The Daily Gamer

New Blog!

2008-11-08T20:17:00.002Z

Yes, im changing to a new blog.

Why I here you ask, well I will tell you. It is because I wanted to give my blog a new look and the HTML would not work on this existing blog. But in some strange instance worked perfectly on my new one.

So to complete my new blog it needed a new name as well.

The Ultimate Gaming Column

The address is : http://ultimategamingcolumn.blogspot.com/

This is where my blog posts will be from now on.

Till the next BLOG CYA!!!

Im Back Baby!!!

2008-11-06T21:03:00.003Z

Yes I have my computer back and im now modelling double time to make up for time lost.

I was not feeling like finishing my Slaney Pilot, so instead I have started my environment project.

For this project I have decided to turn my garden from home into a 3D model. As we have a really nice rockery next the shed. Thats the only reason really.

Till Next Time Cya!

Never Trust Computers!

2008-11-03T14:34:00.003Z

For the last week and a half I have been without a computer as my hardrive decided to give up the ghost, so to speak. With a little help from Tom O I have managed to rescue what work I had and safely store a copy on to his computer and on to my external.

I ordered a new hardrive the same day and knowing that we were all going to GameCity, I dedided to worry about it when I got back. Now Im back and the new hardrive has not yet arrived. So now im using plan B, Borrow my housemates laptop.

On a lighter note GameCity was great fun and has got me Caz and Louise sorted for our final major. As when Louise spoke to the industry guys from Bizzare, they got excited to here about it and offered to give us help and advice through it.
So I still think that if I can I would love to keep being a part of GameCity. It would be interesting if in some years to come im stood doing the talk on stage.
One can hope hahaha!

I will keep you posted on my PC and how it has effecting work.

Till next time cya!

Ben's Hands

2008-10-21T19:06:00.002Z

Well today I have been working on finishing my models head and also got the pilot helmet and half a pair of goggles done as well.
As for the rest of my model im not too worried, except I just wondered if I should try doing my hands a different way to last time. With the poly limit being much higher I think it best.
This morning I saw that Ben had been thinking the same thing as well. When I saw him he had already covered half his hand with permenant marker and was getting Slaney to help him get good poly distribution. To start with I thought that they had both gone stark raving mad but when I think about it, it's not a bad idea.

I think anyone who is looking to try and do a higher poly hand should deffinately check out Ben's blog at http://wickedywack.blogspot.com/.
He has taken a few pictures of his hands and has quite successfully made them in 3D.
This is after he had gotten all the permenant marker off. He even had to use some of my turps at some piont.

Till next time cya!

Making Heads?

2008-10-20T23:36:00.003Z

Hey I have been working on this head for a few days and have had a go at different methods but I think im finnally happy with how this one is turning out.

So as a way of showing people what I have been up too, here it is!

The distribution on the polys at the back need some work but the face and the model as a whole are if I do say so myself rather nice :P

SUMMER!!!

2008-10-15T12:42:00.004Z

When I last posted here I was just recieving the work from good old Alex Jev. Well I can officially say that I got my work for him completed on time and in full.
And with the sum of 350 pounds in my pocket treated myself to a 60GB PS3. Woop! Woop!

I was also discussing my concerns for the first years on there little group project for Jev. Which as far as I heard was over before it began. But it was a lesson learned, as now they know who the workers are and who the slackers are.

Well this summer I have done quite alot of DIY around the house and even in the garden.
Fittings in the Bathroom.
Furniture for my bedroom.
New lock on the shed.
Fixed and painted the fence.

And still found some time to recreate my living room in max.
The downside to that is I have no images because my whole computer decided it couldnt go on and died!
So I spent a very annoyed two days trying to reinstall all my programmes.

Oh! I almost forgot. A VERY FUNNY STORY!
The reason for my garden fence being broken is because it was broken by something. I say something, it was in fact eaten by a cow. This is NO joke, it actually happened. For those of you who dont know, my garden backs on to a cow field. But for some strange and unexplained reason a cow decided that eating my fence was more appetising than grass.
I suppose I can understand why. NO! What am I saying. It is a cow and cows are supposed to eat grass.

Also this summer I turned 21 and for my birthday, I went to the Download Festival. Which was amazing!

Now is the third year and the work really begins.

Firstly I will be modeling the WWI character. I will be recreating Slaney as an RAF Pilot.
Which he was just as excited about as I was. No pressure then.

At the same time I have been discussing and planning my final major project with Caz and Louise. We have decided upon, along with Powell that we will recreate a part of Turkey.
The tickets have been booked and now im just really excited about the trip out their.

When we go, we will take our cameras and also a laptop. So that we can upload the images every night, which will allow us as much space and memory as we need.
The more pictures we take the better as we only really get to go that once. But I have alot of faith in ourselves to get what we need.

I think im just going to take pictures of just about everything and anything. I would rather have a picture and not need it than have the alternative.

Well till next time cya

Building with Alex :)

2008-05-01T14:02:00.003Z

Oh my! what an exciting task we all have before us. Im really happy to be getting the chance to do this. But best of all we even get paid for it.

When I first heard about alex giving us some work and needing some help, I assumed it would be only a few people that he wopuld hand pick. Instead he strolls on in and gives everyone in the room a job and was even a bit dissapointed that some were not their.

I think it shall be interesting to watch how the first years cope with their assignment as they are working as a group on a project that is not too far from our second year queens project.

For the moment though Im now looking through those wonderful plans and trying to get my small brain round the measurements. But I will cope.

Also Im working in a group again, but for some reason im just compelled to make this work and as I see it, when I can, then im ready to work in a team as they do in the industry.

I still wonder that if I can convince more that doing group projects is a good thing then maybe...... a group 3rd year project?

I can already see the faces of my fellow students but in time I think that they will see my way of thinking.

In a group, our final projects will look fantastic and on a scale that has never been seen before at any degree show. If it can become a reality it will be an amazing portfolio peace. As will this work fo alex jev.

so till next time cya!

Strange?

2008-04-17T23:14:00.004Z

Dagger
Your creativity and wit is absolutely perfect for a Dagger! It's lightweight and the easiest to use of all weapons - even a child can use this! Whether its stealthily stabbing someone behind their back, throwing it towards someone's heart or doing quick slashes - the Dagger does it perfectly. Sometimes being a quick thinker can be advantageous when wielding a Dagger.

You know it is strange having all these wierd tests you take on the net.

None of them I believe and yet some are so correct. Does it have something to do with who writes the test. In fact who does write the tests?!?!

This is the result from a test on Facebook for what your personality is in relation to a weapon.

The reason I posted it was because it mentions me being creative and I thought that that was an interesting argument against the last test I took on Synesthesia.

After talking to Powell about my result on the Synesthesia test I started to think about how right he was that you can be taught but you can also be taught how to pass exams.

It sounds the same but in fact they are two totally opposing things. As when we disscussed this, we said that, (using The Apprentice as an example lol) you can get good grades and pass all your exams with the highest mark. But sometimes you are not clever in real world situations and make obvious mistakes.

The strange thing about being graded all the time is that you can only really learn real life situations in theory and in a contolled enviornment but not have learnt how to act apon them or really of experienced them for yourself.

This is why I like work experience and placements. I think that more exams and grades should be spread among more physical elements as well as just written theory.

So when we discuss how to decide whats good and whats bad in these situations, its easy. The person who is good has done well and for example brought in a wonderful crop for the season. The person who has done bad will of not got any harvest or flooded his fields. That was a really strange example of which I have no clue where or why I even thought of it!

Im going to go now and sort my head out so,
Till next time cya!

The Good the Bad and the Stupid (part 2)

2008-04-16T16:10:00.005Z

When I made this post I found it hard to describe what I meant by judging work from one piece to the next. But this time I thought that I would revisit this and try to elaborate on it a Little more.

When I made a piece of art work either on the computer or in my sketch book even with my 3D models, I would just naturally try to compare it to something that I made previously and see how I had improved.
But with this it is easy to fall into the trap....!

You see you might start to beleive that because you have improved that this makes the piece of art work good. This might not be the case at all and in fact the piece you have just done is sill bad.
This is my example of just being stupid and a little bit unwise in my judgements.

A smart way to stay clear of this trap, that you can fall into so easily, is to try and judge yourself next to someone or something that is concindered good.

Which is why so continuosly we are told to look at excisting objects or places.
"Always draw from life" the never ending echoes of chris.
Although it pains me to say it, he is so right and yet why do we all stay stupid and ignorant?

I think that it is easy that way and people can get lazy.
Although people are suposed to stand on there own two feet and research, make the effort themselves so to speak. Sometimes we all just need a big kick up the arse to keep us from slipping off the short and narrow.

OK! I hold my hand up im really talking about myself needing a kick up the rear but thats only because my mind drifts uncontrollably into a world of its own and then before you know it I have lost my interest and all of my time to do it.

I believe that as for doing projects that maybe we as a class were getting more out of shorter projects of only a few weeks and not whole terms.
But I do realise that it was a necessary time scale for a project of this size.

The summary of it is, we do better at short projects because it teaches us to make more decisions and not fluff around trying to decide on what to do because you just dont have the time.

So what makes it good? I think that maybe it has something to do with doing everything that is asked and getting it right but also being creative with that. Doing something that makes it unique to you and can make something more interesting to the eye.

with that I think I will leave it.
Till next time cya!

Getting marked

2008-04-16T15:17:00.002Z

Well crunch time has hit and all that has been building up over the last month has finally come into view.
Wether or not thats peoples vision's coming into view as a playable level or if it is the oppinions of one another and how they want to rip each other's heads off, because things are not done as and when they should of been.
But as i said right at the beginning of this project, "The people who are suspected to not do much work are going to be very visible".
And as Powell said a few days ago, "You cant force people to do work!" cuz they just wont do it.

One thing I have learnt from this project is that you have to remove yourself from worrying what other people are doing or as the case maybe not doing, and concentrate on your part. But although this is the case for most of the time, in some cases you have to just give people a push. As they may have something that you need so that you can continue.

Sorry that's just me being petty about leaving things to the last minute. When thats the pot calling the kettle black. I have not even finished alot of my drawing, so i will be scribbling away untill monday none stop.

But at least im safe into the knowledge that I can relax on the 3D as I have done my job as 3D lead and completed the assets that i was assigned.
I even did a few that I was not asked but were grateful for when I had done them, like a statue of myself based on a posed version of my avatar.

Now crunch time is coming to an end and stress is high for everyone and so they should be, as for myself im stressed because I want to show my best.

This term I have been learning some new skills that I felt were needed and have seen alot of people not only on the course but in the industry already have.
Such as experience with engines and improving your knowledge of photoshop and one im proud of and have also seen such as soph having a go and that is Z-brush. Which to my suprise was rather fun to use but a real time eater.
Even the first years are trying there hand at a bit of Mudbox which is worrying as it makes me think how to push even harder but I think I have found my own method to that......

I have been marking myself on industry standards and tried to fase out what level other people are doing as it is hard to judge where people are at the moment as many are good maybe at one thing but weak in another. But aim for the sky is the moto im going by at the moment.

So till next time cya!

The Synesthesia Challenge

2008-04-16T15:05:00.002Z

50%

I really like this test it was as fun as it was interesting and after looking up Synesthesia in a previous blog, it was cool to find out how creative im suposed to be.
As has been said to me before im half one person and half of another. The star sign Gemini comes true again!

Taking Criticism

2008-03-11T14:51:00.002Z

This is very important to improving your work to a better standard and shows a great level of confidence.

The problem in some cases is that some people listen to the advice given and dont actually follow it. This is just going to get you a bad reputation with people around you and will not make the difference to your work that it needs.

Although that person may of made some great points about the parts of your work that are good. You also need to understand the things they say about the bad parts. This is the key to improving and developing your work.

The problem occurs when work is criticised about the bad and not the good. You must always have something good to say about work, not just bad. This can just lead to people getting demoralised and that wont help them at all.

Also on a personal level when you see that happening to someone, it can be fairly annoying as well.

Think then speak, cya next time.

Why?

2008-03-11T14:38:00.004Z

It has been said and I do agree, there are alot of issues that you can talk about when discussing grades and exams and why it is so important to think about how well your work is assessed.

Then why is it that my mind does not want to think about it. Am I just being stubborn or is it something else.

