Josh Stroud Unit 78: Digital Graphics for Games Design

Assignment 1: Reports on Theory of Digital Graphics

Artistic styles used in computer games
Photorealism
This is when a real life person is put into a
game. What would happen is the person
would have a picture taken of them and
then the video game maker will take a photo
of the person or will use an existing one.
Then from there, that person will be made
as realistic as possible in the game. This is
seen in one of the Call of Duty video games
where they have used a picture of Keven
Spacey and then they have made him into This is an example of one in call of duty
the video game. What the video game With a famous actor
maker will try to do is make the character
look as much like the real thing as they can.
One of the main reasons that you dont often see them in video game is
because they take a long time to make. So the video game maker will
have to add on more time to their video game making process.
Most video games these days want to get their games out as soon as they
can so you would can see them. However, in the video games of today,
they are starting to become more and more common. Most of the video
games that do it are ones that are rather big or have been a long running
game time. Games such as Halo, Call of Duty and Battlefield are very big
video games that have been going for a long time. A lot of video games
use motion kaput to make their video games. So this would be an actor in
a studio acting out what their video game character would be doing in the
video game. This is the kind of thing that you would see in the big
blockbuster movies as well as the use of a lot of motion capture in their
movies and now, it is being put into video games.
Cell-shading
This is a method of drawing in video games.
What it is, is when a video game designer
draws a character and wants to make them
look 3D in the video game. This is done by
using different types of colours to make it look
3D. All of the images that are used with this
method are all going to be made by drawings
and they want to be photos; you would This is the example of it in the video
normally see these in cartoon video games so game borderlands
that they have got a way to make their
characters to look 3D. The name cell-shading
means to shade different parts of the image in
a darker colour so that then it will make it either look like it has a shadow
or make it so It looks more curved; this is so that it makes it look 3D.

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Abstraction
This is the kind of game that you would call
an arcade game. They are the kind of games
in which there isnt really any kind of
storyline or goal in the game. All it does, is
give you different kinds of takes or
challenges for you to complete. Most of the
games that are like this are the kind of
games that have got really bright colours
and have a lot of different elements going
on in them. This can be seen in the game This is an example of abstraction in
clash of clans. In the game you are there to video games
make your base as strong as you can so that
when people attack, they dont take all your gold. In that game there isnt
a storyline or an end goal for you to achieve. They are the kind of games
that try and make it so that you can just keep going and going.
Exaggeration Manga
Manga games are the kind of games in which
you are set with an avatar which normally look like a toy
doll and you would be asked to either do their hair or
maybe do up their makeup. You might be asked to do it in a
way that the games want and by doing this you might get
game money or my expense points. Most of the kind of
games that are like this are rather basic. There wouldnt be
that much going on in the game, there might not be even
that much movement going on in the game. The avatar
that you are controlling would very rarely
move and would talk with a speech bubble This is an example of manga in a video
above there avatar head. Most of the manga game this is a fighting game
games are going to be played on your
computer and they would be seen as little mind games that you would
find on places like Facebook or maybe some on a random free PC game
website. The reason for this is because there will be a lot of clicking and
dragging to your characters. They would be things like haircuts or clothes
to then put on your avatar. Most of the designs in this game are going to
be 2D, very basic and they are all going to be drawings not based on
anyone.

