowledge of video games
• the ability to work in a group