Unit 5 - Working to a Brief

This unit aims to take me through the whole process of working to a brief from initial negotiations, through the process of developing and realising ideas in liaison with the client to final self-evaluation on completion of the work.

The learning outcomes of this unit are:

1. Understand the requirements of working to a brief.
2. Be able to develop a planned response to a brief.
3. Be able to apply a response to a brief.
4. Be able to review work on completion of a brief.

Learning Outcome 1

In this learning outcome I must understand the requirements of working to a brief.

There are many different structures of breifs, and each of them contain different pieces of information.

The different types of brief are:

• Contractual - A contractual brief involves a signed agreement and clearly states the objectives. It contains a legal document with specific terms and conditions. They usually have clauses for cancellations and changes, with timescales and a salary. There is also sometimes a space for signatures at the bottom to show that you have agreed to the brief and will do what it asks.
• Negotiated - This brief contains negotiations from the two parties. A downside to this is that the two parties may not agree with eachother and have different ideas. If this is the case, they sometimes bring in a third party (arbitrator). After a final agreement you may not like what you have to do.
• Formal - A formal brief is usually very detailed, clear and contains many explicit requirements. The major downside is that you may not like what the brief asks, but in some cases you can ask for minor changes, but this has to be agreed on. The brief is legally binding; this can be both an advantage and disadvantage. The advantage of this is that the client knows the requirements will be followed and if not, the worker may not be paid for their efforts.
• Informal - An informal brief is a verbal agreement between different parties with no official written document. This is usually a conversation between two or more people face to face or over the phone. As it is not written down, some of the discussed information may be forgotten and not completed.
• Tender - A tender brief is widely open to interpretation. The client asks for ideas for a specific subject. It contains basic information such as a brief summery of the subject, company name, contact details, and deadline dates. This type of brief allows the worker to be creative with their ideas. The downside to this particular brief is that you can spend a lot of time on the project but not actually get the job. Also, the client could then use your application to gain more ideas.
• Cooperative - This brief is used so companies or different parties come together and agree on a specific subject. There is more documentation as there are many different companies, so letters or phone calls will be needed to contact eachother. The advantage to a cooperative brief is the companies can combine ideas to make a better product.
• Competetive - A competitive brief is basically a competition where the client applies specific requirements for the audience and they choose the entry/entries they think are the best and want to use. This type of brief is very explicit as the client knows what they want. This means that creativity is very limited.

Unit 3 - Research Techniques for the Creative Media Industry

The aim of this unit is to develop understanding of and skills in research relevant to creative media production. I will present my findings in both written and oral forms and will learn how to cite and reference my sources.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

1. Understand the nature and purposes of research in the creative media industries.
2. Be able to apply a range of research methods and techniques.
3. Be able to present results of research.

Learning Outcome 1

For this learning outcome I had to show I understand the nature and purposes of research in the creative media industries.

Types of research:

Methods and sources of research:

Purposes of research:

Learning Outcome 2

For this learning outcome I needed to be able to apply a range of research methods and techniques.

Secondary research:
secondary research involved the summary and collection of existing research. This is used when doing market and legal research. This type of research could include reports, newspapers, magazines and journal content.

 Using "Gamasutra.com" I was able to find out some information relating to the games industry. Gamasutra is an online free version of 'Game Developer Magazine' containing weekly articles on game design and threads for discussion.

 

Primary research:
this type of research is done "out on the field" so to speak. It involves the collection of data which does not already exist, such as creating surveys and getting responses from particular people or the public.
I created a few surveys through the games development course using a site called "SurveyMonkey.com" It was very helpful in my virtual gallery research as I found out that most people would have liked a long corridor like gallery, so that is how I got my design choice.

Audience research:
Audience research can connect with primary research as you are gaining first hand feeback from them. As I stated before, I used a surveys website to gather feedback from the audience. I asked people that I knew went to a college to answer my survey for accurate feedback as the target audience were people around my age.

Market research:
For market research I looked at websites such as "IGN.com", "gamespot.com" and "gamesradar.com" to find out what's hot in the game market right now. I also looked at some reviews of games to find out which types gained the highest reputation. This will help as if I knew which genres are most popular, I should typically create a game based on that genre.