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Exaggeration- Anime
This is another style of cartoon in video games. This is the kind of style in
which the avatars in the game have got a lot of
exaggerated features. So say with the meals in
the video games, they would give them small
eyes with big muscles and what this does is
give them a certain kind of look that fits in with
the anime style. This can also be the same with
the females in the game. What they would do
with them is they would make it so that they
have a really big eyes and then give them other
big body parts as well and this then also fits in This is what some anime looks like
with the style of the game. The video games in a video game
that they are put into can be a mix of different
things. Like for insects, there might be a 3D game in which you can see all
around and it all looks 3D or there might be a 2D side scroller. This can be
seen in the Pokmon games on Nintendo DS. Most of the games that are
on the Nintendo are anime and a large amount of them are 2D side
scrollers. Most of the video games that are like this dont really have any
violence or blood in them and they try and keep it so that it is suitable for
a younger audience.
Consultation
From the information that you can see and that I have researched all of
the different way that video games can be seen. In my opinion cel shading
would be the best option to make a video game because its the easiest to
make and also the quickest to make so that would be the best option. I
feel that making a game in manga would be the worst option because of
how completed it can be and I feel that it doesnt look as good as some
others.
Computer Game Graphics
Pixel Art: 2D Sprites
In video games that have got 2D sprites you can expect them to be rather
simple games as they wont have as much going on as 3D games. With 2D
games you would normally be playing a side scroller such as Mario. Mario
in todays games have got a lot more 3D and have got a lot better but the
game used to just be a simple side scroller. All it used to be was a game in
which you had to get from one side to the other. As the game went on,
they got a lot harder and a lot more difficult to complete. However, there
are some 2D games that have a bit more going on than just going from
one side of the map to the other like the game Pokmon. In that game for

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a start you get to also go up and down but for the bigger part, you get to
go all around this world catching these creatures and then use them to
battle other people. But what this is, is a 2D
game that has got a lot of different things going
on with it. You can also find a lot of these kinds
of games online on random video game
websites and on there, you can play a lot of
different 2D games.
3D Sprites
Most of the video games that are in todays This is what the old Mario game
games are 3D games. The biggest reason for looked like
this is because they normally
have a lot of different features
going on in them. They also look
a lot better than 2D games. The
video game Mario started its life
off as a 2D side scroller but now
its a 3D animation game where you can look all around the world and see
all of the different things in the game. The game used to just have you run
from one end to the other but now its different. You still have to get from
one end to the other but now you can go left and right, around corners as
well as up and down. You can do all kinds of things in this game now
instead of just going in a straight line. There is another game like this
called Halo that has always been a 3D game and it has got some other
features in the game. It has got things like the ability to go into 3rd person
when you play the game. 3D games have a lot of different elements going
on in them. They are normally a lot more fun to play than 2D game just for
the amount of content that they have got in them.
Concept Art
When making a game someone has got to design and
make the characters that are going to be in the video
game. So that means someone is going to draw them
and make rough sketches of them. One of the reasons
they do this is so that they have got a concept of what
they are going to look like; they can do this for the
characters, the setting, tools and/or weapons in the
game. In some cases, companies will do a few different
designs and then let the game developers pick which one they like the
most and which they think would best suit the game they are making. The
range of things that they might change when making the concept art are
things like the colour of an object or they could change the weapon that
the person is holding. In some cases, they might even change the gender
of a character in the game. There are many different things that they can
change when creating a character. The main reason that they do concept
art is just to see what they are making, looks like.
Weapons

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In videos you would often be given a weapon if you are in the right genre
and they can differ from different games. In the game Mario Kart, you
have to try and win the race and you might be given weapons to help you.
These could be shells that you can throw at people that
are ahead of you. Another weapon you might get
would be a banana peel and what this does is, when
you throw it on the floor and someone drives over it,
they will spin out of control. So as you can see, not all
weapons in video games are violent and very deadly to
people; some weapons can be fun and child-friendly.
However, some video games have got weapons that
arent very child friendly like in the game Gears of War
where the main weapon that you are given is a
machine gun with a chainsaw at the end of it. This is a
lot different to the weapons that you get in the Mario
game; use of this weapon is the main reason that the game is going to be
certified as an 18+ game. This is because in the game you get to use it to
kill the people others use it when trying to kill you. They are both very
different than the game Skyrim because in this game you are given
swords and shields to play with and you are given the option to level them
up with you as weapons can be better than others.

