Unit 70 Computer Game Story Development

Is your story believable?
In terms of realism, no. Not many people would believe it.

Is your story rhythmic?
I feel I have paced it well and kept a certain amount of suspense and mystery.

Do your sentences sound meaningful or emotional?
I've tried to put as much as I can in terms of description, and hopefully this can convey the emotions I was feeling at the time.

Is your story enjoyable?
After asking a friend to evaluate, he said the following: "As I read through the first paragraph, I felt drawn into the story. The author explained his dream in very high detail as if he was actually there. I found his story to be very interesting and enjoyable. I could feel a plot arising as I read on."

Do you want to find out more?
He then went on to say this: "Yes, the amount of detail that was put into writing the story was very high, which made it clearer and easier to understand. This helped portray an image in my head."

This was the story mentioned:

Dream story-

I once had a dream which was actually lost in a dark and gloomy facility. I had stumbled around in blind panic, keeping my hands on the smooth cold stone walls to navigate the darkness that seemed to be getting thicker by the second. It felt as if it was pressing down on me, trying to rip the light from my eyes. I don't know why I was moving so fast, I just knew I had to keep moving, but I trusted my instincts. I turned a corner, a small lamp on the floor halfway down the corridor was the only light source. At the end of the corridor, I could just make out the shape of a door. Solid and shining in the dim light. I made my way towards it as fast as I could go. But my legs were made of lead, I had to drag them along behind me. It was almost like wading through a thick layer of mud. Eventually I reached the door, as I had suspected, it was a cold hard steel door, yet the handle was wood. I twisted it slowly, at the time it seemed normal. The door whined and complained as I forced it open but eventually I managed to squeeze through.

I found myself in a room much like the rest of the complex. Darkness covered up every corner never letting me see anything in detail. A table stood at the end of the box of concrete I stood in. A file resting on its smooth wooden surface. I edged my way closer, taking the file in my hand. It was dusty, obviously old and weak, it had lived a long life. I opened it at the top, easily breaking through the old thin paper. Inside was a pure white sheet of paper, words littering its surface. It read roughly as follows:

Nov 12 2012-

"An investigation into the deaths of the two unidentified bodies found in the Forest of Dean came up empty with no evidence of damage to the bodies or any means of identifying either of the two. The following details apply to both victims. The tips of their fingers were shown to have been removed, and no teeth remain for dental records. The flesh has decayed leaving only a skeleton yet testing has revealed they died only two weeks before discovery."

I do not remember further than this point.

Research How Story Is Used To Enhance Gameplay In Computer Games.
AKA the history of storytelling

Various Forms Of Story Telling.

1. Cave drawings

This was the most early known form of telling stories and was used all around the world before humanity had any sort of structure or before they could even talk. The concept was extremely simple; paint on a rock wall using juice from berries or other coloured ink-like substances, to create pictures in an order that would tell a story.

2. Oral Story Telling

Oral story telling is by far one of the earliest forms of story telling. It's what people used to tell of great adventures and new worlds before writing was even close to being invented. The power of being able to communicate also brought about an age of being able to share ones thoughts and creations they had made in their mind. Stories could be explained in much more detail, creating atmosphere and tension and pacing.

One of the earliest forms of this kind of story telling was most likely when language was first formed. Stories were created through chants of people working in the fields, songs which told of things that had happened and things that were to happen. Myths were created to explain the unexplainable, and people would gather around campfires telling tales of ventures they'd been on and creatures once slain that were foretold to return.

3. Theatre

Theatre came later on but was used by the likes of Shakespeare to tell many stories. It's still used today in fact, less often, but it's still around. Stories would be written and people would be told to act out characters, read lines, become their character. Sets were made on stage to create the setting and position and timing were essential. This meant music could be implemented into the stories, meaning more forms of media to enhance the experience.

