Detailed Development of Visuals - Game Design Essentials - page 131

make and use your own brushes. Those are fun to play around with and help get
you used to finding and using the tools on the program's interface.
As an example of what Photoshop can do, look at Figure 5.13 from a game
called Frobish, created by Star Mountain Studios. The image on the left was cre-
ated in Photoshop using multiple photographs, textures, and digital paint. The
image on the right was also created using Photoshop, in this case using all digi-
tal paint. The point of doing the two versions was to come up with two different
looks for the game so the designers could choose which approach to use when
making the game.
Keep in mind that you can create 2D graphics digitally using programs like
Photoshop, Flash, Illustrator, and GIMP, to name a few. Indy designers with
fewer resources at hand may want to consider GIMP for creating graphics. Like
Blender, which we looked at in the “3D Models” section of this chapter, GIMP
is a free online graphics program. Information about GIMP and the features it
offers can be found at www.gimp.org . You can also use traditional methods like
pencil or paint on paper or illustration board and then scan the images into
your computer to work from.
FiGuRe 5.13 Photoshop was used to paint both images, providing a remarkably
different look for the same layout.
painting 3D images
At this point in the process of creating your art, you've designed your character
(or prop), scanned it into your computer, imported this into the 3D program
of your choice, and built your model. The goal now is to add color, texture, and
details onto the surface of the model.
Some programs, like CINEMA 4D, allow the artist to paint textures directly
onto the model. Other types of 3D programs, like Maya and 3ds Max, require the