Vehicle
Certain video games can give you the option to drive something and this
can then range from planes all the way down to bicycles. In the game GTA,
you can drive a number of different things and with that, you can then
change how they look. With the cars in GTA, they can then get a lot of
different customisation on the cars you
can change the colour of them for a start.
When you change the colour of the car,
you are also given the option of what
texture you would like it to be and this can
be matt or gloss and various different
others. Another game you get to drive a
vehicle is the game Halo and in this game,
you get to drive more war-orientated
vehicles like tanks and gunner helicopters.
Unlike the game GTA, where you can pretty much go and get a vehicle
whenever you want you might only get them once or twice. Online in the
game Halo, it only has a few maps in which you can fly a helicopter and
there is only really one or two in a game. Therefore, you would have to
fight people to get them and when you do get it, you are going to be the
main thing that people are going to try and kill. However, you are going to
be much stronger and a lot harder to kill when you are in the vehicle so
you have got that advantage.
Environment

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In video gaming there are all kinds of different environments they have
different terrains like in the games Skyrim and GTA IV. In Skyrim, it is
based in the medieval times and there are dragons and skeletons but in
the game GTA IV, the game is set in a city and there are gangs that you
have got to fight so the environment
is very different. In the Skyrim game,
you have got to get around the terrain
and you would do this with a horse
because back then they wouldnt
have had cars and there are mounts
you have got to climb. You would have
to go around and go through different
caves as a part of the environment but This is what the environment can look like
in the GTA game, you can go around in in a video game
a car and fly to the top of big buildings
which are a part of the environment, as well as shops and tunnels. So it
shows the difference in different games and just what you have to do to
get around in them in set environments.
If you want to walk in the games and thats it, then it would take you a lot
longer to travel across different areas and locations in the game so these
games try and make you get some kind of transportation. The
environment can be dangerous in these kinds of games because in the
Skyrim game there can be people on the way to where you are going that
are trying to kill you. You might have to fight them to get to where you are
going and you could also run into a dragon or a group of skeletons that
you might have to fight. This can be the same with the GTA IV game, you
might be driving somewhere that you have to go and you could run into
the police and you would have to fight them to get passed or you could
run into a gang and you would have to fight in the environment in these
games which are rather dangerous.
Texture art

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The buildings in video games are the artiest things about them most of
the time. In the Skyrim game, this is a big part because it is set in the
olden times and there are a lot of different castles and buildings that are
set in a Nordic theme but the buildings in the GTA IV are all big
skyscrapers and are all very modern
buildings as we see nowadays. In the
Skyrim games there are a lot of forests
that you have got to go through and
there is a spider and other monsters
that you might have to fight. As well as
this, evil people like bandits and thieves
you might also have to fight but in the GTA IV game, there are some
forests but not many that you might have to look out for when you are
going though there. There are more buildings than forests but there is the
underground that you might go through and it could be a gang hide out
that you are going to be walking through. So you would have to look out
for this as well. They might try and kill you in the Skyrim game. The
buildings are normally made out of wood and rock and they look very old.
Consultation
The information that I have gathered here tells you about all of the
different assets that can be put into a video game most videos today have
got all of these features and they normal all look very different from one
another but in some cases the video game may not have an asset like
some videos might not have a vehicle or they might not have weapons.
Graphics Research
Pixel: Picture Element, Image Resolution, Intensity
Pixels are what make up images, there are thousands of different pixels in
one image and each one is a different colour. If you have got an image
that does not use many pixels, the image will be very low quality. If you
have got an image that has got a lot of different pixels then the image will
have a very high quality. Pixels are square shaped and are always in rows
up and down in a grid. Every pixel is the same size and in each grid all the
pixels are the same/similar in colour if they were different colours this
would make the image change colour and it would not look right.

With pixels in images the more you zoom into them, the more you will see
the pixels, but the more you have got the more you would need to zoom
in; this is why the higher the resolution you use, the better the image will
look and the less you use the image will lose a lot of it quality. As you can
see with this image the quality of the image is not very good because I
have zoomed in and the image has lost some of its quality because it has
used a low resolution and little amout of pixels. In the image if they had
used more pixels then the image will look a lot better.

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As you can see on this

image the more Ive zoomed in on the
image, it stays the
same
quality
and this means that the image has
got many pixels in it. If it didnt have
as many, the images wouldnt
look as good but as you can
see Ive had to zoom in
a lot more to see the pixels and they are
different colours as well so you can see how they are made.

Resolution
Resolution is how good the picture will look on your device and its pixels.
The higher the resolution, the more pixels and the better the clarity of the
image. You can get different products that will have all kinds of different
resolutions. For example, TVs will have different resolution to say a tablet.
Most TVs will have a much higher resolution to a tablet. Most TVs will be
running on 1080p while most tablets would be running on 1024p which is
a lower resolution to TVs.

