Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
If you don't study live models or videos of these types of movements and
examples of emotion, then you're limited by your experiences and will fall
back again and again on what you
think
the character should look like and
how it should move instead of what it
actually
looks like. Learn throughout
your entire career. Avoid making up characters based on what you have seen
in other games. Get out in the world, look around you, see what is there, and
draw it.
Another issue to keep in mind while designing characters is whether the final
version will be 2D or 3D. 2D characters can actually show more of the physics of
animation than 3D—like squash and stretch.
Squash and stretch
is one of the
first principles of animation. If you watch a ball drop and hit the ground, just
as it hits, it tends to squash a bit; then, when it bounces back up, it stretches a
little before it resumes its normal shape. Being able to show that with animated
characters helps breathe life into their movements and tends to be easier with
2D work. For that reason, using many 2D images can be highly successful for
comedic, light games where very cartoony movements and reactions to in-game
situations require over-the-top motion.
3D characters tend to be better suited for more realistic games and let play-
ers view the characters and their world from all types of camera angles. The 3D
character lends itself well to highly immersive games where gamers often iden-
tify with the avatar they're playing.
Animators who do
2d and 3d work
start with the same
skills: learning the
physics of anima-
tion. Animators can
be self-taught, but
many schools teach
animation.
personality/abilities
Understanding how human and animal bodies react to stress and emotional
states will help you to design your characters. To reiterate, gameplay should be
the first and best goal to designing any game. Focusing too much attention on
the look of a character or its abilities won't create a successful game; however,
character appearance and abilities add to the mix that makes for good gameplay.
As a designer, your job may be to create a character with abilities never seen in
games before. In order to do this, you need to clearly understand what the char-
acter needs to do and a bit about the physics of its world. You may also be asked
to work with existing characters that need to be updated or redesigned because
gameplay has changed or the characters have new abilities.
To help sort out what abilities and personality traits your characters need,
look at the goals for winning your game. If the game involves quests, then hav-
ing the ability to walk, run, or move some other way, along with fighting skills,
are some of the things you need to discover.
Sometimes, working
backward from the
endgame goals will
help you sort out
how your character
can get there.