4. The Written Word

This is nowadays one of the most common forms of storytelling. Books are created with new ideas and stories every day. Anyone can write a book if they are dedicated enough and create their own universe for people to experience all over the world, wherever they want, whenever they want. Books have revolutionised story telling and created new possibilities with multiple choice books, various trilogies and series, and more. Chapter by chapter books can draw readers in until they are lost in a world they can only wish was real. The lack of imagery and sound sparks the readers imagination, encouraging them to create a characters face in their head or imagine some hideous creature from the words they are given. Books truly are the ultimate form of story telling.

Game Genres.

1. The FPS genre

This is one of the most popular genres of video game, the first person shooter. This genre is when you take a character, and let the player see through his eyes, then give them targets to aim and shoot at. It's basic, yet effective. With bigger maps, better graphics, and more guns to shoot with in every instalment  This genre usually implements a multiplayer in which to shoot other players from around the world, adding a partially social aspect to the genre. It's a genre of games which ask, who will kill who?

2. The TPS genre

The third person shooter genre is a little different in the way it's executed in games. Usually, these games implement a cover system, meaning you can hide behind objects and occasionally pop out to shoot several things from your position. This genre allows you to see your character from behind meaning if someone approaches from behind, you will see them once they're close enough. This works as a system to give the impression that your character has a high awareness of his surroundings, giving the player a sense of power over the enemies.

3. Racing games

This genre is all about speed. Get in your vehicle whether it be a car, a hover board, a motorbike, a plane or a boat, and get to the finish line first. These games focus on how to reach a certain point before someone else

4. Fighting games

This is quite a simple concept, pit two fighters against each other to see who comes out on top. These can range from brawling games with health bars like Mortal Combat or Tekken, or 3D combat games like assassins creed or overgrowth.

5. Puzzle games

These games can range from being entirely based around working out how to proceed or having set puzzles appear throughout the story, if there is a story. These generally try to confuse you, to really get you to concentrate to see the way forward.

6. Roleplaying games

These games are exactly what they sound like, games where you play in a role of another person. This is generally a character you have created yourself. You gain power as you travel along, levelling up in some games, gaining new equipment, becoming stronger and more powerful to face fiercer opponents.

7. TBS and RTS

Turn Based strategy and Real Time Strategy. Two very similar game genres, with very different required tactics. Strategy games are usually top down where you command a single unit or a squad or even hundreds of units at once, ordering armies forward. The main difference between the two games are (as the name would suggest) the flow of time. Either you will move, then your enemy will move, like a game of chess, or both sides will be advancing at the same time. This was created for faster gameplay requiring you to keep an eye on all your troops at one time.

We were then asked to develop a story for a game, and so, this is what I created:

Chapter 1- June 8^th 2010 1:19PM

The first thing I see when I open my eyes is darkness. Flashes of light blind me before throwing themselves far away down the tunnel I can see. A silhouette appears, they are sitting, their head turned to the side giving me a profile view. Suddenly, everything is blindingly bright. I blink a few times and rub my eyes. When I open them again, I see I am also sitting down, the man opposite, my collegue, my friend, Harry Lair. We're both on a train back to London. We were called for a case. Nothing serious, just something they needed us for when we had time, and here we are.

I sit up from my slouched position and look around the dusty carriage. The chairs are dark blue, laid out like older trains. One set of chairs on each side of a compartment. The floor is metal and grimy, chewing gum and mud and sweet wrappers litter the area, especially under the seats. This certainly wasn't first class but why spend unnecessary amounts for small comforts on a temporary journey? Outside, a blur of green and brown rushes past the window in a forest that never ends. The clatter of the carriages can be heard beneath our feet as we speed along and I take a deep breath in, turning to Harry. 
"How long was I out?" He looks away from the window for a second acknowledging the fact I was now conscious. 
"Around half an hour, you didn't miss much don't worry." I give a small smile and reach under the seat, pulling out my case and flipping it open. I pick the top file from the stacks of papers and small-bagged items and photos before shutting the case and returning it below the seat.

