Assessment 1 - Submission

Link to my level:


https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ejq1nxbeq5mtd2w/3D6ORoZHMC

Link to my trailer:
http://youtu.be/NykC7hBGdRY

WEEK 06 AND 07____________

Over the last two weeks I have been continuing to add vegetation, particles, entities, etc into my level. I have found that I have learnt a great deal by watching Pinto's tutorials as well as looking through the singleplayer "Forest" (Forest_winter) levels already available within Crysis. This has helped me go into a greater detail and teach myself how to use particular tools that I otherwise would not have considered.

In creating area triggers and TrackView scenes that create an ambiance and mood for my environment by triggering sounds/music and special effects I followed some of the flowgraph examples that Russell posted on the coursework folder, as well as completed various tutorials on the freesdk/crydev website.. Flow graphs have taken me a while to get used to but after following some tutorials on the website I have managed to overcome any difficulties. The trackview is something that took me quite a long time, due to its tediousness however the quality of the final clip is far greater than using fraps. Additionally, I used flow graphs to create highres screenshots within Crysis however I was unsure which filepath to save the xml files in and consequently stuffed up all my work various times.

The music and sounds really animate the whole scene and give it some life.

 http://freesdk.crydev.net/display/SDKDOC2/Triggering+Audio+in+game#TriggeringAudioingame-Triggeringinthelevelitself

This area triggers a waterdrop effect on the screen of the player when entering the Areabox near the river.

I have created numbers SoundEventSpots throug-out my level to give it more character and details. This particular one gives the sound of flies buzzing around the barrells.

This area triggers a gust of wind as a player passes along the road. There is also a SoundEvent with a wind sound effect.

Various particles, entities, sound objects, etc have been placed in clusters at the main attractions spots within my Island. It is these clusters that are meant to draw the player to the area.

I used custom algae and moss decals with the letter "R" and number "4" along the rivers beds of my levels. These decals are projected onto the rocks and landscape so are therefore sometimes distorted - I guess this adds to the concealment!

 

Adding a Spawnpoint flowgraph was one of the easier ones to get working.

Although visually very simple, I did have quite a few problems getting the water drops on screen effect to work within my level.

This is a simple flow graph for the track view scene.

Following the tutorials I managed to create a smooth track view scene.

WEEK 05____________

TASK FOR CLASS
TASK01: Consider today's lecture , THE SUBLIMINAL, in relation to the EXP01 brief and marking schedule, and use decals, brushes, entities and vegetation to begin to configure your unique letter / number combination, on at 5 scales ranging from the macro to the micro. Discuss your strategy for the revealing of your unique combination with your tutor.


Different methods of revealing my letter number combination (R+4): 

MACRO SCALE 'R':

Within the larger letter that shapes the island there is a smaller 'R' revealed within the terrain through textures, rivers and vegetation.

Flipping  the '4' horizontally there  is an 'R' that shapes the island.

Entities have been used to reveal the letter from the above mountainside.

On a smaller scale, benches around a fire place along with some maritine objects reveal the letter aerially, which would not be noticed from ground level.

 MACRO SCALE '4':

Using a combination of objects and textures the number is only revealed in particular viewing positions.

The shape of the bottom part of the island. On ground level this cannot be known.

Utilizing entities to form the number when seen from the above cliff face.

TASK FOR HOME

TASK01: Write a paragraph describing your strategy for the concealing and the revealing of your letter / number combination, to be embedded into your island.

STATEGY STATEMENT
The strategies I aim to utilize in revealing my letter/number combination is through using the environment settings such as fog, cloud shading and sunlight beams to attract the viewers attention to a concealed object at a particular time. This can be particularly distinctive due to the fact that my island is made up of extreme snowy conditions and therefore the revealment can be completely subtly. 

I believe the concealment of my letter/number is very sufficient as I have purposely developed each one through a combination of more than one entity/texture/object/etc at a time. I will therefore reveal some letter/numbers less subtly than others in order to show that there has been a clear thought process.

TASK02: Complete a full draft of the outcomes required for EXP1. See the OUTPUTS section of the EXP1 brief for what is required; a full draft includes all of those outputs. While each of the outputs might not be finished they do need to present a clear indication of the strengths and opportunities of the scheme.

LECTURE OBSERVATION

 

WEEK 04____________

TASK FOR CLASS

TASK01: Experiment with the Skyboxes provided to help you recreate the mood and drama evident in your chosen image, with your own Island:

Just getting started - playing with skybox and time of day settings

 

 

Playing around with the time of day, skybox and environment settings I was able to get some different view shots from the same location.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

LECTURE OBSERVATION:

One piece of work that I found particularly interesting in the lecture today was one of Russell's modern examples of the sublime being - Olafur Eliasson's installation 'Blind Passenger'. I think this is a really great example of the sublime as it presents that moment in time where normal instincts are blurred and a sense of uncertainty and i guess 'horror' takes over as the people transition through this unfamiliar, atmospherically dense pathway. This installation directly translates the quote by Edmund Burke given earlier in the lecture;

"The passion caused by the great and the sublime in nature, when those causes operate most powerfully is Astonishment, and astonishment is that state of the soul in which all its motions are suspended, with some degree of horror… No passion so effectively robs the mind of all its powers of acting and reasoning as fear."

