Introduction:

Now I have reached the end of my project, this evaluation is going to dive into all the different parts of my project and pick out what is good, bad and couple be improved next time. It will include multiple sections which are headed so when reading it is clearer.

Context:

The first section of the project was context. This was were I decided what theme I was going to do and the initial ideas I had leading up to this decision. When I began, I had 3 different themes in my head; Crime, Fantasy or Action/Adventure. All of them I thought could be great ideas to base the project off of. After I heard the ideas of my group I then thought that the Fantasy genre (which is what a lot of people chose) would be too common. It was down to Crime or action. I decided Crime because it was so original and I've never seen a true crime game. I also really liked the genre in film and tv so it made sense. After completing my crime scene I feel that it can definitely fit within the idea that I had at the beginning. The blood and unorganised nature of the room definitely gives the vibe I wanted. I think I now have a better understanding of the product I wanted to create. I was not sure what sort of scene I wanted at the start but now it is done I feel it is what I was aiming for. 

Research:

Alongside Context there was research that needed to be done as well. Of all the sections I think this was the largest both in scale and time. I made a research plan at the start that shows me clearly what sections I want to do and how long I will need. I think straight after I came up with the idea I knew a lot of the research I needed to do. Including Film & TV, Existing crime games and also so real crime cases. One of the larger parts was Primary research, which was needed as equally as secondary. Most of the Art work that I completed in the art lessons contributed to this section. I also sent out a survey which received about 30 responses which is great. After this I moved back into secondary. I feel that my research was the best I could have possibly done with the time constraints I had. I have also received some feedback throughout the project which further backs this up. Personally both types of research greatly improved my way of thinking when it comes to production. If I hadn't done the survey I probably wouldn't have known what type of crime to do and whether to make it realistic or not. If not for researching the different forms of media that have delved into this genre then I wouldn't know what sort of vibes to go for. I did try to create something new by combining some of the themes I found in my research. I do hope that I have done this. 

Pre Production:

This was one of the smaller sections because it was just planning for production. In this part I created multiple things including floorplan designs, asset lists, Unreal Engine testing and some mind maps and mood boards. I also conjured a Backstory for the game as well which gave me loads of context for what to include in the level. The Floorplan and asset list where essential for moving on so I could create the level and its assets. I think I could have done more planning. I could have done some concept designs but I did not have enough time to do it. I also could have done a couple more floorplan designs as well and the room could have been better. I also would say that doing some planning early on would have done me good as well. which is something I didn't really do.

Practical:

The final big section was the practical. This was the one that every previous one was building up to. It would be where I store the progress of my practical. Starting with the assets in 3DS Max, I showed a few of the stages of there development. As it says in the practical skills section, some of the unwraps were a pain to do however I overcame most of the problems. Some of the textures on the assets could have been so much better if I had a few more weeks to work on them however this caused me to not pay as much attention to detail as I otherwise would have. To go along with the assets I had created I also needed some downloaded assets. I gathered these from a website called 'Turbosquid'. This added the much needed detail to the build to make it that much better.

After completing my assets It was time to create the level. To make it a lot simpler I took a small section of the floorplan I had created and used that as my level. This also made more sense as it would be the only bit with any use. Making the basic room structure was not too difficult. But importing everything to unreal was the hard part. I had to sort almost all the models textures as they had been mixed up because I hadn't named them. After some tedious fixing in unreal I was finally able to have a completed level. Throughout the practical stage I have learnt a decent selection of new skills like Boolean and soft selection in 3DS Max and also how to texture in Photoshop, as well as the basics in Unreal Engine. These new skills will definitely help me in future projects because not only do I now have additional ways to create a model with more detail, but also I will not need as much help creating things which also saves a lot of time and gives me more time to complete other things. When I moved on to the practical stage I knew my time was limited so I prioritised all practical when I was in college because I am not able to do it at home so I do written work at home instead. This also allows me to spend more time on modelling or texturing with less distraction. I also created a Production Log that was updated weekly. This would help to show what I had managed to accomplish week by week It was also handy for me to see how much I could do in a week for when I was trying to manage my time.

Art Work

This small but necessary section is a collection of the work we have done in the art lessons we have had. The more important things include the 3D Modelling we have done. These help us design new ideas and alternative ideas for the things we put in our level. It also gives more evidence into the design of the assets and levels. 

Presentation:

The Presentation of my website is very similar to what I had done in my last one. Once I had decided the theme, I knew that It had to reflect in my presentation. I chose a crime scene Image for my background with a body outline and 'do not enter' Police tape. The text section is covered with a dark grey box as well with a red font colour to look ominous and also emulate colours commonly associated with crime scenes. It has come to my attention that it is not the easiest to see or read, especially for someone that is colour blind, this will be something to change next time. In most of my research and pre production, I have listed the different parts with subheadings to clearly separate the research and to also make it easier to find and read stuff. I have made sure that things like text, mind maps, mood boards and titles look neat and also nice as well so it is not just a jumbled up mess. I think because I used a similar format in my previous units throughout this unit that worked really well, it just made sense to do it again but slightly enhanced. A lot of the impressions I get from other people that see my blog seem to be very positive which is great and encourages me to put more effort and detail into my work.

Final Product:

My final product is not as detailed as I would have like back when we started this project. This could have been done however with more time. The strengths of my product are that it clearly resembles what it is meant to be and has some detailed features that make it look good. I also like the small and simple layout of the room. It suits the story really well from my pre production stage. If I could improve it then I would add more crime scene things like more blood, some evidence packets and markers. I would have also liked to add some more house details as well like pictures or shelves and maybe a few kitchen parts as well like an oven and fridge maybe. Some plug sockets and skirting boards could have worked nicely as well. I think the best change I made was making the floorplan smaller. It made it so much easier to fill the space and made practical sense as well. It also allowed me to create it on time. The product is definitely suitable for its intended audience. If anything it is over-rated, There is not much gore but it is realistic which probably bump up the age rating slightly. In the full game (if there was one) it would be suitable. I have recently received some feedback for my final product and it was good. The models and creativity have been praised however the lighting was said to be too bright. This could have been fixed with more time however I did not have much left.

Problems:

Over the course of this FMP I have faced a tone of problems, many being related to practical work. However my biggest problem has been Time. After I had completed my research I quickly realised I did not have much time left to complete my level on schedule. So only until the end of production I was not sure whether I would be able to finish it on time. Luckily I did manage to just get it done before I needed to do my evaluation. With more time However, As I have previously mentioned, my level could have been better. If I were to do a project similar to this I would say that I should not spend as much time on research as I did. Yes it gave me a great amount of work but it left the practical aspect on the side of my priorities. This was a problem I couldn't truly overcome. Other than this I had many problems with the texturing and modelling. With a little help though and guidance I was able to find a solution to almost all of these problems. I have developed loads of new skills in practical. I have learned new tools in 3DS Max and Photoshop. Before this I didn't know of. I also pretty much learned the basics of a new software (to me) in Unreal engine 4. 

Conclusion:

To conclude my reflection I feel that this is my best quality of work possible at this point in time. With the time constraints I have had I don't think I could have done much better. Considering the great feedback I have received over the past 13 or so weeks. I am confident that my work is at a satisfactory standard and I hope to get a great response after it is all fully completed. 

Thank You for taking the time to review my work.