This is something I have been thinking about for a while now, as this project has progressed to this stage.

I have realised that when I hear someone start to talk about something effecting their grade I stay very quiet and become nervous and sometimes even phisically uncomfortable.

I think that the subject for me is a mental thing that somehow and at some point made a mental block. To some this might sound strange but then, I'am pretty strange!

I have a large fear of failure, which is odd because I was never pushed into doing anything and so have no reason for being that way.

So what is it about the subject of grading and more to the point, doing your work correctly that makes me uncomfortable?

The subject for this blog to me is a way of finding out just that.

The good, the bad and the stupid?

2008-02-07T01:30:00.001Z

Im not really sure where im going with this as it might just be the lack of sleep but I decided to see what people thought of this picture and vote Good or Bad. Basing it on the quote by J.Webb.

Good that makes it good bad that makes it bad.

Then when you give an answer I want you tell me if you think that it is better or worse than the picture below with a reason why.

That's right mike look at the kitten.

I have worked out that although a picture or painting is better than that of another does not make it a master piece. FACT!

Grade's!!!

2008-02-06T22:34:00.000Z

Got so involved in the group project these few weeks, I had totally forgotten about the blog.
Well better late than never hey!

Here we go then, this term we will be discussing the way in which we are graded or marked for our work. How we are forever being given a percentage that is supposed to reflect our intelligence or progress?.

The problem is that even when we do fail, there is now this strange solution that just adds to the problem. Re-sits are now available to those who did not get the marks they needed.
Sometimes we fail because the course or lesson that your learning just is not for you and this whole thing about the stigma that failure is bad is a myth. All Re-sits do is relive the failure over again.

Of course if you try hard enough you can pass the second time but here is where i think that it gets a bit stupid, because in some exams the questions are the Flipping same!

You are going to do better when the test is the same over and over.

So this is by far, a terrible way to judge a persons intelligence.

The thing about art and courses not judged by exams is that they are more complicated to mark as wrong or right. The part about art is that we all know what a chair looks like so you know what a picture of a chair looks like but how do we judge what a good painting of chair is.

Well it all begins in how we mark and grade ourselves mentally. We all do it because of the way we are brought up and had these drilled into us.

When we grade ourselves we tend to fall into the trap of how long it took you or how much you have improved. This is all fine for self improvement, but when you consider that you are to be given a grade then you realise that this is a bad way to judge.

So then you have to consider "What is enough work?" and "How long should it take me?", it becomes very difficult to decide what is good enough and how much of it you need to get the best grade.

Is it possible that sometimes you just cant grade work and that maybe we should just pass and fail.
"But then again where do you draw the line for pass and fail?"

In my oppinion I have to agree with an explanation that Mike gave, about the marking system being more organic than just the linear system of pass and fail. More just flow up and down and even sometimes round in circles.
When I heard him say it I understood what he ment but when I tryed to put in words I could only say those same words. Maybe the marking system is flawed and maybe their is a better way to do it but until it can be made into a bit more than hippy mumbo jumbo of going up to come downand fowing in circles like some drug trip then we will just have to deal with it.

The only way in those types of situations is to ensure you try your hardest and do the most that you are capable of. Also as I have learnt of my own experience, I beleive you can achieve more in something that you enjoy rather than something that you have no interest.

My Passion for games and films have always been present and when I found that I had an interest with art as well. Putting them together was a given.
This has allowed me to push myself and learn skills I had not got before such as 3DS Max and Photoshop.

Quote to remember:

"It is the good that makes it good and it is the bad that makes it bad." by Joelian Webb

Till next time cya!

conclusion to creativity!

2008-01-03T20:28:00.000Z

Well I hope everyone has had a good Christmas and New Year. Now that that is over with I thought it time to sit and round up this creativity buisness.

When we first started to look at creativity I felt there was little all to talk about and now I realise this is not the case at all and if anything the subject of creativity needed this long period of time.

I have discussed creativity in school's and in education and decided that creativity was not appreciated enough. I also discussed how this was seen by me during my own time in education and explained in discussions of the group how this effected my choices at school. In the end I followed an Artistic education as this is where I felt most understood and found friends that shared similar and sometimes the same outlook as me.

I also feel that there is a simple solution to the school education system as it can be quite obvious what a child's capability's are from a young age. The problem occurs when, as it did at my primary school, there are lack of teaching staff (that's right mike same problem you have) so to to solve the problem they make the amount of students to one classroom bigger. Now the ability to see the potential of each individual child is near impossible. And in my opinion there are little amount of teachers due to the lack of trust in the educational system. The cycle continues lol

In a more recent Blog I wrote about how creative I feel in my work at the moment and decided that I strongly admire the way in which the course is driven to support the way in which we work, for example the Blogs themselves are a great way of helping toward creativity as they are more written to a style of how the person is feeling and ho they think. An essay on the other hand is a formulated hindrance's to be quite honest of which we are all best off without.(That's as much to you too Mike, as you would have to mark them)

In conclusion to this I feel I have a much broader opinion of what I think creativity is and why it is so important to us. I just Hope that the Educational board realise it before we get a country of mindless zombie children .....ooooooooh tooo late.

Till next time Cya!

Synesthesia

2007-11-29T14:56:00.000Z

In Wikipedia it says that Synesthesia is a “neurologically based phenomenon in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensoryor cognitive pathway.”
Basically as I understand it, this means that people are able to see sound as colour and also as wiki says, see letters and numbers as colour as well. This usually found in people that are on psychedelic drugs, or after a stroke, people who have suffered with the conseqeunce of becoming blind and deaf.
The synethesia is also refered to as a “neurological condition”. To me this makes it sound terrible but as I’m lead to beleive it does not interfere with normal daily function but thats where I dissagree, because all though it does not effect people in a bad way it can be an advantage.
It cant help but make me think that it would give them problems at school as they would have conversations with people but experience it in a totally different way but be to young to know why.
Teachers at my primary school thought that I was difficult to handle because I had a short attention span to other pupils. Really it all boiled down to me imagining something out the window or drawing a picture on my maths book.
Maybe if I had the problem of wanting to think things up all the time then maybe they had that problem too if not worse. They imagine colours without even trying, it just comes naturally. But the system of school and education does not understand this way thinking.
Some of the known composers and musicians have been said to have this condition. Which is why their sound is so different and unconventional to that of your everyday composer and musician.
I cant imagine how that would feel to be able to see music in your mind. The music would not be composed in a conventional way but as colour and then translated into sound. That to me is, life making people creative. This unusual ability to experience music on a visual level should be an embraced form. But the way in which the world is today it is hard for such a person to excel in life. Other than through base subjects such Maths, English and Science.
I wonder if a person could learn that ability?
People have created images of pulsing lines and swirls that are to show the flow of colour like that of the screen on Windows Media Player but to actually put a colour to a specific note takes this to a different level.
Pink Floyd have attempted on many occasion to portray sound through moving colour. In their concerts you lay on the ground as flying images of colour and light fly over you. Another example of this use of combining sound and colour comes from a composer called Duke Ellington who was able to turn Timbre into colour.
An interesting use of music and art was David Hockney who used music to paint stage scenes but strangely never used the method in any of his other works.
I also like to paint while listening to music and in my Art Foundation I tryed to paint music and the emotion I percieved from it. It was an interesting experiment and I ended up with some fantastic use of line and colour. It was a series of 10 paintings ranging from music such as R’n’B to Heavy Metal Rock.
From this I think I will check to see if my cousin has it when I get home at christmas. Hey if he does he could be the next amazing musician of our time lol.
Till next time cya!

Speed Painting and Creativity

2007-11-29T13:41:00.000Z

This was my first attempt at the speed painting that we set up and although I feel I may of miss interpret the word given, I'm happy with this attempt.

The word we were given was Omnipresent and it was 45 Min's long. I automatically thought of omnipotent and thought of the all seeing eye out of Lord of the Rings. But I was mainly focused on the use of tools and not so much the drawing itself. I think as I do more of these speed paintings, I will be able to start and look at better composition and detail.

I have started to grasp the ability of using the opacity on the brushes to show nice shades of colour that overlap without the use of multiply as sometimes this can cause you some problems.

I think that it is really working my brain not only on improving skills but also how creative I can be on my ideas for the image. As I said on my previous blog I can only continue as I have. Just keep drawing and be creative as much as possible.

It is fun to see how other people take the word and the different images that arise. I think that the sessions of speed painting should continue and that people should keep an account of their own work on their blog or in a specific file on their computer so as to be able to give themselves feedback and catalogue their progress.

This was a picture which I did in the same way but I had not got the confidence with the tools to make this as I had planned but it still portrays my idea.

I'm waiting to become more competent with photoshop so as I can do a final piece for Chris's projects. This was an idea for a final piece that was from the organic project.

I'm working at the moment on a solution to a problem I have hit on the mechanical project. I cant get past an idea I had as I like the idea but cant see it as a 3D object. I'm stuck drawing the same thing over and over but not progressing it to anywhere.

I feel I may be able to try a solution to the problem after having a conversation with Joel. I decided that maybe I would benefit from making it out of clay or Plasticine as when I tryed to explain how I saw it I used my hands and described individual components.

After I finish building it in 3D, If it is successful I will Photograph it and work over the image in photoshop till I learn the shape and know how to move it on to the next stage.

Till next time cya!

Child's Play

2007-11-29T12:38:00.000Z

I have chosen to talk about the mind of a child because I find them very interesting. My interest lies within the way they explain something or interpret certain comments they hear.
People forget that a child has the potential to learn at a fast rate due to the fact that they are going through an important stage of their life. As this is something they still have a part of from being a baby, for example this is the reason a baby can learn to speak its first word or watch enough people walking to imitate it. A child does this on a different but simular level. They try to do more complicating challenges like problem solving and drawing there thoughts.
This brings me to a qoute i found: “Kids can't always tell us what's on their minds.”
My cousin is 5 and he drew a picture of ..... well I still dont know but I asked him and he told me he had drawn his headache, which was why he had used blue. I asked him why blue and he replied with a shrug of his shoulders and went off to watch Sponge Bob Squarepants. (which is one of the weirdest and funniest childrens programmes ever)
I sat and thought about it for a while and I asked my auntie what she thought and she said it was him expressing how it makes him feel and I thought how creative it was to do that from such a young age.
The picture of this blue thing wasnt a thing it was an emotion. A piece of art that his mind just thought up.
I believe that if the mind of a child as young as 5 years of age can produce a creative piece of art work on a headache alone. Then maybe there is something adults are missing and need to embrace more in there daily lives.
After talking to Powell about this idea, we discussed how the mind changes with age and also the differences between men and women. It may sound a bit sexist but men and women are totally different in how they think about things.
An example of this was when was watching a film about romance comedy (Knocked up) and when I laughed at the jokes made by the male star, my girlfriend would just sit there and looked puzzled and vise versa when the female part got angry. I would not know why.
I think on a personal level life would be much easier if we did know what each other were thinking but deffinately not as interesting. Lol
Going back to this simple use of colour that my cousin used. If we could simply just express ourselves creatively using methods such as art and colour every day of our lives then I believe that we may be able to hold on to a part of this child like creativity that is in a part of us all. The problem with age is that as we become older we become set in our ways and dont experiment as much. Thats why the Speed Painting session that we have organised for ourselves may help us to keep our creative minds active and also help us to achieve a higher standard of work on photoshop.
After looking at what Tom O’Brien had achieved with his speed paintings over the summer, I was inspired to try it myself. His drawings showed great improvement after only a handful of them.
So in conclusion I need to go and do some more drawing and when I finish that DO SOME MORE!
Till next time cya!

Welcome to the second year.

