Task 1B

Concept Art

Concept art is an illustration used to show possible ideas for video games, films, books etc it is used by game creators to show the possible ideas for various characters, locations and objects in the game. They are alternate looks at what the game could have become.

Silent Hill 2 – Masahiro Ito

The above are concept art for the video game Silent Hill 2, which is usually accepted as the best of the series by fans and critics. On the left is the nurse monster, which is usually found staggering around the hospital. Its face is covered by some bulging piece of flesh. Each monster in the game has some form of symbolism to them, representing something from the mind of the main character, James Sutherland. The nurse is speculated to represent the anxieties James has about his wife’s terminal illness. The fact the face is covered by this area of flesh, meaning it would be unable to breathe and the fact that sometimes they’re head suddenly start to convulse violently, like someone trying to escape being suffocated represent a part in the game where it’s revealed that James smothered his wife to death with a pillow. On the right is Pyramid Head. He represents James unfulfilled desire for punishment for killing his wife. Pyramid Head is an unusual character as his only goal seems to be to punish people. Not only does he attack James Sutherland but he also attacks other creatures in the game.  The Nurses outfit is old and weathered going from its former white to a dirty tanned colour while Pyramid head is wearing an apron which seems to have undergone the same transformation. We are unsure what is under the helmet but we can confirm he doesn’t see out of it and instead uses his hands.

The above image is from Silent Hill 3. It shows the main character, Heather, in the theme park level. It has a mixture of fog, darkness and fire. The only clear thing in the image is Heather herself, which gives the rest of the image a mysterious, deadly vibe. The entire image has an orange glow to it due to the fire.

Dead Space Series

 

Dead Space takes a big influence from other Sci Fi Horror such as Alien, in which both the Xenomorph(the antagonist of Alien) and Necromorphs (The antagonists of Dead Space) have a similar method of attack in which they sneak round in the vents, waiting to launch their attack. The Ishimura ship also bears resemblance to the Nostromo from Alien.  They also take an influence from The Thing, specifically the John Carpenter remake in which the alien takes on grotesque forms each time it assimilates a new life form. The design of the Ishimura (The main location of the first game) is dark, claustrophobic and creepy. The main colour used is orange, to go along with the mining nature of the ship.  It’s very difficult to maneuverer and you have to really on sound a lot to help you complete the game. Isaac’s design utilizes the third person perspective and does it so that no HUD is needed. The remaining ammo is shown on the back of the gun and the health on the back of the suit. The armour is high tech yet it still looks like it’s been in circulation for a few years. 

 

The plasma cutter (Left) has a design similar to the armour in that it looks like it has been used a lot over the years. It fires a beam of energy that slices through its target. It looks old but well maintained. The way it’s designed make it’s resemble a tool more than a weapon, which is it’s actually purpose. The Ripper (middle) is also a tool, not a weapon. It fires off a disk to slice through enemies. The disk can hover in the air and be manipulated by the player to move it around.  It seems to be more rusted and less well maintained than the plasma cutter.

Resident Evil 2

           

                          

Most of Resident Evil 2 takes place in the Raccoon city police department. Because it’s an older game, modern audiences will find that the graphics do kind of take away from the creepiness of the environment due to the restraints of the old consoles. Never the less the entire place looks damp and weathered by age. The characters are purposely brighter than the environment to make them stand out. Leon wears a police uniform. It seems to be based more on SWAT gear and is in good condition as it was Leon’s first day on the job.

Left for Dead

 

On the left is a decaying city showing the destruction caused by the zombie apocalypse. The structures have been ravaged and are falling to places. Various piles of bodies and organs litter the streets. There is a slight green colouring to the surroundings.  It all adds to the grim atmosphere. On the right is a boomer, a special enemy in the game which explodes upon impact with the player and sprays it’s fluids over them, causing other zombies to be drawn to them. It has various boils and infected flesh over its body which combined with its swelling body gives it a grotesque appearance. It’s also worth noticing that its shirt is way too small for it, likely meaning that it was an average sized person whose body was stretched and morphed into this zombie.

Alan Wake 

Alan Wake’s enemies are all made of shadows. The only way to dispose of them is by first shining a flashlight on them and then blasting them with a gun. Each of the enemies is a human that has been possessed by the darkness. He’s very dark. He’d practically invisible in the location which means you have to use sounds to hear where they’re coming from. Not a particularly interesting enemy but it works for the game. The locations on the other hand are far more interesting. There are dark, foggy and spectacular to look at. The main environments are woods. The picture on the left shows the vast forest surrounding a mining museum. The only illumination besides Alan’s flash light is the moon which gives the surroundings a blue tint.

No More Heroes

The above concept art is of the main character, Travis Touchdown. His appearance is based of Johnny Knoxville from the TV show Jackass. In the finished game his clothing is a lot brighter and he’s thinner. In this concept art his jacket has tiger type design on the back. I think that the jacket design looks better without the tiger parts. 

Dead Island

 

Dead Island takes place on the island of Banoi somewhere near Australia. It's overcome by a zombie virus and the players must try find a way off the island. It's warm, sunny and very gritty. It looks and feels like every step you take would get you covered in sand and dirt. Its looks like you could catch your hand on something and it would get infected. The whole area shows evidence of the massacre that took place before your character woke up. The whole island is a resort so there’s piece of luggage laying around and various tourist locations to explore. On the right is a hotel corridor which is well lit, allowing you to see the full extent of the damage. It makes a change from what we usually see with this e.g. flickering lights. It makes more sense as the zombies wouldn't really be attacking the lights, being more focused on the humans on the ground. On the left is some concept art for the zombies. They all seem to be hotel staff and entertainers. The images show the zombie virus in different stages. The first stage is just after being bitten. The person's skin colour is a sickly hue and they are noticeably more vicious. In the next stage their clothes are more damaged and their skin has become increasingly pale. Their injuries and skin decomposes more and you can see more of their flesh. The final stage shows them fully zombified. Their skin has darkened to a grey, their clothing is ripped to shreds and blood leaks from their mouth.