We asked Dávid, one of our illustrators and concept artists about the process of dreaming up the visuals of a location. We were impressed by how thoroughly he researches things before he gets started, so we thought this might be a quite fascinating topic to share. As an example, we have taken an important location from the game, which for the time being we'll just call the "garden area".
1. The first steps:
So, When I receive a task like this, I get a brief description of it, and understanding what I need to do is one of the most important first steps, so I read it several times to make sure I get it. Because if I don't and then I make something random that's gonna be awkward. :) Therefore, once I read it through, usually I already have a form of concept in my mind, so with that in my mind I can go on the internet, and do the next important step, which is research!
Let's do something like this, but in space, and make it completely different!
2. Researching:
I really like this part because I enjoy researching interesting topics, such as that lengthy NASA article about a study that stated what plants grow best in enclosed spaces like on a spaceship, or what plant produces more oxygen... I didn't have to do this, and no one asked for it, but I still did it. After doing probably too much research into mostly useless topics, I simply go on Google or Pinterest and search for images that might actually be useful in the process of inspiration.
Plants in space!
Some delicious architectural references
3. Sketching:
After the research, I start to create a "vision board" in Photoshop from the pics I found, in this case, old '60s and 70's mostly malls and botanical gardens. Once the mood board is finished, I just start making small sketches. After I'm done with the sketches I send them with the "vision board" for feedback... and that's it.
4. Final piece:
I make a new sketch with the corrections I got from the feedback, and then, I begin working on the final piece. In this concept, I created a central, spacious area because that's how botanical gardens typically look, but I really liked the malls of the 1960s and 1970s, which I thought looked really cozy and looked like a great place to hang out, so I combined them! The final piece begins with a sketch, followed by colors, shadows, and lights. The last step is simply adding textures and filters to it, and that's it. Then I created a second version of the final piece on top of it that captures a more overgrown scene.
One of the main halls of the "garden area" shown in two different timelines
5. Afterlife...
Once Dávid has submitted the designs and the team and creative lead have agreed that this is the direction we are looking for, our 3D artists and level designers take the helm to finalize the vision. (through a long iteration cycle of course)
Below is an initial (and very early) look at how we tested the vision and mood laid out by the concept art in a small area - to then roll it out nicely across an entire level.
Meet Dávid:
Dávid is a very talented young artist who was approached to join our team mainly - but not exclusively - for his amazing Bioshock-inspired pieces. The way he creates atmosphere and the thoroughness of his work has impressed us from the start, so we are very proud to have him as part of our team.
Check out his work on Artstation:
https://griefgreen.artstation.com/
We'll be back with another dev blog post soon, until then remember to take care and play a lot!
If you haven't already done so, please, Wishlist RetroSpace! ;)
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2067820/RetroSpace/
The Wild Gentlemen