This course will teach you how to draw your own game art with Adobe Flash. You'll learn how to make logos, maps, characters, various top-down perspective boards (like land, seas, forests, etc), building, buttons and other GUI, upgrade menus, icons, and animated FX.
The estimated time length for this entire series will be 10-15 hours of videos. When a new section is added, an announcement will be made to any enrolled student.
This series is taught by Justin Dike, owner, instructor and lead developer at CartoonSmart.com , a site specializing in video tutorials since 2004.
The All-Important Logo
Ye ol' Quest Map
-
4Basic Layout
In this video, we will look at the basic layout of your logo. Topics include the area your logo will ideally occupy, issues you might run into if your logo exceeds a certain width, emphasizing certain words over others, and other subtleties you might not think of otherwise.
-
5Starting the Logo
We will begin to create a fully-realized logo for a hypothetical game called "Empire of Areas". In this video, we will get as far as adjusting the text to perfection, then adding a backing layer behind the main text to make it appear extruded.
-
6Adding Color and Detail
In this video, we will color the text and add small, but noticeable details. We will explore the gradient options in Flash and discuss some benefits of using Symbols for repetitive objects or patterns.
-
7Adding a Backing for the Text
In this video, we will create a backing for the main text of the logo. The background will include a castle-inspired shape, draped flag, and sword.
-
8Lighting the Logo
To complete our logo, we will light it using Blend Effects and a filtered flame symbol. We'll also look at how well our logo holds up against different backgrounds and sizes.
User Interface and Buttons
-
9The Map Base and Lakes
Yar. It's time to start ye Ol' Quest Map. This could be used as a guide to give players an overview of the various levels they will travel to. Or you could simply create a map for decoration in conjunction with your logo. Maps always look cool!
ALL the source files for this section, are available in the Supplementary Material tab.
-
10Streams, Docks and Text
In this video, we'll connect our lakes with rivers, add dock icons, and overlay text on the map. Check out Blambot.com for some great free and paid fonts to use. We suggest Ale and Wenches.
-
11Adding Mountains and Roads
In this video, we'll add mountains and roads. What quest map is complete without some kind of ill-fated mountain pass.
-
12Adding Forests and Cliffs
In this video, we'll draw a forest and add cliffs to the map.
-
13Adding Villages
And finally, to finish off our map, we'll add a quaint little village and North, South, East, West icon.
Characters
-
14Introduction
The introduction to this session of tutorials talks about some "what not to do's", with an emphasis on young players (those who can't read), and games that offer TOO many up-front options.
You can download the supplemental materials for this section here.
-
15Establishing a Theme with a Play Button
In this video, we'll begin to create 2 possible Play buttons, and aside from creating the art from scratch, we'll talk about establishing a theme for your game's general user interface.
-
16Play Button Sci-Fi Style
In this tutorial, we'll convert our first Play button from a medieval theme to a Sci-Fi or military style theme.
-
17Interface Elements - Health / Progress Bar
In this lesson, we will make a Progress Bar which could be used to indicate the player's health has been drained, or some type of weaponry is being used up.
-
18Compass / Radar
In this video, we will create a glassy radar or compass (and we will add some chains to the Play button).
-
19Currently-Selected Icons
In this tutorial, we'll look at creating a "selection" box to indicate which of multiple options is the chosen one.
-
20Smoother, Realistic Buttons
In this video, we will work on a smoother, Wall-E style button for a more realistic interface.
-
21Overview of a Finished GUI
In this video, we will work on a smoother, Wall-E style button for a more realistic gaming interface.
Character Animations
-
22Front View Character (possibly for a Choose a Character screen)
In this video we will start looking at character design, beginning with a front view character. The finished piece could be used in a Choose Your Character scene before the game starts.
The project files for this section are in the Supplemental Materials tab
-
23Front View Character (continued)
In this video, we will finish the knight character which we started in the previous video. We will draw his chest armor, cape, arms, hand and sword hilt.
-
24In-Game Character Front View
In this video, we will draw the front view of the in-game character.
-
25In-Game Character Back View
In this video, we will draw the back view of the in-game character.
-
26In-Game Character Side View
In this video, we will draw the side view of the in-game character.
Top Down Levels
-
27Front View Walk Cycle
In this tutorial, we will animate the in-game characters front view walk cycle.
-
28Side View Walk Cycle
-
29Exporting a PNG sequence or SpriteSheet from Flash
In this tutorial, we will discuss exporting your Flash file to a spritesheet or PNG sequence to be imported to the software development kit of your choice (iOS, Android, etc)
-
30Attack Animation
In this video we will create an animated attack sequence.
-
31Attack Animation FX
Buildings
-
32The Outlands Terrain
In this tutorial we will create an ominous looking rocky, terrain.
The source files for this section are in the Supplemental Materials Tab.
-
33The Outlands Continued
In this video we will add to our previous terrain, with broken logs, vines, grass and a patch of vines.
-
34The Ocean
In this tutorial we will create our ocean scape, including islands and a luminous textured ocean.
-
35The Ocean Continued
In this video, we will add rocks, grass, a bridge and dock.
-
36The Bad Part of Town (or Anywhere)
-
37The Bad Part of Town (or Anywhere) Continued
Animated FX
-
38Perspective Points
Recorded after the next two videos, I decided we should talk a bit about perspective first in this video.
-
39The Castle
-
40Huts
-
41Sketching with Vectors / Attaching Odd Shapes
-
42The Tiki House
In this tutorial, we will create a jungle house. The materials of the house should give off a more organic vibe.