Game Project: Climate Chaos

I created the games characters using the shape tools on Photoshop. I went for quite a simple, cartoony style to appeal to the young target audience. It also made the characters easier to animate. I decided to use bright colours in order to make the game seem more fun and light-hearted, whilst it is based around a more serious issue, climate change.

Firstly I created Tyrone, the main character who the audience play as. I then created an end boss and a skeleton version of Tyrone for when he runs out of health. These characters however have not yet been implemented into the game. I created the litter monster by piecing together bits of rubbish, which I created individually, also using Photoshop.

After creating the characters. I animated them, using Adobe Character Animator and Adobe After Effects. I animated Tyrone to walk, jump, slide and swim using the functions that these software offer. I also animated the end boss to spin, by adjusting the rotation and position settings using After Effects.

Logo Design:

I created this logo using Photoshop. I included the protagonist in order to increase audience appeal as the audience grows to like Tyrone through playing the game. Using the shape tools, I created a hurricane-style swirl, which represents the hurricane in the game. Using the warp tool, I bent the title, to enable it to fit inside the tornado. I also added drop shadows to add more detail. I think this logo reflects the game well, whilst still being simple and fun to appeal to the young target audience.

Level Design:

I decided to create an island setting for the level as it is relevant to the turtle character and also allows the level to explore multiple aspects of global warming, such as hurricanes and forest fires. I created the different aspects of the background individually and then placed them all onto one big Photoshop canvas.

I then designed the assets which the player has to avoid: hurricanes, forest fires, plastic bottles and plastic straws. I originally created a more realistic hurricane, however the animation had too many frames so that the game maker could not support the file, therefore I simplified it. I do however think that the simplified version looks better as it fits the art style more and is less laggy. The final hurricane was made up of two images which flip between each other.

As the player moves throughout the level, they are encouraged to pick up glowing litter piles, in order to help protect the environment (which therefore relates the game to the brief). This pickup was designed on Photoshop and then animated using After Effects. Designing this pickup adds more complexity to the game, making it more fun to play.

I designed this zoomed out level map using Photoshop. I decided to experiment using a low poly style and found the outcome successful. I browsed through google images for inspiration. I created the island using the shape tool to create a rectangle and the selection tool to cut out the island shape. I found using different shades difficult however it helped to add dimension to the design. I also imported the trees and rocks which are included in the actual level design, to maintain consistency in my work. I added a glow around the edge to make it stand out more.

Storyboard:

This is the storyboard, which I created for the first level of Climate Chaos. I did this by placing a PNG of the protagonist onto the level design and then taking screenshots at different stages. I did this to reflect the different aspects of the storyline for example the character escaping from the hurricane, avoiding forest fires and then meeting the end boss. Other elements were implemented into the game at a later stage therefore are not included in this storyboard. For example the flying bottles and straws, which the player has to avoid, in order to maintain health.

Promotional Artwork:

I created 3 posters on Photoshop to promote the game:

The first poster I think reveals the most about the game, whilst the others are more enigmatic, to encourage the target market to want to find out more. I used the same font on these posters, as well as the other type elements of the game to maintain consistency, which I think looks more professional. I maintained the same cartoony art style to appeal to the target audience and relate more with the game. I came up with the slogan “coming sooner than you think” to represent the rate at which climate change is occurring and emphasise the urgency of the need to make changes.

Start, Pause and End Screens:

I wanted these elements to link to my promotional artwork. I achieved this by copying and pasting specific parts of my posters (such as trees) onto the new Photoshop document. By doing this, Climate Chaos is given a cleaner finish, as everything follows the same style. On the start screen, I placed litter into the background, as well as a hurricane. This contrasts with the image which appears once the level has been completed where the ocean is now clean and the turtle is smiling. This represents how simple it is to make a change to help protect the environment.

For the pause menu I experimented with a few different colours before deciding to use these particular shades of blue, which match the ocean in the game. I used different blending modes to give the menu a 3D effect, which I think looks effective.

Intro Animation:

This animation was created using Adobe Character Animator, After Effects and Photoshop. I used Photoshop to create the individual assets, Character Animator to animate the turtles body to look like it is swimming, and After Effects to piece everything together and animate my work. This animation took a long time and involved lots of trial and error, in order to make it look smooth. Prior to this, I had never animated anything, therefore I am happy with the outcome. I had to be cautious and save my work regularly as After Effects tended to crash quite a lot. I started by storyboarding this animation on paper, to give myself an idea of what I was trying to achieve. Originally this animation was intended to appear at the start of the game, however the file was too big for the game maker to support.

Gantt Chart:

I created a Gantt chart to allow me and my team to manage our time effectively. The first week of this project was dedicated to generating ideas. Allowing this time at the start was essential to ensuring everyone knew what we were trying to achieve by the end of week 6. Weeks 2-5 mainly consisted of designing the main aspects of the game, whilst week 6 involved final changes and finishing touches.