CREATURE Hunter: ART DIRECTION
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IDENTITY: anime cell shaded, themes in a whimsical world // EMOTION: ADVENTUROUS
When I joined Sierra Online, this project was being co-developed between a Seattle team and a sister studio in Shanghai China. It was meant to bridge a gap that would appeal to both cultures. Both in it's development and it's release. In a little over a year we had built 60 characters, 3 sprawling social spaces and a full fledged Avatar system.
GOAL:The project had been pitched as westernized anime with toon shading.
SOLUTION:Looking at references that had bridged the culture gap before (Avatar, Pokemon) we set our direction. The Cell shading was inspired by the films of Hayao Miyazaki, in which the backgrounds are painted. Using Z-depth we were able to create a cell shade foreground that receded into the background to become a matte painting.
OUTCOME: The game struck a lighthearted tone that had some beautiful stylistic techniques.
