European Master of Fine Arts

About

The Game Artist is responsible for all the visual aspects of a video game: what the individual characters look like and how they are animated, the environment they move about in and its 3D modeling, the storyboard, the graphical interface, and so on.

GAME ART
The Game Art department works as a production workshop, much like a real video game developer whose main objective is to spread one or more games created by students during their two years of study across the public market. Ali classes aim to enable the development of these games. Students will learn to follow the main stages of project development, from planning to completion, respecting production deadlines.
ln addition to creating these games, students will have the opportunity to work on external mandates depending on demand. However, internally produced games being considered as a mandate, this will not disrupt the continuity of the course.

Year 1
Phase 0: Learning the tools
ln their first year, students will learn the techniques specific to the trade and will put them into practice through specially adapted exercises, the realization of external mandates and through helping second year students with their own projects.
Concept Art: Visual style, character research, research of environments and effects, storyboard. Students will learn to: – Gather information before starting work – Adapt themselves both to the client’s demand and to the public, the public being the target audience – Make the right visual choices according to specifications – Present work that has been carefully and accurately carried out – Do concept art, quickly fix or sketch an image using speed painting techniques (environments, objects, props and characters) – Make 3D models – Create a GUI (graphical user interface) – Know about different platforms: mobile, PC and consoles – Know about the different professions in the video game industry – Understand technical constraints.

Year2

Phase 1: Pre-production (approx. 2-3 months}
The pre-production phase is used to conduct research on the different types of games available (platform, FPS, strategy, etc.), visual style {realistic, cartoon, animated, etc.), game mechanics, analysis of market supply and competition, design of the elements of a game {especially visual in this case).
Concept Art: Visual style, character research, research of environments and effects, storyboard. By the end of the pre-production phase, students will have learnt to create a GDD {Game Design Document), which describes the entire game, its style and the way it works. This document will be used as a constant reference for ail those taking part in the development.
Prototype (approx. 1 month}
Design of a basic, simplified version of the game so as to test its playability and identify potential problems.

Phase 2: Development (approx. 6 months}
The development phase is the phase during which the game is actually produced. Artists create 2D/3D models, textures, environments and GUls and integrate ail these elements into the game engine.
Creating graphics
The game will be developed following the regular steps of the alpha version {elements which are complete but not finished) and beta version (final version, optimisation and bug fixing): – 3D modelling: environments, characters, objects – Texture – Animation ( basic) – Special effects {particles) – 2D User Interface {UI) – Optimisation – Bug fixing.
Distribution
Once the development of the game completed, it will be made available to the public. Students will be able to: – Gather information before starting work – Adapt themselves to bath the client’s demand and to the public, the public being the target audience – Make the right visual choices according to specifications – Present work that has been carefully and accurately carried out – Do concept art, rapidly fix or sketch an image using speed painting techniques {environments, objects, props and characters) – Make 3D models – Create a GUI {graphical user interface) – Know about different platforms: mobiles, PCs and consoles – Know about the different professions in the video game industry – Understand technical constraints.

GAME DESIGN

Although we train Game Artists, our students are requested to design at least one game during their training. The first part of this module will provide students with the necessary basic knowledge to develop a game with viable architecture and mechanics. The second part will be dedicated to supporting students in advancing on their project.
Students will learn to: – Know about the different professions in the video game industry – Understand technical constraints – Define the concept of a game (interactivity, access to information, ergonomies, gameplay, levels) – Create a coherent game system- Speak clearly about a project.

ENGLISH LANGUAGE

This module will help students prepare for the TOEIC (Test of English for International Communication) and will teach them the language specific to their profession. lt is not based on what year students are in but rather on their level.
By the end of their degree, students must have reached a level of English that allows them to speak and write fluently, be it about specific interests, specialized subjects or in casual conversation. They should be able to actively participate in debates about abstract or cultural ideas, advocating for or against them unambiguously, and should know how to deal with unfamiliar subjects with ease. Subtleties such as humor and negotiating fine points as well as understanding regional accents are a problem. Students should be able to rapidly understand a text or correspondence containing complex arguments and unusual expressions without having to use a dictionary. They should be able to write letters or reports on most subjects with the occasional help of a dictionary and should be able to answer the business needs of colleagues or external contacts.

MARKETING

The pre-production phase is used to conduct research on the different types of games available (platform, FPS, strategy, etc.), visual style (realistic, cartoon, animated, etc.), game mechanics, analysis of market supply and competition, design of all the elements of a game (especially visual in this case).
Content: Supply analysis (research on what is already available on the market, game analysis, research on the demand for video games and their support, awareness of the video game “market” and of the positioning of students’ products).
Creation of graphic media for the promotion and publication of the game: caver, posters, viral advertising. Students will learn to: – Gather information before starting work – Conduct an analysis of the video game market based on product launch – Position themselves according to the video game market – Adapt themselves to both the client’s demands and to the public, the public being the target audience – Present valid arguments to support their ethical and aesthetical choices.