Bi-Weekly Update – 10/6/2019 Oct 6 - GameSyns & Sev

Hello all, welcome to another Bi-Weekly update. This one is a short but sweet edition. We check out some concept art for props for a new map and more. So sit back, take a 10 from work, and check out our latest update.

The Wheels on the Bus Go...

We have some sweet prop concept art from our talented concept artist, Aviixe and Ikki Day. First up to the stage is Aviixe, showing us an amazing utility truck for one of our maps. I wasn’t 100% what this truck was supposed to be, so I sat down with Aviixe to learn more.

Hey Aviixe, thanks for joining us today to discuss this piece you hand-drew for our 3D team. First off, did you have any inspiration or references for this piece before you drew it?

Aviixe: "There wasn’t any particular inspiration for this design, I looked at a lot of existing trucks for reference and just giving them more bevels and some nice stripe graphics to give it that New Mombasa feeling despite being 500 years in the future, I feel like a lot of classic Halo's designs for things like basic vehicles are pretty relatable to things we see today. I didn't want to overthink designing a simple civilian use vehicle, I just wanted to keep it grounded."

That makes sense, so I imagine this vehicle is intended to serve a purpose when it’s not used as a prop for a multiplayer map. What’s this prop’s story?

Aviixe: "It's a maintenance truck needed for whenever something needs fixing. The map New Order is set in a cluster of corporate buildings, a subway, maybe some skyscrapers. Hopefully, nothing breaks down, but should that happen a truck like the one I designed would be called in to fix it up. Hopefully no sudden alien invasions get in the way of anything."

For game development, it seems concept art is a crucial role in development. Why is it such an important step for creating a prop in-game?

Aviixe: "It is quicker to make a painting or drawing, or several drawings iterating on an idea and set a direction for something than to immediately start on the 3D model. Starting on a 3D blockout can definitely be helpful depending on the thing being designed, but one way or another concept art will be brought in because it is faster to design and iterate with."

For us “not so talented” artists, how long does a piece like this take to create from scratch?

Aviixe: "A good 2-3 hours, though this design isn't terribly complicated at all. The process was made a lot easier with the pre-existing basic 3d model for me to design over. I did a lot of lines over the model and then a basic layer of color underneath, eventually merging the two and defining the materials a bit more. The goal is just to make it readable and give the 3d artist(s) some guidance, even if the direction of the final model changes a bit from the concept."

This piece above was created by our artist, Ikki Day, who was tasked with creating another concept piece for the New Order map. By this concept, it would seem that public transportation is an important part of citizen life. These modern buses look so slick, I asked Ikki how he came up with this design and why he choose a bus of all vehicle types to create.

Ikki Day: “Seeing the transport truck done by Aviixe gave me the inspiration to draw it. And I usually take a public bus to work every day so I thought making one could help out the artists working on New Order...”

Due to Ikki being a very busy man (making concept for our wonderful game), we didn’t want to bother him so, all we have is the above quote.

We appreciate both Ikki Day and Aviixe for taking a break to stop by to answer some questions. If you want to check out their links, click below:

@stephen_boe@AviixeArt@ikki.day@Ikki_Day

Spot the Music

Just in case you haven’t gotten your daily fix of synthwave from Songheili already, you can now listen to it on Spotify. So now you can have your eardrums filled with the sweet sounds of the Installation 01 soundtrack with even more convenience. On the off chance you haven’t heard Songheili already, now is your chance to catch up. You can learn more about Songheili as well as the rest of the soundtrack and Jafet himself in the Team Focus here.

If you don't have Spotify, it is also available on Apple Music and Google Play Music. And as always, you can find it freely available on the YouTubes.

You can also follow Jafet on his various social media accounts if you want to catch the songs of our soundtrack right when they come out. He also posts art on his Instagram if you're into that.

YouTubeSoundcloud@Jafet_Meza@jafetmeza25Facebook

Picking Sides

We’re looking for new people to join our team. Think you fit the bill? Apply today. We have plenty of positions open. Who knows, you could be the next Aviixe, Ikki Day, or even the first YOU.

Right now, we are especially on the lookout for 3D artists.

Join the i01 Team

Blame Bean

A Bean needs lots of fluids so he can grow up to be strong and healthy, so he's fabricated a device that siphons the hopes and dreams of the entire Installation 01 team straight through their screens. This is actually the reason the game is still in a soon™ state after so long. But hey, at least Bean is growing in power, plus he gets a lot of wacky straws on top of it.

Well that’s it. Thanks to Sev for letting us know about the new track on Spotify and informing us on Bean’s latest shenanigans. That’ll be all for this update. If you have any questions, please feel free to drop a comment on the reddit post.

GameSyns & Sev