For my Honours project during my final year at Abertay University, I wanted to focus on developing my 2D artwork to hopefully reach a higher standard of work overall. I did this in tandem with a side-project I was working on with friends – a small game project titled FLYERS. Development of this game was unfortunately cancelled following conflicting schedules and tight deadlines due to university work.
April 2018 – May 2019
Software used: Photoshop, Blender, Maya.
FLYERS is an action game focusing on flight combat, high octane speed and having fun. Set in a distant post-apocalyptic future where the Earth’s crust has been reduced to floating islands, the player takes control of Serah, a scavenger for hire who recovers valuable artefacts left floating amidst the planet’s remains.
I had started making quick one-night concept sketches to illustrate ideas over summer, but wanted to develop styles more appropriate for game development.
Our team’s character modeller, Emily Peterson, wanted to make a high-poly model, more realistic than the original art style I had in mind. This gave me an excuse to experiment and re-do earlier concepts in higher quality. To see the character model as it appeared before development was cancelled, please click here.
Expanding on the game’s characters, I developed a rival to the protagonist whose whole aesthetic focused on being a real cool dude.
Art for a boss sequence featuring stone titans and a floating baby head was also developed. These were a small homage to teletubbies.
Art for a potential future level featuring a hanging castle.
A reference model for a flying enemy – a hybrid of alien insect and machine.
Craig McNaughton 