Updated Learning Agreement
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Name
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Stephanie Russell
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MA
Course Title
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Games Design
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Status
(F/T or P/T)
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F/T
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Date
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11/05/2018
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Version
No.:
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2
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Brief explanation/
outline of project
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The late 80’s through to the early
2000’s saw the vast popularity of the platforming mascot; the trend faded
into obscurity for a while but has had a small resurgence in the last couple
of years. In my Masters project, I aim to explore what qualities make a
mascot character subjectively “good”, memorable and globally marketable –
specifically in the context of video games.
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Context / Rationale
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For nearly two decades, the video
game industry was abundant with mascot characters, primarily starring in
platform games. A mascot is a character that represents a company or an
intellectual property; they put a face to the values held by the creators,
they are often forefront of marketing and advertising, and are much-loved
icons globally. Knowing the global fondness of gaming
mascots (ie. Sonic the Hedgehog, Crash Bandicoot, Super Mario etc.) I would
like to explore their lasting appeal for a variety of cultures and age groups
as well as the resurgence in popularity for the platform game genre.
Characters like Luigi
(being an alternate palette of Mario without much of his own personality) are
perhaps not very good, yet as consumers, we are forced to accept his presence
in Nintendo’s marketing. Why be safe and stick to a tried and tested design
formula? Is the idea of a secondary protagonist in a mascot-based game flawed
in itself? What about other secondary protagonists, like Tails to Sonic, is
he not only “accepted” but also a “good” character in his own right? What
about the ‘family’ of a mascot character (you don’t have Mario on his own, he
is recognised along with Princess Peach, Luigi, Bowser etc.) – what does this
kind of growth mean to a mascot?
Mickey Mouse, as an
earlier example, was originally a mischievous character but as he became the
forefront of Disney’s marketing, he lost a lot of his personality – why? Is
it not “acceptable” for mascot characters to have a personality that isn’t
just happy-go-lucky?
What about Sonic? He initially had a backstory of being in a rock band and having a human girlfriend. This was stripped back in favour of the simple plot of saving animals from an evil scientist. His personality was centred on impatience, his early games were about speed and collecting Rings – over the years his character and the franchise have become more complex. Were these to the detriment of Sonic as a mascot character? |
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Key areas of Research /
Key Activities
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Intended outcomes of
project tended outcomes of
project
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I would like to:
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Essay
Personal Research Studies
In this
section of the essay, I will discuss the methodologies of multiple
practitioners that I have contacted and how they have influenced my practice,
as well as detailing a visit I took to a local museum exhibition.
Bev Bush
Bev Bush
The first
person I spoke to was games design lecturer Bev Bush, who was previously an
artist at Cosgrove Hall animation studio as well at Knutsford-based game studio
Traveller’s Tales. The companies Bev has worked with have a strong
representation of mascot characters, notably the likes of Danger Mouse, Crash
Bandicoot and Sonic the Hedgehog; I therefore felt she would be very
influential to my project.
When
discussing her artistic process, Bev told me that she likes to combine two
contrasting things, whether that is tactile or simply opposing themes, she felt
this was a way to create an original concept. It was a creative method I hadn’t
really considered much beforehand; I found that it was especially helpful when
working on character concepts as well as considering environments for my mascot
character to travel through.
Another piece of advice I gained from Bev was to draw
traditionally then take the art into a digital program. This is something I’ve
experimented with and I find it’s a good way to create more organic poses, but
Bev continues to work on her pieces by printing them and working into them
traditionally, thus starting the cycle again, until she’s fully happy with a
piece. This is something I’d like to try myself when creating a vertical slice of
my game concept.
Rhoda Daly
The next
person I spoke to was Rhoda Daly, who is also a games design tutor. Rhoda
worked as a background artist at Traveller’s Tales alongside Bev, as well as
partaking in an internship at Walt Disney Studios. Rhoda’s background with
animation before working with games was something I looked up to in order to
gain a different perspective on my own field, as mascots are a prominent part
of animation as well as games.
When
discussing her design process, she informed me that she starts with loose
drawings without any research to start to place her vision. This is something
I’m also keen on with my own work, I think the ability to create spontaneously
and from one’s own imagination is important when it comes to creative work, but
this should always be followed up with research to ensure the vision is as
believable as possible.
Rhoda also discussed how her internship at Disney taught her to iterate and reiterate her work as well as making sure that every element of a design serves a purpose, whether that is character design, environment design or otherwise. Even the smallest aspects of a design are driven by narrative. This was a valuable lesson to me and it has made me a lot more considerate about the elements I choose to include in my designs.
Shannon Patterson
Lastly I spoke with Shannon Patterson, a freelance artist
from Ireland who does a lot of work for the Repeal the 8th campaign
for abortion rights across Northern Ireland. She is also creating a book that
teaches children about sectarianism and how they should co-operate and love one
another regardless of their background or history.