Types of Digital Graphics: Raster (bmp, giff, tiff, jpg, jpg); Vector (psd,
wmf, fla, ai)

Bitmap
There are two main graphic types, vector and bitmap. Bitmap is made up
of pixels and different colours. When you take a picture with a camera you
are making a bitmap graphic. Bitmap is made up of many different pixels
and which are different colours and you can edit some of the pictures to
make them more colourful or better quality. File size for a bitmap graphic
are normal or large, when you increase the size of a bitmap graphic it can
lose some of the quality and it doesn't look as good.

Advantages

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-It can display a picture realistically

-Its easy to edit images
-Bitmap are real images and not drawn
images

Disadvantages
-It loses it quality when made bigger
-Its just made up of pixels
-The image takes up too much space

One of the file types that you can save it in is G.I.F and this means
graphics interchange format the amount of colours that could be
supported which is 256. If you went over this, it wouldnt work in the
colour mode RGB. It is resolution dependent, transparency supported and
it is animation supported compression. It is also method supported and
the compression method is lossless. The type of format raster and the
graphic colour quality is 2-256 colours.

Another one that you could save it in would be J.P.G which means joint
photographic experts group. This can save 16.8 million and the colour
mode is RGB. It is resolution dependent but transparency is not supported.
The compression method is lossy and type of format is raster graphic. The
colour quality is 1-100%.

Also theres P.N.G and this stands for portable network graphics. The
maximum colours are 16.8 million and the colour mode is RGB. It is
resolution dependent and transparency supported however animation is
not supported. The compression method is lossless and type of format is
raster graphic. The colour quality is 2-256 with colours grayscale and true
colour.

With a P.S.D or Photoshop Document, the max colours it can support is

300,000. The colour mode for this is RGB resolution dependent. It is
transparency supported and can be supported for an animation. The
compression method for this can be lossless or lossy and the type of
format is raster graphic.

Tiff stands for tagged images format file and the maximum colour
supported by a tiff are 16 million. The colour mode for this RGB resolution
dependent. It is transparency supported and animation supported. The
comparison method is lossy and type of format raster graphic.

Vector images

Vector graphics are created in graphic design programs and they are
made up of different shapes. When you have an image on the computer
something has had to put it together and when it is made using vector
imaging, then it is going to come out having been made using shape and
line in a suction order. They are made through a sequence of commands

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or statements using mathematical processes; from this it can produce two

or three dimensional images. You can also edit the image for example you
can change the shape, the size and the colour of the image. So you can
then make the image as big as you like and zoom in on the image and it
will retain its quality. So this also means that vector images are good thing
when making a document that will need an image to advertise it and they
are often used when make video game box covers. Another thing about
vector images is that they do not lose their quality when they are zoomed
in on. Also, they are good because they do not take up as much space as
others. So you would be able to save more of your images without having
to take up a lot of space.
Advantages
-The image wont lose the quality when you resize it
-Smaller file size
-You can change how the picture looks

Disadvantages
-Image is not real cant look real
-You have to edit the whole product

PSD
PSD is the use of saving images in Photoshop so when you make an image
in Photoshop and you save it, it would be saved as a PSD. One of the main
reasons people save it in this format is because it still gives you the option
to edit the image if you need to. However, the image will not be in the
best quality but you would be able to save it into other documents so you
would have to then save it into another file format.
WMF
WMF stands for Windows Metafile and what this does is it lets you open
your files in Microsoft PowerPoint and Publisher. It lets you move the
image across onto this platform. So when you want to move images over
from the internet or your photo folder into these documents, then it would
be change into this file format.
FLA
This is the file format that things in flash are saved as. The
main thing about this is that its used for animation; if you are
making an animated image then you would save it as a FLA
file and with using it you are allowed to change it into another
file unlike some other files.
AI
This is another file format but this one is used for Adobe Illustrator files.
When you make something in this program, it would be saved in this file
format and you would normally be making arty-type images and then
other images like it. So, you would mostly be saving images into this file

