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Year 2 IMG
Weekly Reflections
Week 1
What have I done?
This week, I started the FPS project and I started by looking into AI pathfinding in Unreal Engine and also a research report into three different games that fall within the genres of the project so horror or fps and analysed the theming and mechanics that were used and how that could then be applied to my group projects game.
What have I learnt?
This week of the project, I have learnt about several new techniques both when it comes to 3D modelling and also programming in Unreal Engine 5, I have looked at programming random pathfinding AI, that will chase the player in a professional manner. In Maya I have looked at adding rigging, skinning and basic animations something that I have not previously looked at, I created several animations such as a bouncing ball, this will help when it comes to adding animations to my horror FPS game.
What could have been improved or gone better?
I feel that this week has been successful in terms of my performance and workflow compared to previous projects and I feel that my performance may not need to be changed.
Any problems? If so, how will/have I resolve(d) them?
The only main problem that I encountered this week were related to network licensing, whilst we were trying to complete the Maya session we found that the licence for the software was not being verified by the server so the software was unusable, in this time I moved onto other tasks such as idea generation and picked up the Maya work when the licence worked again.
My targets for next week and the remainder of the project are:
Upload my videos to YouTube for progression evidence and evidence on Wix
Continue to work to the timeframes given and also work at a continued high standard
Move onto other techniques surrounding FPS games in Unreal Engine.
Week 2
What have I done?
This week, I continued with the FPS Horror project, specifically I looked into character development, analysing 3 characters from games and creating our character sheets in our group for our characters. In addition, I started a contextual research report looking into Unreal Engine, Maya techniques, target audiences and also design principles. Furthermore, I looked into programming HUD's and Semi Auto and Full Auto Guns in Unreal Engine ready for our own levels.
What have I learnt?
This week of the project, I have learnt about several new techniques both when it comes to programming in Unreal Engine 5 and also character development, I have looked at programming different types of guns in Unreal from Semi Auto to Full Auto this ran smoothly and without fault thanks to the video sources provided. Furthermore, I programmed in a HUD crosshair for my gun, this was also fairly simple only requiring widgets and a HUD blueprint. I also looked at character development and the analysis task helped me to understand the basics surrounding character design this allowed me and the group to design our own characters for our game, this will help when it comes to designing as we already have the basics set out.
What could have been improved or gone better?
I feel that this week has been successful in terms of my performance and workflow compared to previous projects and I feel that my performance may not need to be changed.
Any problems? If so, how will/have I resolve(d) them?
The only main problem that I encountered this week was related to me deleting a file instead or renaming it, whilst I was trying to upload videos to YouTube I accidently deleted a video resulting in me having to re-record the video from scratch. In the future I will backup my videos to ensure that I have a backup in case of accidental deletion.
My targets for next week and the remainder of the project are:
Move onto planning out my group project and look at finalising the idea ready for development
Continue to work to the timeframes given and also work at a continued high standard
Move onto other techniques surrounding FPS games in Unreal Engine
Carry out experimentation following the Contextual Research Report
Week 3
What have I done?
This week, I continued with the FPS Horror project, specifically I looked into starting planning our group idea, this planning made up a major part of this week and our main focus was on completing the first versions of our planning documents.
What have I learnt?
This week of the project, I have not learnt about any new techniques, however, I have learnt about new planning documents that I have not previously worked with before, one of these being the character concepts. I learnt about the use of a character concept and how to effectively write one, the document allowed me to detail every key detail about the characters within the game to better ensure that the design of the character was reflected as the player played through the game.
What could have been improved or gone better?
In terms of improvements for the first week of planning I would say that I need to improve on making multiple edits and versions of my documents to prepare me for the requirements for a Distinction in the FMP, I will do this by creating multiple versions of the document and then evidencing the versions and changes on my Wix site, explaining the need for edits and multiple versions.
Any problems? If so, how will/have I resolve(d) them?
This week I did not encounter any issues as most of my time was spent creating planning documents and as I have previously looked at planning I found that I did not encounter any major problems regarding planning documentation.
My targets for next week and the remainder of the project are:
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Continue to work to the timeframes given and also work at a continued high standard
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Look at and experiment with widgets and main menus in Unreal Engine 5 in preparation for development
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Carry out experimentation following the Contextual Research Report
Week 4
What have I done?
This week, I continued with the planning documentation for my group horror FPS game, I also looked at some new techniques in Unreal Engine thanks to my research and guided tutorial session.
What have I learnt?
This week of the project, I have continued to work on my planning and group planning so I have not learnt any new information surrounding planning, however, I have been able to learn about and experiment with new techniques in Unreal Engine and Maya, this was supported by my research. I have learnt how to develop widgets and main menus in Unreal Engine, develop and design fog and developing a health system ready for implementation in my group game. In Maya I have also been able to experiment with Booleans, these allowed me to model more complex shapes and designs for my 3D models.
