Major Project 1
April 22, 2026 - July 24, 2025 / (Week 1 - Week 14)
Liu Chengrui / 0370930
Major Project 1
Bachelor of Creative Media Design (Honours)
Instruction
Project progress
Through several weeks of discussion, we carefully refined the game's core concepts, including gameplay mechanics, artistic direction, and world-building, ultimately deciding to develop Formal Death, a Unity-based game accompanied by an official art book. The game's world is inspired by Dante's interpretation of Purgatory, featuring a 3D top-down combat system. Its visual style adopts a semi-realistic approach, balancing realistic details with stylized artistic expression.
At the very beginning of the project, we focused our efforts on the
brainstorming of the game project, which involved extensive research on
game mechanics, settings, art, and other aspects.
After completing the initial data collection, we began to create our
main characters and the related environments.
This picture depicts our designed game protagonist - an elderly man
with weathered features and neatly parted short hair. He is wearing
a double-breasted coat and holds a huge sword horizontally with both
hands - despite his advanced age, he exudes a powerful aura and is
full of vitality.
Of course, we also drew some sketches of the monsters and iteratively refined them to create the final boss.
After this, we explored various different concepts and directions,
and then selected a few of them to develop into more refined and
detailed illustrations.
In addition to the characters, we also conducted an exploration of
the environment.
This picture shows the game map we designed, presenting four distinct areas within the game - starting from the withered forest, moving forward to the circular ruins where the first boss battle takes place, then passing through the village, and finally reaching the depths of the castle.
And there are also brief environmental sketches
After completing the basic character and environment drawing, we focused on the modeling of various props, characters and the environment.
Below is the production process of one of our bosses. First, we draw
the initial sketches to facilitate our conceptualization of the model.
Then, we proceed with the complete modeling process.
Next, we will put the completed buildings and environment into Unity
for further processing. The following picture shows the process of
environment modeling and its final output - a small test island, which
we have named "Test Island".
Below is the presentation for our mid-term report.
The picture below shows a relic in the forest, located in the initial
map area - the Withered Forest.
The following picture shows the testing island. After subsequent
modifications and addition of props, this island has now been
included in the official game map.
The picture below shows the edge of the village.
We also added lighting effects to a certain part of the
buildings on the island. This is also the start screen of our
game, and the picture also includes the game's logo.
After completing the main content, we used the remaining time to
add some new characters and environments as an expansion.
Final Presentation Slide
Final Artbook Submission
Project Management Document
Final Compilation Google Drive Link:
Project Management Document Link:
Feedback
week 1
If you decide to create 2D games, you need to standardize the style of each of you. The final product must be a combination of 2D and 3D elements, and it is also necessary to ensure the workload and quality of your work.
During the idea conception stage, don't think about how to make it simpler, because there are four of you, so don't make it of very low quality.
week 2
Choose one of the two games we are showing. For example, let's take the "selfloss" game as the first one. Now, it seems a bit ordinary and simple. I'll show you a game like this one. It's like in this game, the player controls an old lady or some other negative character. Maybe this will make it more interesting for everyone.
The next point is about your division of labor. Each of you has your own style and area of expertise. Some can be responsible for the characters, some for the environment, and some for the enemy characters.
The current content of your game is a bit simplistic. And it's crucial for you to decide what kind of game you want to design. Is it a combat type or a level-clearing type? If it's the combat type, should it be a battle between the player and the boss?
week 3
Don’t be a hero and do anything. Can find a template for art assets reference and starts to draw.Enjoy the progress, don't stress yourself.Focus on art first.
week 4
Look for more references.Make differences between NPC and Special Characters( main character and Boss).The design should be able to reflect the character's background.
week 5
Monster Design: more references to flower monsters. The combination of a fat and skinny monster is good. Environment design needs concept art first.
week 6
The coloring and silhouette design of the characters are too conservative, especially the nun, which lacks distinctiveness and recognizability.
Lucifer's monster form is not scary or oppressive enough, and lacks design.
Beatrice's pigeon shape is too ordinary.
week 7
If you are going to draw an environmental design, then you need to depict its composition as well. You should make the audience understand exactly what the environment is like or what part you have chosen.Can not use religion related elements like cross.The image of the saint is still too flat.Need more characters.
Can look for references from existing games or anime.
week 10
You need to identify similar artistic directions. This means thinking about how you can integrate different designs with your own style.
If all three of you are to find that middle ground, how can you integrate all these ideas into this global environment?
All three of you have very distinct artistic styles, which has been a challenge from the very beginning. So, try to find a way for everyone to work together.
week 11
On presenting your confirmed project proposal,Make use of this time to finalize your Major Project I accordingly.
week 12
In preparation for the final submission compilation.
week 13
If you are going to create a character, do you intend for him to be a villain? If so, his appearance needs to make people feel scared or something else. If it's a positive character, perhaps he could be depicted as pitiful.
week 14
Thank you for your presentation. Please send me an email with the final report of the subsequent major project you have completed. The two of you will work together, while the other person will start a new project.
Reflection
Experience
In the "Formal Death" project, I was involved in various aspects such as character design, environment design, 3D modeling, texture creation, rendering, and Unity scene integration. I had a comprehensive experience of the development process of a game from concept design to final realization. Among them, character creation was the part where I invested the most effort. From the initial concept design to high-poly sculpting, low-poly optimization, UV unwrapping, PBR material creation, and finally importing into Unity for final display, every step required repeated adjustments and optimizations. At the same time, the production of environment assets and scene setup also helped me further understand the importance of the overall visual style consistency. This project not only enhanced my software operation skills but also made me more familiar with the standard process of game art production.
Observation
Throughout the entire development process, I discovered that excellent game characters do not merely rely on detailed models; rather, they need to be designed in conjunction with the character's background, world view, and gameplay positioning. The character's appearance, clothing, proportions, and details all directly influence the player's first impression of the character. Therefore, every modification must take into account both the artistic presentation and the game requirements. Similarly, environment creation is not just about building the scene; it also requires the use of architecture, lighting, materials, and atmosphere to jointly shape the game world.
Finding
The greatest gain from this project for me was realizing that game development not only tests individual skills but also requires the ability to solve problems and collaborate as a team. During the character creation process, I repeatedly modified the models due to issues such as topology structure, material presentation, or style uniformity. Although the process was very time-consuming, each iteration helped me better understand the requirements for professional game asset production. Additionally, in team collaboration, we needed to constantly communicate the design direction, coordinate the production schedule, and complete the content assigned to each member within the limited time. This placed higher demands on time management and team coordination. Although the entire development process was full of challenges, it was precisely during the continuous modification, testing, and improvement that I enhanced my comprehensive abilities in character creation, environment creation, and Unity integration, and established greater confidence for future game character and environment art development.
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