The aspect of Shannon’s Repeal art I find the most intriguing
is her use of vibrant colours, when I asked her about this she told me that she
has started to go ‘vegan’ with skin colour, meaning that instead of using
traditional skin colours she’ll use neon, bright and unrealistic colours to
keep her art truly inclusive. This inclusivity is something I have implemented
in my own design by using an animal mascot and the use of pigments that are
completely unnatural in the real world; I feel it is much easier to relate to
someone or something that isn’t grounded in reality.
Shannon and I also talked about her
children’s book; I wanted to look into the designs of her protagonist
characters and discover the depth of her design decisions. Like Rhoda, Shannon
is another person that makes conscious choices with every aspect of a
character’s design. For example, the female protagonist of her book is
intentionally tall due to a lack of representation of tall girls in media and her
shirt has a graphic of a monkey because of a nickname she was given by her
father. I feel that this level of consideration is something that can also be
applied to mascot design, especially since that kind of character is intended
for use as a marketing tool.
Harris Museum Visit
I took a
visit to the Harris Museum, where I first looked at the representation of
mythological and historical figures in pottery and sculptures. I wanted to
learn about the key elements that artists used to create a recognisable
silhouette.
When looking at the piece Mozart
Enfant by Louis Ernst Barrias, I was first attracted to the curls in his hair
as well as the violin in his hands. It was immediately obvious to me who the
subject was through this simple association. Another reason I found this piece
appealing was the representation of Mozart as a child, where most of the art in
the museum was centric on older subjects. I appreciated the energy and the
implied curiosity in his posture; I found it very inspiring in terms of
representing my characters in a more dynamic way and making their silhouettes
more memorable.
Following this, I located an exhibition on the Preston Lamb, a mascot character used to represent the city of Preston. Preston is a city that is very proud of its heritage, the lamb was used as the administrative seal in the 1300’s and has been featured on the city’s coat of arms since the 50’s. The mascot is prominent on items such as school and football uniforms, as well as having a multitude of plush toys manufactured in his likeness. The plush toy wears a blue jumper with “Preston” written in yellow text, the colours yellow and blue have come to represent the city along with the lamb imagery. I’ve thought a lot about colour in the creation of my own mascot character, as well as the use of animals as mascots, I therefore found it intriguing that even the city I live in makes use of the same kinds of symbolism and iconography through mascot design.
Practitioner Lecture Series
This section
of my essay will discuss the influence I have drawn from lectures given by
various practitioners. I will discuss how their methodologies have given me a
new perspective on my practice and made me think in new ways, as well as any
similarities I share with them.
Sonic the Hedgehog Panel
The first
lecture I sought inspiration from was “Classic Game Postmortem: Sonic the
Hedgehog”, a panel hosted by Naoto Ohshima and Hirokazu Yasuhara,
concept artist and level designer respectively on the first Sonic the Hedgehog
game. The panel discussed the history of the first Sonic game and gave insight
to the creation of the Sega mascot.
As the character was a direct influence for my Masters
project, this lecture was bound to be full of inspiring elements for me. The
first thing I learned from this lecture was that using an animal as a mascot
character is a great way of conveying a message to every kind of person,
regardless of ethnicity, age or gender since this kind of character is
considered politically correct.
Sonic is a character that quintessentially represents Sega.
The reason he does this is because of the considerations of his concept, from
the use of Sega’s signature shade of blue to the depth of his personality based
solely on the word “cool”. Designers created a mind-map of words related to
Sega and a character was created from that. I discovered that it’s important
for a character to have the depth and personality to back up the way they look
– this was something I took forward into my own concept work.
Claire Norcross
Claire is a
product lighting designer, while I didn’t find much relevance in her use of
natural objects as a basis for art, I found a lot of her methods of research
and creation inspiring. She is a person who believes a creation should not only
look beautiful, but be functional as well.
The biggest thing I learned from
Claire’s lecture was that it’s completely acceptable to ‘just make’ something
if there is no other way to express an idea, especially if time begins to run
short and there isn’t time for extensive research. There should always be some
consideration for research, but it doesn’t need to be a lengthy process.
Like Claire, I also don’t like to spend too much time looking
at other artists’ interpretations of a subject matter as it can eventually
become distracting and take away from a person’s own original concept. At the
end of her lecture, Claire stated that “it’s not something you do, it’s who you
are”. This is something that I have referred back to for the duration of my
practical work; having a personal identity is very important to me and Claire’s
lecture helped solidify the confidence I have in my own work.
Ben Tallon
The next practitioner I was inspired by was illustrator, Ben
Tallon. His lecture discussed ‘strokes of luck’ in creative industries and the
importance of the connections a person makes in their career, particularly
people with different skill sets and world view to oneself.