I flip open the document and scan the page. The case was simple. A couple had attacked a man entering their house. The man had recieved a crippling injury to his eye and was detained for questioning after spending time in hospital recovering. All we needed to do was find out why. He'd been a weekly visitor, Larry Crane. Always arriving on Thursdays then leaving about 10 minutes afterwards. A search of his bag revealed high quality meds. They apparently weren't stocked in the shops in the first place. So where did he get them? And why was he attacked? Why did he visit once a week? And why wouldn't the couple say anything? There were too many questions, I just had to calm down, and move through the case one step at a time.

We arrive at 3:21PM, Lair striding through the thick station doors and me just behind. There are more police here than usual, I could tell there was a buzz in the air. Everyone seems tense, it’s almost tangible. Before us, is a curved blue desk unoccupied, leading to an office around the back. It's a small room with cream walls and a metal door in the left corner. a set of green padded chairs line the wall to our right, they appear quite comfortable. We walk to the front desk and an officer quickly accompanies us. Immediately Harry flashes his ID card. 
"Detective Harry Lair with assistant Damon Fade, we've come to talk to Mr and Mrs Hunt." At this the Officers eyes widen.
"They didn't tell you?" He looks around then back at Harry. "Mr and Mrs Hunt died this morning sir, I'm sorry, you should have been informed." There's a moment of silence before Harry looks back at me, eyebrows raised. He turns back to the officer 
"Do we know the cause of death?"
The officer shakes his head 
"I'm afraid not sir, they both died within minutes of each other, almost as if they'd been poisoned. But all food they were given was tested!"
"Thank you officer, wasn't there a third person involved?" He replies.
"Yes! A Mr Crane sir, would you like to speak with him?"
"If it's at all possible, yes." The officer nods and scurries off. We both walk over and sit on the leather seats by the wall. This, hadn't happened before, the way they'd both died around the same time, but how? "We have to look through all possible scenarios" Harry spoke as if reading my mind. I shrug slightly, lost in thought. "Not a coincidence, too unlikely, Poison, heart attack though unlikely. Hidden suicide pills, sickness.." The cogs whirr in my brain and I sit up. "It was some sort of illness, most likely contracted at the some time due to similar times of death." Harry looks across to me.
"And what makes you say that?"
"The medicine." I reply quickly "The visitor had high quality medicine in his bag, by his weekly visits it could mean it was used to keep something at bay" I pause for a moment then sit back once more "So why didn't the couple tell us?"

Harry nods "well done, that's why I asked to see him. The medication probably will give us information, and I'm sure we can find out why they wouldn't say anything about it." I nod and sit back

"we'll have to examine the bodies at some point as well, just so we can be certain of what killed them." I say. We sit in silence for a few minutes, just thinking. I start listing diseases that need regular treatment in my mind. Addison's Disease, Cancer, STD's, it could be anything. So what killed them?

A little later on the officer comes back out through the metal door and gestures for us to walk through. "He's ready for you sir." Harry walks quickly, not wanting to waste any time. As soon as we're on the other side of the door the officer locks the door and walks in front. The corridor before us is quite wide with white walls and a blur streak on both sides leading along the wall. It's quite dim, with our footsteps echoing off the walls as we walk. Eventually we reach a door similar to the one outside. The officer unlocks it and steps to the side while pulling it open. We both walk inside slowly to see a figure sitting on a chair at a small table. Harry walks forwards slowly and pulls a chair out. The room is small and almost entirely concrete. Light streams in from a small window high up with metal bars and a window containing one way glass is on our right. The room almost seems like a cell in itself.

Theres a pause before harry steps to the side. "Damon, you can take this one." I nod and step forward taking a seat. This was something I was getting more used to, Harry would let me take an interview if he thought I was capable. He calls it learning through experience, like learning a new language. Harry pulls out a small pad and pencil, and readies himself to write down notes. I clasp my hands together and clear my throat. "Mr Larry Crane?"

