Video Game Art (300 hours)

Course Overview/Description

The Game Art program gives you a head start in your game art or design career by providing you with insight into every aspect of how today's video games are created. You'll learn about the business model, the technology platform, the production process, and the genres that define the medium, developing an understanding of the people and processes that drive development.

A major goal of the course is to help you understand the different roles in game art and design departments. You'll explore the inner workings of the game development team, finding out how art, programming, audio, design, and QA work together to create a killing product.

To prepare you for a professional game development environment, papers, tests, and projects will challenge you to develop the analytical and written skills you'll need for communicating with other game industry pros. You will focus on helping you define your influences, interests, and ambitions as a game artist or designer while learning how to analyze and criticize video games, identify key elements in a game, and make intelligent judgments about whether the game succeeded or failed.

This course uses Autodesk Maya, which combines powerful tools for the major areas in 3D content creation: modeling, animation, texturing, lighting, and rendering. Game Art will also focus exclusively on developing tiling textures for 3D environments – how to gather reference photos and turn source imagery into texture tiles and texture sets.

Get ready to study important issues that every aspiring developer should understand, such as what business factors led to the rise and fall of the first consoles, and how Nintendo's approach to licensing set the stage for today's system of third party software development. This instructor-led, project-based program is completed at your own pace. Expert Faculty members provide critique and feedback on projects within 1-2 business days, helping you build a design portfolio for prospective employers.

Course Objectives

Upon successful completion of this program, students will:

o Develop an understanding of the business model, technology platforms, and production processes used in the video game industry.
o Develop an understanding of the typical structure of a game development team and the roles played by different departments and individuals.
o Develop an understanding of the core tasks and professional challenges that face a video game design team.
o Demonstrate the professional level of written communication skills that are required in today's game development industry.
o Develop an understanding of the main tools in the Maya interface and how 3D art is constructed.
o Construct 3D models by creating and editing primitives through moving, rotating, scaling, and grouping them.
o Test and apply texture tiles to 3D objects and environments.
o Develop convincing detail for specific variations that occur in the physical world, such as end grain in wood.
o Apply tiling textures to a range of maps commonly used in video games.
o Develop an understanding of the major developments in video games over the last 30 years.
o Gain an historical perspective on trends in current and next-generation game development.
o Apply basic principles of animation with Maya including: squash and stretch, anticipation, and follow through.
o Identify the animation possibilities within a pose and create a variety of effective character poses and gestures.
o Effectively plan, analyze, and act out a shot prior to animating.
o Simulate different lighting conditions and times of day using lighting techniques.
o Light a complete game scene including all objects within it using shaders, textures, and a design document.
o Develop an understanding of how criticism influences a game's audience and the success of a game.
o Learn practical methodologies for writing critical analyses of video games.

Course Outline

I. Intro to Game Development
• Lesson 1: Intro to the Game Industry
• Lesson 2: Video Game Genres
• Lesson 3: Meet the Team
• Lesson 4: The Design Team
• Lesson 5: Visual Design (the Art Team)
• Lesson 6: Games and Society

II. Maya Basics
• Lesson 1: Intro to Maya
• Lesson 2: Modeling in Maya
• Lesson 3: Poly Modeling II
• Lesson 4: Texturing and UV Mapping
• Lesson 5: UV Mapping
• Lesson 6: Animation and Workflow

III. Tiling Textures
• Lesson 1: Intro to Tiling Textures
• Lesson 2: Maintaining the Illusion
• Lesson 3: Geometric Patterns
• Lesson 4: Basic Texture Sets
• Lesson 5: Advanced Texture Sets
• Lesson 6: Advanced Mapping

IV. History of Video Games
• Lesson 1: Early Origins 1958-1984
• Lesson 2: The 2D Era 1985-1994
• Lesson 3: The 3D Era and Next Generation 1994 to the Present

V. Character Animation
• Lesson 1: Principles of Animation
• Lesson 2: Animating Hierarchical Characters
• Lesson 3: Lights! Camera! Acting!
• Lesson 4: Playing with People - Basic Human Motion
• Lesson 5: Playing with People - Advanced Human Motion
• Lesson 6: Acting with Humanoids

VI. Game Lighting and Color
• Lesson 1. The Purpose of Lighting
• Lesson 2: Components of a Light
• Lesson 3: The Power of Color
• Lesson 4: Shaders and Light
• Lesson 5: Using Textures to Manipulate Shaders
• Lesson 6: A Look Behind the Curtain

VII. Game Analysis and Criticism
• Lesson 1: Criticism and Genre
• Lesson 2: Design and Intent
• Lesson 3: Writing Game Reviews

Prerequisites/Audience

Basic experience in Autodesk Maya 7 and Photoshop

The intended audience is anyone interested in developing their skills in video game art.