2007-11-02T15:01:00.000Z

Well here we are again for round two of the blogging except for this time it will be more in depth to a certain subject. For this first part of the year we will be focusing our energy on the disscusion of creativity. Yeah I know we already did that but with it only being a week or so last year their was'nt much time to cover the many aspects of such an enormous subject. In fact its so vague that I have had trouble wondering where to start so I decided to just talk about school and education and how that has an effect on the creativity of the world. After watching the video with michael powell on the subject of education I really started to realise that I was'nt the only person that felt missunderstood in school.
I was always told that I would never be able to keep a job or do anything if I did not concentrate in class. Which I could never understand why they said that because I could always concentrate well at work. I was getting payed LOL!!! stupid schools dont understand the logic of being able to do things of which we enjoy and have intrest. My intrest at the time was where my money for the next game would come from, not in where the decimal point should go in this equation.
The idea of schools and university's not considering an art related course as being as important as that of math's and english is fustrating and emoral. As without these outbursts of imaginative inervation we would not have the world and the technology we have today. This stems to games, films, architecture and music. These are every day things that people take for granted, take these elements away and you left with unimaginative robots that do the the same thing day in day out and live to learn the same things and do the same jobs. Boring!!!! This may be ok for the individual but it is not for me,I want more than just doing a buisness course and wearing a snazzy suit.
So then it begs the question "What is creativity?"
I let this stew around in my head for a while and I finally think I would like to describe it as a "mental process of which you use your imagination to think up or create both mentally or physically an idea of which has been something else or a collection of things. For example it could be anything from a conversation or thought to a telephone box and a bump to the head."
In other words creativity is everything and the way I see it, you can be creative in science as you could create compounds with elements and extract salt from sea water using instruments and techniques of which thought of and experimented with.
You can be creative in english as people write wonderful poetry or script write plays or short story's. Along with reading novels that have wonderful illustrations using usually some sort of ink(artist did them!).
You can even be creative in maths as there are methods of remembering your times tables through songs and patterns that are extremely creative.
So then why is an art course that by my reckoning is by far the most creative of the school subjects not considered to be a needed subject as much as that of the others.
If you look at primary school for instance, children in reception are taught all the types of skills they need through the way of play and experimentation. As they then progress through the years they gradually lose this ability to learn things through experimenting and playing with ideas. They do this through no fault of there own but through the fault of the schools system to control and mold children into uncreative drones of society. It may sound morbid but in retrospect it is a very realistic interpretation of the present day todate.
I will be researching creativity further and posting links to websites that I found and consider relevant to the subject of creativity.
Till next time cya !!!

2007-06-04T19:50:00.000Z

Where do you want to go, and how do you get there?

2007-03-11T16:39:00.000Z

I think that this a subject I go over with myself on a daily basis but to put into words is difficult. So here goes.
I believe as a course when I chose it, I looked at it as an opportunity to get an insite to what it takes to survive in the games industry. In a quick summary I beleive that I was far from ready before I came to uni, but know I feel I can look at it in a different light and see how that just from one year that as a whole, the group are ready for alot more. I think some could even cope with industry standard work.
I have got more confident as this year has progressed and I believe that to be uni life in general, but course wise I have become more confident in my work and can only see that as getting more precise and inventive or should I say more creative.
As for the next 2 years I beleive that the skills I have gained can only become more refined and that as technology advances so will my skills. I feel at the moment I learn something knew on the computers and think that will continue and help me to improve.
After I finish at uni I would be happy to go to a reasonably good company as a games artist.
I would love at sometime to say I want to be lead artist but find it at the moment to be a little ambitious for me to go straight into that kind of role.
Another idea was that I wanted to look at becoming an art director, but decided that if I did that that was going to be in the distant future.
If I was to fail getting a job in the buisness right away, I would I think look at taking another degree in computers so as to prove that I know what I'm doing.

The company that has been mentioned by a few people as somewhere they dont mind working is Blitz Games. I myself have thought about it too.

But It got me thinking what games would I really enjoy working on and I think that I would love to work on the Resident Evil games.

When I found out about the group project it got me very excited and thinking about how it would be great practice and find out if I really would enjoy it as much as I think I would. Then I remembered that it is capcom that make the Resident Evil games and started to search for games they made that I would not of enjoyed making and thought well I will just have to hope they dont make sequels to them.

Till next time cya.

Creativity and what is it?

2007-03-01T13:07:00.000Z

This has taken me some more thought than usual and as a result it is a bit late but this is what I have found on the subject.

Simply to start, creativity is described as being something that is thought of and would be considered a new idea or concept. But it can also be already existing ideas that have been re-worked and mixed between other ideas, wether that be a new or another existing concept. The creativity would exist in the final result or to word that better exist in the mind of the one who visualised the final result of that combination.

So if creativity is something that can be visualised can it be a process as well?

I think that it can, because if you look at people who work on the art for games for example, they must have an image or thought upon what that they are making or drawing is going to look like. They need some form of thought process, for them to create something that doesn't already exist. And that same amount of imagination and thought is required when changing something like the Reservoir Dogs from a film to a game, because the way in which you interact with a film is completely different to how you would a game.

You watch a film but you play the game so the way in which the game progressess is due to the player but the film continues on its own. The creativity between the two is simple to see, the thought process that is creativity lies within the use of a game and how the player would interact with a film of which was completely out of their control.

Is creativity hindered or enhanced by technical advances?

I dont think that it does either, I beleive that with the correct amount of work and thought gone into an idea or concept creativity will always be their. The only thing that will be effected by technical advance is the final reult of that creativity.

After reading Dan Grossman's site about creativity I was impressed by how he mentioned Robinsons oppinon on the current educational system. He in short mentioned how he thought that it was ( for lack of a better word ) a waste and that they cultivate a narrow set of skills–typically related to mathematics and language–at the expense of many others.

I myself got a D in maths at year 9 and decided then that I knew that I was never going to use any form of maths complicated enough to include letters. So instead of concentrating during maths I would use my math book as a way of doodling new ideas for art. What im trying to say is that unless you feel you need something like long division you should have the choice to flourish in something that you find inspiring and that you will use in a future career.

Robinsons fear is that we are stuck in one frame of mind and not preparing ourselves for the future. And I would have to agree on the principle of only wanting to do well in art and not in maths because I found it boring and un-inspiring.

I myself rate creativity very highly as it is what drives me to do what I do every day and I think that as a country we dont encourage it enough.

Cya next time. Keep creative!!!

Life Changing or Career Building?

2007-02-16T12:50:00.000Z

This is a good question of how we percieve higher education. Some beleive like myself that it readys you and gives you a better understanding of the caeer you are heading toward. My friend on the other hand does not agree with wasting time on going to uni. His reasons for this are that if you are passionate and talented enough then you should get the job anyway.
I would love to have his confidence but I only think that he is that confident because he is actually really tallented in art and computers.
So when we consider the views of some of the companies as it says here:
"Some game companies want highly trained graduate artists and programmers. Some claim they really prefer creative individuals with a good Liberal Arts background."
This quote shows companies with both views, but to have a whole selection of one without the other we would be in big trouble. The simple way to even this out is to have a pick of both highly trained graduate artists and programmers with that of the creative individuals with a good liberal arts background. Doesnt take a genious to realise you just need a mix of both.
The companys must realise that there are alot of up and coming artists and programmers that have never taken higher education, but instead have taken other career paths but have decided to follow their dreams. These people must be taken as seriously as any graduate student with a degree or I may as well tell my friend that he may as well give up hope.
With this open minded look at employee's games companys must watch out for those who may sneak in and not actually be of any use. But dont think I mean the people without the degree as those with may not work well in real life situations. There is risk with both and that is why it is better to get a mix of each.
In conclusion I come to beleive that the adverts you see are there as a line for the academic standard of which that company expects. But I also think that say someone with that level of work but no actual education to show should be able to send pieces of their work as application for an interview into a job with that particular games company.
So if we look at it that way we see that it is possible for it to be both a life changing experience and be beneficial to take higher education for career building purposes, making them highly qualified for the companys in question.
Another point of which I would put on the students is as what has happened to our second year students they were not just sticking to work on games art when they were in their firtst year.
I chose this course as I had not heard of such specifiically based subject such as this that envolved games. This gives in my oppinion all on our course a much higher standing than that of a student on a more varied course.
The question is do companys see it that way or do they want someone of an all round stature.
I think it would be too dificult to give an exact answer to this but from the points I have looked at you can see that their must be some form of balance between both sides.

Game Sounds,Tunes and Melodys.

2007-02-07T22:59:00.000Z

Game sounds have been around as long as games themselves. As in the first games it was mostly just miny explosion sounds or little tunes playing in the background, usually as a way of keeping you entertained. If I was to play a game and have no sound or music I would most deffinately not play it.
It is for this reason many composers have pick up on and know as the games industry has expanded so has its music. Now their is an assigned job for composers in games and in my oppinion an important one two.
As a gamer and safe in the knowledge that I know other gamers feel the same way. You can depict what game other people are playing just by listening to the music or just as simply hearing their phone go off and the ringtone be a theme of some sort or important line or verse.
While we are on the subject of game themes, I cant seem to stop humming the theme to LOTR. Something needs to be done about that game cause it is taking over the lab and now im humming it!Anyway sound in games are used in so many ways. They create the theme music, sounds of the environment, right down to the voice of the characters. It gives a feeling and emotes an emotional reaction. Wether that reaction be positive or negative. I think that due to advances in games and the level of detail that goes in is much higher mre has been expected of the sound and music of games. For example, in games now their are pieces of music that is significant to just one character. As simple as that may sound that can get, a player to respond emotionally toward that character. If you were to create a Bad guy, you would give them evil music. If they were good then maybe heroic sounding music would be played. But also when you want a comic element to a game, occassionally characters are made to be humorous, they are given clumzy sounding music or fair ground type music.
So know when we think about sound in games we have to consider all different aspects of what that covers in a game.
HaHaHa 'Good Times' It's good but over used.
My mum's a big soul fan and so I knew straight away it was Chic. Not sure why it was so big but deffinately well known. Found this quote from a tribute website about Nile Rogers/Bernard Edwards.
"Members of the Dance Music Hall of Fame !
THE most successful writer/producer team of the DISCO era. By some people compared to the famous partnerships of Lennon/McCartney and Richards/Jagger."
In my oppinion I dont really like The Beatles so seems pretty acurate to me. If you wanna check out the website go to: http://www.disco-disco.com/tributes/chic.shtml
I think possibly most of the yonger generation will remember the song because of 'Spank the Monkey', a silly flash game where you .... yeah you guessed it spank the monkey and see who did it fastest.
To round up this task I will say that I think that the one sound in games that really gets me going is 'One Winged Angel', which is the final battle music of Final Fantasy 7 where you face off against the awesome Sephiroth. Which of course we have the great Nobuo Uematsu to thank for composing it.
Well till next time cya.

Game Engines

2007-02-02T16:37:00.000Z

A game engine is the core software component of a computer or video game or other interactive application with real-time graphics. Or so says me research.
This is actually the first question I have been left completely stuck for what to say.
What are the key engine technologies? I really wish I knew but I dont even know what to look for, maybe I just dont understand the question. I think I will try and rite what I know about game engines and work from their.
The new engines such as the Fear engine or the newest engine the Unreal engine. But the engine we use for the Game art course is the Unreal engine because in order to learn what is required to be in the industry, we have to have the latest hardware and components. This will allow us to leave the course at the same standard as is expected of someone in the industry.
The dissadvantage into buying proprietary technologies is that what you buy may not actually be very good and may be bought at a loss because the technologies may not become a success.
The main problem in my oppinion on next-gen engines is that they are forever expected to render more and more graphics per second. If they keep making them more powerful I expect they will become more obsessed with graphics and forget about story and other components. As in past posts I have mentioned how they will have to eventually find other ways of making games better.
Well if now you read it and it made no sense to you what so ever then join the club becuase I have this weks task the hardest yet. If anyone has any comment on how hard they found this weeks task then please do feel free to leave one.
till next time cya.

Getting excited about the second year already!

2007-01-28T04:28:00.000Z

At first I was just thinking about how good it will be to live in a house next year. I have had enough of living in halls, noisy flat mates that wake you at 4 in the morning and leave you nice suprises in the kitchen and hallway: such as wierd looking stains and other miscellaneous objects scattered around.
So yes definately excited about getting out of their. But just recently I have been feeling really excited about the course especially since I heard about the group project on the queens building. Best of all is that it will be a survival horror, my favourite style of game. "Nice choice Joel!"
In the mean time I know for a fact im enjoying our drawing lessons because were doing character design and it has left people in a frenzy to try and recreate some unusual looking creatures. As I have mentioned before though I couldnt help myself but to give a reason for my character and make a whole background on it.
What I was most proud of with my character was that I got my desired reaction out of chris during the drawing assessment. He found it funny and yet fairly disturbing.
"BRILLIANT A SUCCESS!"
My very first design for a character I can honestly say im happy with. Usually they end with me just giving up cause the proportion is wrong or I cant be bothered to try a 6th time, their are better things to do like play games hahaha.
But getting back to what im looking forward too, I cant wait for when we start doing scenes and landscapes. I dont know what it is I can draw them again and again and I find it hard to get bored. One thing I will say is that im definately my worst critic as I beleive that I have never done a good drawing. You would think that beleiving that would stop me from trying when actually I always just want to make it better than it is.
I actually think it is because I want the drawing to look as it is in my head, but as of yet my imagination wins hands down.
It makes me hopefull to think that a picture like this can be painted so easily using watercolour. Maybe I can too?
Till next time cya.

