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Articles on The Third Floor's new partnership with Silverdraft

Good reads for those interested in visual effects and the way previsualization is changing the game:

FXGuide: Introducing Silverdraft Mobileviz

Hollywood Reporter: Silverdraft Rolling Out Mobile Digital Studio

Now in Tumblr form...

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New interview and info about my latest print series at 8-bit Cubist.com

Over the last couple months I made a mini-series of video game-themed prints for the upcoming PAX East convention. Exclusive pictures of the prints and an interview I did about them are now available over at 8-bit Cubist.com, so check them out and let me know what you think!

"Shigeru Miyamoto: 8 Bit Legend" print and WIP shots

I drew several caricatures of Shigeru Miyamoto when I started out his piece, and decided on the one on the left. His world had to be Mario-related, and since Mario Galaxy was skyrocketing in popularity at the time, I decided to depict the Nintendo designer in space. The font for his name was in my head very early on, but at the end it was clear that it needed to be fleshed out in 3D.

The final print (I have one left for sale at my online store):

"Nolan Bushnell: 8 Bit Legend" print and WIP shots

The portrait of Pong designer Nolan Bushnell was always going to be done in a different direction. My initial ideas had him literally part of the game as the floating brick, possibly in 3D. In the end though, it was cooler to go with a "man in the machine" looking back at you. As the other prints became busier and more detailed, I added the Pong arcade cabinet around the border. The point being played for would end up making the score 2/5 (Bushnell's birthdate).

The final print (I have one left for sale at my online store):

WIP shots of the "8 Bit Legends" prints (Alexey Pajitnov)

Now that they're done, I thought it would be fun to show the work in progress files I made for each of my 8 Bit Legends prints. The objective I worked out with Ben at 8BitCubist.com was to show each of them immersed in the worlds of the games they created. To help things stay receptive to changes early on, I made greyscale sketches of each design, and polished from there.

Alexey Pajitnov's concept was clear from the start. I placed the Tetris skyscraper in Moscow, along with some of the other notable buildings in the city. This was definitely a fun way to refine my perspective skills.

The final print (I have one left for sale at my online store):

Red Dead Redemption gets 2010 "Game of the Year" award at GDC

Red Dead Redemption, was given "game of the year" in San Francisco this week at the Game Developer's Choice Awards.

From the article:

"There was no shortage of groundbreaking titles across platforms and genres this year. From big-budget blockbusters like Red Dead Redemption and Mass Effect 2, to indie darlings such as Minecraft and Limbo, 2010 was truly an incredible year for games, and we're delighted to honor them here," said Meggan Scavio, Event Director of the Game Developers Conference.

Congratulations to all my former teammates on that great project who took home awards for Design, Technology and Sound. (Maybe one day animation will be recognized at the GDCAs) For my comprehensive list of awards RDR2 has garnered, visit this blog post.