WEEK 03____________

TASK FOR CLASS

TASK01: Find an image of work for these landscape painters / landscape architects / architects / gardens.

Claude Lorrain - 'Capriccio with Ruins of the Roman Forum', ca.1634

William Gilpin - 'Furness Abbey School', 1772-74

Capability Brown - Wimpole Gothic Folly



Humphrey Repton - 'The Rosary'. 19th Century

JMW Turner - 'Modern Rome Campo Vaccino'. 1839

TASK02: Choose 4 of these reference images and recreate similar scenes located at various 'stations' or 'spots' within your island. Like the Grand Tourists, navigate your way around the brushes / objects provided within the Rollup Bar. Bring in objects you think are appropriate for creating a Picturesque landscape within your island, and that are also appropriate for your custom island. Think about the following terms related to the Picturesque:

• dividing the image into foreground, middle ground, background
• vegetation; trees, shrubs etc.
• navigation, pathways, [roads]
• framing the view
• ruins
• follies
• bridges, animals, water, pathways, vegetation
• ha-has / manipulating, shaping the land.

 

 

 



TASK FOR HOME

TASK01: Choose a 5th reference image to represent within your custom island. Continue detailing your island, using vegetation, decals, roads, water volumes, terrain layer painting to enrich your island.

- I decided to generate a normal terrain in Geocontrol and use features such as rivers and textures to create my letter/number (R, 4) combination. To make them even more concealed I began importing trees and rocks.

 

 

TASK02: Upload a short clip demonstrating the results of today's tasks, navigating through your custom island to the places you set your scene. Upload to Youtube and link it to your blog.


LECTURE OBSERVATION:
The idea of the 'picturesque' as seen in the lecture shows a direct contrast between the planned vs nature. Often the artists reoganized the landscapes to romanticise "Nature as it should be" - one that I found particularly interesting was Capability Browns ideas of drowning the architecture as seen in one of his works of a bridge. This 'Folly' is something that has inspired me for my own island to reveal structures that would usually be viewed as beautiful however are now in a state of decay - where nature has taken over.

Capability Brown - Blenheim Bridge

WEEK 02____________

TASK FOR CLASS

TASK01: "Find 5 reference images of different landscapes. Post them to your blog. Include an image of your country of origin. In a short sentence, list characteristics of the vegetation, terrain, lighting for each one. 

Futurism; islands on stilts above the calm waters. Cities mirrored on both planes of the surface.  Mystic fog and sun seeping through the clouds. Mode of travel between island = flying in futuristic air craft.

Unworldly glow from dark ocean. Cliff terrain silhouettes in distance. Stars illuminating in the night. 

 

Carefully constructed and organized landscapes. Methodical.  Varying greens and other earthy textures. 

 

 Familiar, Cooler landscape. Fog on snowy mountains in background. Rushing water under footbridge and through rocks in foreground. Soft cool colours. 
 

Picturesque mountain side alongside calm lake. Mirrored reflections of mountains on water surface. Pebbles cover the floor. Sharp, warm colours
 

Unkept, foggy, moldy forest with soft light penetrating through the trees. Orange/red/purple/blue tones. 

 

TASK02: Go to http://www.geocontrol2.com/e_index.htm and download and install the demo version of Geocontrol2. This is the program that will help you create dramatic landforms in Crysis.

Test Terrain 1

Test terrain texture - dessert 1

TASK03: "Along with your chosen reference image, use Geocontrol2, Photoshop and Crysis, and follow this tutorial to help you begin creating your custom island, based on the last letter of your last name and last number of your student ID, as stated in the EXP01 brief and marking schedule. Think about the placement and arrangement of you letter / number combination, in order to maximise a variety of different spaces."



Here is the tutorial on how to use the custom terrain editor to embed my number and letter.
http://www.cajomi.de/GeoControl/isolines1.html

 

Other



I am having a problem logging in to the Crysis Editor as the webpage has been offline for the last few weeks and I do not know what my password is. This is a problem I have been trying to resolve and MUST resolve quickly. In the mean time I have been using one of Roz's accounts. 

Lecture Description

This weeks lecture looked at the concept of Real vs. Representation. I particularly found interesting Ron Muecks hyperrealistic scultpural forms. I had seen these works before however I had no idea that they were only made to be shot from a particular angle, and therefore are only half modelled. This idea is something that I must also aim to achieve when design my island in order to not waste time modelling objects that will not be seen.