Just a quick moan.

2007-01-23T20:18:00.000Z

What are they thinking canceling events on people.
EA need a good kick up the bum if you ask me. In actual fact their now even dumber than i thought they were due to their incredible ability of pissing off their own customers. It would serve them right if no one turned up.
I actually got quite excited about going, I had not been to an event like game on for about 2 years and it was a chance for EA to prove themselves to me but know I'am just annoyed that they didn't even try.
I would of quite happily payed for my seat on a coach, but no that requires too much brain power to muster up a coach.
I think I would very much like to see the look on their face when they realise their sales have dropped because some moron didn't organise a coach properly!
If you never intended to let as many as they were go then why bother having the stupid thing in the first place. They would be better off spending their time getting good at making games, seeing as that is their job, instead of waisting on mindless events they dont have a clue how to organise.
Well I dont know about you but I feel alot better.
If I still feel annoyed tomorrow, I will have to just wind up the guest lecture about the many reasons why it is stupid to even consider calling any game serious.
Next he will be telling me he feels the need to call films serious or pieces of music.
Should make for an interesting day after all ha ah ha ha!

Gaming Culture and how I'am a part of it.

2007-01-23T18:44:00.000Z

Gaming cultures are what makes up the world around games, such as its influences on magazines, television and even toy sales.
Games have now become so much more than a few hours playing on a machine. It now requires a bit more, well lets say respect as it unfolds into more of a life style.
People now spend most of their time playing games or downloading ringtones of their favourite game theme. My favourite tune is the music from Final Fantasy 7. For those die hard FF fans my ring tone at the moment is The Jenova boss theme.
So I guess this brings me to elaborating on what forms of Gaming Culture I'am apart of then and well, where to start. Their is so much stuff surrounding the gaming industry it would be madness to try and be apart of it all.
In terms of things I get my knowledge from and news of events and releases I would have to say it was mainly taken from the internet for its easy accessability. But for detailed reveiws and insite I like to get hold of the unOfficial magazines for those juicy comments and sometimes hilarious pics of how they have found strange ways to exploit mistakes.
I think my most dominent place in gaming culture for the last couple of years has been socializing with other people. Thats with people I know really well and also with people I dont know at all.
I started to socially play games when I visited my local internet cafe, where tournaments online were played to win a £50 prize. For more info or just plain nozyness, you can visit thier website on www.SKEGZONE.com. Unfortunately I never did win but it was done by frag Loto where you get a Loto ticket for every kill you get and then a ticket is randomly selected.
Good fun though, mainly because of its social aspect. You can talk face to face with other people entering from where you are and have text conversations with others in the country who are entered as well.
Another part of social gaming is MMORPG's (Massive Multiplayer Online Roleplaying Game) a great invention for playing out a life of your custom built hero, while interacting with both real people playing as well and AI computer players. From playing them myself and having my own Guild on Guild Wars, I have had connections with people I have never met in my life before.
I still find myself using Xfire chat and having people from the game ask me for help with their computer or even find that play another game that I do. Where we would team up again on a different game entirely and so on. Before you know it you find yourself in front of your computer night after night playing a game with someone you may never actually meet. Quite scary really!
But the ultimate no no is The World of Warcraft known to the online gaming world as the stealer of souls. The reason for this is that it requires you to play so often that you never play any other game again, and that is a terrible thing indeed.
Another piece of gaming culture is events such as E3 where its a chance for you to go and try out all of the games companys latest ideas in action. And is a chance for the games companys to try bombard you with as much crap as possible. Like telling you that their the best and that this games has the best graphics ever or that it is the largest game ever made.... But you gotta love that enthusiasm! Ha ha ah. Priceless.
My favourite part of events such as E3 are the people you see dressed as their favourite characters. That mostly happens when its in Japan but I see a future that that may start to spread to other places. I think if I had to choose to dress as a character I would be Axel from Streets of Rage. Gloves and All!!!
Till next time cya.

The Game Industry

2007-01-14T16:22:00.000Z

If the games industry was'nt around, I would never be writing this blog, so in a way im really glad it is, as I feel it allows me to freely express my views about, well things.
In the last 20 years games and their companys have changed to suit their financial situation.
In other words it has been said by Chris Crawford that "video games are dead."
(Chris Crawford is the man standing in the picture below giving a lecture at standford 2003)
Chris Crawford is featured in an interview displayed in full on:
http://gamasutra.com/features/20060612/murdey_01.shtml

In this interview he explains how he sees the state of the industry today as apose to the industry during the 80's.
He beleives that their is no new ideas in todays market and that by producing the same "recycled" ideas they will never encourage new customers to the gaming world.
In his belief and I would have to agree, that looking at the the gaming industry during the 80's. The ideas of which were made and designed were never before seen and the same could be said about all of industrys history before that.
But it begs the question, is the industry dead. I dont believe it is because as I have mentioned in a past blog. Me and sophie had a chat about how far games can go and is their any limit to how far we can push them.
And we came to the conclusion that their had to be a limit to one factor in particular and that was Graphics. We had decided and agreed that the graphics of a game can only get as realistic as real life itself, and that to surpass that was way beyond technology we have todate.
This would then either cause the inevertable death of games that Crawford seems so adament will happen if new ideas are not created, or in some attempt to secure their futures. Companys will be forced to experiment with never before seen elemnts.
In my oppinion I think that that will make for interesting watching and makes me glad that I might be apart of its future.
Working in the industry at the moment can vary not only on your position in it but who you are positioned with. In conversations with various tutors I have heard about a student who went to work for a top games company and then left because he felt it was to structured.
If that is true and they are to structured, does that mean that maybe Crawford is right and because of this strict structure to how a game is made is applied to all of them then they truely are recycling the same ideas and leaving absolutely no room for imagination.
This I find to be very dissapointing indeed as it is my love of just thinking up random things and getting my imaginative juices really flowing that got me into wanting to be apart of the industry in the first place. Which gets me thinking about our drawing work this week about creating a character. It has taken a huge amount of thinking and just plain old imagination to conjer up these wier but usually fantastic ideas.
I over hear people talking and they cant help themselves give these characters an identity and even a whole world around them. I cant talk as I have done exactly the same.
But at the end of the day if that imagination is still their and people are still experimenting, then maybe there is hope for the games industry after all. Maybe?
Till next time cya.

The elements of Game Design? Gameplay

2006-12-20T16:37:00.000Z

What exactly is this thing? Gameplay.
In my view this is what the very basis of what a game is and is the one thing I myself base my last oppinion of a game on.
What I mean is that when I decide wether or not I like a game I base my final view on how good the gameplay actually is.
I would describe Gameplay as an interaction between the player and the computer. To more simply explain I would say that for a game to have good gameplay it must be enjoyable and be fun to play.
Games that use alot of new forms of interaction are found to be more fun than that of one that uses a more standard approach. For example the Wii or the Ps2's eye toy uses a new kind of interaction where as you are to use their body or movement of the body to succeed. This coupled together with a visually exciting game, people can have a more enjoyable experience, showing that that game must have a good gameplay.
In some ways peoples perception of gameplay effects the way games are made dramatically, that it is that they believe it is something that decides how you have to play, when in fact in my oppinion this in turn is true but if you were to give a freedom of choice you are left feeling you have control. Even though quite obviously you dont, but with these choices the interaction can be different each time.
People believe that gameplay is just a "random convergence of several interacting factors". When I think, that all these interactions are what forms the very function of what a game is. A game is supposed to be fun and should it fail to allow you to have fun then you would not play it and it would then never of been made.
So in that reasoning gameplay is extremly important as without gameplay games would never exsist.
"Game mechanics"are what people consider to make up what we refer as gameplay. With this in turn I would like to finish by saying that my favourite form of gameplay is that of online interaction with other actual players across the world, such as this game below called Counter Strike.

Till next time cya!

The elements of Game Design ? Story and Character

2006-12-09T16:39:00.000Z

When I was discussing storylines in games I mentioned how important it was to have the story involve you in the game and give you a reason for your actions. Also how it allows you to find the characters more believable and even may let you believe you are these people.
But it is not only the story that makes these characters believable it is also the way the character was designed. In that I mean that they are purposely made to fit with the story.
-They have to act in a certain manner.
-Look a certain way.
-Sound correct in respect to their appearance.
In my opinion it is most obvious when a voice doesn’t match the character. In films one of the most important things they have to consider in the developing stage is character voices. So it is with games as well.
I think as we are getting more and more advanced games with A.I that can interact with you as the story unfolds. All we need is a way of having you live out the life of your favorite person. Come on virtual reality machines, the answer lies with you.
Films such as Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within, have got to be very careful with their casting of character voices as they were the first to ever try using photorealistic CGI humans. So had they made a wrong choice their mistake would be easily realized.
I think that if I was to choose a character I found most appealing, I would say Gune from the film Titan A.E.
Gune is a strange looking little alien that has the job of navigating the ship through space and in his spare time create inventions he doesn’t know the use of.
I especially think that I like this character for his voice, provided by John Leguizamo who also played Luigi in the film Mario Brothers along side Bob Hoskins as Mario.
John’s talent alone came up with the voice for Gune as he asked the director if he could try this unusual voice he imagined Gune to have.
I’m glad he did as well as it gave Gune the eccentric characteristics I have come to know and love.
When I think of my favorite storyline I am always torn between two particular ones.
The first is a film called The Fifth Element set in futuristic earth and the other is a game, yes you guessed it, FFVII.
I have thought about what it is that appeals to me about them so much and I can only think of one thing. I get involved in the characters so much I want to experience their actual lives.
In both the main characters storylines they are destined to save the world and go on a great journey to do so. It is this that leaves me waiting for a way of me to for fill this dream, but until then or some pre destined miracle I will carry as normal.
I think that to have the perfect film or game it takes the right amount of each element. For me to like something it just needs to have, a futuristic theme set in space with lots of explosions. I think I am a bit of sucker for action as well.
So it would seem that I am doing the right type of art style guide for Joel as I am doing a futuristic space adventure called Outlaw Universe©.
Well till next time cya.