PC Requirements/Materials Included

This course is compatible with Windows Vista Operating System.

There are no required textbooks.

The following is required for this program:

Required Software:
• Autodesk Maya 7
• Adobe Photoshop CS or CS2

The 32-bit version of Autodesk® Maya® 8.5 software is supported on any of these 32-bit operating systems:
• Microsoft® Windows® XP Professional (SP2 or higher)
• Red Hat® Enterprise Linux® 4.0 WS (U4)
• SUSE™ Linux 10.1
• Fedora™ Core 5
• Apple® Mac OS® X 10.4.8

These web browsers are supported for Autodesk Maya 8.5:
• Microsoft® Internet Explorer 6.0 or higher
• Netscape® 7 or higher
• Apple® Safari™
• Firefox®

Required Hardware:
At a minimum, the 32-bit version of Autodesk Maya 8.5 software requires a system with the following hardware:
• Computer with Internet connection (56 Kbps modem or faster).
• Three button mouse required for PC users, recommended for Mac users.
• Windows/Linux: Intel® Pentium® 4 or higher or AMD Athlon® XP processor.
• Macintosh®: Power Mac® G5 or Intel®-based Macintosh® computers.
• 1 GB RAM
• 2 GB hard disk space
• Qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL® graphics card
• Three-button mouse with mouse driver software
• DVD-ROM drive

At a minimum, the 64-bit version of Autodesk Maya 8.5 software requires a system with the following hardware:
• Windows/Linux: Intel® EM64T, AMD Athlon 64, or AMD Opteron® processor
• 1 GB RAM
• 2 GB hard disk space
• Qualified hardware-accelerated OpenGL graphics card
• Three-button mouse with mouse driver software
• DVD-ROM drive

Instructor Bio

Steve Kalning is a ten-year veteran of the game industry, beginning his career as an intern at LucasArts. He was hired at the company as a technical artist, and shipped The Curse of Monkey Island before moving on to Infinite Machine. For nearly four years, Steve was a technical artist and lead producer for Blizzard Entertainment, makers of the Diablo, Starcraft, and Warcraft franchises. In his current role at Valve Software, Steve is working on episodic expansions for Half-Life 2, and has contributed to the forthcoming Team Fortress 2. Steve graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor of Science degree, and studied computer animation, 3D modeling, and traditional art at the Academy of Art College in San Francisco.

Nat Stein is a modeling supervisor and CG artist at Anzovin Studio. He has worked on animation for games such as Sid Meier's Railroads and Halo 2, as well as a variety of TV shows and movies. Nathaniel attended the University of Massachusetts at Amherst , where he also taught courses in Animation and Modeling after his graduation. Nathaniel co-authored the book Visual Quickstart for Maya 7.0, and is currently working on a new book. Nathaniel received his BA in Computer Animation from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

Todd Gantzler is a game artist, educator, and writer. Todd has worked as a 3D artist on such games such as Gex 3D, Cyberia, and Akuji the Heartless and specialized in game design work and character animation. Todd has served as Program Leader for game development degree programs at the Media Design School in New Zealand and at the University of Salford in England. He has been designing and teaching game art and design classes since 2000. Todd's first book, Game Development Essentials: Video Game Art was published by Thomson Delmar Learning in July 2004. Todd moved into games from work in graphics and animation for TV and film; his film credits include The Pagemaster (1994).

Cristin McKee is a character animator at Anzovin Studio, where she has worked on a number of high-profile projects including the features GI Joe: Valor vs Venom and Action Man: X Missions, game cut scenes for Halo 2, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, The Da Vinci Code, and Sid Meier's Railroads, as well as a number of television projects and short films. Cristin has spoken about animation on panels at Siggraph and Northampton Film Festival and taught animation at Hampshire College , MA. Cristin is currently co-directing an animated short. Cristin earned her Bachelor of Arts from Hampshire College, MA .

