Character: Combining Games Lesson 1

In this exercise we were given two games to merge together to create a new game with a new set of rules.  We had to consider what the target audience was and what style it would be in etc.
 
The two games that I was given was:
Sonic the Hedgehog

& Grand Theft Auto

Sonic the hedgehog:
-Racing game, Speed mechanics
-Collecting and bonus missions
-For children and a younger audience
-Fantasy worlds

Grand theft auto:
-Exploration and Sandbox design
-Open world, making your own character and personalizing it to your own taste.
-Realistic World
-Violence 
-Aimed for Adults and Teenagers

I had an idea of using the style of sonic the hedgehog but combining it with the world of Grand Theft Auto, therefore still aiming it the older audience but with a cartoony style of sonic the hedgehog. There would be an underground league of sonic heroes that emerge to cause destruction. The idea of the game is to get your wanted level up as high as possible but then speeding away from the police trying to escape the authorities, whilst dodging road blocks and helicopters etc. The idea of the game would to see how much of a wanted level you could get and get away with it. The two examples were single player games on a console so I decided to stick to this with my version of the game.

So this game would consist of:
-Dark characters
-Cartoony style
-Violence and mayhem
-Sandbox, but racing to escape.

Narrative: Refining the narratives

We have two main ideas, one including a Porcupine and a Hyaena and one including a Rhino and a Hyaena. We have looked into slapstick comedy and we will be incorporating this type of humour to our animation. Both of these are based in a safari with long grass and a few tress around: Similar to these references: 

Idea 1 Porcupine & Hyaena

The camera will be focused on a porcupine, following a trail of seeds that he would usually eat on a day to day basis, but then gets distracted from the trail to see the holy fruit that he would really love. What he does not know is that he is being hunted by a hyaena at the same time, (the trail of seeds could lead the hyaena's mouth perhaps?) and he is spots a golden/holy fruit and is distracted from the trail and goes for the fruit. On his way he trips or stubbles on some pollen and sneezes to release his spikes into the hyaena and stops him from being hunted and he gets the fruit in the end, showing a little of what he fancy's does him good. 

-This idea of the porcupine sneezes to repel his enemy I really like but I'm still unsure how to incorporate it into a narrative with slapstick and still keeping the comedy values. 

Idea 2 - Rhino & Hyaena

A cub Hyaena finds itself lost within the African safari but stubbles across a herd of rhinos. He decides to creep up and he sees a swinging tale that he would like to play with (like a cat playing with a ball of wool) but he never seems to quite reach it. Once he finally gets the tail by a little bit the rhino decides that he needs a rest from eating a sits down for a bit, consequently squashing the hyaena. He then see's a treat or a piece of fruit that he fancies that makes he get up and it reveals the squashes cub and a floating hair from the rhino's tail that lands on top of the hyaena. This shows that when you get too much of what you fancy you end up with something that is not good. 

Following from this we will draw up some storyboards and see if these ideas can work. 

Narrative: Influence Maps and Style

As a group we are starting to finalise what characters and animals we want to use for our animation. So far we have shrunk it down to three to four potential characters, those being - a Hyaena, a Rhino and/or a Porcupine. 

We have two main narrative ideas behind these characters. The Hyaena is going to be the trickster the joker and funny character that always gets himself in trouble, therefore we thought of using a child hyaena to represent his silly nature. 

Another character is the Porcupine who I think should be this oblivious animal that does not really know what is going on around him during the animation and is reaching for this end goal whilst being stalked by the hyaena without even realising that the hyaena was 

ever there!

And finally the other potential character that we can work on with another narrative is the Rhino, we are thinking of once again an oblivious fattened Rhino to contrast in the silly nature of the Hyaena, who ends up sitting on him for whatever reason that the hyaena was trying to play around with him. 

As for style of the animation  I very much like the deer and the hunter style of art and wish to pursue down that road with this animation in mind. I also like BirdBox productions and the style of animations they produce. But we can also incorporate what creature comforts do, they go out and ask people questions completely irrelevant to the animation but they get the answers they want, this could work for our animation too. Whilst the character design from Aaron Blaise is inspirational. 

Archetypes - Lion King

Hero - 

 Simba - The main character throughout the film

 or Mufasa - Saves Simba from the wildebeest. 

Mentor -

Rafiki - he acts like a mentor getting Simba to remember who he was in his past life and convinces him to go back to take his place in pride rock.

Herald - 

Zazu the in between character, always looking out for Simba and the others.

Shadow - 

 Scar - The lion that wanted Mufasa and Simba dead to rule pride rock.

The Threshold Guardian - 

The Hyena's in Scars army that are trying to stop Simba from returning and regaining his place back. 

The Trickster - 

The three hyena's (Ed and the two others), never taking anything seriously and fooling around.

The Shapeshifter -  

Nala because she was seen as a friend at the beginning and then half way through is seen as a hunter towards Timon and Pumba and more of a predator, but then returns to being a friend towards Simba and ultimately staying with him.

Allies -

Timon and Pumba, The Lionesses and Lions.

The Hero's Journey: Shrek

Shrek

Ordinary World

- The Swamp and his home.

The Refusal

-Throws away the notice of fairy creatures wanted, and the creatures invade his swamp.

Call to Adventure

- Fairy tale creatures invade the swamp and is given a quest.

Crossing the threshold

-leaving his home town (Swamp) and going towards the tower to rescue the princess.

Meeting the Mentor

- Donkey

Tests, Allies and Enemies

-Allies - Donkey, Enemies - Lord Farqud, Tests- Crossing the lava river and rescuing the princess, Fighting the merry men, defeating robin hood.

Approach (Major Challenge)

- Getting the princess to accept what he really is inside (an ogre).

The Ordeal (Death and Rebirth)

- Throughout the film we were under the impression that Fiona was a human but we find out that she is half ogre and was cursed from a witch so her portrayal of a human was reborn as something different (a half ogre).

Refusal to the call

­- He stops the wedding from happening between Fiona and Lord Farqud.

The Reward

-Getting Fiona.

The Road Back

-After 'freeing' Fiona from her curse, Shrek takes her back to swamp and celebrates them getting together and finding love.

The Resurrection

-When Lord Farqud was eaten by the dragon at the end of the film to finish off the enemies of Shrek.

The Elixir

- Shrek returns home to his swamp and ends up being the master of two worlds that we were lead to believe could not happen that being, Shrek is an Ogre but also had found true love that he was seeking.

Maya Modelling: Refined Blocking

Maya Lip Syncing - The lips (Part 2)