Chapter 2- June 8^th 2010 3:39PM

The man across the table shifts in his seat, leaning back and crossing his arms. He had dark skin with dark brown eyes, darting to the side every so often to look at the window, the door. All the exits. He has a beard that’s been well trimmed and gives him a rougher look, as if he’s been in many fights before. By his posture though, he appears inexperienced. Either he hasn’t done anything that would put him in here before, or he isn’t used to being caught.

Finally he speaks up “Yeah, I’m Larry.” I nod and take a deep breath

“do you know why you’re here?” The man shrugs

“I was attacked, don’t know why I’m still in here.” He leans forward “I have a life y’know, I’d like to get back to it” I take another deep breath and unclasp my hands, placing them on the table. “You’re here because two people died today and we think you might know something about this.”

The mans eyes widen and he unfolds his arms, leans forward and places his hands on the table as I have done. “Listen man I don’t know nothin’ about them dying, they was alive when I saw them last!” I clasp my hands once more and nod. “I know Mr Crane but we believe you might have information that could lead us to the reason these people have died today.” The man sneers and this and leans back “Like what?” I look down at the desk then back at him “Why were you visiting these people Mr Crane? Do you know them?” The man stops at this, he knows he needs to be careful how he answers this next question.

Finally he speaks up “Yes.” There’s a long pause before I speak again.

“And why were you visiting them each week? A friendly visit?”

“Yeah, just to chat and all that” he looks down at the table and I pull out a file from my case.

“In that case, why all the medicine? We looked through your bag and found medicine not out on the shelves yet. Can you explain this to us?”

Yet another long pause ensues, the man looks to the window, then at the floor. He’s playing with his thumb for a few seconds before I ask him again.

“I’d like to ask again, why all the medicine?” I speak slowly, sternly. Finally he replies.

“They had something wrong with them, I just came over every week, gave them medicine, then left.” I reply quickly, not giving him time to think of any excuses.

“What was wrong with them?” He shrugs once more

“I dunno, you’re the experts, you go find out with your DNA testing or whatever.” I stop speaking and stare at him for a moment

“Thank you for your time Mr Crane” I stand up and gather the papers back into my case.

“What, that’s it?” he asks.

“Oh no Mr Crane” I speak quickly and distractedly as I pack things into my case, not bothering to look up at him “This will not be the last time we meet.” I lock the case and look up at him “Good day sir” And then we’re gone, walking back down the corridor.

Chapter 3- June 10^th 2010 6:49PM

After leaving the interview room we’d requested permission to examine the bodies of the couple. An appointment was arranged for two days later. We stand outside the room containing the two. We don’t often get to examine bodies but today, we get to examine two. I’m a little nervous, I don’t like being near dead things but it’s part of the job and I need to deal with it.

Eventually we are called in. Me and Harry stand on opposite ends of the  large rectangular room. The examination tables in the middle look just like they were polished not 5 minutes ago, which they probably were. A large metal box with several cabinets that can slide out are scattered around its face. The biologist we have with us heads towards the cabinets containing our particular gruesome project. The scientist looks back at us before slowly pulls the cabinet open. The next few seconds are a blur.

A mass of seething worm like creatures erupt from the container, slipping onto the floor and squirming along at incredible speeds, at least for their stature anyway. Immediately the scientist is down, they flow over him but seem to shrink in numbers as they land. Then I realise the horrible truth. These things are burrowing through his skin, working their way through flesh and muscle. He’s full of moving bulges of flesh, disappearing through the wounds made by their bodies. The scientist thrashes around, screaming for help, but we both realise there’s nothing we can do.

Harry, being closest to the door, wrenches it open and holds it open for me. I rush out into the corridor, the scientist left screaming behind me. As soon as I’m out Harry bundles after me and slams the door shut. The screams of the scientist can be heard, but muffled. I can tell now I won’t ever forget them.