What could have been improved or gone better?
In terms of improvements for this week, I would say that my work standard has stayed the same and no improvements have jumped out to me. However, following last weeks improvements I have now updated my planning documents and evidenced the different edits and versions on my website.
Any problems? If so, how will/have I resolve(d) them?
This week I did not encounter any issues as most of my time was spent creating planning documents and as I have previously looked at planning I found that I did not encounter any major problems regarding planning documentation. I also did not encounter any issues in my experimentation as I had my research to help if I ran into any problems, so because of this I was able to carry out this week without any fault.
My targets for next week and the remainder of the project are:
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Continue to work to the timeframes given and also work at a continued high standard
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Continue to create and update my planning
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Move into the development phase of the project
Week 5
What have I done?
This week, I continued with the planning documentation for my group horror FPS game, after having this signed off I then moved into development on the end of Tuesday
What have I learnt?
This week of the project, I have continued to work on my planning and group planning so I have not learnt any new information surrounding planning, however, I have been able to learn about and experiment with new techniques in Blender and UV wrapping thanks to my new tutor who has more experience in Blender. After doing this I started to white box my level on my blueprint in Unreal Engine 5 and so I did not learn any new techniques as I have previously designed environments and levels in Unreal Engine.
What could have been improved or gone better?
In terms of improvements for this week, I would say that my work standard has stayed the same and no improvements have jumped out to me. However, I need to speed up production as I only have the two weeks left of the project.
Any problems? If so, how will/have I resolve(d) them?
This week I encountered an array of issues regarding the college server and also shader compiling in Unreal Engine. The college server has started to run slowly resulting in problems signing into Google and accessing my files needed for accessing planning documents. In addition, I have continued to encounter the problem surrounding Unreal Engine shader compiling, every time I login and open my project it takes around 30 minutes to compile the shaders and open the project so I am wasting time waiting for these shaders to load, this is a college wide issue because Unreal Engine runs from the server and not the PC so the shaders are not saved when signing in or out.
My targets for next week and the remainder of the project are:
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Continue to work to the timeframes given and also work at a continued high standard
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Finish White boxing my level and move onto adding 3D models and mechanics
Week 6
What have I done?
This week, I continued with the development of my level in Unreal Engine 5.
What have I learnt?
This week of the project, I have continued to work on my development for my game in Unreal Engine 5 so I did not learn any new techniques as I have previously experimented with the mechanics required for this week.
What could have been improved or gone better?
In terms of improvements for this week, I would say that my work standard has stayed the same and no improvements have jumped out to me. However, following last weeks improvements I have now instructed that we now have an extra week on the project, so I will have longer to develop my game.
Any problems? If so, how will/have I resolve(d) them?
This week I re-encountered an array of issues regarding the college server and also shader compiling in Unreal Engine. The college server has started to run slowly resulting in problems signing into Google and accessing my files needed for accessing planning documents. In addition, I have continued to encounter the problem surrounding Unreal Engine shader compiling, every time I login and open my project it takes around 30 minutes to compile the shaders and open the project so I am wasting time waiting for these shaders to load, this is a college wide issue because Unreal Engine runs from the server and not the PC so the shaders are not saved when signing in or out.
My targets for next week and the remainder of the project are:
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Continue to work to the timeframes given and also work at a continued high standard
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Finish adding the final mechanics to the game such as keys and doors
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Carry out a playtests and amend the game appropriately
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Add finishing touches and implement extra VFX such as rain and blowing leaves to add to the ambience
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Write my final evaluation
Final Evaluation - How I met the Brief
For this project I was asked to design and develop an FPS game of a theme of horror, more specifically one level in a series of three, the other two developed by my group members. For this project I worked in a group of three, one of the requirements of the brief was that the story flowed from level to level.
The brief that we were given at the start of the project outlined all of the requirements for the project and these included: The game story must flow from level to level, the game must include an inventory system, obstacles need to be in the game, weapons and AI movement also needed to be included. I believe that I stuck to all of the points and exceeded the minimum requirements because, in my project we chose as a group to create a horror themed FPS and I focused on the second level which would take place on the ground floor of a house.
Looking at the specific points of the brief, I believe that I have met the requirement of including AI movement in my game because I have been able to include two moving AI enemies that walk around the level attacking the player as they play to find the keys, unlock the doors and defeat these AI enemies.
Another implementation I adopted from the brief was inventory, in my level I added an inventory system that can be used to switch between the two torch designs, in addition the player is able to pick-up keys and add them to the inventory, so I believe that I have successfully met this requirement.