Production research:

Interpreting results:

Learning Outcome 3

For this learning outcome I needed to be able to present results of research.

Format:

Content:

Quotation and reference:

Unit 13 - Understanding the Computer Games Industry

In this unit I will be providing knowledge and understanding of how the computer games industry operates. I will analyse organisations, financial issues and legal constrains, and prepare career development material. I will also practice formal project management techniques.

Game publishing is an enormous business. The computer games industry has become one of the fastest growing forms of media entertainment. Those planning to work in this industry must develop an appreciation of how the industry operates and all aspiring entrants need an awareness of the role of each organisation in game publishing. No matter what job you want to take, you must learn about the organisational behavior and how to perform in both a corporate environment and in a smaller independent concern. All those working in games are affected by, and should understand, the legal constraints, professional considerations and ethical obligations particular to the computer games industry.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

1. Understand organisational structures and job roles within the games industry.
2. Understand financial issues and current market trends affecting the games industry.
3. Understand contractual, legal and ethical obligations in the games industry.
4. Be able to use project management techniques commonly used in the games industry.
5. Be able to prepare personal career development material.

Learning Objective 1

In this section I must understand the organisational structures and job roles in the computer games industry. I will need to independently work and develop a blog based of research I have carried out.

Organisational Structures

Type of company: 

                         Development studio:
A video game developer is a software developer that creates video games. A developer may specialize in a certain console such as Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, Nintendo Wii or PC. Most developers specialize in certain types of games such as Role Playing, First Person Shooters or Racing. These studios bring the most up to date technology created for playing and developing games on many different platforms. Some examples of development studios include Square Enix, the producers of Final Fantasy, which has sold over 92 million units worldwide and Tomb Raider. Square Enix Ltd. also has a global network of leading development studios such as Crystal Dynamics, IO Interactive and Beautiful Game Studios. Capcom are also a very well-known development studio. They are the producers of the Resident Evil series. In 2008, Capcom was one of the fifty largest software companies in the world.

                         Publishing house:

A video game publisher is a company that publishes a video game that they have either created internally or have had developed by a video game developer. As with book publishers or film producers, video game publishers are responsible for their product’s manufacturing and marketing, including market research and all aspects of advertising. They usually finance the development, paying the staff of developers, called a studio. Numerous video game publishers are traded publicly on stock markets. EA (Electronic Arts), Capcom, Ubisoft and many other publishing companies even develop the games themselves because of how large they are.                         

                         Independent studio: Independent studios are not owned by a publisher. The independent developers take care of their companies, pipelines and organizations. The companies can range from a solo developer to a company with 100's of employees. The UK's largest independent studio is 'Jagex', a company based in Cambridge founded in 2001. They produced a game called "Runescape" which is a web based Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game (MMORPG). Along with Runescape, Jagex have developed over 40 casual games on a site called 'FunOrb'. There are currently over 500 people working for Jagex, who provide content development, employee management and customer support. Not all of their games have become a success. They released a beta version of a game called 8Realms, but when it was fully released, the game didn't reach their expectations, so they took it down.

Departments:
                         Design: A game designer is responsible for creating what the game contains and how it works, such as platforms to jump on, and animation if they are planned to move. They take concept from the artists and create it into a 3D environment. If the game project is large, the design process will be shared between multiple people doing certain parts to the game, this will be run by the lead designer. Chris Degnan was a Lead Designer working for Vicarious Visions, an old game development company. Using IGDA.org, I was able to find some information about him and some advice he gives to people wanting to be a game designer. A couple of points he made were:

1. Be able to look at games analytically. What makes a good game good and more importantly what makes a bad game bad? What makes a player frustrated? What do players (in general) really like? How does a game encourage you to play more?
2. Understand other points of views. Learn as much as you can about all areas of game development - from art and programming to marketing and management. Learn the rhetoric, jargon and the semantics that each group uses.

You can read the whole page here - http://archives.igda.org/breakingin/profile_chris_degnan.htm

                         Production: A production department in the games industry
                         Marketing:

Job Roles and types:
                         3D Modeller:
                         Scriptwriter:
                         Management:

Working Patterns:
                         Office Hours:
                         Freelance:
                         Staff:

Learning Objective 2

In this section I must understand current market trends within the Computer Games Industry.