How Vein? Ergonomics

2006-11-29T12:02:00.000Z

It is the same with all things really.
When you buy a coat, we naturally or maybe i should say i naturally go for what looks best on me and not really the coat that may keep me warm in the winter months. Which may explain why i have this cold.
But i feel we are drawn to all things beautiful, but the beauty of that is *no pun intended, that we all find different things to be beautiful.
Which reminds me of one of our drawing trips to the museum with chris. The floor was coverd in butterflies and i heard someone say they were beautiful and i dissagree they disgust me with their pointless exsistence and moth like resemblence.
Consoles have been many shapes and sizes as shown on this timeline http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101050523/console_timeline/
It's funny when i think i used think the nintendo entertainment system looked cool but in my oppinion it doesnt matter, because all true gamers know Retro is what its all about.
Im putting this link in because it just makes me laugh looking at that PS3 controller.
http://ps3.qj.net/The-Ergonomics-Behind-the-PS3-Controller/pg/49/aid/503
I only have one word to say and thats Bannanaramma. It has also bin called the frisbe, the boomarang and the jaw bone. All these are fine and relevent i might add. As it is obvious to see from the link that they had not made the controller for looks, but in fact to just sit in your hand better, as shown brilliantly by the little demo video of a guys hands. Which is more than what microsoft have done for people. Their XBox controller should come with a heavy lifting warning like bend your knees or please do not carry for more than 5 seconds or it will cause perminent damage to your lower back. Better still it should come with its own stand. No but seriously what were they thinking.
The controllers for consoles are changing and developing as quick if not quicker than the consoles themselves.
I feel that they are making games to widely spread across the consoles that your never quite sure what sort of game your gonna get. The graphics may be worse than others and worst of all the controller's buttons are different and they may be harder to play.
I was playing SSX tricky at Hicks flat and he has it for the XBox but i have it for the PS2.
The probem is for those of you who have never played the game, you use the shouder buttons to do your moves. Hear lies the problem the XBox only has 2 shoulder buttons to the PS2's 4.
Instead the XBox requires you to ues a different set of buttons which happen to be far harder to use.
This is an important issuse of which seems overlooked time and time again. When companys make games for multiple consoles they have to take into consideration the many assets of graphics and gameplay being effected by controllers.
If they continue to ignore this problem it is only going to get worse as consoles are becoming more individual. The special Wii controller is a great example of things to come and difficultys to over come.
Till next time cya

Story Time

2006-11-29T11:22:00.000Z

Yeah the storyline of games now that is a talking point, but where to start, at the beginning of course. (sry force of habbit.)
It always been a question of do games need to have storylines or is it that it just happened without us knowing.
I believe them both to be true in a way because if we look at early games such as the classic space invaders, even that as competely basic as the game was had a very simple storyline to it, which was that it was up to you to destroy the invading aliens.
The argument begins when you start confusing storline with telling you how to play. You see the aim would be the same if it were invading frogs except the storline would change.
As games have become more detailed so have their storylines.
Just picking a genre at random erm.... First Person Shooter (FPS) Doom was quite basic graphics and simple story. Just blow up every alien you see and hope for the best was always the best tactic for that game i always found.
If you look at halo or the new Doom3 made some years later they still have very simular gameplay, as in pray and spray! But the story has improved greatly.
This is i feel a good thing as in if the storyline is gripping you become emersed in the game and can start to beleive you are these characters trapped in another world or that it is your team of soldiers thats dying out there. It is this that gives you the insentive to play more and get of this alien world or go and save your team.
The story is what adds just that extra enjoyment out of games that i have come to love so much.
As you are probably aware im a big final fantasy fan and if i was choose one thing i feel is the reason i love them so much then i would have to pick their story. Why else did they feel they could make sequels. They even made one sequel a film, final fantasy advent children, which i might add i was so eager to see i got a Japanese version 1 month before its UK release. It still sounds cooler to hear them speak japanese, but it was cool just hearing them speak.
Going back to the subject i feel that some games need more detailed storylines than others. For example Role Paying Games (RPG)'s are story based games, so without a half decent story they fail before they even began. Games like tony hawk's skateboarding and other sports titled games dont need complicated storys as they are played more for their gameplay and detailed accuracy for real life.
But as i have said time and time again no matter what the game, wether the story and gameplay are terrible, games developers are bent on creating the perfect graphics.
But they dont excist....do they?

testing, testing, 123

2006-11-29T10:38:00.000Z

What is going on with my blog.???
The blog was saying i cant post...
....get the upgrade....
...upgrade failed....
now you can post. WWWWWHHHHAAAAATTT!!!!!
Anyway at least this will post.
Oh man have i got some catching up to do.
*only a blur can be seen*

Art Director

2006-11-14T21:34:00.000Z

After listening to the guest lecture i can happily say that i know more about how important an art director is.
The art director is hired to look over and guide the artists. It is up to them to look over the art style guide and see that it is followed correctly.
The artists will naturally have different styles and the art director is their to make sure that the styles of these artists stay consistent and continue to do so through the entire of the game.
If they fails to do so the game will be a mix of styles and will look messy and most of all not get made.
An art director needs to be able to have a strong understanding in the aspects needed for these artists, such as schedules, programmes, understanding someone else's vision and problem solving.
I believe that it is important that the director can see and evaluate each part of the process. It would also be impossible for the director to solve any technical problems the artists may be having if he is unaware of the software they are using. This becomes more difficult when you consider the forever growing industry of games and how more advanced and sometimes ever so much more complicated developing games has become. The director must make sure they are aware of these changers and alterations as much as if not more than the artists themselves.
This in turn shows that being an art director is a difficult one at best and to be one is to be the best. The importance of their job is obvious, they are essential in keeping your team of artists working as one rather than 6, 10, 12 different styles all thrown into a game engine.
It makes feel i would enjoy being an art director in some years to come, as i can get as excited about my own ideas as much as i can someone else. But as i see the workload they have to deal with i know im a long way off being ready for that job just yet.

From Pong to Next-Gen?

2006-11-08T14:39:00.000Z

Games have come so far and done so well to be considered a buisness in its own right but do we actualy know what it means to own a game.
I have always asked this question as i have ever since i was small, classed many things as gaming, for instance just paying a game of football in your garden can be considered a game.
But it was not untill the creation of multi-media gaming that a true meaning for playing games truely arrived. You thought i was goingto say that football was great too, wel you would e wrong. Some dare to say it is foolish to play computer games but my question for them is then why do millions apon milions of games get sold every week?
Going back to what i said their are some games that have even originated from board games, like Dungeons and Dragons, which has seen the release of games like Baldur's Gate and NeverWinter Nights. This connection is important but should never ever be mistaken as the same thing.
What is gameplay?
How i would answer this is that i beleive this to be how games keep and continue to keep their connection to every other type of game, the fact that this is a muti-media gaming society makes this simple. It is what describes the interaction with the machine and person. In simple if games are'nt fun no-one would play them and the game would fail.
This is a perfect chance to use the Wii again as an example, with the great and new ways of interacting with the games it has to offer it shows that they have a good chance of having better gameplay. Or at least thats whats on the minds of all the Nintendo fans as they have to try and ignore how much that name SUX!!
When i went through some of the links for this task i was quite suprised to find this:
"Fortunately, direct recourse to paleontology is unnecessary. A trip to the zoo will suffice. There we find two lion cubs wrestling near their mother. They growl and claw at each other. They bite and kick. One cub wanders off and notices a butterfly. It crouches in the grass, creeps ever so slowly toward its insect prey, then raises its haunches, wiggles them, and pounces. We laugh at the comedy; we say that the cubs are playing a game, that they are having fun, and that they are such fun-loving, carefree creatures."
This is one thing i had never thought about, it talks about why we play games and that we were wrong to think that we were the first to make them as shown very well in the extract above.
So if we did not event games because anything that is fun is a game, then we deffinately get a tropy for how we developed ways of having fun. These interactions create the fun and that is exactly what the gameplay means is a game fun.
Most maybe 9 out of 10 games fail to be successful if they lack on gameplay.
This is the most interesting comment i found when doing my research on Gameplay as a word. It is such a common used word that it was hard to pin-point an exact meaning but this was deffinately the one that stood out the most.
"Many current game design theorists from the background of art theory argue that gameplay is a largely meaningless or empty term, superseded by other concepts established in the repertoire of perception, anthropology, and general diversified psychology."
I would say from a personal view of games i find it hard to pick the perfect combination for my perfect game, but if i were to put myself on the spot. The first thing that just lately all i seem to hear from people is the game was'nt long enough and it ended to soon. This is the first thing that i would try to fix but my only fear is that when games are made to be longer the story suffers.
I find for me to dicover the story and interact with the characters is my form of fun. I feel the acomplishment of unlocking the story as you progress than that of a film with no interaction at all. I think for that reason it was people like me who created DvD board games.
So as to keep games in check through their development they keep to a set design principles, this so that a game does not go off track and hopefully gives the desired result but my fear of this standard way of constructing games is that it is destroying the creativity of games. When new games come out that have tried something new, the media ignore it and let it pass by. This is wrong they should be praised from the mountains, but instead they are forced to go back to the same usual tactics of game development and develop the same old stuff.
Dont get me wrong we need structure without it we would fail but they forget they are just guide lines and not gods law. I would like them to mix it up a bit like an RPG-first person shooter, a Tekken style fighter with the limitless free will of games like GTA San Andreas.
They are all the types of games i would love to try. All we need is for companys to realise what gamers really want rather than worrying about graphics ike the 360 or whimpering on about how powerful their console is like Ps3. WE DONT CARE! we want games that are fun and playable. Im not sure we even have a leading light in game design but i love the Final Fantasy's as they are the closest i have seen to my perect game.
Till next time cya.

Game Journalism

2006-11-05T17:32:00.000Z

I wasnt sure how to start this one so i thought i would start with a comment by Kieron Gillen:
"The games press is often painted as corrupt, lazy and – as I mentioned – fundamentally stupid. This is because we tend to be corrupt, lazy and fundamentally stupid."
I would have to agree my oppinion of games press comes pretty close to his description. I have read so many pieces of journalism in magazines and on game sites that i feel quite familiar with the usual bantar. The one thing i have come to realize through my own experience is that the official game magazines have terrible rewiews on low budget games and great cant fault them reviews for high budget games. But i just think their in each others pockets. I always find that some of the best games are those that get past by because its been made by an unknown company trying to get on the market.
Thats why i go on all the un-official sites and go out of my way to get certian mags that i can trust their judgement.
But like Keiron said on his work-blog, the games press are like developers they have too many redicoulous time limits on which they have to keep. But in result dont actually give an accurate account of any game.
In a small conclusion of what i just said games press are lazy because they dont get enough time to write accurate reports on games. And so some fools who cant think for themselves follow all these stupid wabbles of mindless dribble thinking it the complete truth.
You just cant beat good honest gaming where you get the chance to play it and make your own mind up.
In their diffence they have alot to contend with, like games themselves they have alot of competition and if i was writing a review of a game i would like to think it was taken seriously.
Alot of these things occur due to the publishers of magazines and wesites as they are who pay them for doing their review. If the publisher does'nt feel its good enough then the journalist is out of a job.
In the end this is good for the industry as it keeps it fresh and makes people work harder than usual to achieve something great. The bad points are that on occasion it has got tiresome to hear about about the same 3 games again and again. But having said that the oppinions of the game every time you hear it begin to vary and that allows you to make your decision based apon what they have said and what you feel they told was the truth and not something they now sounds like a good story soneone would want to read.
Most reviews are written subjectively as they dont really have much fact about them due to them being a form of oppinion. Though it is possible to make a review of a game entirely subjective it would be very hard for you to make on entirely objective review as to use entire fact you would have to be inside the mind of the person who made it.
And lets face it thats not gonna happen now is it...
Cya next time

