So yesterday I purchased a new domain to host my blog, portfolio, projects and tutorial videos, the site can be found at http://ky2kgames.com/ bookmark wen you get a chance!
This site will remain here for awhile with a redirect here on the main page to the new site, I'm working on better feedback through comments and contacting me from the site and a better visual style to what blogger can offer me.
A new UDK tutorial video will be landing tomorrow and will be the last one to feature on this site!
Thanks for reading!
Friday, 4 May 2012
Friday, 13 April 2012
Easter Break
Hello all, apologies for the long silence but I've been taking this time to try and take a break.
I say that and the first day consisted of me jumping back in Source SDK after a long hiatus, now I'm producing a new map under the name of ttt_ldt_nuclear which I'll post shortly to this blog.
I also worked quite a bit on my Uni Project S-E-M-I and will update my page over at the dev blog as soon as I can.
I also worked on improving my recording set-up here to give better quality UDK tutorials, It's been a month since my last one and I did promise one 2 weeks ago however I felt with a new sound card I should try and improve my understanding of tutorial recording so I would love feedback on the next load of tutorials I produce!
I hope you all had a fantastic Easter and I look forward to getting back into the thick of things.
See you all on Monday!!
I say that and the first day consisted of me jumping back in Source SDK after a long hiatus, now I'm producing a new map under the name of ttt_ldt_nuclear which I'll post shortly to this blog.
I also worked quite a bit on my Uni Project S-E-M-I and will update my page over at the dev blog as soon as I can.
I also worked on improving my recording set-up here to give better quality UDK tutorials, It's been a month since my last one and I did promise one 2 weeks ago however I felt with a new sound card I should try and improve my understanding of tutorial recording so I would love feedback on the next load of tutorials I produce!
I hope you all had a fantastic Easter and I look forward to getting back into the thick of things.
See you all on Monday!!
Saturday, 24 March 2012
Next Tutorial Update
Well this week has been a very busy one, being featured at the start of it and then handing in my dissertation, I needed to take a step back and grab some rest, However I quickly began working on the next video.
The next tutorial video will cover Materials and Landscape, It will demonstrate how to import textures into UDK, Create Normal & Specular maps using CrazyBump to give your materials a more realistic look, Basic Terrain creation using the landscape tools and finally how to create a Landscape material that allows for different textures to be used for painting onto the terrain.
It's a 20 minute video and has been a lot of fun editing, It is however delayed, my sound card has packed up which means any voice narration I do sounds like I'm talking through a tunnel with the sea behind me, I'm hoping to borrow a spare one on Sunday and release the video for Monday.
Until then, have a fantastic weekend and create something Unreal!
The next tutorial video will cover Materials and Landscape, It will demonstrate how to import textures into UDK, Create Normal & Specular maps using CrazyBump to give your materials a more realistic look, Basic Terrain creation using the landscape tools and finally how to create a Landscape material that allows for different textures to be used for painting onto the terrain.
It's a 20 minute video and has been a lot of fun editing, It is however delayed, my sound card has packed up which means any voice narration I do sounds like I'm talking through a tunnel with the sea behind me, I'm hoping to borrow a spare one on Sunday and release the video for Monday.
Until then, have a fantastic weekend and create something Unreal!
Monday, 19 March 2012
Incredible.
Last week while browsing the UDK forums like I do, I noticed I had received a message, I noticed it because I never get them, It was to my surprise from Flak who was asking me about my video tutorials I had posted up in the Epic Gamers section about a week before hand.
I won't lie but I had forgotten about it, the thread didn't obtain any views or responses and I just put it down to being a write off.
After sorting some things out I was told they would be featured, my face smiled and would not stop smiling even to this point.
Today I handed in my dissertation, a great sense of joy overcame me, I walked back into my class and sat down at my computer when I noticed my tutorial series had been posted on the epic games community page, I immediately grabbed everyone near by to show them, everyone gave me a pat on the back, then the most amazing thing happened.
It was all of you guys.
Your subs where filling my gmail box, there were posts on facebook and the word kept on spreading, I would sit on twitter and be notified of new followers and people tweeting about my videos, then to top it off I saw a tweet from Mark Rein talking about my tutorials (something I only ever dreamed of) from being a really unknown series to now being viewed by a few hundred people is a truly awesome thing, I can't thank you all enough for today as it has made me appreciate this great community I am a part of, of course now there might be a few more comments however like before I will answer them, it just might take a bit of time now.
So again, thank you everyone for today, and I shall see you later this week with a new tutorial!
P.S
If your reading this and wondering just what the hell I'm on about, go check out the post at http://epicgames.com/community/2012/03/introduction-to-udk-tutorial-series/
Monday, 12 March 2012
Portfolio changer.
I spend many a day sat on the World of Level Design forums, talking to other users about their work and my own, we also exchange tips that we have picked up along the way, one user DevinSherry recently attended GDC 2012 in San Francisco and brought back some incredible information about what employers really look for in your portfolio.
The thread this was discussed in is at http://www.worldofleveldesign.net/forums/showthread.php?2100-GDC-2012-San-Francisco
This is what DevinSherry had to say
Game changing stuff I must say, if you are looking to specialize in Level Design take this on board and while your at it, sign up to the World of Level Design forums and get involved!
