Being a student on the BA (Hons) Games and Art Design course here at AUB has been very enjoyable. I’ve just finished my second year on the course.
One of the most memorable moments this year must be the group games project I was in. Me and three other students had formed a group to create a little game called Umbrascape.
Umbrascape is a dark fantasy game set in the Victorian period. The game features a small story as well as platforming mechanics and beautiful environments to explore. However, getting to the finished game took a lot of time and group work.
Trying to choose what genre of game you want to make, and making sure you don’t have too many ideas to add, especially if the game has a deadline, can make planning a game in a group difficult to begin with. As the progression of creating the game goes on, you get to see the game finally take shape, gain its own unique identity.
In this group project my roles were Level Designer and Lead Environment Artist. Being able to create an environment with an interactive level design allowed me to create unique areas that players want to explore, while also learning more about the game's story.
Working in a group meant that I had to communicate ideas and designs with the whole team to make sure that the environments worked with the mechanics, that the level design was clear to other people and not just me, and to make sure the environment fit with the story and theme of the game. This project helped me learn how to work in a group effectively, as well as learn how to solve problems fast while working in a time limit.
Another memorable project this year has to be my Macbeth-inspired 3D environment piece. I loved working on an environment with a lot of hidden meaning behind it.
In this project I researched on witches during the 1600s and how their identities were overshadowed by the concept of witchcraft. Looking into this, I found out misfortunes were usually blamed on the elderly, widowed or disabled, mainly for women – but there were male witches too. Things like crops going rotten would put vulnerable people at risk for being witches.
Shakespeare’s Macbeth has major themes of witchcraft throughout the play. It was written during the rein of King James I, infamous for his witch trials and personal pursuits in witch hunting, so it was rather fitting for the time it released.
In my environment, the main piece was a stone pedestal with a dip in the middle creating a bowl. The bowl is filled with blood and on top lay a crown bloodied, this represents Macbeth himself. Inside the crown lay a dagger clean of any blood, which represents Lady Macbeth.
Murals on the ceiling are of constellations. As astrologers, communed with the gods of the stars and were seen in a much better light than witches, which I thought was quite hypocritical.
I really enjoyed creating this beautiful piece with a lot of depth and history behind it. It was so fun researching about the history of witches, and why witches became a thing.
This year as a whole was great to learn and research into new and exciting things, working as a group, communicating and creating connections. I also learned about the industry standard for creating pieces, which will help me gradually build my portfolio. This year really allowed me to challenge and push myself to create really great and amazing games and environment pieces.