Financial:
                         Business Models:
                         Budgetary Systems:
                         Financial Responsibilities:
                         Preparing A Budget:
                         Evaluating Performance Against Budgets:
                         Budgeting Periods:
                         Management And Reporting Systems:
                         Break-even Analyses:
                         Funding Groups:
                         Milestones:
                         Licencors:
                         Franchises:
Market Trends:
                         Products and Services:
                         Vision Of Organisation:
                         Objectives And Plans Of Organisation:
                         Competitors:
                         Customers:
                         Organisation’s Attitude To Risk:
                         International And National Market Trends:
Industry Trends:
                         Franchised Intellectual Property:
                         Original Intellectual Property:
                         Sequels:
                         Discount Sales:
                         Comparison With Film Industry:
                         Outsourcing:
                         Mergers And Acquisitions:

Learning Objective 3

In this section I must understand contractual, regulatory and ethical obligations in the Computer Games Industry.
Contractual:
                         Types Of Contract:
                         Format Holders: (licencors, naming conventions, look and feel)
                         Negotiating Contracts:
                         Commissioning Processes:
                         Costing:
                         Scheduling:
                         Time Management:
                         Risk Management:
                         Subcontracting:
                         Outsourcing:

The outsourcers provide a variety of services to developers and publishers including art, animation and design; rendering graphics and programming audio/visual aids such as sounds design and localization. They can mainly be called a back support for video game developers as they help rendering and enhancing the graphics, sounds, animations and resolution.

                         Working To A Brief:
Legal:
                         Regulatory Requirements:
                         Compliance:
                         Copyright Trademarks:
                         Intellectual Property Rights:
                         Pan European Game Information (PEGI):
                         British Board Of Film Classification (BBFC):
                         Implications Of Franchising:
                         Licencors:
                         Health And Safety Policy:
Ethical:
                         Policies And Procedures:
                         Ethical Requirements:
                         Emerging Social Concerns And Expectations:
Professional Bodies:
                         The Entertainment And Leisure Software Publisher’ Association (ELSPA):
                         The Independent Games Developers Association (IGDA):
                         Women In Games:
                         British Academy Of Film And Television Arts (BAFTA):
                         Mobile Entertainment Forum (MEF):

Learning Objective 4

For this section I must understand and know about employment opportunities in the Computer Games Industry.
Working individually I need to research and present the following details in my blog:
·      How this industry is structured.
·      The technology used in this industry.
·      Who owns what in this industry?
·      How the industry is funded.
·      Examples of working practices in this industry.
·      Roles and responsibilities in this Computer Games Industry.
Techniques:
                         Project Life-cycle:
                         Milestones:
                         Agile Methods:
                         Software (e.g. Microsoft Project)
                         Management Tools:
                         Burn-down Charts:
Risks And Contingencies:
                         Identifying And Managing Potential Risks:
                         Contingency Planning:
                         Communicating Information:
                         Processes for evaluating Success.

Learning Objective 5

In this section I needed to be able to prepare personal career development material within the Creative Media Industry. As an individual seeking employment in the computer games industry I needed to produce the following:
·      Portfolio of research of how and where vacancies are advertised
-          Sample letters of application
-          Important interviewing skills
-          Presentation skills
-          Self-presentation
·      Electronic show reel including a curriculum vitae. This could be on a CD, DVD or personal website/blog.

Methods of Recruitment:
                         National Press: This is a large sector that provides the journalistic output, reviews and analysis for both trade and consumers. It includes working along with magazines, websites and television. Press and media play a very important role in publishing and the advertisement of a video game. People get attracted towards the way the games are presented in.
                         Trade Press:
                         Internet:
                         Word of Mouth:
                         Personal Contacts:
                         Internal Promotion:
                         Networking (IGDA Membership, Conferences and Trade Fairs):
Skills and Qualifications:
                         Education and Training:
                                                               Full-time, Part-time, Level 2, Level 3, Graduate:
                         Skills Analysis (Personal Skills, Technology Skills, Training Needs, Personal Development Plan):
                         Sources of Information (Sector Skills Councils, Trade Unions, Careers Service):
Career Development:
                         Training On The Job:
                         Continuing Professional Development:
                         Self-training:
Transferable Skills:
                         Personal Attributes:
                                                               Knowledge and Skills:
                                                               Commitment:
                                                               Efficiency:
                                                               Reliability:
                                                               Punctuality:
                                                               Self-Presentation:
                                                               Functional Skills (ICT, Mathematics, English):
Application for Employment:
                         Portfolio (Digital Gallery, Show-reel, And Personal Website):
                         Application Documents (Curriculum Vitae, Letters of Application, References):
                         Job-seeking and Interviewing Skills:
                         Presentation Skills:
                         Self Presentation Skills (Linguistic Codes, Dress Codes, Interpersonal Skills):

