Character + Tutorial feedback (23/10/23 - 03/11/23)

After a tutorial on Monday (23/10/23) I was tasked with creating the 3D model of my character and also a mockup of the puzzle.

Above is the 3D model I made. I wanted to keep the shape quite simple, like in my design. I did have a bit of trouble getting the leaf hair to sit right because I didn't want the parts to clash or clip through each other. I also painted a texture for the leaves but I will improve this at some point. 

Another thing is that the character does look a bit like a potato which is quite cute but maybe I could add to the model to make it look more visually interesting, while still being cute. 

I also started making a model of the monster however I couldn't get the ears to look right so I will have to work on that. 

This is the mockup gif I made for the game. I created a grid and added a checkerboard pattern (to distinguish the separate squares) I also added the entrance & exit as well as the crystal obstacle. 

I then (very simply) animated the character moving and the square it's on changing depending on how close the character is to either the trap or the treasure. 

Overall this gif was very helpful for me to visualise the gameplay but also for sharing my idea better in tutorials. 

On the 26th (26/10/23) I had another tutorial where I shared my character model and the gif. The feedback I got was to think about how I would animate the character (How would it move would it blink? Would the hair move? Would arms grow out?), Steve also mentioned BB8 (Starwars character, see gif below) and how maybe the character could roll between squares. This was interesting to think about but I'm not sure how this would work with the gameplay since the player will have to be careful where they move the character since there could be a trap near, so having the player move quickly (rolling) might not be the best idea. 

BB8 Droid Animation by Gweno on Dribbble

I also remembered a game I had played with a friend before (although I didn't mention it in the tutorial) In the game your character is a robot and to move quicker it puts away it's arms and legs and uses a wheel to move instead. 

This is a game trailer where you can see the character. Microwave Dinner Release Trailer! (Full Trailer) - YouTube

I was advised to make some test animations in Blender as well as to make a Game workflow to show what the user has to achieve in the game. Link to Gameflow Blog

In the tutorial on the 30th, I shared my game flow and we discussed how there should be different themed areas for the different levels so that the player can have a slightly different experience in each level. 

I looked at this tutorial at some point because I wasn't sure how I would make the eyes blink but I haven't yet tried it Blender rigging series No. 2 - Blinking eyes - YouTube

I also had another tutorial on the 3rd (3/11/23) where I shared what I had done with the prospectus so far. From that, it seemed I was on the right track. I was suggested to include games like Wordle as another example of a logic game that a variety of people enjoy. And for the animation, I could maybe look at a 'blob' sort of character animation, which might work well with the character. Also for the puzzle I had planned to have written clues that would be given by the villagers after completing their quests however it was suggested to introduce rules instead (for instance there will always be treasure 2 squares away from a purple crystal or there will not be treasure around a green crystal) this was really helpful advice and I think this would create a better user experience. 

I also created my Instagram account for this project and posted the mock-up gif and an image of the character to showcase what I have been doing. This is my account Abigail (@abigailgg_designs) • Instagram photos and videos I know the name is a bit long, so I might change it at some point. 

My next steps will be to finish off the prospectus, start working on some animations and to start to work on the scripts for the game.