We stare at each other then look back at the door in silence. The scream eventually quietens to a small whimper, and eventually silence. But we’re both rooted to the spot. Unable to do anything but listen to the thousands of bodies squirming around in the room we stood in just moments before. My breathing is heavy and my back is to the wall, my eyes locked on the door. One question circles around in my mind the whole time; what were they?


Creating a Game

After this, we were asked to design a text based game, this is a video of mine in very early alpha:

The game can be found here: http://make.textadventures.co.uk/Play/Play.aspx?id=28501

Unit 5

This was the timeline I produced:
http://prezi.com/ll2bartgrvjr/copy-of-contextual-influences/

Our next task was to write a 1000 word essay, which may seem a daunting task to begin with, but with 100 words being three lines, it shouldn't be overly difficult. Below is an attempt at said essay:

When we think of art, we think of paintings, sketches, drawings, maybe music or dance depending on your trail of thought. But not many will think of games immediately. The question is, can we count games as an art? Are all games art, or just some? Infact, one big question is when does something stop being classed as art, is there a boundry? And if so, are games within, or just outside this boundry? But the question I'm going to be discussing is, has art actually influenced game design? I'll be exploring several art styles and examples to come to a conclusion on whether art has indeed influenced the way games are designed today.

First, lets look at what art is. Art is meant to be expressive in a variety of ways, either through visual representation, audible sound and more. They can range from so many things that it's hard to tell when something stops being art. In order to work this out, we first need to understand exactly what art is. This however is a very difficult question to answer. Art is essentially whatever you want it to be. If you look at something, it causes you to experience an emotion, then you call it art, then it is.

So, lets have a look at a few professional definitions: "the expression or application of human creative skill and imagination, typically in a visual form such as painting or sculpture, producing works to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power." -Google. This is correct. But then, not entirely. The purpose of a definition is to sum up an item or subject (or anything else for that matter) completely, this only explains a small part of what art is. This definition therefore, is correct, but not entirely, therefore fails to be a definition. It is correct in saying "to be appreciated primarily for their beauty or emotional power." Since that is the reason for arts existence, to create an emotional reaction, and anything can be appreciated. So as you can see, art is very hard to explain.

Now we are trying to work out whether games are art, so first, what are games? Games are blocks of code put together to form a seemingly interactive situation, often with 3D or 2D environments. They can instil emotions in people due to certain characters in story games dying or action sequences that fill the player with adrenalin. Games are made to have an effect on people from distress to glee to anger to corruption. Games can tell a story, provide a show of skill, teach you a lesson, or sometimes just to confuse you for the fun of it. As an example, I'll be focusing on the game Antichamber.

Antichamber is a first person puzzler. This means it's set in a first person perspective, so you're looking through the eyes of the protagonist. The controls are simple and so too is the art style using minimalism and so very few colours. “Antichamber is a game about discovery, set inside a vibrant, minimal, Escher-like world, where geometry and space follow unfamiliar rules, and obstacles are a matter of perception.” This quote demonstrates antichambers art style and mentions it’s a very psychological game. The art style of minimalism means it can focus on getting the point of the game across with no aesthetic designs to distract the player while at the same time, looking good. It focuses on breaking most known common concepts about games, down to things as small as: "Do you jump or walk off a ledge?" And "Is it really a dead end if I speed walk at the wall face first?" Not only this, it also breaks 3D dimensions, with cubes containing something different depending on the side you look at it, and going into a room simply by looking through a hole and nothing more.

The question is; is Antichamber classed as art? I’d answer this with a sure yes. Antichamber causes players to feel emotions of wonder and confusion, it makes them happy when they progress, and is pleasing to look at, with the art style being curious and unique to the game. The fact I actually call it art means it is indeed art. As I explained before, if someone perceives something as art, then it is art.

