Exploring Principles for Real-Time Material Design and Creation in Game Art Production

Module Aims

Module Aims

1. Explore critical principles for the design and production of real time Materials and associated textures for use within a computer game or real-time application.

2. Enable students to understand the theoretical and practical uses of advanced material creation within the history of game art production.

3. Enable students to understand and evaluate the role of materials and textures within the various games genres and platforms.

4. Enable students to identify when a material authoring software should be used in a specific game production pipeline and to critique these skills.

Learning Outcomes

Personal and Transferable Skills

1. Professionally document processes involved in developing material assets for computer games.

2. Reflect upon feedback and engage in advanced development activity through autonomous learning.

Research, Knowledge and Cognitive Skills

3. Identify, discuss, and critically evaluate solutions to sophisticated materialauthoring problems and select appropriate methods for specific scenarios.

4. Investigate and analyse the role of advanced Material production within a games development pipeline.

Professional Skills

5. Engage with industry standard techniques, software, tools and procedures in the design and development of Materials and textures.

6. Act with some autonomy in the development of solutions to complex games art asset related tasks within defined guidelines

Element 2 includes a live, 10 minute presentation of your work to the group (module tutor only if requested). It should be submitted to Blackboard as a PDF, however you can use a local copy for the presentation itself should you wish to use videos etc to further illustrate your process. You should include the following as a minimum;

• Masters Poster Presentation (Covering Overall Project)

• Powerpoint (or similar) R&D and Production Documentation, including:

1. Visual Research

2. Planning & Evaluation of Materials

3. Material Tests and Proof of Concept versions

4. Overall Development (Technique/methodology adopted at key stages)

5. Self Evaluation, including:

a. Overall success/failures of the project, especially in terms of…

i. Visual Accuracy of Materials

ii. Overall Visual Quality

iii. Proposed Future Improvements (workflow & outcomes)

MATERIAL CREATION (GAV4038-N) Page 4 of 8

SCHOOL OF COMPUTING,

ENGINEERING & DIGITAL

TECHNOLOGIES (SCEDT)

Brief Selection

For this project you must create the textures and materials for a Character, Creature, Foliage Asset, or Prop*. The asset must comply with the texture budget laid out in the section below, and should fit into one of the following games (some of which are fictional);

• Hogwarts Legacy

• Witcher 3: Wild Hunt (fictional remaster)

• Narnia RPG (fictional)

• Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (fictional remake)

• God of War: Ragnarök

You MUST get the approval of your tutor before finalising what you are making – your tutor can advise on what is an appropriate portfolio of materials. This module is about QUALITY not quantity.

*Please note: if making materials for a prop it must be substantially related to a combination of character, creature, or foliage. For example;

• A wardrobe featuring a carved animal relief, heraldic lions-paw feet, and with its doors ajar to reveal clothing and the branches of fir-trees within.

• The skeletal remains of a long-dead wizard, entwined with twigs and animal bones, forming a nest around a hatching dragon egg.

1. Efficient use of Material creation tools to create material surfaces for appropriate use for games, animation and film.

2. Identification and implementation of appropriate Material authoring methods 3. Use of texturing tools to create appropriate high resolution textures

4. Adherence to industry standard error checking procedures

5. Aesthetic value of asset / Material presentation

1. Evaluation of asset form, profiles and function

2. Visual development of assets

3. Aesthetic value of poster presentation

4. Material analysis

5. Written Self-critique of final art presentation