Character Concepting Part 2 - Sveta - Thumbnail gestures, Silhouette, value and coloured concept

 Continuing to concept my Sveta Character, here are the thumbnail gesture drawings

I then narrowed it down to 10 and did the silhouettes

I then narrowed it down to 4 and worked on value, one (top right corner) wasn't really working for me so I stopped working on it.

I then chose the one I liked most, adjusted the pose and then added colour.

And finally the orthigraphic

Character Concepting Part 2 - Sveta

So here's the first pass at concepting Sveta, the sniper character:

Custom Photoshop Brushes

Tonight I went through a tutorial series on creating custom photoshop brushes and I really like the results of it.  As something I already created, it was really interesting to see a different approach to it, and how it can be used more effectively than I had been.  It ended with a bit of a Concepting session and this is what I ended with:

The Tutorial was from Pencil kings and can be found here:
http://www.pencilkings.com/arturo-aguirre-brush-sketching-video-series/

If you're interested in using the brushes I created from this tutorial, let me know, I'm more than happy to share them.

Game Developer Research Part 3 - Naughty Dog

Game Company: Naughty Dog (1989 (previously Jam Software (1984))

Naughty dog seem a good choice to research as they seem to be more open in their internal development processes.

Official Website: http://www.naughtydog.com/

Blog:  http://www.naughtydog.com/blog/

Wikipedia Entry: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naughty_Dog

Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/NaughtyDog

Games:
As Jam Software:

Math Jam (1985)
Ski Crazed (1986)
Dream Zone (1987)

As Naughty Dog:
Keef the Thief  (1989)
Rings of Power (1991)
Way of the Warrior (1994)
Crash Bandicoot (1996)
Crash Bandicoot 2: Cortex Strikes Back (1997)
Crash Bandicoot: Warped (1998)
Crash Team Racing (1999)
Jak and Daxter: The Precursor Legacy (2001)
Jak II (2003)
Jak 3  (2004)
Jak X: Combat Racing  (2005)
Uncharted: Drake's Fortune (2007)
Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (2009)
Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception (2011)
The Last of Us (2013)
The Last of Us Remastered (2014)

History:

All Your History Uncharted Part 1 by Machinima:



All Your History Uncharted Part 2 by Machinima:





Character Art/Artists per Game:
I will be looking at Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception and The Last of Us

Uncharted 2:

http://www.slideshare.net/naughty_dog/uncharted-2-character-pipeline

Uncharted 3: Drake's Deception:

Concept:  http://www.creativeuncut.com/art_uncharted-3-drakes-deception_a.html

Models:

http://www.officialplaystationmagazine.co.uk/2012/01/25/uncharted-4-ps3-is-this-how-it-will-look/

Jeff Estrabinio (Senior Character Artist):

http://jeffestrabinio.blogspot.com.au/2011/11/uncharted-3-drakes-deception.html

The Last of Us:

Concept: http://www.officialplaystationmagazine.co.uk/2013/06/18/the-last-of-us-concept-art-gallery-how-characters-locations-evolved/

Michael Knowland (Lead Character Artist):

http://mknowland.blogspot.com.au/

http://www.zbrushcentral.com/showthread.php?178789-The-Last-of-Us-Character-Sculpts-(-images-Pg-8-amp-Pg-12)

http://www.gamearthub.net/2013/06/30/last-of-us-characters-by-michael-knowland/#.U1DWBfmSx8E

http://www.itsartmag.com/features/the-last-of-us-3d-models/

Of Interest:

http://www.naughtydog.com/site/videos/

http://www.gdcvault.com/search.php#&category=free&firstfocus=&keyword=Naughty+Dog&conference_id=

Game Developer Research Part 2 - Valve

Game Company: Valve Corporation (1996)

Official Website: http://www.valvesoftware.com/

Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valve_Corporation

Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/Valve

Games:

