Wreck-it Ralph concept art

Wreck-it Ralph has also been a massive influence in my game module, although it is not a game... it is a 3D animation exploring the world of games. 

The world of Fix-It Felix Jr, where Ralph the main protagonist lives and works, has been designed with the 8-bit game mode in mind, where when in the game world it still retains the square format in design, even going down to the very fine details such as making the dust clouds square shaped.

Here are a few of the central station initial sketches and sections from the animatic. I love the diversity in the characters and drawing styles for each, giving each their own personality. I really like the quick line work, but that it is still kept clean and not overly sketchy, allowing the images to give a clearer representation of what the final piece will look like.

I really love how the concept art for the station is clearly linked to the final rendered animated version below, with very little elements in design being changed, and stylistically remaining the same. I love the use of light in the final version, especially with the reflections on the floor. When researching for this module, I am finding the use of lighting more and more important, and my desire to have a well lit game more important to me, as it can completely change the emotions and mood.

Although not particularly the style I would wish my own work to be in, I love the depth and motion in these pieces of concept art for the Hero's Duty game in the film. The use of colour and symbolism behind the colours used is also interesting, as well as the key shapes being triangles, showing sharp and harsh edges implying the danger in the game.

I was unable to find many pieces of Vanellope's hideen living space, and the added bonus round of the Sugar Rush game, but the one image I did find I think is breathtaking. The contrast between the warm tones from the lighting of the 'lava' at the bottom to the cool whites and blues from the mentos above with the blend in the middle is perfect. The difference between the silhouette shapes of the two characters are also gorgeous and well lit.

The main environment for the film was Candy Kingdom for the Sugar Rush game. I find it amazing how well the environment concept artists have got to the finished idea of the environment, with often the concept art looking as if it is a screen shot from the actual film. I love the roundness of everything, with the smooth curved line work, differing to the squares and triangles of the other games. 

When watching the 'making of' video for Wreck it Ralph, I found the development process behind the film really inspiring, but not just the normal concept art and story boarding. I absolutely adored that they hired somebody to make a 'real life' candy kingdom out of sweets to visualise what it would look like. I also love that they were influenced by Mary Blair, and this can clearly be seen in their style. The second image I also found interesting was that they wanted to see the actual effect that elements would have on the environment, so here they tested with a toy rocket and real icing what it would look like if the rocket skidded to a stop into the icing, and the amazing texture and shape it created. In the film you can see the influence that both of these real life mock up tests. As someone who struggles to work computer based and would much rather work with my hands, I think that this sort of visualisation would suit my thinking best, and I hope to have time to create my own game environment visualisation in a similar way using cardboard and food, making it easier to model from.