Regarding my thesis, the subject I want to research is analysis different styles of game animations. About My FMP, I want to do a series of multiple gameplay animations.
Why this topic/project?
Firstly，The theme of this thesis was inspired by several game companies interviews I participated in. When HR asked about my understanding of different styles of game actions, I couldn’t give a professional answer.
And The main reason is my enthusiasm and interest in the game industry. I have always wanted to work in this industry and become a game action designer. Therefore, I must have a deeper understanding of the pipeline of the game action so I need more practice and academic research, most importantly, I need to have more related works to show my ability to complete my portfolio. Because the portfolio is the key to entering the industry, and doing game animation-related projects is conducive to my future career planning and development direction.
What to explore?
Thesis section
We all know that the styles of game actions are diverse. For example, God of War from SONY studio and Street Fighter from Capcom，they are completely different in their creativity in game styles, especially actions. At present, the game actions can be roughly divided into two types: realistic animation and cartoon animation.
Realistic animation such as AAA games such as God of War, Sekiro：Shadows Die Twice, and Death Stranding emphasize the reality of character movement, and the timing and weapon weight is more inclined to the real world. At the same time they also rely more on motion capture. And cartoon game animations such as Mario, overwatch, LOL, pay more attention to the curve of the character’s movement to ensure the smoothness and appreciation of the action.
What is more ，In addition to different games, rendering technology also emphatically affects the style of the game. Nowadays, the popular Cel-shading technology (such as Borderlands, Genshin Impact) is also an important factor leading to different game animation styles.
We know，Traditional animations are based on the 12 principles of animation, but for game animations, there will be a little bit different. In games, animators and developers always have their own set of animation principles in their minds.
Jonathan cooper mentioned the five fundamentals of video game animation in his book——game anim: video game animation explained.
These five basic elements （feel，fluidity，context，elegance，readability）have varying degrees of impact on game animation, creating different types of game animation styles on the market today.
Anyway, there are more details waiting for me to explore.
Therefore, I will use Jonathan’s book as an important research material and apply it to my papers and projects.
Video game animation is still relatively new, and evolving all the time. I believe this is a amazing topic worth studying!
FMP section
I will focus on making a series of gameplay animations, including but not limited to different characters (such as warriors, assassins, magicians, monsters, etc.) stylised walking, running, jumping, body mechanics, combo attack, performance and death animation.
My temporary idea is to let different characters play independently, but it is also possible to add a short fighting scene.
In addition to game animation, I will also learn about modeling, rigging and skinning. These are the basic skills necessary to enter the game industry.
Resources
The thesis part, as I mentioned, will refer to Jonathan Cooper’s game anim: video game animation explained book and some video resources or lectures on the Internet. Many game industry experts and senior game players will also share their experience. These are also worth learning from.
In the animation part, I will use three aspects as my reference—— real people actions video reference, specific tutorials, excellent animation from good games and senior animators showreel. Among them, I feel that the tutorial is the most efficient way to learn. It shows in details step by step, allowing me to learn more practical knowledge.