Unit 2 - Communication Skills for Creative Media Production

In this unit I will be showing that I am able to communicate effectively in creative media production contexts in writing and orally. Doing this, I will be aiming to improve my functional communication skills, such as pitching ideas, writing proposals and constructing reports. Therefore I will develop my ability to communicate my thoughts and ideas through pitches, proposals and reports to a range of audiences using appropriate modes of address and forms of technology.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

1. Be able to extract information from written sources.
2. Be able to create a report in a media production context.
3. Be able to pitch a media production proposal using appropriate technology.

Learning Outcome 1

For this learning outcome I needed to be able to extract information from written sources such as books, journals, websites, magazines, newspapers and handouts.

In order to complete this task I had to look at 3 different PowerPoint's on the internet and evaluate them, showing why I liked/disliked them, why I could use this style in my own work, and what information I particularly liked.

Below is an example of a good and useful PowerPoint presentation I found. The slides offer a great amount of knowledge about the world we live in today whilst being entertaining for the viewer, without great blocks of text.

Unit 1 - Pre Production Techniques for the Computer Games Industry

Unit 1 - Pre Production Techniques for the Computer Games Industry

In this unit I will be showing my understanding of and skills in pre-production. Pre-production is vital in any successful media product. For examples, the siccessful completetion of a computer game depends on locations, material, resources and talent being available for the work to be undertaken. Successful development depends on crew members and talent doing their own profession and combining their skills together to create a game.

The learning outcomes for this unit are:

1. Understand requirements for a specific media production.
2. Be able to prepare pre-production documentation for a specific media production.
3. Be able to apply pre-production planning for a specific media production.

Learning Outcome 1

For this learning outcome I needed to outline requirements and sources of requirements for a specific media prodution. The media prodction is a computer game. These terms are not in alphabetical order, but in the order printed in the BTEC Unit Specification.

Type of Production

Video: broadcasting moving visual images, such as cinematic frames before the game, or cut-scenes throughout.
Audio: the sound in a game, this can range from the sound effects to the voice acting. The music in a game is crucial for setting an atmosphere or mood.
Interactive Media: the system and how its outputs respond to the user’s actions.
Computer Game: a game played using a computer, typically a video game.
Photo-Imaging: editing and producing photos for use in games, such as a backdrop or textures or assets.

Finance

Sources of Finances: main source of finance which may include bank loans, sponsorships, publishers and equity shares.
Equipment: the instruments which will be used during the production, such as computers, software and programmes, recording equipment, stationary, modelling equipment and other technical equipment.
Transport: travelling to locations for ideas and inspiration or even going to other facilities that might not be available at the production HQ.
Talent: the talent is the special guests that voice act a character or actually appear in the game themselves. If the game is based on a movie, they can get the actor from that movie to do the voice of the character in game, but in some cases they get another person to do it, such as Judith Gibbins doing the voice of Lara Croft in Tomb Raider.
Crew: the overall work force and how much it would cost to pay them for the work they have done.
Materials: if needed, the materials for models before they are created virtually, paper or whiteboards for concepts and mind maps for the production and research.
Facility Hire: as mentioned before, they may need facilities for equipment they don’t have available to them, these facilities such as a recording studio, however, might not be free of use.
Clearance: the permission to use something that is otherwise subject to copyright. The staff could also ask the boss for something like a kettle for drinks to keep them active, and this would need to be cleared by him.

