File - Digital Media

Game Art and Design
Unit 2 Lesson 1
Skills in the Game Industry
© 2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Big Idea
Specific skills are necessary in order to
obtain and keep a job in the competitive
design industry.
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
What Skills are Needed in
the Game Industry?
• Communication
• Creativity
• Problem Solving
• Teamwork
• Gantt Charts
• Team roles
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team Skills
• Communication skills
listening and
speaking
• Good communication
requires effort
• Need to clearly
communicate ideas and
have all members of
the team understand
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team Skills
• Creativity
• Each new game needs to be different
and exciting to attract customers
• Studies suggest that creativity is innate
and cannot be taught - others believe
creativity can be nurtured
• So how do you know if you are creative?
• There are several online tests or
evaluations you can take
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team Skills
• Problem Solving
• A mental process used to find a solution
to a complex or simple task
• What makes a good problem solver?
• There are several online tests or
evaluations you can take to find out how
you solve problems
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team Skills
• Technology competence
• Creating games requires technology
skills such as 3D modeling, game
scripting, applying materials and
textures to scenes, and creating
documents and spreadsheets
• Many game cells have divisions of labor
where one might specialize in one or
more skills
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
TEAM ROLES
© 2011 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Team Roles
• Game teams- called cells
• Cells work together in a
secure environment for
very long hours
• During development the
idea should be guarded
• Each member has specific
roles and/or
responsibilities
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Team Roles: Producer
• Person in charge
of the project
• He/she manages the
development team,
schedules, reports, hires and assures
quality control
• The producer keeps the team on
schedule so the game can be completed
on time and under budget
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Team Roles: Programmer
• Software engineer
concerned with the
core
mechanics of game play
• Programs the game
engine, scripting various commands and
develops the User Interface (UI)
• Writes code for the Artificial Intelligence
(AI) algorithms that control computermanaged opponents
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team: Lever
Designer
• In charge of creating a
game level
• Makes sure all assets
and actions of the level
work together as
designed
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team: Writer
• Responsible for the
storyline of the game
• Makes sure the dialogue
is appropriate for the
characters and the
scenes are themed to
follow the storyline set
forth in the storyboard
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team: Art Designer
• Responsible for the visual
elements of the game
• Keeps track of assets,
sprites, models,
backgrounds, and
polygon count
• Ensures the theme carries
over into scene layouts and
character designs
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team: Audio
• Responsible for all
sounds, musical score,
background music,
ambient sounds and
voiceovers
• Ensures the sounds
match the theme and
mood of the game
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team: Tester
• Responsible for testing and analyzing
the game for defects, glitches, and bugs
• Cheat codes are built into the game to
help the testers
• Should be a good game player with a
working knowledge of the design, game
play, and programming of the game
• Good entry-level position
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
TEAM STRUCTURE
© 2011 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team Skills
• Teamwork - part of a design team
• Successful team = players doing their
part in a timely manner
• Teamwork requires
•
•
•
•
•
Responsibility
Initiative
Dependability
Dress
Respect
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team Skills
• Divisor of Labor - allow
members to specialize in
certain areas
• Roles may be group
leaders with several other
team members working
together
• Good communication skills
and a strong work ethic are
essential
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Team Skills
• Gantt chart –shows a project schedule
including
• start and finish dates
• who is responsible for what
• overall progress
• Shows planned and actual completion
dates
• Can be edited daily
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
MAKING A GANTT CHART
© 2011 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Making A Gantt Chart
Order of production (What happens first)
1. Preproduction
2. Production
3. Post production
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Making A Gantt Chart
Order of production (What happens first)
1. Preproduction: The design phase
•
•
•
•
assemble team
game idea
brainstorm
sketching
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Making A Gantt Chart
Order of production (What happens first)
1. Preproduction: assemble team, game
idea, brainstorm, sketching
2. Production: create characters, levels, UI,
programming, sounds, and other game
components, test and correct, add final
touches, ship
3. Post production: maintenance,
marketing, outsourcing
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Making A Gantt Chart
Steps to creating a Gantt chart
1. Identify the list of required tasks.
2. Estimate the time requirements (hours)
and responsible person for each task.
3. Determine the order of completion for
each task and if there are any
dependencies (task one must be
completed before task two).
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Making A Gantt Chart
Steps to creating a Gantt chart
4. Create a rough draft of the chart.
5. Update the chart as needed.
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Big Idea
Specific skills are necessary in order to
obtain and keep a job in the competitive
design industry.
© 2011
2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
Association,
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™
Game Art and Design
Unit 1 Lesson 2
Skills in the Game Industry
Images
Reproduced with permission Unity. Microsoft clipart.
Photo by Phyllis Jones. Student images.
© 2014 International Technology and Engineering Educators Association
STEMCenter for Teaching and Learning™