[WIP] SHIFT - Final Year Game Cinematic Trailer Project

limjie31

Hi everyone! We’re a group of final-year students from the University of Hertfordshire. We’re creating a sci-fi cinematic trailer for our game SHIFT in Unreal Engine, and we’ll be documenting our process and progress in this thread with regular updates.

Feedback on anything (story beats, environment art, lighting, camera work, animation, VFX, editing, audio) is hugely appreciated. Thanks for checking it out!

Core Members:

Valen Kua Wei Lun: Director, Art Director, Concept Artist - ( Artstation )

Ong Nanxi: Lead Concept Artist, Level Designer - ( Artstation )

Lim Jie: Lead Environment Artist, Prop Artist - ( Artstation )

Zen Seah Song Wei: Lead Character Artist, Environment Artist - ( Artstation )

Synopsys:

In a decaying virtual world on the edge of collapse, you play as a lone maintenance technician sent to restore failing power cores. Wander a tranquil, utopian landscape, then enter broken dimensions within the cores themselves, where gravity twists against you and your shield drains with every step. Navigate perilous platforms, survive the hazards, and ultimately decide the fate of this fragile digital realm.

Some WIP images to show you the mood and feel:

limjie31

Here is our animatic and previs done by our concept artists:
https://youtu.be/O9aIGC2MhCs?si=qO8xmNCUNKFM8KWK

And this is our latest cinematic WIP:
https://youtu.be/pR9CbWdSaAU?si=vHWPaRNekTXZFnZ0

limjie31

Hi guys! I’m Lim Jie, the Environment Artist on this project. I previously had a Polycount thread documenting my progress, feel free to check it out here: https://polycount.com/discussion/237998/wip-shift-game-cinematic-trailer-project-environment-artist-dev-log-third-year-uni-project

Below is my current progress on Utopia. Feedback is welcome!



I am following the concept art by Valen:

limjie31

Here is some lighting progress in Unreal Engine with Lumen:

Shot 01:


Shot 16:

valenkua

Main Character exploration design and final render

valenkua

Utopia Environment design and asset call out

valenkua

Interior design - Final Controller room sketches and exploration

MaraRA

I really like the lighting tests, can't wait to see it finished!

Nanxi_Nanxi

Companion Drone (Pixy)'s ideation and sketches, expression sheet, and a final render