Time

Deadlines: this is a time you have to have something completed by, such as the ending of the production of a game.
Availability of Equipment: some equipment may be rented or borrowed, and may need giving back at some point, so it will be unavailable.
Availability of Personnel: Voice Actors may not be available all the time.
Timescales for Clearance:  How long it takes to get an agreement of use on a piece of multimedia, such as a piece of music from an artist. A contract would need to be written and signed before you could actually use it, taking a few days at least. You could have an informal agreement with the composer, but this may cause problems in the future.

Personnel

Size of team: how many members are working on the project.
Roles: the type of jobs certain members are set out to do.
Skills and Experience: how long the crew have been doing what they do, and how good they are at it.
Resourcing: Provide with money, assets, staff and any other materials necessary.
Availability: The time when staff will be able to work.
Costs: the wages for the staff plus payment to others such as voice actors or special appearances.
Team or Crew CV’s: The level of education the personnel of the team/crew have.

Facilities

Production Equipment: The place where the project will be developed. This may need to be rented out, so it will add to the cost of production.
Post-production Equipment: The place where the initial ideas were thought out and where the plans were made.
Availability: The time in which the facilities are available to use.
Cost: how much it will cost to use the facilities.

Materials

Archive and Library Materials: Resources available in a library or any other place useful.
Internet: Use of internet for resources, research and anything else that would help.
Assets: Tools, objects and resources available for use.
Graphics: images and animations made for use in the project.

Contributors

Specialists: Certain job roles may require somebody skilled in a certain area in order to produce the best content possible, so specialists may need to be hired.
Public: The people of the public are very useful for research and development. Surveys and questionnaires can be asked for more of an understanding of what people want in a game. This may increase sales and improve the quality of content.

Learning Outcome 2

For this learning outcome I needed to generate a carefully presented pre-production document for a computer game and the computer games industry.

There are many different job roles and responsibilities in the games industry. I will be naming them and explaining in further detail what they are and what happens.

Creative
Creative industries have been seen to become increasingly important to economic well-being. Many now see the creative industries as a key component in a new knowledge economy, capable perhaps of delivering urban regeneration, often through initiatives linked to exploitation of cultural heritage that leads to increased tourism. Jobs in this area might include: graphic designer, director.

Technical
Responsible for the technical specification of a game and for strategically managing the code development process. The Technical Artist acts as a bridge between the artists and programmers working on a game. They ensure art assets can be easily integrated into a game without sacrificing either the overall artistic vision or exceeding the technical limits of the chosen platform. Jobs in this area might include: sound engineer, cameraperson, image editor.

Managerial
Production management within games development is usually split between the developer and publisher. Also there are many different types of managerial roles as each job title requires some form of manager, such as: QA Manager, Sales Manager and Brand Manager.

Editorial
Most modern games are based on 3D computer graphics and Level Designers use 3D modelling or world editing tools in order to create and edit the levels. Jobs in this area might include: frame editor, sub-editor.

Financial
Media companies employ staff to ensure that invoices are produced, budgets are monitored and bills are paid.

Administration
These are the type of roles that are to be found in any organisation and are essential to its successful running, e.g. marketing, PR, human resources, administration, IT support and production assistant.

Marketing
The development schedule is the responsibility of the Producer or Project Manager within the games development team, whilst the External Producer, based with the games publisher, will be more involved in marketing and selling the game and ensuring it stays true to the original concepts. Jobs in this area might include: sales team, sponsorships. 

Legal
Some media/game development companies employ legal staff to check that the material they are producing will not break laws against copyright or plagiarism, and will meet the requirements of a media regulator.

For this learning outcome I also needed to show a carefully presented document of the pre production of a computer game. The game was a remake of Zool, a classic game for the Amiga by Gremlin Graphics made in 1992. Our task was to create a 3D version of the game using various pieces of software from Photoshop to Unity 3D and Maya.

In the computer games industry, many procedures have to be taken into account. These are:

Financial: In earlier games, development costs were minimal, and yeilded a good profit. Even games developed by a single programmer or a small team could sell thousands of units. Development companies need to get the money to make a game from somewhere. They have a number of available options, such as getting loans from their publishers who will support them. They can also be paid money to include a company within their game as a form of sponsership. An example of this is the "Nissan Electric Leaf" station in Sim City.

