Joshua DaveyHaverstock 02/02/2015

In this PowerPoint I will be discussing Art styles in Video games and how the can affect the audience and tone of the game. Furthermore I will be talking about why a certain genre will choose

COLOUR THEORY

In the visual arts, color theory is a body of practical guidance to color mixing and the visual effects of a specific color combination. There are also definitions of colors based on the color wheel; primary color, secondary color and tertiary color. This applies to picking the correct art style for games. There are guidelines for different genres.

Photorealism This is a style of art that encompasses painting, drawing and other graphic mediums, in which an artist studies a photograph and then attempts to reproduce the image as realistically as possible in another medium. However there are downsides to photorealistic, for example to uncanny valley effect where to game looks so real it seems fake. Additionally it might lag more and it takes more disc space.

Call of DutyAs you can see the photorealistic graphics makes the game look like real life.

Call of Duty is a brand that want to make the best FPS war game on the market. Photorealistic graphics is the best way to go because their audience will be more impressed, the closer the graphics look to real life.

Furthermore, to give the player an illusion of being in the war, photorealism graphics is the best art style to choose.

The tone of photorealistic games tend to be more serious than other art styles

GTA 5GTA 5 is an open world game that is meant to simulate real life.

If Rockstar (the company that made GTA) want to simulate real life, the best art style to use would be photorealism.

Photorealism takes gaming deeper, the player will fell more enticed in the game.

In addition, gaming company's have made it a race to make the best graphics possible because it will be a unique selling point for their game.

Photorealistic graphics makes the game more immersive because its trying to emulate real life.

Fifa 15Most sports games use the photorealism art style.

Every year the games graphics team will go the extra mile when making the game more realistic.

In Fifa this year the have added more detail to the grass and the fans

Using any other art style to make a sports game would lead the game to losing its realism and the players wont take it as seriously

The fans buy the game to play as there favourite player.

uses a visual language of shape, form, colour and line to create a composition which may exist with a degree of independence from visual references in the world

Abstract

Geometry WarsAs you can see with abstract games, it is the complete opposite to photorealism.

Abstract games don’t relate to anything in reality.

Games like this tend to just use different games and vibrant colours

This game relies on geometric lines and colours to specify objects.

Using abstract gives this a game a more arcade like feel. Not a game that should be taken to seriously.

TranscriptedThis game using bright, neon and futuristic colours that may appeal to the sci-fi audience.

The objects in the game resemble living organisms but you cant clearly distinct them so this game falls under the abstract art style.

Most shapes in this game may look like real things. This object may look like some sort of spaceship but cant clearly be defined as one. Secondly, The background may look similar to earth or some sort of planet but, due to the chosen colours there's no way to tell.

Abstract art styles are more eye catching, the user can also interpret the game in whatever way they wants.

Eufloria

The colours and art style gives this game a more chilled and mellow tone.

The people that play this game wont be hard-core gamers. Because the style of the game wont appeal to most people.

The objects in the game can relate to the earth or trees but it is not still complete clear of what the objects are .

Exaggerated

Exaggerated- represent (something) as being larger, better, or worse than it really is

Mortal Kombat XEverything in Mortal Kombat tends to be exaggerated. This is because the genre of the game (fighting) suits the exaggerated art style. Most fighting game use this art style.

From the gore and x-ray moves to the weapons and even the characters themselves

Also the environments in the game tend to be overtop and riddled with objects that could kill you.

This affects the tone in way because the players feel more aware and enticed by their surroundings.

The finishing moves or ‘FATALITYS’ in the game tend to be un-realistic, something a human couldn’t do themselves.

Using exaggerated art style compliments the gore within the game.

Final FantasyAs you can see the sword the character is holding is over exaggerated as it wouldn’t be practical for a human to hold that sword.

The character is way to slim to be a human.

The hair of the character is modelled to perfection and hasn’t got one hair out of place. It is exaggeratedly yellow.

Because the art style is exaggerated it lends its self to a fantasy theme where things can be very different

The background looks very ruined and ominous which changes the tone of the game and gives it a more dark fantasy feel.

Mario As you can see the clouds are under-exaggerated, but at the same time its still exaggeration because they are so small compared to the sky.

Mario is too small compared to his surroundings.

The pipes are overly big and much larger than life.

Cel shaded Cel shading (often misspelled as 'cell shading') or toon shading is a type of non-photorealistic rendering designed to make 3-D computer graphics appear to be flat by using less shading color instead of a shade gradient or tints and shades. Cel-shading is often used to mimic the style of a comic book or cartoon.

Zelda Zelda uses cel shaded graphics to appeal to a younger audience

The setting is filled with bright colours which gives a more joyful and light

Also the Zelda character is dressed in bright colours which indicate the innocence of the character.

Borderlands Borderlands used cel shaded graphics in a complete opposite way to Zelda, it uses cel shaded graphics to give the game a unique way if using gore.

Using cel shaded graphics because they want make unique looking characters. Cel shaded graphics is one of the best ways to do this without the game looking fake.

Furthermore the guns can be oversized and do more, ‘cartoon like’ stuff.

The players will feel more lightly about this game that if it was photorealistic graphics.

Dragon ball Z

Using cel shaded graphics in a fighting game means it can be targeted at a younger audience because there will be less intense fighting and it will look less real.

Also giving the game a cartoon effect makes it easier to implement extravagant moves .

CONCLUSION

To conclude the art style of a game is dependent on the genre and target audience of the game. Furthermore it is crucial in the tone of the game and it should be carefully considered by all game makers before choosing the correct art style for their game.