Game scenery encompasses the artistic, architectural, and environmental design of virtual worlds, transforming digital spaces into living ecosystems. There a many possible workflows, and I often combine multiple tools from among the best digital art software and the best tools for game art (also see our guide to the best drawing tablets if you need a canvas to work on).
The example below is a piece of concept art for the Tails Tales game project, a cooperative adventure and puzzle game in which a lost dog and a stray cat explore an eco futuristic city in search of the dog’s family. With this concept, I was able to establish the game’s artistic direction and explore what the city might look like.
The key here was to incorporate futuristic and eco friendly elements with a modern feel while keeping the overall shapes simple. For this image, I wanted to give each object significance so that players are inspired to explore the world and understand how the environment works.
01. Building a base
I created a 3D base using just cubes so I could set up the composition in Maya. Next, I sketched a rough draft on top of it to get an idea of the elements I needed to add.
Based on that sketch, I designed and modelled my elements and placed them in the cubes’ spots.
02. Light and render
Next, I set up the lighting and rendered the scene using V-Ray. I then created several renders to separate the different shots, allowing me to add atmospheric perspective, improve the visibility of the elements and add depth to the space.
To finish my sketch, I added details in Photoshop and adjusted the colours.
03. Finalise the composition
My client wanted to focus on a specific part of the city. Since I had created a 3D model, I could experiment with compositions.
I changed the central building into a train station, painted over in Photoshop and added the main characters after creating their designs.
This article originally appeared in ImagineFX. Subscribe to ImagineFX to never miss an issue. Print and digital subscriptions are available.
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