Early MarioNotes on various poses for Mario. Since this was one of our first characters, it was important to get the tone through the pose as soon as possible - as we would use these images to pitch to the publisher.
Early General Di Ravello I pulled a page from a style guide to illustrate the physique we are targeting.
Early General di RavelloAny artist who's worked with me knows my disdain for all things symmetrical! Here we are narrowing down the look/feel of the General using more detailed images. Once a tonal study is chosen, typically we move on to color.
Early RicoI try to imagine Rico from the POV of the player. Here, I worked with our extraordinary animation lead to marry his poses with the art direction.
Bavarium Strip MinesHappy days are the rare moment when I need to quickly create a style guide in a couple of hours. I thank all those days of growing up with David Macaulay and Jean Giraud ("Moebius").
Bavarium Strip MinesRecruiters ask if I roll up my sleeves and work with the tools - I say it's a professional necessity; expediency is cannibalising kits, reconfigure, re-assemble and draw over what we need to fill the gaps as quickly as possible.
Anti Aircraft GunI love specificity and I'm sure all my online searches for weapon blueprints, military bases and armaments have spawned an FBI/CIA file as fat as the three volumes of "Lord of the Rings".
High Level Style GuideOne thing I've learned over the years: artists are constantly bombarded with information, so even if they have a chance to read, it can often be forgotten. Keeping style guides to one sheet is a life long challenge at times!
Concept ArtEarly in production, specificity is very important to nail a particular look. I try to provide outsource artists as many specific clear examples and paint overs as I can so we can close in on the vision and we can go home at 6:00 PM!
Production SketchesAnother example of production art I had to complete within an hour for design.
MarketingI love working with marketing and Square Enix' marketing was a lot f fun to collaborate with. Here, we were discussing the early logo designs. This is when I usually throw the logo on a "mock up" game cover to see how it sits.
Propaganda VanIf at all possible, I like to find a real world example of an asset before I dive into hacking an existing vehicle to be another chaos object.
D.R.M. TechnicalAnother example of achieving more mileage out of existing assets. I try to keep mesh changes as simple and achievable as possible without sacrificing the overall intent.
Industrial KitVery first stab at breaking down reference photos into design friendly industrial pieces. Design is happiest when we account for cover and AI pathing!
ScooterEveryday is a new challenge. My Assistant AD in Sweden typically took care of vehicle reviews, but he was out sick and I had to jump in for him.
Truck CabIt is very easy to lose sight of branding, especially if it's a fictional brand. Nonetheless, visual consistency is the most important tenet of Art Direction, in my opinion.
CorvetteA one sheet style guide that melds favorite ships chosen by a designer and an engineer. Often, my job is to take draw from as many inspirations and ideas from the team and find a way to make them work with the established vision.
Terrain - Materials and ProppingThe agricultural areas of Medici were my favorite and I love designing the field/farm variants in the countryside. They are designed to maximize the feel of speed when driving and navigation during flying.
Military CheckpointProduction concept breaking down elements of a liberated checkpoint. Never under estimate the need to be obvious. The color RED and the color BLUE were crucial to establish who controlled what in a busy open world environment.
MAG WEAPONSEvery so often the team is given a day or two to come up with new mechanics for the game. This was a RPG round that created an inverse magnetic implosion.
Polishing the World!Many a day I'll take screenshots and paint over, re-balance and add details that will push the visual quality!
DRONE GUNThe studio floor is littered with ideas. I would love to have used a drone gun to wreak havoc on DiRavello's troops!
Pipeline ProposalIn an effort to speed up outsourcing and art creation, I proposed streamlining our asset creation to focus on generic modular pieces that can be assembled in different configurations instead of "one offs".
Medician FortificationsWorking with a designer, we were able to assemble a range of assets that were both artist and designer friendly.
UI/UXReview of icons for readability and flow. In some cases, icons have to consistently reflect a family of upgrades, so they must be visually consistent, obvious and scaleable.
UI/UX
Outsourcing NotesWhen time is short and one is not sure if the developer is sensitive to historical architectural details, it pays to be very specific with particular assets.
MonastaryOften I'll assemble existing pieces to create new compound kits that are fully propped and QA'd so all the designer has to do is find their favorite location and place the compound asset - everyone is happy!
Light Military Checkpoint
CinematicsI love lighting and staging notes for cinematics, but it - in of itself - is a full time job!
Police Station Ruins
Mobile AssetsOne of the roles of being an Art Director is also making sure the client's vision is being addressed consistently and accurately. Here I am working with the Mumbai team in realizing assets for DeNA's "Star Wars: Galactic Defense."
Mobile Character Assets
Mobile Character Assets
Mobile Character Assets
Mobile Character Assets
Mobile Character Assets