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and because they are vector images, it will not lose its quality when made
bigger.
File Extensions: bmp, png, gif, tiff, jpg, psd
BMP
This is a simple file format used in Microsoft windows format. You wouldnt
use it to move images over from the internet because they are often too
big to be moved over and wouldnt fit in the file.
PNG
A PNG, otherwise known as Portable Network Graphics, is used to move
over moving images over the internet. Most things like this are moved,
often as a GIFs and this is going to be the next best way of transferring
moving image over.
GIF
This is the file format that is used to transfer moving images
over the internet. If you have made a moving image in
something, then it will be most likely be saved as a gif. You
would normally see them on an internet web page but it would
only be something small on the page, like a little
This is an animation. They are normally used to make people
example of a want to stay on the page and so they would normally
be GIF a little cartoon for people to watch. Therefore, you
would never normally see serious ones, instead they
are usually something fun to watch.
TIFF
TIFF stands for Tag Image File Format. This is used to move images across
files and they would move things like raster graphics to and from things.
They would be used for things like scanners. As the same as many others,
this is just another means to move images across.
JPG/JPEG
JPG is used for digital cameras as a way of storing the images that you
have taken. It can also be used for website graphics as well. So for say an
animation on a webpage of maybe just a stranded image, you can use a
JPG for this. The name JPG/JPEG stands for "Joint Photographic Experts
Group."
PSD
PSD stands for Photoshop Diary and this is used in the program Adobe
Photoshop as a means of saving a document in the program. So what this
does is allows you to edit images, save them and then edit them again in
the program Photoshop; the program uses different layers of images when
it has been saved.
Compression: Lossy; Lossless

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Compression can be either Lossy or Lossless. Lossless compression is

when the files compress but the images quality stays the same and the
file can be depressed back to its original quality. Lossy data is encoded
using methods which discard partial data to reduce data size for storage,
handling and transmitting content.
Image Capture: Digital Camera, Scanner, Tablet
Digital cameras
There are many different type of cameras out there. Cameras are there to
take pictures and there are different types of cameras out there like a
compact camera. They are small and light-weight cameras but not as
good in picture quality. There are also cameras like the bridge camera
which has got more control than the compact camera but are a lot bulkier
and heavier. Also there is an SLR camera, they are bigger then both of the
other cameras but the picture quality is better than the compact & bridge.
There are other ones but they are a lot more expensive than the other two
cameras and bulkier. Below are the range of cameras you can buy along
with the cost and pros and cons:

Compact Bridge SLR

Average Cost 75.99 170.99 459.95

Pros Small More control Bigger

Strong than compact Optical view
Easy to use Comfortable to finder that uses
Light weight hold the lens
Automatic Viewfinder is Dials for
control for best built in functions and
picture Good zoom settings
cheapest type range Largest sensor
of camera Bigger lens than size
Resolution 8- compact Resolution 10-
16mp 24mp

Cons Less detail in View finder not Heavy and

lower light top quality bulky
Smaller controls Bulkier than a Can be very
harder to press compact expensive
camera

Compact cameras

If you want to start using cameras, they are very good to begin with. They
will they are not too complicated and they will do the basics that you
would want them to do. However, there are some things that it wouldnt

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be able to do which other cameras can do. If you wanted to get an action
shot of something that is going on in sport, then with a compact camera it
might come out blurry and not well focused or if you wanted to get an
image of something that is far away, this camera isnt the best for that. It
is good though if you wanted to just get a quick picture as you can just do
that quickly. You can just take it with you as it is small so you can keep it
in your pocket. Also, they can be strong so you dont need to worry about
breaking it.

Phone cameras

These are the simplest types of cameras

as they dont have lots of fancy things
going on with them but they do the
same thing as other cameras do. It is a
lot simpler on a phone as they are there
just for a simple picture. They are not
very advanced and they cant always be
given a filter. They are very simple but
they are meant to be because the
phone has many other features.

DSLR cameras
DSLR stands for digital single lens reflex. These
are very different cameras as they have got
a lot more things you can do with them. You
are able to take amazing pictures from very
far away. DSLR cameras have larger image
sensors which will allow for much larger
image pixel sizes; leading to better image
quality when compared to digital and
camera phones. You are able to zoom in
and out much better than digital cameras and so
can take much better quality pictures from distances.

