Tuesday 29th.

   Today we went to the Space Centre near Abbey Park. It was really interesting to be drawing some of the space shuttles and stuff as it's not normally something that you think of drawing. The shapes of the rockets provided some difference to how i normally render a scene. I still struggle with shading to create the lines around certain parts, instead of drawing a thick black line to show the seperation. I just wish i had a chance to be able to see more. The walk home was not so interesting, being cold and wet and windy made it  slightly troublesome to get home! Thank goodness we didn't get lost like on the way there!

Personal History of Games

     Gaming has always been a big part of my life, as for me, it provided escapism from the hectic antics and stressors of life. It provided me with an outlet which allowed me to be transported to a far distant universe where I could be someone totally different.

     The first ever game I remember playing was the classic “Space Invaders” on the Playstation 1. I have very fond memories of sneaking downstairs in the middle of the night from my room, just to have an extra go on it. I got so obsessed by the way gaming made me feel, I couldn’t wait for the next go. Thinking back to then, it brings me so much happiness. I would invite my friends to sleep over and we would spend all night playing games and creating little tournaments. They’d bring their games over and we’d huggle up in our sleeping bags staring at the tiny monitor. There are so many games on the Playstation 1 that I absolutely loved. One very important game to me is Gex 3: Deep Cover Gecko, as this started my lust for scary games. Okay, looking back at it now, it really wasn’t scary. But when I was younger I was hooked on the adrenaline from the fear I felt playing that game. It was certain little areas that just gave me the creeps.

       That is where my thirst for fear comes in. I love playing games that keep me on my toes, when you feel as if something’s going to jump out and you can feel your heart beat 10x faster. The reason why I find games so much scarier is because it’s YOU playing it, you are the one trying to survive, it makes it more personal than say, watching a scary film.

         There’s so many games that I have fallen in love with, they still allow me to escape into a world of uncertainty. However, after being on this course, I began to realise and appreciate how much effort, time and work has gone into the smallest part of these games. I definitely respect even the most diabolical game, for the amount of effort that has been put into it. I have always been a Playstation lover, I still have my PSone, which I refuse to get rid of. I’ll always be a dedicated fan of Sony.

         I look forward to what the future has to offer with regards to the level of gaming. I can’t wait to see the next step in gaming, where if you die in the game you die in real life, oh wait a second, that sounds like a film….. But seriously, it would be amazing if the player could be “imported” into the game, so you could physically smash zombies in the face or drive over a massive canyon or something along them lines, you could be transported to the “gaming dimension” to slay dragons and ride dinosaurs and then be back in time for tea. That sounds like my kind of game.

Bradgate Work Final

This is my final piece for the Bradgate Project. I feel really happy with it. I spent a long time trying to get the rendering correct. It was really nice to be able to practise landscapes as i struggle with them.

Just a little extra....

   This is just a little piece dedicated to one of my favourite artists, Banksy. To give an  incite as to why I find him so fascinating, not just because of his art but the motivation behind it.

     Banksy is pretty much well known by most people of Britain. His works are not pieces that will be appreciated behind a glass frame, with rich men pondering over what kind of reason as to why a certain artist has used the “wrong” sort of brushstrokes to define the way a flower looks like a rainbow or something stupid. No, Banksy creates a running commentary throughout his life in reference to social and political problems. For art to mean something to me, it either has to have massive fighting robots or it has to have emotion in it from the artist.

      You’ll see his defining style around the areas of Britain on public surfaces for everyone to see and discuss. People may moan about him being a vandal and ruining a perfectly nice piece of brickwork, but in all seriousness, if you want to make a point, negativity is the best way. That’s why the media focuses on the negativities, no-one cares about the nice things in life. We just want to read about the dark depressing stuff because that’s the way human’s are. Back to the point; if Banksy was to do some graffiti on some paper and neatly place it in a folder in a cupboard. Who would see it? Who would know? Someone needs to speak up about the current state of the social and political problems because if no-one says about a problem, then people believe that there isn’t one to rectify.

       His secrecy is another thing that I admire about him. The way he has created a large name for himself and still manages to create more and more inspiring and thought-provoking graffiti without being captured. The fact that there is not a “face to the name” allows the audience to be able to believe it’s anyone, perhaps placing them in this person’s image. Making them see if they would be willing to go to this extent to get their point across.

      These are just some of the reasons why Banksy is amazing! I definitely recommend seeing some of his pieces or reading books about him!

Blog Update 001

  Really enjoying drawing the dinosaur bones, it's my favourite thing so far! :D

History 2000's

   The year 2000 begins the decade that sees the main consoles begin that are still around in today’s society. Thus allowing the switch from Fifth generation to sixth generation  console.

    The “PS One” was brought out by Song in the year 2000, it went on to sell greater amounts than any other console throughout the rest of the year, including outselling Sony’s own “Playstation 2”.

    The “Playstation 2” was released in 2000 and became the best-selling console of all time, selling over a massive 150 million units up to 2011. Directly after the release it was difficult to find ps2 Units on retailer shelves due to manufacturing delays. People were so eager to have one of these consoles that they were paying more than a thousand dollars on auction sites to receive one. Sony put little interest into the ways of online gaming and focused on more stand alone gaming methods. This became a problem when Microsoft’s Xbox released it’s Online capable Xbox. Sony later went on to release a Network Adapter in 2002 so it could compete with the popular Xbox.

     After the success of the “Playstation 2” Sony decided to produce the slimline version, manufacturing and shipping problems slowed down the sales of the “PS2 slimline”. Making it sell only 6,000 units after selling 70,000 units a week before.

     Through the years 2000 – 2005 Nintendo produced a whole range of handheld consoles. In 2001 the “Gamboy Advance” was released,  It is the successor to the “Game  Boy colour”. A study had been released to say that Nintendo had sold 81.51 million consoles world wide after 8 years of it being on the market.

    In 2003 Nintendo realised the “Game Boy Advance SP”. In 2009, 43.4 million of the “Game Boy Advance” sales were from the “Game Boy Advance SP”. This console then went on to be re-released ps2 Units on retailer shelves due to manufacturing delays. People were so eager to have one of these consoles that they were paying more than a thousand dollars on auction sites to receive one aised as the “Game Boy Advance SP Mark ii” which was a slightly altered version of it’s successor. Both off these consoles were re-realised with numerous colours and different designs to try and boost sales.

   After Nintendo’s success at the hand held console sales, the next thing to be manufactured by them was the “Nintendo Gamecube”, which was Nintendo’s fourth home video gaming console. It was the successor to the Nintendo 64 and predecessor to the Wii. This console was the first Nintendo console t use optic discs as it’s primary storage medium, however this sometimes created un-necessary disc errors as their was a problem with the optic pickup.

     In 2001 Microsoft released the “Xbox” it was Microsoft’s first input into the gaming console market there was a few problems with getting it out to the public as Microsoft repeatedly delayed the console. When Bill Gates (Microsoft CEO) unveiled the Xbox at a Gaming Conference in 2000, audiences were amazed at the level of technology used in making this gaming console as Xbox featured a built-in Hard Disc Drive used for storing saved games and downloaded “Xbox” content which meant there were no use for memory cards.

    In conclusion the years through 2000-2010 were important years for the main console manufacturers that are still around now. Xbox, Playstation and Nintendo produced sixth generation consoles that allowed for the change in which audiences play by adding more visually stimulating and detailed games.