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Artist exercises. (Formerly: Upping the ante on our next challenge(s).)

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  • Swizzle
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    Swizzle polycounter lvl 16
    JacqueChoi has some pretty fantastic ideas. There are so many unexplored avenues for game art and any one of those could make excellent challenges.
  • Bibendum
    So what you are essentially saying here is that you can't think of any creative and original solutions to a clich
  • Ace-Angel
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    Ace-Angel polycounter lvl 12
    Bibendum wrote: »
    Unfortunately I can pretty much promise you that with the restrictions Adam posted 80% of the entries to that comp would be equally generic streamlined scenes that look like they were designed by Apple.

    Excuse me? Since when was Apple into industrial construction of hallways? I take offense to that Sir, and I'm pretty sure all hard working building workers take offense to that too.
  • Paul Pepera
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    Paul Pepera polycounter lvl 9
    Bibendum wrote: »
    What he's saying is that if the sole purpose is to avoid cliches the best way to do it is not to say, "take a cliche thing and make it not cliche" it's better to simply say "make something not cliche"

    *sigh* The idea here is not to take an open-ended, 'make whatever you want' idea and make it not clich
  • Bibendum
    So the goal here isn't to avoid cliches but make cliches that aren't so cliche?

    This seems... I don't even know...
  • Del
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    Del polycounter lvl 9
    Swizzle wrote: »
    JacqueChoi has some pretty fantastic ideas. There are so many unexplored avenues for game art and any one of those could make excellent challenges.

    ~ I agree. I think the topic/subject could be a huge influence on breaking clich
  • Vailias
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    Vailias polycounter lvl 18
    My 2 cents are there is merit to restrictions, and encouraging breaking from cliche.
    Believe me I'm all for subverting the obvious like this little guy I doodled up for a GA 2d challenge.
    The theme was "historical death"
    HistoricalDeath.jpg


    I think every other entry was someone getting stabbed or crushed.

    Another idea could be to have some object that MUST be included, not simply things to NOT use.

    Or hell, just combine them. (random bad example) Make a sci-fi building interior, that doesn't look like its out of the Alien's series within the theme of Renaissance.
  • Peris
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    Peris polycounter lvl 17
    stupid idea. "sci fi hallway", "mutant sports arena", "castle wall" are inbred video game cliches. Not "cables" and "warning stripes" lol. Let people use whatever the hell they want in their scenes :p.

    Here's a better idea:
    Make a completely original thing with just these things:
    Warning stripes
    Hanging cables
    More than 3 lights
    Glass floors
    Diagonals that occur at more than 1 angle
    Vents
    Computer consoles
  • Alberto Rdrgz
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    Alberto Rdrgz polycounter lvl 15
    when is this?!!
  • Joshua Stubbles
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    Joshua Stubbles polycounter lvl 19
    I like to have art that makes sense. You say to limit the use of those things (I know they were just examples), but they're cliche for a reason - they WORK. What if I had a need to expel some gas or fumes from an object? Sure, I can make exhaust pour out of a hollowed vine or whatever, but that doesn't make sense. The vine would heat up, dry out and burn to a crisp. It's like changing things SOLELY for the sake of changing it, to make it look different. While creatively that's fantastic, I like logic, too. I think the theme, as others stated, makes a HUGE difference on the outcome of the artwork. Challenges or exercises should just have their theme more defined I think.

    I agree that in order to grow as an artist we need to try new things and push our boundaries, but I think the wording of this suggestion should be rectified in some manner.
  • Neox
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    Neox godlike master sticky
    Hazardous should be forbidden to do sexy chicks on any contest, its too much of a comfortzone for him!
  • leslievdb
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    leslievdb polycounter lvl 15
    I like the idea of limitations,

    there have been some pretty amazing artworks from artists who challenged themselves to use limited pallets for example so why not try this in a gameart setting.

    I do have to agree that there should still be some openness to the theme, because if people feel they are getting too restricted it will maybe keep them from entering.
  • adam
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    adam polycounter lvl 20
    I feel like the original point is now lost on this thread and its my fault for how I worded it.

    Your reply especially, Peris, made me aware of this. The gist of what I was thinking: To challenge you* to think creatively within ideas that typically have similar results. Its simple. The challenge comes from us removing specifically reused cliches within those - you got it - cliche environments. We wouldn't have winners or losers for this idea, but just an organized community exercise for anyone who wants to participate. Objective design.

    *Not you specifically, Peris, but artists here at PC.

    The ideas you gave, however, are also good: Asking people to force themselves to think differently about cliche items used in videogames. Great idea. But there's merit to the original idea when everyone falls back on comfortable design motifs and we're simpling saying, for this exercise idea, you're not allowed to do that and 'this is how.' Subjective design.

    But my point was lost or construded. This is fine, as the discussion is now expanding which I enjoy.

    So keep 'em coming.

    Choi, good shit fella. Your idea fits perfectly for contests. My stuff was more about artist exercises. It's my fault for having mentioned Challenges in the first place.
  • adam
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    adam polycounter lvl 20
    Renamed the thread to be more fitting.
  • Ace-Angel
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    Ace-Angel polycounter lvl 12
    You should name it - Try modeling a real nurse without high-heels, stockings, and lipstick, while still making it original.

    I'm sure 9/10 people will fail that challenge, including me.
  • TortillaChips
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    TortillaChips polycounter lvl 10
    Ace-Angel wrote: »
    You should name it - Try modeling a real nurse without high-heels, stockings, and lipstick, while still making it original.

    I'm sure 9/10 people will fail that challenge, including me.

    I could do that easily. She wouldn't be wearing any clothes, though.
  • skankerzero
    hell yeah!

    I love limitations. They force people to think outside the box and find more creative solutions.
  • JacqueChoi
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    JacqueChoi polycounter
    Yeah.

    I love the thingy skanker is doing. Heck, coming up with Mr-Potato-Head crowd/character creation is nearly half my job.
  • sama.van
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    sama.van polycounter lvl 17
    to delete wrong thread X_X
  • yingxuy
    It operates in these limitations and solves the problem to associate the variety creativity with them. If you want to make the corridor which clich
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