Ben began by discussing the subjective nature of creative industries, this goes just as much for game design as it does for illustration. It’s because of this that the individuality of a person is so important and that a person’s own strokes of luck, both good and bad, should be used to reflect a personal view on the world.
Ben also stated the significance of returning to, and trying out new, disciplines. Sharing what you think a client would want to see is restrictive and having a broader understanding of skills outside of your own industry can help you to imprint your own standpoint on things.
Ben began by discussing the subjective nature of creative industries, this goes just as much for game design as it does for illustration. It’s because of this that the individuality of a person is so important and that a person’s own strokes of luck, both good and bad, should be used to reflect a personal view on the world.
Ben also stated the significance of returning to, and trying out new, disciplines. Sharing what you think a client would want to see is restrictive and having a broader understanding of skills outside of your own industry can help you to imprint your own standpoint on things.
Claire Williams
Claire
Williams is a wallpaper designer and teacher. Her lecture discussed how
intelligence is often disregarded when specialising in art-based industries and
how she adapts to unexpected changes that occur in her field.
Claire stated that she chooses not to
focus on trends when creating her own wallpapers as it gives her work a unique
flavour and a sense of timelessness compared to other work, another reason for
this is the quick workflow required to keep up with ever-changing trends. This
is something I relate to, I much prefer to create my own content regardless of
what is popular - though, like Claire, I don’t do this without research into
current trends in my field.
Another valuable note I took from Claire’s lecture was that
you should be open to things going differently to how you expect them to. I
find that I’m often set in my ways and am caught by surprise when my plans
suddenly change or something doesn’t work out as intended. After hearing this
from Claire I noticed myself putting more consideration into the positives of
change.
Peter Peake
The final
practitioner I have chosen to discuss is Peter Peake, an animator from Aardman. I had less in common with Peter than I did
with other practitioners, but I found a lot of his methodologies interesting
and would consider using them in my own work. His lecture used an advert for
Australian outlet store, Myer, as a case study. He also discussed a brief
history of the work he has done at Aardman.
When talking
about personal projects like Humdrum, Peter explained that he is a tactile
person that likes to mix techniques. I have always found mixed media
interesting as a concept but have never experimented with it; Peter’s lecture
inspired me to investigate this some more and it is something I’d like to put
to use in future work, whether as part of my practice or something else.
Peter is also unlike me in that he
doesn’t like extensive research. I get a lot of inspiration from looking at
real life in particular; I also have a general keen sense of curiosity and for
learning new things. However, I don’t tend to research much without first
testing ideas from my head on paper – this spontaneous nature is something I
have in common with Peter.
Research Reflection
In
conclusion, I have learned a lot of things from a variety of unexpected places,
all of which has been beneficial to my practical work. Writing this essay has
taught me the importance of networking and observing the methodologies of other
artists and creators. I used to observe artists from a distance but now I feel
that I’d be much more willing to ask questions and to learn by performing more
studies of other artists’ work.
After
talking to practitioners and attending lectures I have noticed improvements and
changes to how I produce my practical work, from small things such as the use
of colour through to completely different methods of gathering research. I find
that books and other media can teach a lot but there are some things that can
only be taught through industry experience, by speaking to people and making
geographical connections.
Bev taught
me to combine contrasting ideas, which I have found helpful for character and
environment concepting. Both Rhoda and Shannon stated the importance of making
sure every element of a design tells a story and serves a purpose, as a result
I’m now much more conscious of the choices I make in character design; while my
visit to the Harris Museum instilled the importance of distinct and dynamic
silhouettes which has helped me to create more memorable characters. From Naoto
Ohshima and Hirokazu Yasuhara in the Sonic panel, I learned the importance of
designing a character around a key word or concept, and to represent that in
the character’s personality as well as just in their looks; this became
apparent as I designed my mascot character. Claire Norcross and Ben both imparted
the importance of personal identity in work and having your own story to tell
through your work which has improved my confidence in art exponentially; Claire
Williams taught me to adapt to change and that I should always be conscious of
trends even if I don’t choose to pursue them, and lastly Peter taught me that
it’s acceptable to be spontaneous with concepts, whether this is followed up by
extensive research or not.
I feel that
the techniques I’ve learned and experience I’ve gained from these practitioners
and visits has helped me to grow as a creative person. It has also allowed me
to express my own identity through my art in ways I might not have expected,
such as by observing industries as far detached from my own as wallpaper and
product lighting.
*images and bibliographies in actual essay document*
Practical Work
1. Environment thumbnails (see this post for more)
2. Game design document (see this post)
3. Damsel in Distress (see this post)
5. Poster (see this post)
*Sections 1. and 2. were only done in part due to focusing on the protagonist's game family.
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