But does this mean just games with interesting visual art styles or complex mechanics are classed as art? The answer is no. Lets take another game as an example: Call of Duty. This game is one I personally do not find to be entertaining, it’s a generic brown shooter with no mechanics other than point and click, there are gadgets occasionally but I’m talking about the base concept here. It’s a game so obviously made purely to get money out of people and nothing more. It’s a bad shooter to me. But is it art? I’d say yes here as well. It provokes an emotional response in me, which is pure hate, but it’s still an emotional response. But some would class it as an art, so it is, simple.

Art has been created in many ways from dance to lines on paper to music. It's always trying to give you an experience, a way to go through what the artist was going through when it was created. Games do something very similar; they give you an experience of being part of another world or another person’s story. “Video games are a way to jump into a different world. You get to forget about your stressful, busy life and become someone else for awhile.” –Bandini (username for comment section) Sometimes art will take other types of art and use them in its own design. For example it could take the art of music and use it to improve its design by giving the game atmosphere and a memorable style. Sometimes it will use a custom art style or use one similar to another but with a twist. Some games are drawn entirely in pencil, some games are created with floating music making lights in darkness, some are filled with wonder and a need to explore, games take all art types and put them in one, to give you another experience all together and keep you hooked until the game is finished. And even then the experience can continue.

However, not all games are a brilliant art created to give you an experience you've never seen before. Some mainstream games are created and sold just to make a profit. Not much thought has gone into most parts of the game and there doesn't tend to be much variation. They find a style that seems to be successful and stick with it. They are, however, still classified as art, because people get an emotional response and class it as art. Other games like indie games for example, are not restricted by big companies that change the game until their game is no longer their game anymore because of various changes made. Indie developers create what they want to create; therefore these games tend to come directly from the artist and so are more likely to deliver the experience the artist intended.

So the question is; “how has art influenced game design?” The answer is, in every way possible. If games themselves are art, then surely games must have been influenced by other art to make them so. Games from all genres have been influenced heavily by art because of what art is. Art is anything that invokes emotion. When someone makes a game, it’s usually based in some way shape or form on something we know of. Racing games, fighting games, puzzle games, even antichamber has been influenced. Architecture is an art, Antichamber plays around with this and makes you think all the while. Games tend to give you an emotion because of its content, and its content is art in itself, this content has been taken from other art, therefore influencing the whole game.

A prezi showing the contextual studies worksheets can be found below:

Jasper Johns

Jasper Johns was born in 1930 and has yet to die. He is currently 83 years old and currently lives in Connecticut.

Jasper Johns' early work drew on Abstract Expressionism's ideas and techniques, but he took the art world in a new direction by endowing everyday objects with artistic importance, paving the way for Pop art and Minimalism.

After several brief stints studying art - first at the University of South Carolina in 1947, and then at the Parsons School of Design in New York in 1948 -- Johns was drafted into the Army. 

Some of his work can be seen below:

 Often considered part of a Neo-Dadaist movement, Johns bridged the gap between Abstract Expressionism and Pop art during his early career, but is still expanding his subjects, materials and styles through his current work.

Unit 01 Visual Recording

12 Saul Bass inspired posters

The many people Saul Bass has touched made these, there were many, many people.

Y-Chart

It's a Y-Chart. Why? Because I can.

Mood Boards showing the themes of Sin City.

I did it! :D

My Hand Made Movie Title Poster Of Sin City.

Item Sketches

See, this is what happens when you give me a pencil!

My weekend, in a nutshell. I did these for college and now I'm posting them here...for college.

Storyboards

Draft

Final

these were created to take me step by step through the animation...it may have worked...I'm not sure

Unit 53 2D Animation Production

Types of Animation

Animation is unique in the way it evolves. It get’s simpler and easier to use with every stride. From pencil on paper to technological programmes, animation has changed how we live today, creating films, presentations and even just little hobbies for various people all over the world. Animation has made the game industry, no animation means no visuals. We’d still be playing text-based games without animation or at the most point and click games.