WoLD Forums
The thread this was discussed in is at http://www.worldofleveldesign.net/forums/showthread.php?2100-GDC-2012-San-Francisco
This is what DevinSherry had to say
Hey guys,
I just got back last night from the trip to San Francisco and I learned a lot about what studios are looking for in portfolios when it comes to those who are applying for level design positions. I got a portfolio review from one of the designers at Insomniac Games and she helped me out a lot in regards to what they are looking for when looking at the portfolios of applicants. For designers, they don't want to see how pretty the level is, they want to see top-downs of the level, gray box environments with descriptions of the play space and the design process behind the decision making of cover placements, elevation shifts, and many others. I made the mistake in trying to make my portfolio as pretty as possible where I should have focused on the designs themselves.
I also talked with Valve about what they look for in potential employees, and their take on the hiring process was a lot different from the other companies that I spoke with. When it comes to Valve, they don't care how nice your resume is, or how nice your portfolio looks; they want the consumer to persuade them to hire you! What that means is, if your game is really popular within the genre community that you were going for, they will look into you because of that. Having shipped products that caused a stir in the industry, or may not have for that matter, is the biggest factor Valve looks for in employees. One of the writers of Portal and Portal 2 was a writer who posted funny comics on his website, and that site got so popular, Valve looked into him and even hired him!
I also talked to Darkside Studios who said, when I asked about what they look for in level designers, is that there are two types of level designers at their studio; the first being technical designers who focus mainly in Kismet, and then there are the artistic designers who take art assets and dress the level in the editor. Both types take part in the actual level design aspect of the level.
One of the lessons that I took from this years GDC is that when companies look for designers, they usually mean level designers. In most companies, the designers are also the ones who design the levels as well as design the main mechanics of the game. This may vary from studio to studio, but a good majority of industry professionals work this way. I hope this has helped in some way, and everyone should attend GDC at least once!
Game changing stuff I must say, if you are looking to specialize in Level Design take this on board and while your at it, sign up to the World of Level Design forums and get involved!
WoLD Forums
Thursday, 8 March 2012
Crunch Time.
So at the moment I'm pretty busy writing up my dissertation, now in the previous years I've not really bothered with this side of my course, I hate to write as I can never get what's in my head onto paper, it's like some sort of block that I have.
Well these past few months I wanted to really give it a shot this year as it's a pretty important part of my work, If your reading this and you want to get into the games industry, let me tell what I've learnt.
You may have all the talent in the world, you could build impressive worlds that take the player to another dimension but knowing the theories and practices behind games design is what really makes you, Yes there are people who have been yanked in for having pure talent but those occurrences are few and far between, don't rely on them, I used to and I learnt the hard way.
As tools become available to everyone, whether its UDK, Unity or the Crytek DK more and more people are out there doing what you do, My only push above the rest at the moment is obtaining this BA (hons) degree, will it be enough? No course it won't, If you can not prove you not only have talent but you understand how the inner core of games work through theoretical writing and have the determination to really put yourself out there, then I'm afraid your swimming in the water, waiting for that hand to scope you up.
Don't take this as me saying no one will ever get a job, I'm not, All I'm putting forward is, use your passion to YOUR advantage, pick up a copy of The Game Design Reader, learn what people in the industry think and apply it to your work, yes it may be hard work but in the end, it will help you achieve anything.
Now, back to this dissertation.
Well these past few months I wanted to really give it a shot this year as it's a pretty important part of my work, If your reading this and you want to get into the games industry, let me tell what I've learnt.
You may have all the talent in the world, you could build impressive worlds that take the player to another dimension but knowing the theories and practices behind games design is what really makes you, Yes there are people who have been yanked in for having pure talent but those occurrences are few and far between, don't rely on them, I used to and I learnt the hard way.
As tools become available to everyone, whether its UDK, Unity or the Crytek DK more and more people are out there doing what you do, My only push above the rest at the moment is obtaining this BA (hons) degree, will it be enough? No course it won't, If you can not prove you not only have talent but you understand how the inner core of games work through theoretical writing and have the determination to really put yourself out there, then I'm afraid your swimming in the water, waiting for that hand to scope you up.
Don't take this as me saying no one will ever get a job, I'm not, All I'm putting forward is, use your passion to YOUR advantage, pick up a copy of The Game Design Reader, learn what people in the industry think and apply it to your work, yes it may be hard work but in the end, it will help you achieve anything.
Now, back to this dissertation.
Wednesday, 29 February 2012
Episode 4: Post Process Effects is now LIVE!
The next tutorial video is now up, this video covers the basics of the Post Process Effects system in UDK, we look at it's application through the use of volumes, world properties and a brief glance at the PPE chain assets.
The video is up on the tutorial page or it can be found at this YouTube address
Please Like, Comment, Share and Subscribe, by doing so you can be kept up to date with new tutorial videos and can help leave valuable feedback.
For any questions or If you think I've missed something please send an email to ocurtis1@plymouthart.ac.uk
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