Graphic Game Design

It all starts with a game, a piece of paper, a pencil, an idea. Graphic design within the game industry has certainly come a long way in the last thirty or so years. From the simple games we played as children on paper to the interactive x-blocks by the designers of tomorrow. And what will it be tomorrow? Today we also have 2nd life via the web; if you're not happy with your own life; go and pretend to have a life in a pretend world. Our very pixelated Donkeykong and Mario have turned into 3dimensional characters in a 3dimentional world. Who knows where our now super duper Mario will end up!
Basic strategies of games, stories, characters, tasks and performance all play an important part of the development and graphic design of the gameware. Some games are based on ancient and tradional games like chess and Marjong. Some characters are designed from inpirations like a favourite chilhood toy. And some come from a dream world. An excellent book I borrowed from the town library "The Computer Game Design Course" explains the entire design process, history, helpful web sites for the beginner through to the professional; and accompanied by excellent graphics, I found it a very informative and up to date book. The first publishment is 2007. (A great book for Aiden to peruse). And it even tells you where the courses could take your expertise.
I wonder where the next thirty or so years will take us? We, as graphic designers with limiltless imaginations could take the world anywhere.

Jacqui - TILES elements & principles

With so many facets of the industry to choose from, and being an indecisive personality, deciding on a concept to represent was my first hurdle.
I started by researching quotes on design when I stumbled across the KISS principle (keep it simple, stupid), which appealed to my sense of style. Applying this principle I decided to represent some basic elements and principles of design. Those being, colour, contrast, texture, collaboration, research, passion, typography, and of course the KISS principle.
Struggling to understand the concept of a visual metaphor my initial attempts weren’t satisfying but I persevered in the absence of a better idea. Time was running out and while searching for images for another project I came across the life cycle of a butterfly, which switched on a light (finally). Continuing my search I noticed that the images of the butterflies would lend themselves perfectly to a visualisation of the elements and principles I was attempting to express.
The project had gone from one that I was finding a chore and lacked the motivation to do, to a very satisfying experience and rewarding result. Enjoy:)

Lucys Tiles

The idea that i had for my tiles aimer to portray different aspects of design, which can be entered into through sign writing after our course is finished.
I chose sign writing because that is what im interested in and I have found that designing signs can be interesting and fun. I also thought that other people may be interested in it and seeing that there are a few different areas, which you can get into. And to see how design can fit into it.
I was hoping to portray a range of different styles and interests in design which can be reached through sign writing both in the past such as hand painted signs, spray painted signage (tags), engraved signs etc… I also tried to portray where the sign industry is going in the future for example printed signs. Promotional signs on cars, vans etc and clothing advertisement, which I think, will become larger in the future. As technology is evolving everyday.
I enjoyed doing this because it made me more interested in my own work and excited to see where technology is going!

By Lucy.

p.s. for some reason my pictures won't upload. sorry.

Design Is A Process

Early on in our first semester of Foundation year in Graphic Design one of our teachers Craig Elliott, said it was a course requirement to have the words “design is a process” tattooed to some part of our bodies. He said it didn’t have to be a visible tattoo, we could use caps or all lower case (our choice) and we could design the tattoo as part of an assessment for Stacy Pollard or Clea Gazzard’s Design classes. I designed a tattoo inspired by the classic “old school” tattoos; a banner (with the great words of wisdom in all caps) over a love heart with a sailor girl on one side in shortie shorts and a buff, if somewhat gay looking, cowboy on the other. I thought the best place for it would be just off centre and to the right of my butt cleavage. I’m very happy with it and have wondered who else in the class completed that assignment.