Jesse Brophy is a technical artist who has worked at a range of game design companies, including Atari, Breakaway Games, and Sony. He created all the lighting, rendering, camera work, compositing, rigging, and some of the modeling and texturing as well as all particles for the Dungeons and Dragons Heroes Xbox Video in addition to leading the art team in its creation. Jesse currently is developing Xbox games at THQ in Phoenix, AZ, where he serves as a Technical Artist/Character Artist. Jesse has a BFA in drawing and visual communication from the University of Arizona.

Alex Jimenez is a veteran game designer and Vice President/ Lead Designer of Tesseraction Games. The creative force behind the original Dungeons & Dragons games by Capcom, Alex has contributed to the concept, design, story writing, and development of a host of high-profile licenses including X-Men: Children of the Atom, Army Men Sarge’s Heroes, Darkstalkers 1 and 2, Super Street Fighter 2, Battle Tanx 1 and 2, Marvel Super Heroes, Enigma: Rising Tide, Minigolf Maniacs, and Alien Vs. Predator. Alex has implemented projects on a wide range of platforms including PS 1 and 2, PC, N64, and coin-op formats. Alex has lectured on the game industry topics at conventions and to college students and both developed and taught video game development courses to high school students.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. How do I register?
Click on the register button at the top of the page and follow the directions. It is important that you type all your information in the boxes, then print it out to sign.  Payment and sending instructions are in the bottom right corner of the form.

2. How much do the courses cost?
The fee is in the pink box at the top of the page.

3. Can I register for courses if I live outside the United States?
Yes, you can!

4. Do I ever have go to the school I register with?
All of our courses are delivered entirely online, so you never have to go to a class or travel to the school.

5. How long does it take to complete a course?
All of our courses are self-paced and open enrollment. You can start and finish the course at your own pace. When you register for a course, you are given 180 days (6 months) to complete the course. If you need more time, extensions are available.

6. Do I have to buy additional materials?
All materials are included. The cost of materials is covered by your tuition. GES ships all materials via UPS ground service upon registration.

7. Can I get financial aid?
GES courses are non-credit courses, so they do not qualify for federal aid. In some states, vocational rehab or workforce development boards will pay for qualified students to take our courses.

• GES provides a loan opportunity for students. Simply go to www.collegeloanapplication.com to apply for an easier qualifying loan at a slightly higher rate. Click here for more information on this loan program.

8. What happens when I complete the course?
Upon successful completion of the course, you will be awarded a certificate of completion from the school with which you registered. You must obtain a final passing grade of 70% or greater to be awarded a certificate.

9. Am I guaranteed a job?
GES courses will provide you with the skills you need to obtain an entry-level position in most cases. We do not provide direct job placement services, but our instructors will help you build your resume and are available to give advice on finding your first job. Instructors will also be available to use as a professional reference upon completion of the course. Potential students should always do research on the job market in their area before registering.

10. Who will be my instructor?
Each student is paired with a facilitator for one-on-one interaction. The facilitator will be available (via email or phone) to answer any questions you may have and to provide feedback on your performance. All of our facilitators are successful working professionals in the fields in which they teach.

11. What do I have to have in order to take an online course, and what are the system requirements?
In order to take our online courses, you must have access to a computer and the Internet (a normal dial-up connection is fine). You can access the course contents from any Web-enabled computer. There are no necessary plug-ins. You do not have to use the same computer to log-in to the course every time. We recommend that you have a word-processing program (Microsoft Word is best) and the latest version of Internet Explorer.

12. Can this course be taken on a Mac?
Yes.

Note: An IBM or IBM clone PC is any standard desktop computer that is not an Apple or MacIntosh. IBM and IBM clone PC's run some version of Windows as an operating system and come in many brands other than just IBM, such as Dell, Gateway, and Compaq just to name a few.

13. How can I get more information on the course?
All of the information we have is available online under our course catalog (www.gatlineducation.com). If you have questions that are not answered online, please feel free to email us at courseinfo@gatlineducation.com or call 817-870-2870. We will answer your questions promptly.

14. When can I start the course?
Our courses are all open enrollment. You can register and start the course as soon as you are ready.