Another implementation I adopted from the brief was weapons and obstacles, in my level the player is able to collect the torch weapon and shoot the enemies with light bullets, I believe that this has met the brief exactly and so I am confident that this was met. In terms of obstacles, I have included an array of 3D models in my level to act as obstacles, I have tables, chairs, cabinets and other items scattered around the map designed to change the players path of movement and obstruct their flow. Also, you can view the locked doors as obstacles because the player has to find the keys first before unlocking these areas and thus removing the obstacles blocking the end goal. Overall, I feel that I met both these requirements.
The last area set out in the brief was that the story must be clear and flow from level to level, I believe that I have been able to achieve this because I have been able to include two dynamic documents to my game that show the player the story as they read through the documents. I feel that this is a clear way to showcase the story and so did the play testers so I believe that I have met this requirement. In addition, my level follows the other two levels story because we have been able to collaborate to develop the story line in our planning and thus we were able to showcase our part of the story in our levels.
Final Evaluation -Personal Performance
Looking back over the seven weeks of the First Person Shooter project I feel that my performance continued to grow as the project progressed, I was able to continue my work performance from the last project and continued to work to a high standard, I feel that my performance in this project greatly outweighed that of the last project. I feel this because I was able to complete a more complex project to a higher studio standard within the longer timeframe, my research reports were more concise and to the point, I also carried out experimentation from my research and finally I was able to carry out studio standard planning that helped greatly when it came to production.
This project was set to us with a six week deadline (changed to seven weeks as an extension was needed due to the time spent on planning) and we were tasked with developing a FPS game that had a theme of horror and included weapons, obstacles, AI movement, an inventory system and also a story that flowed through the three levels being developed, one level for each team member.
Context
Looking back at the Context stage of this project which was very brief, I filled out a Project Proposal, this was an important document for this project and also previous projects because it allowed me to outline my skills that I previous have that would help me complete the project and how I acquired them, this was very helpful as I was able to evaluate my skills and built a concept based upon the skills that I had in order to create an ambitious project that would not be out of reach.
I then created my individual concept and pitched it to the group and then developed a group idea and then displayed this on the project proposal, we were able to construct an ambitious concept that was open to change and improvement over the course of development. I was very pleased with the concept that we constructed as it met all of the brief requirements whilst also allowing me to research and experiment with new mechanics and techniques that would help me to expand my knowledge and showcase my ability to research mechanics and features that could then be applied to Maya or Unreal Engine.
I then wrote about how I would evaluate my work and then use the evaluations to improve my work ethic and performance. This was extremely important because without evaluations and reflections I would not be able to reflect upon my work flow and then improve upon this in future projects.
Overall, I have been completing Project Proposals since the first project in the first year and by now I have become used to how to fill this document out and thus I was able to complete this document with no faults and use it appropriately to plan my concept. I feel that I was consistent in this document and my performance allowed me to complete this document with no issue, I do not feel that this document would need improvement and my performance does not need to be improved.
Research
Moving onto the Research stage of the project, I carried out a research into target audiences and PEGI Ratings and also a Contextual Research Report. The target audience and PEGI Rating report allowed me to research into the PEGI rating system and analyse why each rating is giving the chosen criteria and how this then effects the content in the game and therefore the final target audience.
I believe that I was consistent throughout my target audience and PEGI report and I was able to maintain a high working standard and performance, this helped me to evaluate the different PEGI ratings and allowed me to construct the target audience and PEGI rating for our group game to ensure that we met the required target audience. My performance does not need to change either because I was able to complete the task with little issue and the evaluations made in this report set me up nicely for the research report and also the planning of my outcome.
Looking at the contextual research report in this research session, throughout the research report, I independently identified, thorough and sustained research and carried out extensive investigation into a range of relevant sources that I used to create insightful interpretations on the varying methods and mechanics that I would include in my outcome to elevate the general game / level design, atmosphere and also my ability in Maya. I was able to compare and contrast my sources in order to draw independent conclusions based upon the mechanics that I researched, I then evaluated the sources thoroughly and stated what, how and why I was going to apply the research to my project, for example I compared the two sources talking about how to implement fog into my Unreal Project in order to elevate the horror atmosphere, I came to the conclusion that while both offered varying outcomes I would choose the method that required me to start from scratch and design my own fog as this allowed more control over colour and thickness of the fog.
Upon reflection of the research report, I found that no areas really stood out to me for improvement because my research was concise, consistent and also detailed enough to compare, contrast and draw conclusions from, so I do not feel that my report would need improving. My performance would also not need to be changed because I feel that this is my strongest report of this year so I have improved from the last project and thus my performance has been excellent during this research stage.
In addition, I was able to carry out experimentation from my research, something that I wanted to improve from last project, and I believe that this experimentation allowed me to significantly improve my outcome further.