History of Games Part 3

2006-10-30T22:01:00.000Z

The history of games is here again and we are now just about up to date with our games and consoles. When i left you last i was talking about Final Fantasy which spans a huge part of the history of games and is one that i see continuing to do so for some time.
I also left you with thoughts of the playstation as i mentioned i first got into Final Fantasy through FFVII in a Downtown Oldrids.
I also spoke of the Horror games Resident Evil, Silent Hill. Which with horror games i can deffinately jump to the Ps2 for what i feel is the scariest game i have played the Project Zero trillogy. It seems to me these games have been passed by and it is a shame because it has a gripping story, great graphics, spine chilling moments that leave you button bashing for safty and it has to be one of the most original games of its genre. Pluss its cheap because no-one knows what it is.
I felt i had to say something about the handheld computers as i dont seem to of said anything at all. I will start with the first one i got which was the old Gameboy.
I still have it and would never part with it. Apart from the Snez and maybe the N64 it has to be Nintendo's greatest invention and was what saw the way to the DS which is selling faster and better than sonys PSP.(said to be a Ps2 in your pocket)
Their have been other additions of hand held consoles that have all failed in the console war between Nintendo and Playstation. This eing that they just have not got the money to advertise and market their product against such monster companys as Sony.
But the fear of competition has grown so much that it has a new competitor.
Microsoft!
It is them with there release of the XBox that left the Ps2 with an actual worthy threat, unlike the cartoony GameCube that did not have enough range in games to stand even the slightest chance in this console war. It was because the peope making the games wanted to sell to the highest bidder and the people behind the console want exclusive games. This does not help in our situation as gamers, as it forces us to make a choice.
When the XBox 360 was released minds were made up much quicker and left their beloved playstation roots behind.
I myself have not but i can tell you that i have most deffinatey been tempted. And i shall tell you why. I was first so amazed by the knowledge of Ps3 that i had to go out and get every mag that even had the slightest bit of news of its release. This was to be my undoing as the more i read the more dissapointed i became. They had began to back track on what they had said so clearly at the begginning and i had heard that one of the prototypes had even expoded when they were testing it out.
By now i felt that i could not include mysef in the console war and decided to go back to where it all began PC gaming.
PC Gaming has come along way since Space War in 1962 and Pong. These are games where you can now even interact with other gamers that you may never meet in your whole life.
A war between the games on PC just doesnt seem to exist and i believe this to be because they are using a range of different methods due to the many specs for PC's.
I had a long conversation with Sophie and she said that she feels that the one thing Nintendo has that no-one else seems to is an eye for the future. This is because if you look at the games for say the Nintendo DS, it is outselling its competitor the Psp, and it does not have even close to the power. Instead the sellng point of the DS mostly depends on its Gameplay and not its graphics. I had to agree she made a good point and the DS is fun and leaves me feeling slightly left out as i hear people talking about how good a certain game is. As if you had not just guessed i dont have a DS but i also dont have a Psp either. I just dont get included in any of it any more, i just play my PC.
Sophie went on to say how it is possible to predict the near future of games. I myself was quite puzzled as how she could do this but what she did say was this:"Graphics of games can only advance so far as their aim is to get as real as life. So when they get to it what will they look at to advance instead. The only thing they can advance is to create new ways of interfacing with games." Which sounds to me very much like virtual reality.
This would expain why she stands by Nintendo and too right they are great developers of games just not that good at thinking up names (Wii) sry another dig thats 2 now.
My idea of the future of games if my experiences are anything to go by. It does not matter if you have a megadrive, DS, Ps1, Ps2, Xbox, Xbox 360 or a gamecube just about all of the gamers out their play at least ONE online game wether it is free or has online fees. Runescape for instence as rubbish as it is it has a huge following.
Soon games will do full circle and consoles will become as powerful and probaby as useful as a PC.
They are already building consoles with huge built in memorys and removable hard drives. It just needs a few more alterations and advances and were there. Gaming online has increased more and more over the ast years due to simular reasons i have. Others i dare say have just realised its superiorty over the consoles. People have said to me that you can go online with a console as though i didnt know...DUR! But no way in hell is their even close to the choice of online games that their are on PC.
My dream for the future of games would deffinately be a Virtual RPG simluar to Baldurs Gate or Guild Wars. It would be completely online and would then allow you to actually interact with other people all over the world person to person. I think that it would be a completely original way of interacting with people as it could be used by anyone for anything such as meetings.
It would work in a simular way to the Jedi counsil in Star Wars where they appear as a hollowgram but instead you would be able to physically interact in a fully virtual world.
The only thing with my idea is that we are little way of making anything like that yet.
The only main concern on my mind and i would say on alot of people in my position is that where does that leave someone trying to get ito the industry of games. Well i think that it might work in our favour because it seems as though people are so sure of what they want from the industry they can make their choice of path fairly simply. And if the console war comes to an end i fear that could be worse as with no competion they wont seek any new talent. As the saying goes if it aint broke dont fix it.
All i need to know is whatever happens i have to get as best grade as possible because they wont imploy 2nd best. They want only the best. No pressure then. Gulp!
Im not worried, cya next time.

Went home for the weekend

2006-10-30T21:30:00.000Z

I went home last weekend and havent had much time for anything because it was my dads birthday and i spent time with him. He showed me the new Tomb Raider Legends.
As usual Lara is fit and kicking ass. Im sure i just play it to see how they have improved her and made her more attractive. Well it always seems more entertaining to see her swan dive off cliffs only to fall to her death, and if it is high enough to hear the enourmous scream she gives out.
But then again i did enjoy actually playing it this time. Im still waiting for them to make another version of her house and that annoying butler that you end up locking in the freezer. So many happy memories.
I had to show my friend up as well, as he dared to challenge me to a game of Tekken Tag.
FOOL! I slaughted him.
In his difence he did kill me with Double Suicide, the name sort of gives it away.
On another note i have enjoyed just going home for some properly cooked meals amd have learnt to cook 3 new things. I wont say what they are because someone might think they are silly but im impressed. Now i can actually make decent meals for myself instead of Super Noodles or beans on toast. Im starting to think i have just been lazy when it came to cooking and that maybe it was about time to start doing it properly.
I have downloaded the new Battlefield 2142 demo and it is really good except because i only have the demo it only lets you play one map. After winning 20 dozen times on both Titan and conquest im slightly bored and need to get the game just to try a new map.
The most annoying part is that im not getting any medals or improving my charatcer but it is making me better at the game.
When the lab on floor nine gets it i will aready be the best payer their. Hee Hee.
Cya next time....

History of Games Part 2

2006-10-22T23:27:00.000Z

Well here we are again writing another but i feel sightly longer blog.
When i finished in part one i was discussing or bitching about how pong was cleverly disguised as the first game when in reality games were being created some 10 even 15 years earlier.
I just so happened to click the link for the story of pong where it again says that it is infact the first game. I dont know about you but im starting to like the designers of pong for having the guts to say they were first when their is quite obviousy alot more evidence to say otherwise.
I thought it might be handy to show you how brave they are and how they feel they have the force as though we are all weak minded and will follow their every word. Here is the very first line from that Link.
"The video game history started in a strange and complicated way and it is important to avoid confusions with what happened in the 1950s and 1960s."
Yeah because we are all going to ignore 20 years of evidence that quite literally shits on their statements from a great height.
Well i ended the first with a bitch and opened the second with another. Now lets get serious.
We can now move on to maybe the most influential eras of games history the 1980's. This was the era that has paved the way to how we veiw the world of games now.
probably most suprisingly the 80's games all originate with war games and looking at the History Games may even of originated from old war radar machines if information from this is anything to go by:
"Thomas T. Goldsmith Jr. and Estle Ray Mann. A patent application was filed on January 25th, 1947 and U.S. Patent #2 455 992 issued on Dec 14th, 1948.The game was probably designed earlier in 1946 but since we do not know this for a fact, we will rely on the filing date of 1947. The system used eight vacuum tubes (four 6Q5 triodes and four 6V6 tetrodes) and simulated a missile being fired at a target. The idea was obviously inspired by radar displays used during World War II. Several knobs allowed adjusting the curve and speed of the moving point representing the missile. Because graphics could not be drawn electronically at the time, small targets drawn on a simple overlay were placed on the CRT by the builder of this game."
Interesting to think although this is not classed as a video game it is still an interaction with a computer, like what is mentioned by A.S.Douglous.
This might suggest that their were games being created in this way as early as the first Radar. I could be being a bit optimistic but it just bares the thought how far back can you go before you find the true source of computer games.
The first thing the 80's did was start to see the development of actual companys specifically making games and consoles to play them on. One of these companys is Electronic Arts which have still survived until now.
In 1982 consoles such as the Commodore 64, Apple II and ZX Spectrum, were made and so started the very first console war.
I myself have played on a Commodore 64 but it is my dads and he wont let me touch it without him. Im starting to think he beleives it will combust or evaporate due to how old it is but he says it is because the games ware out very quickly.
The only game i have played that i can remember was a Submarine game where you had a little periscope and sunk ships. I really enjoyed that game because it was just loads of fun blowing things up, even if it was in like 1 bit lol.
1980 saw the arrival of Pacman, and what an arrival, he was the first character to achieve popularity in his own right. Pacman has to be the most addictive game in history along side the amazing space invaders which both of these games can now be played on your mobile. Or even downloaded as flash games. Showing that some games if they keep you entertained, no matter what the graphics a game can stand the will of time. So many different versions of Pacman so little time to write them all. But i will say this MS PACMAN SUCKS!
Dragon's Lair (1983) was the first laserdisc game, and introduced full-motion video to video games and is the most original game of its era in my oppinion.
Lucasarts text adventure Maniac Mansion built with its SCUMM system allowed a point-and-click interface. Maniac Mansion was made in 1987 and is then as old as me. This game should never be forgotton as it is what i would consider to be pure genious and it envolves so much freedom and random goings on that i have never tired of playing it.
Many people have complained at the fact that they get stuck and find it to hard to finish. Well i got news for them because i finished it and i did it without using any cheap walkthru's either.
I think that it was Maniac Mansion that got me into point and click games. I have played so many but here are a few of my favourites. All the Monkey Islands, Discworld 1, Discworld 2 and Discworld Noir. Broken Sword 1 + 2 are good and the new ps2 games are amazing but unfortunately the new ones are not point and cick but i mentioned them anyway because they are just great games. I have to say my very favourite point click for its humour alone is Feeble Files because never in a game have ever heard of getting killed for not smiling and having armed happy bots with poorly drawn on smiles checking to see if every one is smiling quite well enough, only to find at the end the creator of the world was asleep and left a game in charge.
I advise if you find that funny you should really play it because it has dozens of funny bits, and their all said in a sarcastic tone by Feeble himself who's voice is Robert Llewllyn from Red Dwarf.(Kryten)
The Nintendo Entertainment System was my first ever computer console and my first game was Mario Brothers. I just about played that game so much that i wore it out and the console along with it. I have tried to re-collect all the old games but prices vary so much now because of collectors as the more rare a game becomes the higher the price.
I think the most i ever spent on a game was £80. I bought Mystical Ninja for the Super Nintendo (snez). It came without a box but with a manual, i then discovered it had risen in value and should i of wanted to sell on it would of sold for no less than £150. Of course i kept it and play it as often as i can, the way a game should be i believe.
I like to think im a collector of games but i collect them to play not to leave in a display case.
I could leave them sealed or locked away because i have emulators with roms of all my games, but nothing can quite simulate the feeling of playing the real thing.
After searching for a bit about the creation of the playstation i came across a forum with this posted:
"Not many people know this, but Nintendo originally worked with Sony to develope the "PlayStation": the SNES add-on that provided CD-ROM gaming support.From what I have read, there were some politics between Nintendo and Sony, and Nintendo ended up stabbing Sony in the back by looking at the Phillips (?) CD-I machine. This is why the CD-I released 3 Zelda games.Nintendo created the monster that soon became their downfall...ironic isn't it? "
If this was true then it would expain a few things about why some Zelda games suck and the others are so amazing. As for the part about the playstation, i have heard simular stories with sight differences but nothing hard fact. But i think that all good things come to an end but not forgotton.
When the playstation was first released i was in ore of its magnificance. It had graphics of which had not been seen and this was enough to whirl me in. Now i realize that the majority of the games did not live up to your expectations. This was where the difference between the old and new consoles began. In the old games the graphics were unimportant, only the gameplay was what counted. The majority of newer games for the playstation were only interested in graphics and left the gameplay as second best.
Of course the really big blockbuster games were an exception to the rule as they found a healthy medium. Such as the Resident evils, silent hill, a big selection of RPG's just spring to mind.
I have to admit im very big on the RPG's and i love Final Fantasy.
I remember first seeing FFVII, it was being shown in a Downtown Oldrids as one of those machines that resemble arcade machines but allow you try before you buy.
I was stood playing it for about two hours before my mum had to rip me away, as she had walked round the shop twice. (she walks really slow, dont think the shop was even that big)
The Dragon Quest series made its debut in 1986 with Dragon Quest, and has created a phenomenon in Japanese culture ever since. Also at this time, SquareSoft was struggling and Hironobu Sakaguchi decided to make their final game, titled Final Fantasy (1987), a role-playing game (RPG) modelled after Dragon Quest, and the Final Fantasy series was born as a result. He called it Final Fantasy as a result of his retirement, unaware of its ongoing sucess. Final Fantasy saved Squaresoft from bankruptcy, and would later go on to become the most successful RPG franchise. It may be the most widely distributed video game franchise of all time, including standard console role-playing games, portable games, a massively multiplayer online role-playing game, games for mobile phones, three anime productions, and two full length CGI films. Future installments have been announced to appear on future platforms such as the Wii, XBOX 360, and PlayStation 3 game systems. It is Square Enix's most successful franchise, and the third biggest selling video game franchise of all time, having sold over 63 million units worldwide to date.
Just before i continue i have to say no wonder nintendo have not been fairing well lately in the console war if they are creating consoles with names like Wii. I beleive their original name Revolution was most probably the most sane idea of the two.
Square first entered the Japanese video game industry in the mid 1980s, developing a variety of simple RPGs for Nintendo's Famicom Disk System, a disk-based peripheral for the Family Computer (also known as the "Famicom," and known internationally as the Nintendo Entertainment System). Alot of people beleive that the Famicom and the Nes are two seperate computers but they would be WRONG.
Following the success of the Final Fantasy, Square quickly began work on a second installment. As an installment, unlike a typical sequel, Final Fantasy II featured entirely different characters, with a setting and story bearing only some thematic similarities to its predecessor. Some of the gameplay elements, such as the character development system, were also completely changed. This approach to installments has continued throughout the series, with each major Final Fantasy game introducing a new world, and a new system of gameplay. Many elements and themes would recur throughout the series, but there would be no actual sequels until the release of Final Fantasy X-2, in 2003, after the merger with Enix.
Now we await the release of FFXII where we yet again will be emersed in Hironobu Sakaguchi imagination.

