4/2/23 blog post 4

4/2/23 blog post 4

In the past two weeks, I have been working on helping the team finish up the art assets for the game! I was able to work on the arrow launcher and fire launcher traps, and help playtest and report bugs. I also spent time in the squad meetings listening to project proposals for the next cycle and making edits to parts of the final boss that were cut apart into pieces. During the playtesting, I paid close attention to the style of the traps and the environment art/tile art in the level so that I could make the style of the arrow and fire launchers match the mood of its respective environment. Based on the style of the pirate stronghold, I made an arrow launcher that was made of metal and wood, putting some texture on it so that it would look a bit more realistic.

Although I am still currently working on the fire launcher, I was thinking that it could be almost like a flamethrower, based on the area of effect that I saw during the playtest. It is a bit similar in design to the arrow launcher, since it is in a similar environment. Initially, I had thought that the arrow launcher was a weapon for the player, not a trap - this was a bit of miscommunication on my part, as I should have asked the lead specifically on what the arrow launcher was for. However, it wasn’t a problem, as the base of the arrow launcher was extended to just become a trap that would be attached to the wall instead of a handheld weapon similar to a crossbow.

When I was thinking of designs for the arrow launcher, I thought of what kind of weapons or traps might be suited for a pirate stronghold, or what kind of traps could be triggered as the player walked by. I thought a crossbow design would work well, as a possible way for the player to trigger the trap would be a button or lever that released arrows from the bow. Referring to both the style guide and the environment/tile art, I made the lineart darker and more visible, as well as trying to define the silhouette of the arrow launcher so the player could distinguish it from the other traps in the game.

I drafted designs for both the arrow launcher and fire launcher throughout both weeks, and also worked on cleaning the artwork for the final boss - for the next sprint, I plan to work on the environment art and loading screens that can be used for transitions from level to level. The art lead helped me visualize the level of detail that would be needed for these loading screens, for both the pirate stronghold and the beach area. After finishing up the fire launcher for implementation, I will be creating sketches of the loading screens and painting them throughout the week!

- style inspiration and level of detail for environment loading screens

Sketching and drafting concepts for fire/arrow launcher (4 hours)

Converting concepts to sprite images, revising arrow launcher from handheld weapon into trap (1 hour)

Department/squad meetings and discussion (5 hours)

Playtesting and observing style of environment art for fire/arrow launcher concepts (1 hour)