Despite this however, when Clea set this assignment to design 8 tiles with Graphic Design as the theme I found myself at a loss for which direction to go in…there seemed too many paths well travelled…or so it first appeared. After false starts, hesitations and roads that ultimately led nowhere I finally found a way… my break through. It was pretty simple. I communicated my floundering to my teacher. Clea suggested looking through library books on Graphic Designers, like the well-known iconic ones. There lay my salvation! In a particularly big heavy thick book entitled “A Smile In The Mind” which dealt with wit in design and documented great designs of our time and great words by some of the men and women who designed them. I became absorbed in the words of Paul Rand, Shiego Fukudo and many others. To read that these great designers experienced creative challenges and had personal techniques for overcoming them suddenly put it all in perspective. I identified. I loved reading that some designers thumb nailed and brainstormed and went through dozens of sketches and that others went for a quiet walk and came up with one good idea. That some worked only with paper and pencils and others went to the computer to articulate ideas. That some collaborated and others retreated into solitude.

More than anything this project was a journey. The destination was unknown. It was overwhelming but ultimately satisfying. It was a true metaphor for design being a process…

…and I think the printer really liked my tattoo.

Design Is A Process

Paula - process and progress

We have learnt this year that Design is a process... my take on it is LIFE IS A PROCESS and design is part of life - my life anyway...

Everyday and every design is a work in progress... I really loved creating these tiles on several levels, I researched Stefan Sagmeister who I love and also think is a nut case, (all part of being creative apparently), my favourite tile comes directly from him - DESIGN MAKES ME HAPPY - this leads into IDEAS, INSPIRATION, CREATE & TIME etc. They are all concepts represented in my tiles.

I also researched actual metaphors, Australian slang - very interesting and much to my surprise I learnt that i knew what most of it meant, I also drew on my own experiences of what I like and what I have learnt this year.......... Which is an incredible amount.

I used a very simple colour palette of Black, shades of grey and a dash of Red, i wanted to keep the work looking bold and sleek and also I was purely inspired and enjoying the current trends of Black white and red - EVERYTHING OLD IS NEW AGAIN partucularly after reading Vogue living an introspective of the last 20 years of fashion and home decorating.

I had more conceptual ideas than eight, however i only wanted to use quotes that really 'spoke' to me, so I kept looking and my mind processed everything I did and saw & eventually i settled on the eight you see.

I did have another one that I now wish I could have used which was "LISTEN 2 YOURSELF" I have realised that this is also a huge part of our work as Graphic Designers. Really nothing is more important than to respect and trust our own intuition and ideas.

There is always a first person to do something & we cant be afraid for it to be us. It could even makes us famous one day.

Evolution

SHE PLANTS THE SEED
The process of design is an integral part of the final creation as it is how we get there. Ideas develop along the way in response to our own perspectives on the project, clients needs and communicating to those around us, whether it be with client, colleagues or friends and family.
We also have our own inspirations, which come in all their diversities from music to books, to a blade of grass… to a strike of lightening.
THE SEEDLING EVOLVES
Ideas evolve as she climbs the mountain portraying our explorations and development of philosophies and designs. Reflection is also important throughout the process to examine and determine the problems and from where to continue.
I also used the quote ‘Doomed to crumble unless we grow and strengthen our communication,’ to relate to ones growth as a Graphic Designer as in this creative industry one is always learning and evolving and because this year I have discovered the importance of communication in this field, especially when we are working to please clients.
THE SEEDLING BECOMES A MAGNIFICENT TREE
The design eventually reaches its full growth, which at times can be difficult to determine yet as Graphic Designers we have deadlines that we must persevere to have it completed by.
When your design reaches this stage, ‘beautiful creatures will come to inhabit,’ -a metaphor concerning the receiving end of the design being client and consumer experience.
SHE REACHES THE MOUNTAIN PEAK AND CLIMBS THE TREE, REAPING THE REWARDS.
I just wanted to put up these images beacuse I had a problem with the printer having colours come out strange and in these panels the photographs came out blurry and I wanted you all to see them how they are supposed to be. The photos are from my climb of the beautiful Mt Warning which inspired this project, as I related this adventure to the journey of design processes. This is a lesson to save files correctly (I think it may have been to do with RGB and CMYK).