Personnel: The jobs in the games industry are split up into many different roles. The main categories are Programmers, Producers, Art and Animation, Music and Sound, Technology and Company officers.


I needed to show my pre-production documentation for the game, such as concept art, game mechanics, plot and storyline.




1. Running. 2. Preparing to jump. 3. Climbing.

 


Here are 3 poses I did for the Zool character, however, in the game we needed to update his appearence to fit with the 3D conversion.
The poses are him running, preparing to jump, and climbing a wall, which are the basic manoeuvres in which Zool can do.

 

As a group we discussed the plot of our individual levels. We also discussed the control system and the weapon range Zool will have.
The controls we agreed on were:

• Movement with WASD keys.
• Interact: F.
• Run: Shift.
• Crouch: Ctrl.
• Jump: Spacebar.
• Over-shoulder shooting: Right Click.
• Shooting: Left Click.
• Map: M.

This was a long discussion and took a while to get something we all agreed on. These are mainly the controls usually used when gaming on a PC.

I needed to show some form of story to the game, so my group, working on the first level, came up with a story for that part of the game.

Level 1 -
          Stage 1 – After crashing into a farmhouse, Zool needs to explore the plains and fields in search of the one who shot him down to settle the score! He must find the crevice at the other side of the valley in order to get further into this mystery and seek out the fiend who attacked him, defeating unknown enemies along the way.

          Stage 2 – Beyond the crevice, Zool is surrounded by hills and cliffs. He needs to navigate and scale them in order to reach the top. Once he is at the top, Zool arrives at a village and is informed that an angry troll, Grundy, is causing them great havoc, so Zool takes on the challenge and defeats Grundy who is guarding an entrance to a cave. Zool enters the cave and falls down a pit.

          Stage 3 – In the pit, Zool encounters some rusty, scrappy robots that attack him. After defeating them, he must find a way out of the pit by navigating obstacles. He cannot simply climb the wall as it is too slippery from the wet moss. A bonus level is located in a rift which glows eminently. After trekking back up the pit, Zool can then continue through the cave to an opening of a lakeside.

          Stage 4 – After Zool leaves the cave he is attacked by a hydra that lives in the poisonous lake. The Hydra swims off, but Zool knows this isn’t the end of that. He must find the Hydra and defeat it before it causes any more harm. Throughout the level he must defeat other enemies before making his way to the Hydra’s habitat. After the Hydra is defeated, Zool must trek through the Jungle.

The dialogue for the the start of the game goes as follows:

*Zool crash lands into a villager’s house*

Zool: Argh! My head!

NPC: Woah my house!

Zool: I’m so sorry, I was shot down! What’s going on around here?

NPC: Oh, it’s a sad story really. Our whole planet has been overrun by robots! A while back an evil villain called Krool intruded our planet and took over in a hope to rule the world!... Or so everyone is saying.

Zool: *to himself* Hmmm, looks like I can test out my new ninja skills..
Zool: Hey! I’ll help the planet and get rid of Krool!

NPC: WOW? You’d do that for us?!

Zool: Sure, why not!?

Learning Outcome 3

After planning, I needed to apply my pre-production planning to a computer game, such as the general design. As a part of this task I created a game box cover for Zool in Photoshop. One of my classmates, Louie, set up a brief for us to follow. The explicit requirements were:

• A picture of Zool on the front cover.
• Bright colours (Greens, Reds, Yellows).
• PEGI 7 Symbol.
• PC-CD Logo.
• Title saying "Zool".
• Strapline "The Ninja of the Nth Dimension" - front.
• Strapline "The Cult Classic is back in action" - back.
• A synopsis.
• Available on the App Store and Andriod Market logos.
• Bar Code.

The cover had to contain all of these in a style in which i thought looked good. Here is the cover I created:

There are extra bits on the edge allowing bleeding for when I come to cut it down to size and put it into a game box to see what the finished product looks like. I made sure that all of the explicit requirements were on the cover.

During production, before any text was applied, a peer had a look at my design and gave me a comment. He said "I really like the colour scheme, it fits with the explicit requirement. It is simple and eye-catching from across the room. I am interested to see how you fit the strapline into the front cover." I then did the text and asked him to come back and see, he liked what I had done.