computer game graphics

Computer game graphics

Pixel art

First of is pixel art. Pixel art is heavily used in retro games/games that take on the retro feel and artistic form. The pixel art can be used in a variety of ways, for example in the picture shown below of a sprite chart. This is mainly used in 2d retro games for movement and attacks. Pixel art is also used in 3d isometric games.

Concept art

Concept art is where the team of designers try to come up with an image for something in the game, it can be as big as a main character or as little as a vehicle for the character to use. Concept art is crucial for the designers to get a picture of what they want the subject in hand to be and finally coming up with the final form of the thing they are trying to create and then finally creating it. Below is a picture of a boss in a game called Runescape named Vorago. This is actually the final form of the design of the monster showing it in different positions to show what it is like all the way around.

Texture art

Texture art is as simple as it sounds, this is the art for the texture in the game, usually found in 2d and 3d games. These texture could be for literally anything in the environment, this could be something like the grass below the player’s feet to a metal sheeting of a house that the player is in.

metal floor

Broken dirt floor

Background graphics

Background graphics and texture art kind of go hand in hand but this is more to do with like the skybox for example more than what you can interact with for example walls, forests, clouds, deserts etc.. Below is a picture of an example of this.

In game interface

A game interface is simply a heads up display. This is present in all games and is normally abbreviated as a HUD. This display can show a variety of things, health, stamina, mini-map for navigation, spells to cast, people in your party. I have found that the games that utilize this feature the most is MMORPG’s such as world of Warcraft where the HUD is vital for survival and efficiency. An example of this can be found in the picture below