Half-Life (1998)
Team Fortress Classic (1999)
Half-Life: Opposing Force (1999)
Deathmatch Classic (2000)
Richochet (2000)
Counter-Strike (2000)
Half-Life:Blue Shift (2001)
Half-Life:Decay (2001)
Day of Defeat (2003)
Counter-Strike: Condition Zero (2004)
Half-Life: Source (2004)
Counter-Strike: Source (2004)
Half-Life 2 (2004)
Half-Life 2: Deathmatch (2004)
Half-Life Deathmatch: Source (2005)
Day of Defeat: Source  (2005)
Half-Life 2: Lost Coast (2005)
Half-Life 2: Episode One (2006)
Half-Life 2: Episode Two (2007)
Portal (2007)
Team Fortress 2 (2007)
Left 4 Dead (2008)
Left 4 Dead 2 (2009)
Alien Swarm (2010)
Portal 2 (2011)
Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (2012)
Dota 2 (2013)

History:
All Your History: Valve by Machinima
Part 1


Part 2


Part 3


Part 4


Part 5


Part 6



Character artists:  I'll be looking at their more recent titles: Half-Life 2, Left 4 Dead 2, and Portal 2

Half-Life 2:
Concept Art: http://half-life.wikia.com/wiki/Category:Half-Life_2_concept_art
Development: http://combineoverwiki.net/wiki/Development_of_Half-Life_2

Dhabih Eng (Concept Artist): http://combineoverwiki.net/wiki/Dhabih_Eng

Half-Life 2: Episode 1:

Dhabih Eng (Concept Artist): http://combineoverwiki.net/wiki/Dhabih_Eng

Half-Life 2: Episode 2:

Dhabih Eng (Concept Artist): http://combineoverwiki.net/wiki/Dhabih_Eng

Half-Life 2: Episode 3 (not released):
Andrea Wicklund: http://combineoverwiki.net/wiki/Andrea_Wicklund

Left 4 Dead 2:

Portal 2:
Andrea Wicklund: http://combineoverwiki.net/wiki/Andrea_Wicklund

Having difficulty finding information on who worked on characters, will update as I find out.

DevBlog: http://www.valvesoftware.com/news/feeds.html

Gesture Drawing - 100

100 30sec Gesture drawings:

Been really enjoying: http://www.quickposes.com/pages/challenges

Game Developer Research Part 1 - Irrational Games

Game Company: Irrational Games  (1997 - 2014)
Unfortunately announced closure Feb 2014

Official Website: http://irrationalgames.com/

Wiki: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irrational_Games
Youtube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/user/IrrationalGames

Games:
System Shock 2 (1999)
Freedom Force (2002)
Tribes: Vengeance (2004)
SWAT 4 (2005)
Bioshock (2007)
Bioshock Infinite (2013)

History:
A Brief History by EmperorFoxx:



All your History By Machinima Part 1:



All your History By Machinima Part 2:



All your History By Machinima Part 3:




Prominent Game Artists:
I'm choosing to focus on artists for the following games: System Shock 2, Bioshock, and Bioshock Infinite.

System Shock 2:
Gareth Hinds (Lead Artist): http://www.garethhinds.com/
Nate Wells 3D artist
Ryan Lesser - Mammoth Studios - High Poly 3D Head

Bioshock:
Scott Sinclair (Art Director)
Mauricio Tejerina
Nate Wells
Modelers:
Lorne Brooks
Chris Chaproniere
Brendon George
Dan Keating
Chad King
John Travers
Michael Swiderek
Mauricio Tejerina
Joseph Yang
Laura Zimmermann

Bioshock Infinite:
Scott Sinclair (Art Director)
Jorge Lacera (Lead Concept Artist)
Mauricio Tejerina (Concept Artist)
Robb Waters (Senior Character Concept Artist)
Gavin Goulden (Lead Character Artist)
Adam Bolton (Character Artist)

Development Blog: http://irrationalgames.com/insider/

Of interest:
http://www.amazon.com/3D-Masterclass-Swordmaster-Ultimate-Character/dp/0956817173

Ill update as I continue research