The Second Dimension

This week, aside from the standard prop and architecture asset creation, my main task was to bolster our collection of 2D assets. More specifically, we needed more variety of materials for the floors, walls and doors, and we needed decal assets for the mask design upgrades.

I started with the mask decals. A problem we faced was two fold: We needed assets that the player could discover in the world that would unlock the certain upgrades they could then purchase. Each upgrade is represented by a design pattern on the player's mask, and therefore had to be visually distinct and line up with one another properly when overlaid. They also needed to be a decal we could place in the world so the player actually had something they were finding.

I ended up taking the mask design, and dividing it up into 27 different individual image alphas, each going to its own decal that could be used for both the menu, the mask and the in-game collectable.

The other task for the week was the materials. I spent a good deal of time making new floor, wall and door materials...

Thanks to the extremely modular nature of our level kit, it was an easy process going back to previously created areas and replacing materials here and there to create much more variety in the locations. One of the most common comments from QA was a propensity for being turned around or lost due to many of the areas seeming overly similar. Hopefully, that will be significantly less common with the revamped areas.

Lastly, several other assets of note were created this week: 

The remaining assets for the in-game pickups. These include health, energy, and upgrade points.

Also created was a grand mural design for the lobby that I think will add a lot to the overall feel of the game, shown here in an example/blockout lobby.