Cya nexct time for part 3.

LOTR ONLINE and that wierd song Powell has on his blog?

2006-10-22T22:37:00.000Z

Im so excited to find out that that they are making a new Lord of the Rings game. Im pretty sure i have played just about every game made of LOTR but never did i expect them to make an online game. It sounds really good i will paste the part i found:
The Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar will allow players to forge heroic legacies in the War for Middle-Earth. Gamers will experience an evolving persistent recreation of Tolkien's world-renowned fantasy realm where they can establish their unique reputations, and discover and wield legendary weapons in strategic battles, while adventuring solo or in Fellowships.This game spans legendary Eriador, including the pastoral Shire, the Elven enclave of Rivendell, rustic Bree, and more. As the lands of Middle-Earth fall under a growing threat from the dark realm of Angmar, only the mightiest of deeds and the stoutest of hearts can halt the advance of Sauron's minions. Features:
Be a hero: Show the world your mettle and risk your life to protect all the Free-peoples. Combine class, race, traits and experience to create your own unique character. Forge your Fellowship and struggle together against evil with other adventurers in your campaign across Eriador. Work as a team leveraging your diverse talents, skill-sets and classes to gain strategic advantage.
Evolving world: Unique instancing technology allows every player to make their mark within the world. Save a Hobbit village, clear a Dwarven mine, purify an Elven glade - the power is in your hands to change the fate of entire realms.
Choose your lineage: Follow in the footsteps of your favorite Tolkien hero. Choose one of Middle-earth's signature races of Human, Elves, Dwarves and Hobbits. Mark your own place in history.
Unlock the secrets of Middle-Earth: Working directly with Tolkien Enterprises, Turbine has crafted an experience directly from the literary works of J.R.R. Tolkien. Explore the pastoral Shire, roam the eerie Barrow Downs, visit elegant Rivendell, walk beneath the dark canopy of the Old Forest, adventure to the depths of Moria and discover many other locations fully realized from The Fellowship of the Ring.
Classic characters: The faithful recreation of Middle-earth is populated with familiar friends and corrupt foes. Join in the battle against Orcs, Trolls, Spiders, Barrow Wights and the Nazgûl. Meet Elrond, Tom Bombadil, Bilbo, the Dúnedain and even members of the Fellowship itself.
Intense combat: Combat in Lord of the Rings Online: Shadows of Angmar grows in intensity as you master your skills and gain strategic advantage. Combine your efforts into devastating compound attacks. The game rewards those who join forces through an exciting combo system that amplifies the effectiveness of groups and fellowships.
I went on Powells log after looking at Blackboard ony to find he was posting about some random tune, Which actually was'nt all bad. I then thought about looking for some music for myself and found a few music Vids i had never seen but always wanted.
I suppose i coud of found them except i get too lazy and dont bother, that or i get on the internet and my mind goes blank ..... i just cant think of anything to search.
So i have devised a plan that will never fail. Sticky notes!!!!
Everytime i get an idea i write it down and stick it to my computer....
As long as i remember to write it down..... erm ?

Guild Wars

2006-10-21T20:06:00.000Z

It has been along time since i have had the pleasure of saying this but im amazing at this game now.
I have been playing for 3 months none stop and im better than most who have played for 2 years.
My freind and i have both started a guild and have been working our butts off to make it good.
We called it The Reapers of the Underworld, this is because The Reapers are the servants of Grenth, the god of the underword. In the realm of the Underworld the reapers harvest the souls of the dead and shepherd them to their final resting place, which is to be decided by Grenth.
Sounds cool does'nt it!
Just a quick list of the reapers names:
The reaper of the labyrinth
The reaper of the forgotton veil
The reaper of the ice wastes
The reaper of the twin serpant mountains
The reaper of the bone pits
The reaper of the chaos plains
The reaper of the spawning pools
Not sure i have a favourite but at a push i would say that Chaos plains sounds the coolest.
The Guild Hall is the isle of the dead which i have spent about 30k on buying not only it but a storage and Priest of Balthazar. Unless you play Guild Wars you wont know what these are but lets just say i dont have any more money left.
I have been building up the guilds Reputation so much that we have suppassed the Leader Alliance.
Which means we may become the top guild, im well impressed cuz when we are im kicking the crap guilds and improving the Alliance.
To make sure we are taken seriously when recruting members i have made a website for the guild so that we have a forums for chats on Builds for your character and give away prizes as rewards for loyal members. If you have got guild wars and you are interested in joing this one, then go to http://www.thereapersoftheunderworld.tk/It is still in its trial state so excuse the way it's layed out, im trying my best with what time i have to put into it lol.
You can visit if you dont play and maybe you can leave a message on the guest book or post a comment in the general disscusion on our forums.
Also if you do wanna join then also visit the guest book and leave your online name so i or my freind can get back to you.
I have concidered starting a help service as well that i might post on the Guild war official site for peope just starting out and need showing the basics of the game. As we have been there and not known what to do next and beleive me the game wont help you. That sounds quite scary dont let that put you off getting it. There is lots to do it took me 3 months to start a guild, well properly.... i did have one when i just started but i only had 2 members and he was a lower level than me which is hard when your level 7. :0
But not to worry i have 2 max characters and 3 more on the way.
I have started a sales trade as well .... i can see you all seem puzzled i will expain.
I have found a way of making an item very cheap and making a profit on sales.
The trick is that i sell them at a price cheaper than the merchant but still making profit.
I wont tell you how but i will tell you what i sell Belt Pouches.
Not very amazing but the profit is good.

Call Of Duty

2006-10-20T18:32:00.000Z

Love this on Foor 9. I used to not pay it at home because it got really anoying and was boring with to many restrictions set by people. Up their because we are all in the same room it makes it fun to know the reactions of the people you kill or in my case hearing them cheer when they kill me.
Today i was playing again but had not reallized how competitive people are especially when you make the silly mistake of killing your own team mate on capture the flag or you start your own mini sniper battle with someone on the other side of the map.
But it has to be said that my favourite is killing someone close range with a sniper rifle, just to see them squerm makes me wanna do it again again until im dead. which with about 8 or 9 aside doesnt take long.
I just wish i coud sit down and look at all the maps, so i can earn them and improve on them.
My plan is to find the number one sniper spot on a certain map that people tend to keep picking with a church. Problem is it keeps going to a sniper battle and its supposed to be capture the flag.
When this happens it turns to a stale mate and they are not fun it just means first to make a mistake. That is why if i get a great sniper point i can pick off those waiting in the church and give a couple from our team enough time to run in grab the flag and run there ass'es outa their.
The flaw to the plan is that they may have a few gaurding the flag from the side but i cant be expected to think of an answer for everything.
They will just have to take extra care thats all.
Not excellent advice i will grant you but its all we have.
Apparantly they are getting the new Call of Duty which should give the game an edge as some maps will vary, giving us all an even playing field.
I hope.......
News of The Day
I have a new flat mate move in today and he has aready bin given a warning
Gotta laugh
Thing is ive gotta live with him...... DAMN!
cya next time:p

Silent Hill Movie (May contain SPOILERS Read at your own risk)

2006-10-17T18:06:00.000Z

I have only ever played the very first Silent Hill and found it to be a bit creepy and to be full of wierd creatures and scary monsters. But being a fan of all the Resident Evil games was totally unharmed by the harsh world that Silent Hill had created and to be quite honest found it to be far to slow in comparison to its cousin the Resident Evil saga.
So in turn it put me off carrying on with the series of Silent Hill and instead played Resi 3,4 code veronica, devil may crys, project Zero and the list goes on.
Then i got word of a film idea that was in the works of being made and that it would follow but not copy its game history.
That film was Resident Evil which was released exactly one year after i heard about it. It was what i expected them to do, which was to make more action than that of suspense. Although saying that it has its moments. And in normal Resi style they left it open for the sequel, where i think they really went to town. Resi 2 saw everyones worst but favourite baddy, apart from of course the very cool Wesker, Nemisis. Their he was on the big screen and he looked like he could with stand a moving train not alone blow it to smitherines with the huge 5000 shot chain gun and the massive rocket launcher he just happens to carry around with him.
What im trying to say is that Nemisis is wicked and no-one can change my mind.
So answer me this: Why in the world did he get beaten by a girl?!!!!!
So ok she is super fast and has extra strength but get real that is the Nemisis girlfriend and he can wup anything in his path.
Anyway i did like the they left you waiting for the third. In of course great hope that they include other great baddies such as Wesker or another Nemisis. OK so maybe im being a bit optimistic but with film developers its just about the only thing we can be.
Im safe in the knowledge that they cant mess up Resi 5 at least or can they hmmm
Well they had better not do cuz it is near damn impossible due to the fact that it is the original hero Chris Redfeild and it has zombies unlike four, the graphics should and i say should in a way that if they are not i will kick everyone's ass.... should be amazing!
The main reason i wrote this blog was to say that when i heard about the Silent Hill film i passed it by without another thought and did not even consider watching it.
The reason being was that when i played the first Silent Hill it made me wanna stop and play Resiendent Evil. Where as watching Resident Evil made me not watch Sient Hill.
My thought was that if a great game like Resi can ony make a half ass attempt at a film then what is a slow and ony reasonably scary game like Silent Hill gonna do.
It was not until i came hear i saw the making of Sient Hill 2 and it got me thinking that maybe i shoud give the games a second chance. So i went in search of some info about the second game only to find that to just get the good ending you would have to play it through four times.
That was it as far as i was concerned i had had enough.
When i got back to my halls, i was talking with one of my flat mates and he al of a sudden came out with "oh i have the film Silent Hill if you want to watch it".
Of course i said yes why not at east i can say i had watched it and to be honest i had seen the trailers of it and it looked quite good.
I could not believe it, i was glued to the screen from start to finish and then when i had watched it i watched it again. The film far suppassed the game in my oppinion. It was amost ment to be a film. I liked it so much i may even go out and buy the special Edition with all the extras and stuff.
If it is a film that all gamers and horror fans must watch!
I have even gone as far as to think that after a these years i have been completely wrong about the games and will force mysef to play them.
Till next time Cya

The Fire Drill

2006-10-16T09:31:00.000Z

It was funny and annoying. I will explain ,we had been given about two weeks notice for this fire drill and still i went to bed at some ridiculous time. But beleive it or not it was from watching a film and not going out on the piss.(Silent Hill:Film to be mentioned in my next blog)
The thing is things sound different when you are asleep and this aounded just like my alarm so clicked the snooze button and thought nothing more, only to realize it was still going off and decided to give it a good wack this time. Instantly i remembered it was the drill this morning and grabed whatever clothes there were and ran out.
When i got outside i thought i was in the wrong place but no, no-one-else had got out yet i was one of the first. So i stood thinking of what to do, should i woke my flat mates up, dont be silly martin its not like they cant hear it and besides i think their all up.
Then like lightening it hit me in my rush to get out after mistaking it for my alarm i neither locked my room door or my flat door, now usually my flat door closes on its own and locks but the bin fell over on my way past and wedged it open.
The funny thing is as i was thinking all this i could see people starting to emerge from the halls. Ha ahahaha im already laughing! A lad came out in what only looked like a towel. And to everyones later knowledge his boxers. Poor lad it was cold outside and he was quivering.
Like i cared it was hilarious. 15minutes later people were still only just making their way out because you know they wouldnt of died in a real fire.
The best part is i was clever enough to put clothes on and so was able to wonder in to the neibouring building. Thus it being the building where my work is. So i got in the elevator to floor 9 and got the lads to let me in. Now im writing this in warmth while they all suffer.
Well what do you now i feel like a true news reporter even the papers cant get you news of inccidents like that as quickly as that lol
This is almost like a live feed. I will keep you in the know of any more weird goings on in my halls. And until then Cya