Scanners

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Scanners are a piece of equipment that

optically scan images, text or an object and
convert into a digital image. There are
various types of scanners but the most
common one is the flatbed scanner. You can
also get hand-held scanners and 3D
scanners. Colour scans read RGB data. The
colour depth depends on the scanners
quality and its usually 24 bits although
some are 48 bits. 3D scanners are used for
3D printers. What you would do is, you
would scan the thing that you want to print and then you would send it to
print and it would print whatever you sent to print.

They are easy to use when you are traveling because they are very small
and portable however they are not the most accurate. If you have got a
shaky hand, then the image you are trying to scan can come out blurry.
They are however great for trying to scan awkward shapes or smaller
shapes.

Tablet
Tablets are a digital device which have got a lot image capture features.
Some tablets have got a camera on them so you can capture live events
with the camera and then you are able to look back at these images. Also
with this you are able to edited the image if you so choose and you are
able to add filters to your images. With all the editing you can do to the
images, you will have many different copies of the images. This being the
original copy and the many others you have made as edits too. Therefore,
you would have to have a big memory which a lot of tablets do possess.
However, if you have too many and need to port them over, then you can
because a lot of tablets have the capability to move images to all different
kinds of platforms. Another feature that
tablets have is the capability to go on the
internet and then move images from there
into your picture folder. So this could be
things like simple photos or animations, you
can also move over some videos onto the
tablet. You can get them from all different
kinds of websites such as YouTube,
Facebook, Bebo and Twitter.
Optimising: Target Image Output, Image Bit Depth, Image Resolution,
Image Dimensions, Compression
Optimising

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Bit depth is a number of bits and what each bit does, is help make images
and they help with the colour in images. The more bits you have, the more
colour you can store so if you have a 1-bit image then the image would
only have two colours and they are black and white. This is because they
are the only two colours it can have but if you had more like 8 you could
have up to 256 different colours so it is far better to have more along with
resolution as it helps.

The dimensions of an image define what the width and length of an

image. You can alter these things in an image and you can make the
image wider if you want but if you do this, then the image can become
distorted and the image will lose most of it quality. This is why most
people wouldnt change how the image looks because they wouldnt risk
distorting the image. If you were to save an image for Facebook, the
optimizing scale would be 200 by 200 but if you were doing it for
something like Twitter, the size is far greater so optimizing it when you
save an image is the best thing to do.

RGB stands for red green blue and these are a type of colour palette. They
are normally used in work you might do at home like for your home printer
and they have got a lot bigger with the colour palette being over
16.777.216. So you have over this many colours you could pick you from
which you would see it in things like email the internet CD/DVDs and
television. Office and home printers can adapt allowing easy on screen
colour manipulation.
The grayscale is just for when you are doing images in black and white
and you can print off any picture you want in black and white and every
printer allows you to do it.

Storage of Image Assets: File Size, File-naming Conventions, Asset

Management
File Size

You can have different memory sizes in different things

so memory for a phone would be different to a
computer. A computer would have a lot more because
its a much bigger device and would have to run many
different things. A computer has a thing called RAM
(random access memory) which is where programs and
data are stored. The memory is built onto modules which
plug into DIMM slots on the motherboard. It is primarily
used to hold programs when they are running and any
documents or graphic files that the user has open. The
more memory, the quicker it will be to process graphics.
A camera would have an SD card which is there to store
many different images that you would take on your
camera. There are many different sizes of SD cards which
will be able to store more and more pictures on them.