Planning
Looking at the planning stage of this project, I feel that I was able to create detailed and effective planning documents thanks to the aid from my previous knowledge and also in-class lectures. These sessions helped me and the group to create these planning documents because I was able to build an idea of what concept I wanted to plan for and what Unreal Mechanics that I wanted to include in my game. Just like my previous projects I produced a time management document this was a Trello Board, I utilised this tool more than any previous project because I used two one individual and one for the whole group, as I was able to track my independent status and also the groups. This document was very important because I was able to keep track of my time and I believe that this helped me to successfully complete the project on time.
This project required a larger amount of planning documents and I created a Pitch Document, Asset List, Audio list, level blueprints, character concepts, story structure, GDD and Story Bible. The first document that I created was a Pitch Document, this document explained the group concept and detailed what the project would entail in terms of mechanics and theming and showed inspiration for the project. The pitch document was very important at helping us to plan our project and nail down the mechanics, theming and idea of the outcome to allow us to present the idea concept to a group, (we were unable to present the document to a group due to time constraints).
The pitch document was carried out to the highest standard and I believe that my performance was on par to that of the rest of the project and I believe that the document and my performance does not need to change, because my document was detailed and showcased the concept concisely.
Moving onto the asset list and audio list, I feel that these documents, were highly detailed, I included small details of the assets right down to materials and colours, because I wanted to produce an industry standard document and also to set me up for the best possible outcome, I feel that my performance throughout the planning stage was consistent and I was able to successfully use my planning documents and previous planning knowledge to produce my outcome to a high standard.
My blueprints were also detailed and highlighted my design choices, I wanted to highlight my level design choices so that anyone looking a the document would be able to produce the same quality level just from looking at the document. I feel that my performance carried into the creation of this document exceeded previous planning as I was able to create several iterations of this document and then build straight off of it in Unreal.
The largest documents for this project would be the GDD and Story Bible, these two documents were created collaboratively between the group and featured many iterations and edits to reflect our evolving idea, I feel that my application to these documents were of an extremely high standard and thus we were able to stick to the set out idea because every single detail was written down in this document resulting in a smoother production than continuously asking each other what needed to be completed.
Experimentation
Moving onto experimentation, unlike previous projects this year the experimentation was based off of research carried out, I feel that the level of quality and detailed applied to these experimentation tasks were key for the progression in the First Person Shooter project and they played a large role in the building of my knowledge surrounding new mechanics and features, such as Booleans in Maya and also Fog in Unreal Engine.
Throughout the experimentation stages I overcame issues and problems by applying resilience, perseverance and problem solving skills, many of this can be seen in my problem solving tab where I detail the problem that I encountered and evidenced how I was to go about resolving the issue, I attached video and photo evidence of the resolution so that I could reflect back upon the issues to improve my performance in future projects. The experimentation tasks saw me experiment with advanced features such as how to utilise Booleans in Maya to model complex objects, these Maya experimentation tasks most of the time ran without any large problems effecting my progress, this was due to my previous knowledge and research.
Other experimentation sessions saw me experimenting with mechanics in Unreal Engine 5, these Unreal sessions always run without issue because I took notes from my sources so I was able to learn the technique and then implement it there and then. I continue to record all of my development throughout experimentation and the development stages for later reflection in order to help me if I am to run into issues in later projects or I need to code in a mechanic from one of these sessions. These videos have helped me out in this project as I had to reflect back upon my previous project of setting up a character to be able to successfully set up the player character in this project.
In terms of improvements, I feel that if I was to carry out experimentation again I would look into more Unreal mechanics to further stretch my knowledge, however, as of this project I am happy with the quality of my experimentation and no improvements would be required to my performance and work ethic either, because I successfully completed the experimentation and it helped me to carry out techniques in Maya and Unreal correctly.
Outcomes
Moving onto my final outcome, I ensured that the development of my final outcome ran as smoothly as possible by making use of all of my knowledge and understanding, as well as planning and experimentation, and overall I was able to plan, design and develop a high quality final outcome that met the requirements of the brief set out at the start of the project. Overall, I am pleased with my performance throughout the development of this outcome because I was able to consistently work to a high standard and also I was able to stretch my knowledge by including extra criteria in my experience such as particles and also on-screen text.
I am extremely pleased with this project outcome because I was able to plan and develop a functioning Horror FPS game something that I have not done before, thanks to my planning, experimentation and also previous knowledge I have been able to successfully carry out this project to a very high standard on par with that of my FMP last year something that I had not done in my projects in the first year, I am now more concise and detailed with all aspects of my work and I am pleased that I have progressed this far.
However, if I was to highlight any improvements I would say that if I was to complete the development of my outcome again I would add additional weapons, I would add these to add variety to the game also make the gameplay more exciting to play.
In conclusion, going into my next projects I will aim to create more detailed and concise planning documents such as Audio List and story structure and also ensure that I am carrying out relevant experimentation based upon my research to iron out any problems before moving into development. Other than these two changes I will continue to work at my high standard and work ethic because I feel that my pace and detail has been consistent not only in this project but also previous projects, so no changes will be needed to my performance.