History of Games Part 1

2006-10-12T15:31:00.000Z

Well who would of guest it?
Games originate to as far back as the 1950's.
Yeah you heard me right. I didnt beleive it either until i started to look it up, and found that a bloke called A.S.Douglous wrote PhD degree in Human-computer interraction (1952). I decided to look this up and found that it means that a person or (User) must control a machine or (Computer) through the use of an interface or (controller).
He also created the first graphical computer game - a version of tic-tac-toe.
To think he went from creating his own degree to making games. People of that era must of thought he had gone mad but good for us he did.
I would beleive him to of got slandered alot because if he had of done something similar now for instence he would surely of been ridiculed. Their are of course those people out there who still enjoy ridiculing, that of the Gamer. By making out that only spotty over weight teenagers play games. Well i think they should be punished in several but painful ways for even thinking that was true.
Woah! i may need to have a bit of call of duty to carm me down after that.
So if he was the nutter who first thought of it i would like to think i could relate to him in someway and be able to think that i would like to be able to create something that is fun and easy to do or within reason. I think that it was a visual and stimulating experience for me the first time i played a computer game.
My first game was Mario Brothers for the Nintendo. And it was the combernation between the visual and the sound combined with how i was in control of those things. This is almost how A.S.Douglous's Degree describes itself. He is discovering a connection between human and machine through use of interraction cuch as a console or computer. For example im interracting with this machine by using the keyboard which would be the terminal of which im the user of.
Did any one follow that even a little bit?
I found that hard to describe in writing, it sounds more like a manual. But the main thing is i get it.
"No great surprise that one of humankind's most powerful inventions would, within minutes of its potential being recognized, be used for entertainment purposes!"
It just had to go in somewhere because it is such a good line. It says exactly what games are and probably what was going through A.S.Douglas's head as he made that version of Tic-Tac-Toe.
He had fun with his invention as all good scientists do. Or should do, instead of making bombs.
Anyway where was i oh yeah the first Video Game was and oh yes you guest it, was made in the 1950's. To be fair late 1950's, it was 1958.
The game was created by William Higinbotham and it was called "Tennis for Two".
Although it was to be later beaten by a game called Space War in 1962 ehich was the first game to be intended for a computer use.
You just know you have made something brilliant when people start to imitate what you did.
Which is exactly what happened in 1971. Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney took the basis of Space War and made the first arcade game called computer space.
And if you think as weirdly as i do you may start to wonder why did it take nearly a decade for someone to do that.
My theory is, that evolution would only allow so many nut ball genious to be bornat one single time or maybe im just talking nonsense and it was just the usual case that people are just lazy.
How bad that i found out all that from this task and all along i had ed mysef to believe Pong was the very first game. Now i just feel silly, Would someone please leave a comment that they thought the same, so that i dont feel like the ony one.
The arcade game Pong was actually created by Nolan Bushnell in 1972 a whoe year after computer space.
Nolan Bushnell and Ted Dabney started Atari Computers that same year. So this would explain why Atari were aways ahead it was really because they were huge copy cats and the only reason that their company is not doing very well at the moment is because now we have copy right laws.
In 1975, Atari re-released Pong as a home video game. Larry Kerecman was one of the first first operators of video arcade games, including Computer Space. He writes that, "The brilliance of these machines was that Nolan Bushnell and company took what was computer programming (in Space War) and translated it into a simpler version of the game (no gravity) using hard-wired logic circuits."
What i beleive to be really great about the very retro games is their ability to still create what can be described as a person or as acurate as a cowboy. The shape of a rocket ship and flying saucers are even visible in a pattern of diodes on the PC board.
In 1972, the first commercial video game console that could be played in the home, the Odyssey was released by Magnavox and designed by Ralph Baer. The game machine was originally designed in 1966 but it was rejected.
The Odyssey came programmed with twelve games. Which sounds quite impressive even to me as no other consoe to my knowledge has even considered this. The ony thing we have are those games like The Sonic Collection, but that is a re-release it would be impressive to see a console such as the Playstation 3 release it with 12 games installed.
In reaity this is a dream and would never happen, even though it is quite capable of doing so. This has become one of the biggest problems with the games industry it has become to fixated with making money and has forgotten the fundamental side of games which is fun. I understand that they have to make money but if a company such as Atari were to make a game and it 12 on it. Pluss i think that it would sell.
Thats why i like online games because even if the first version is rubbish they can change it and improve it with no cost of your own. For instense im playing Guild Wars and their are old arenas that you once were able to fight in but players were complaining and the creaters made a new area with all of the neccessary alterations. Now they quite happily play away with no trouble at all. I dont think i can quite honestly say i have a favourite format but i have favourites of each.
Like i enjoy Mario and Zelda for the Nintendo but I like Streets of Rage and Sonic on the Mega drive. The list of games and consoles go on and i havnt got all year to write them out because i would rather be playing them. hee hee.
In today's world video games are often seen as a source for teenage violence which brings me back to giving out punishment, it's interesting to see that the first home console also had a light rifle as an optional peripheral.
The world of video games continues to evolve. By reading about the past, perhaps we can start to see a glimpse of the future or at east how games are heading towards. Looks to me like we should all study Star Wars and The Running Man a little closer.
Appoligies for not doing my blog sooner alot gone off and not much time for anything even games. My flat mate has come back from home with his PS2 and a bunch of games so im now off to play lol.
Till next time cya.

Antisapation?

2006-10-09T20:00:00.000Z

I cant wait for this year to get well under way and have loads of cool projects to do.
I can hear you all now, "is he mad." But no im not mad i know the projects are cool and i will tell you why. The projects are about games and games are cool, its that simple.
Any one who does'nt enjoy at least 1 project does not belong on a course for Games.

Im also looking forward to the release of a few titles in the next couple of month.
Final Fantasy 12 and Guild Wars Nightfall for instence.
Post your comments for what games you are waiting to be released. Im not bothered even if it isnt released till christmas post it anyway. Also i want you to post your comments on something else for me as well.
I cant decide wether i like the new Kingdom Hearts or not so here's what im gonna do. Im going to leave it up to everyone else to tell me ONE good point about it and ONE bad point. You MUST have a good and bad point. And most importantly you have to of at least seen or played the game. Then in about a week or so i will collect up the good and bad points and tell you what i have decided along with a score out of 10.
I will call it the smartie score.
If it is successful i might pick a game each week and have it as an ongoing thing on my blog.

I went home for the weekend as i said on my last posts. Only to be given some devastating news about my freinds DAD, who, as of last Wednesday has died of cancer.
After putting that i cant really write any more so i will leave it their till tomorrow.

coming back today

2006-10-08T13:31:00.000Z

Here we go again 2 hours in a car and i have to drive.
COOL!!!!

If you havent already guessed im writting this from a cyber cafe again and this time my freinds with me because my guild is almost fully functioning and we are doing dual runs.
For those non players of guild wars a run is where u get new players to pay you to take them to a new area they cant get to.
My freinds computer is still in flames so he is inactive alot of the time but the guild will go on in his memory. In the process of designing a web site for it and having team speak which will help with recruting tremendously.

Got to do some more drawing when i get back so as not to get behind and hopefully i can go outside. It has been raining heavy here for days.

Not much to say today so its going to be a short post but i will have more news tomorrow.
But before i go i would just like tpo say im still underfeated on mario kart double dash.
I tell a lie i can be beaten but im damn good at it lol
So if you wanna test your skills, come and get some!

gone home

2006-10-07T14:40:00.000Z

yeah ive gone home for the weekend and you would think i visited the moon.
I get asked questions left right and center, i think they are keen to find out what lies beyond the bubble of my home town except now im staying in leicester everything hear seems so small.
But first things first had to visit my freinds to find out what is goin off in the streets.

The worst part is i have come back to find that my best freinds dad has just passed away with cancer and i have been comforting him a bit. I have always seen his family as part of mine and it has been a sad couple of days.

On a brighter note i have been telling all my family about the great stuff we are doing on my course and how much im looking forward to alot of it. Especially not doin essays and getting this awesome blog.
This is a great way of us getting to know more people and how they think. We will work better as a team and get along if we keep discussions and other things on the blackboard.
(That part was aimed at people on the Game Art Design Course)

I have been playing the new Kingdom Hearts, its good but i was slightly dissapionted on some points because in true Square Enix style the start of the game takes 3 hours to get goin and thats just to get the main character Sora.
But never mind im sure i will play it through anyway and try to understand the stupidly slow and complex storyline that in my heart of hearts know will not end. (did u get the pun)
Maybe not if you havent played it but for those of you havent played the first one, it is about creatures called the Heartless. OH and ......
GET IT !

Im at the local cyber cafe and im going to start playing some guild wars because i have just started a guild with my freind. But not many members at the moment so im spending my time recruting noobs. My plan is to create the largest guild member list ever. Once ive done that i can start to worry about all the other things like, who's worth taking to a guild battle what level are people or even a guild school for noobs lol no im serious!

Till tomorrow cya Smartie (martin)

Trying to complete the first task.

2006-10-06T18:19:00.000Z

Hi im martin but for online only im smartie. Its an old nick name i was given at work and i quite like it because it is unusual and unusual is pretty much me in a word.
I try to act confident but beleive me im not, i listen to ranges of music and try to like RNB but i just dont think i get it. My favourite stuff to listen to is more rock and heavy metal, i also listen to some alternate rock like indie and emo.
What else can i say about me i like to enjoy everything that i do and im never satisfied with failing, so will continue to try again and again till i get it right.
I will play any games wether their on a console, arcade or PC, i will love it. (If only for 5 mins lol)
I think that i see blogging as almost personal because it allows you to discuss certain things in your life with people you probably wouldnt normally or even dont know. Which creates a broader understanding of peoples opinions.
Im setting my blog out as a newspaper report because it is like im telling the world the news of my life: For example when i talked about my freinds house getting hit by lightning and also about the monopoly game ( which by the way i won in 15mins and 6seconds)
I will try to keep posting once a day to get in a habit of it so as to keep the blog up to date, even if what i write is only a centence long. But im quite sure they will be longer than that.
I think that i will set out the blog so as to try and keep a few continuing stories going for that week or even for a month depending apon what it is im discussing. I want to feel i can get people to want to come back and read my blog because i think makes me feel my life is quite worth watching so that if it gets really good someone might base a film on me when im famous or even a game yay that would be so cool. Of course by that time it will be photo realistic and i might of designed the artwork myself as some kind of super genious. nah but what a fantasy!!!!
In a way it will seem spooky talking to an invisible audience but in some ways i will feel better for not looking what their reactions are and wont feel so bad only having to read there comments because it can start a interaction with another person on a subject that they might know more about and will in many ways be a bit of fun.

Ninja penguins

2006-10-05T12:24:00.000Z

Thanks to Bens blog page i have found my talking point to start my blog.
As he had mentioned about ninja penguins, it got me thinkin of an old mega drive game that i have and used to play all the time. Quack Shot.

For those of you who are not familiar with the game it is about Donald Duck trying to be a kinda indiana jones which i find to be funny on its own.
The ice level has lots of what looks like suicidal penguins that throw themselves at you and well with that and the "cheesy inspirational music" (which i had as my ring tone)shhh! is absolutely hilarious.
Also a more up to date game with ninja penguins is Crash Tag Team Racing. Another funny game with strange little cut scenes of crash bandicoot finding another way of killing himself.

On other news my freinds house was struck by lightning and the funny part is that he was'nt bothered in the slightest. The only thing that actually upset him was the fact that it had fried his computer and he was'nt able to play games. lol what a lad!
He has been traveling about an hour everyday to the nearest cyber cafe to his house so he can play his games. I think because of his ego he believes that the game cant live without him, in fact i think he would agree.

Me and my flat mates are going to start a game of monopoly and are aiming for a record in the shortest game in history i will keep you informed as to how it goes, till tomorrow that is all from martin and the daily gamer.

Gotta start somewhere.

2006-10-04T15:45:00.000Z

Not only have i just started a blog for the first time but im also finding more peole to associate with in and out of the university.
Most amazingly i have discovered people that play the same online games as me.
At the moment im playing Guild Wars Factions after i have almost finished Prophecies.
If you play then add Smartie Master to your friends list. Just whisper me who u are next time im on.

Martin