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File naming convention

File naming conventions (FNC) is a framework for naming your files
describing what they contain. They identify differences and commonalities
between your files.
Asset management
This is when you have got assets and you would need to be able to
manage them. This would mean you would need to be able to put it into
the right folder and give the asset the right name in that folder. The
reason for this so you know where it is and then its easier to find them. If
you are in the process of making an asset, then you would be having to
save it in the end so you would need to know whether you have got
enough room to save it and if not, then what you need to get rid of to
make room for the asset. This might mean deleting another asset that you
have already got.
Consultation
From this you can see all of the different ways that an asset can be saved.
There are many different ways that you could save a asset in a video
game and sometimes it can matter what size the file is you would have to
save a big asset in a bigger file than a smaller asset. It can also matter if it
has been made in Photoshop as well you would need to think about that
as well. However, if you have got a video file then that would need to be
saved a different way to an image file.
Background Graphics
Walls

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When you are playing in a video game, a wall can be a lot more helpful
then you might think. In the game Call of
Duty, you will get shot a lot so you would
need to be able to hide behind something
and a wall is a good option for this because
then they dont know where you are
exactly. It can also be a good place to hide
behind but if they know that you are there,
then they might try and kill you and shoot
though the wall. They may not be able to
see you but they can definitely shoot you This is what a wall can look like in a
through it. In some other games, the walls video game
that you use to hide behind can be
destroyed and then you would have nothing to use as cover so you would
need to go and kill the person or find something else to hide behind. In
some games they might use as wall to show where the map ends and you
cant go onwards any more. Also, this could be a massive wall that you
cant see past or they might even have an invisible wall that you can see
through but you cant go through. The walls that they use have got to
match the environment that you are in. So if you are playing the Skyrim
game and you are in a cave, the cave walls cant all be like a 21st century
wall with a lot of graffiti on them because then it will look out of place; so
its got to look like a normal cave wall.
Forest
Videos normally have a wide range of different surroundings in them and
often one of which, is a forest. There are many different video games that
use this like for instance the Skyrim game. The Skyrim game is an old
fashioned kind of game where there
are knights and dragons so there
wouldnt be many towns cities. In
addition to this, it means there is
going to be a lot more woodland and
forest. So because of this, there are
going to be many different forests
which all have different things going
on with them; some may have a
house in them that you can go and This is the forest in the video call of
visit whilst others may have duty
monsters in them that you might
have to fight off. So they have got
many different uses in a games like these.
Another game that uses them is the game Call of Duty. There is a mission
in Call of Duty that has got you fighting different soldiers that are trying to
kill you and in the forest, they have planted land mines that you need to
avoid. They are all are wearing forest-styled clothing so its harder to see
them so you have got to try and find them and kill them. What the game
does well is, they let you use the trees as cover so you can hide behind
them so you are not getting shot the whole time. The game also uses

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sound effects well in the forest; it has got the sound of the wind going
through the trees and the leaves, it has got the sound of twigs breaking as
you run though and the echo of the bullets you fire from your guns. So the
forests are a good part to have in video games as they have got a lot to
add to them.
Clouds
Most video games will have clouds in them and in the most part they are
just something to look at but in some video games, they can be more
important. The game Mario shows this well as at some points in the game,
the clouds can have people riding them and they will try and kill you, drop
you etc. They could be things like shells and when they hit you, then you
lose a life. However, you can also ride the clouds but if you get hit then
you lose the cloud and then you would have to walk or run. The benefit of
it is, that you can complete the level quicker. Although in other games the
clouds can do something else so if you were playing a flying game and
you are flying the plane, then you would run into a lot of clouds and you
wont be able to see where you are going. So you are going to need to find
a way around it or you might crash. They can also be used in another way
like in the game Skyrim where they use the clouds to hide things. At some
point in game they will ask you to climb a high mountain and when you
get close to the top, they will ask you to go through a thick fog of clouds
and then you get a spell that can make the clouds disappear so you can
see where you are going. So clouds in video games can be used in many
different ways.
In-game Interface/Head up display