There are many ways to animate because of the way it works. When your brain sees an image, then that image is suddenly replaced, your brain is confused. It tries to make a link between the two pictures and so, tries to fill in the gap between when it was there and when it wasn’t. This gives the illusion of movement and many frames together is that same technique but many times is succession.

So yes, animation is just confusing your brain in a good way. Animation runs by playing several frames every second, otherwise known as frame rate or fps. The more frames per second, the smoother the animation looks, meaning it’s a better quality. This tends to be a theme only in computer animation as flipbook animation and etcetera is controlled manually. The fps is how fast you can flip the pages or turn the wheel.

Despite animation confusing the brain it can still pick up on little changes in the motion. So for a single frame there might be a black spot somewhere on the screen, which means it would flash on the screen for less than a second. But our brains being all amazing, detect it, it sees a difference and notices, meaning technically, we are seeing and processing every single frame and then our brains add in frames in between to give the illusion of motion.

Now there are many techniques to getting this illusion right, and I’m going to be listing a few, so sit back, relax and read it all!

Flip Book Animation

First thing you need to know is: what is flip book animation? It’s basically where a series of images are drawn into a book or a flip pad in such a way that when moving between many images, it appears to move

This is one of the longest forms of animation due to the need to draw out every single background again and again and every single character and moving thing again and again.

Flip book animation has been used by budding animators for ages, creating unique animations using just a pencil and paper. It’s one of the most famous kinds of animation and due to having to draw the character over and over, a wobbly effect has been implemented into other animations to give it that flip book feel.

The first ever flipbook was shown in September in 1868 and was created by John Barnes Linnett. He origionally named it a Kineograph which means moving picture. It was actually the first kind of animation to feature a linear sequence of pictures instead of a repeating animation.

Today, flipnotes are considered as simply a novelty toy. They are still used in advertising and people still buy them today as collections. They have been known to go for thousands of pounds in sales and auctions.

Stop Motion
Stop Motion is essentially taking a real life object and taking pictures of said object in slightly different poses from the last. When these pictures are put together it gives the illusion of movement. This kind of animation is usually used to make real life objects move that would usually be static. E.G one of the many Lego home made films you can find.

Stop Motion can be used in so many ways, it can make objects move, it can make pictures on the wall out of nothing as you can see in the video above, it can even morph rooms and make clay into man-eating monsters (My personal favourite use).

This is an example of what stop motion can create with just a little creativity.


Kinetoscope
A Kinetoscope is simply a machine with a peephole in the top where pictures are slotted through very fast. This actually gives the illusion of movement. Kinetoscopes were one of the very first kinds of animation to be invented, so I bring you this thrilling rollercoaster of an animation:

It may seem like a simple man sneezing, but really it's a series of images placed in the right order to give the illusion of sneezing movement. 


My Running Cycle
Now after spending weeks of colouring in and drawing and backgrounding, I have finally finished my own running cycle. It may just be a strange yellowish goblin thing running through a bit of an odd looking forest. But it's my yellowish goblin thing in my odd looking wood!

Evaluation: In the above video, I have created a basic running cycle, simulating the motion of real life running, but using a character called Yallery Brown, based on a story. I have added a background which moves behind the character, and sound effects which I have collected myself. These consist of footsteps. I'd say the strengths of this project are the following:

- Smooth running animation
- The sound is synced up with the animation
- The character is fitted to my own art style

The weakness' however are as I find:

- The background seems a little jerky.
- Not much in the way of asthetics, shading and generally making things look pretty.
- The character may be a little small so not the easiest to see.

Feedback:
Someone commented that the sound was synced up with the running and the background may have been roughly drawn and seemed to speed up as the animation, but the character design was good and appeared to move reasonably smoothly.

         Yallery Brown Storyboard

 This was a storyboard I made to dictate exactly how the end result would play out.