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In some video games, you would be given a display to look at and what it
does is give you feedback about things that you have done. So say you
are playing a game like Battlefield and you have your gun out and you
shoot it, then your display would say that you have shot and there would
be a number that says how many bullets
you have got left in it. Another thing that it
might show would be the little mini map
which is normally in the left hand corner of
the screen and that would then show you
where you are on the map. Also, you
would get another mark if someone on the
other team shoots; a mark would then
show up and tell you where they are on the
map. In some other games, that might have a health bar as well that tells
you how much health that you have got remaining. This can be seen in
multiple different games and they are games like Halo or Skyrim. When
you are playing the Halo game and you get hurt, your health will then
start to go down and then it will also change colour going form blue to red.
When your health is full, it will be blue but when it gets low it goes red and
will start to flash. Another thing that would be seen in the Call of Duty
game is a score streak system; if you stay alive long enough and get kill
enough opponents, then you would get one of these score streaks. It will
show you how far away you are or how much you need to get, to get to
the next one and all of this would be in your display in front of you.
Consultation
From the information above you can see how you the player would look
around in video games. It shows what you would see and how you would
see it. The head up display shows you what other assets you would see
what other assets are in the game like your health bar or you mini map.
Print Media Art
Console Cover and Box
When you buy a console, they all come in their own special box. If you
were going to be buying an Xbox, then it would come in a special green
box because the company colour for this is green. What this does is, it
makes you think whenever you see a big green object then you would
think of the Xbox. The console itself is a black box so when you see it on
this green background it stands out. Another thing that they do is, they
sometimes put a game as the page background. So if you have gone and
got an Xbox with the FIFA game then the box might come styled like the
FIFA game; so you might get it with a football stadium in the background.
This will only happen if you get it with a special buddle. Another thing that
they do is sell a white Xbox and that is shown on a white background to
make it look sleeker and this is also the same with all of the accessories
that you can get with your Xbox. When you get a controller, you would get
it in the same style box as the Xbox comes in. Therefore, if you get the
normal standard one, then the controller will come in the normal standard

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box. So if you were to go and buy a special one, then it would come in a
different kind of box. So for instance, if you get a
white controller then it would come in a white box
like the Xbox and say if you get one game themed,
then it would come in a special game box like the
FIFA one.
DVD box cover
When you buy a DVD, they may all look very
different but they will all have the same features on
them. Like say with the age rating, if you by a film that has got violence in
it then it might have a 15+ on it and this means it cant be sold or bought
by people who are below the age of 15. This is also the same if you went
out and found a film that has got a lot of swearing and fighting in it, then
it might be an 18+ and then that means you cant get it if you are under
the age of 18. Also, there is another one which has got PG on it and that
means that the film needs parental guidance when watching the film if
you are under a certain age. Another thing that all the DVD boxes have, is
a title of the film on them and with this, they will all have a different style
of how they are going to be written. So if you went and bought a horror
film, then the title of the film will be writing in a kind of gothic theme or as
close as possible. Another style might be action they might try and find a
font that looks like an action font. So the font may also depict what the
film would be like. Another feature that they might have would be a
picture on the front of it and what that picture is, is either a picture of one
of the main charters or something of significance to the film and this also
helps you understand what is going to be happening in the film.
Manual
In video game boxes, you will be given a little book or a manual that will
give you information on what the game is about and or how to play it. This
can give you instructions on the controls, what something is called and
where things are. So they are like a little guide book for you when you are
playing the game. Something else they can do is give you information on
how to fix something if something goes wrong in the game. So they would
give you the box with instructions on how to fix it. They could also tell you
about little secrets that they might have hidden around the world. You can
even go and buy big video game manuals to help you though some
games. A game that has done this is the Halo game as in this they have
given you a book that you can go and read and it will tell you where they
might have hidden guns. Another thing that this big manual might tell you
is a story about the places that you are at. So if you are playing the story
mode and you want to know why you are at this place, then the manual
could tell you.
Poster
A video game poster will be very much the same as the box cover that the
game comes in. Therefore, it will have a lot of the same features in it such
as the game title and this will be the same as the one on the video game

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box because it is like there logo in a way so they will

need to keep it the same. They may also keep the
images on the front of the game the same so that
they can make it seem like its the same thing as
the video game box cover. However, they could just
change the whole thing and they could make it so
that the picture isnt of the normal cover, they could
just use an image of someone else who is in the
game. In the most part, they will try and make it so
that the poster is the same as the box that the
game comes in. They would even have the game
makers and the sponsors on it so that you know who
made it.
Consultation This is the video game
poster for battlefield
This information is telling you about how the video game is going to be
sold it tells you about all of the different boxes that video game is be sold
in. this would be things like how a PS4 game is going to be different to an
Xbox game.

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