Learn Professional 2D Game Asset Graphic Design in Photoshop

Hi and Welcome to the course! My name is Jaysen and I will be your instructor for teaching you how to create 2D game assets in Photoshop. In this lecture you are going to learn a little bit about me. Then we are going to go over everything we will be covering in this course. By the end of this lecture you will have a detailed understanding of everything that's in this course.

In this lecture I'm going to explain to you how to take this course and how you can get the most out of it. Remember that I'm always here to help you, so if you have any questions please ask. By the end of this lecture you will have a road map for taking this course which will lead you right to a guaranteed win.

Join the Facebook group and share your art with us as you go through the course. If you'd like critics you can ask for them when you post. If not just expect some good old motivation from me and your fellow student! 

There are a few things you will need to complete this course. The first thing is Photoshop. If you don't have Photoshop do not worry, you can get a 30-day free trial from the adobe download page. The second item is not required but is recommended. I recommend that you use a drawing tablet as this will make it easier to draw in Photoshop. If you can't get a drawing tablet do not worry. I started out drawing with paper and pencil then scanning my drawing into Photoshop and you can most definitely do the same.

If you don't have Photoshop don't worry, you can download a 30-day Free trial from Adobes download page. Downloading Photoshop is quick and easy. Adobes 30- day trial is also very nice because you can export with out water marks so you can still use your work in your UI and App games. 

In this lecture were are going to go over what assets are. Assets are a single object that are used in every thing from games to animated TV shows. In this lecture we will be going over examples of asset props and background pieces. As well as where to find inspiration reference for your 2D Game assets. We will also be covering the touchy subject of copping artwork.

If you're not familiar with Photoshop it's ok. In this lecture You will learn all the basic tools that we will be using through out the course. You will also become familiarized with Photoshop's Interface. By the end of this course you will be equipped with the basics working knowledge to start creating amazing video game assets.

In the professional world of digital art there is no way to survive without hotkeys!. Hot keys are keys on your keyboard that you can press to quickly bring up tools and windows in Photoshop. The reason why hotkeys are so essential is because it makes your work flow 10X faster! In this lecture you will learn all the hotkeys for the tools you were introduced to in the last lecture.

Layers are Photoshop's greatest tool and their one of the biggest reasons Photoshop is the industry standard. In this lecture you are going to learn about layers, how they interact with each other, and how to keep them organized. Some people find Photoshop's layers to be confusing so in this lecture I'm going to break them down in a way that is easy to understand.

If you want to become a master in art it's all about the fundamentals. Drawing is by far the #1 fundamental you must master in order to create professional game art. In this lecture we will be going over all the basics of drawing. By the end of this lecture you will have an understanding of shape, form, highlight & shadow, and perspective.   

If there is one thing you want to do to become a better artist it's master the fundamentals. The #1 fundamental of art is drawing and the only way to get good at it is to practice. If you want to learn how to create amazing game graphics you are going to have to put in some practice.

The second fundamental of art is value. Value is the lightness or darkness of a color. In this lecture you will use values to create contrast as well as highlights and shadows. 

Now that you are equipped with basic drawing knowledge and value & contrast knowledge you are going to draw your first asset.This asset will not be a final product asset but will be solely for practice. By the end of this lecture you will have drawn your first asset with value. 

In this lecture you are going to learn all about color theory and how to chose your colors when creating artwork. Color is the 3rd fundamental of art. Color can make or break your artwork. You can have a game background that has a really good drawing and great contrast but if your colors are bad it will ruin the whole piece. By the end of this lecture you will be an expert in color theory. 

Take this quick quiz to test your knowledge of drawing, value, and color.

Now that you have all the basic knowledge for creating amazing game graphics, lets go ahead and start building your first game asset. The first asset that you are going to design and build is a wooden crate. In this lecture you will draw the outline for our crate.

Now that you have the basic under drawing for your crate you are going to design our the texture for it. The texture you will be creating will be a wood texture. By the end of this lecture you will know how to create a simple texture for your 2D game design asset.

Once you have created your wood texture you are going to start building the patterns that will make up your crate. In this lecture you will build the X and frame pattern out of your wood texture. Then you will apply the patterns to your crate under drawing. 

In this lecture I'm going to teach you a technique for painting a more advanced wood texture. Even though this technique is advanced it is still easy to learn and looks amazing. The style you will learn in this lecture has a hand painted type of look to it.

In this lecture you are going to finish up painting our wood texture. Once you finish you will copy and paste the texture and rearrange the geography of the wood grain so you will have two different wood board textures. Remember that when you are painting that you want to layer transparent colors from dark to highlight.

Once both your wood texture boards are done you are going to build your crate. You will build the crate the exact same way you did with the first crate. After the crate is build you are going to learn how to use a clipping mask to create your crates shadow.

In this lecture you are going to learn how to add some extra detail to your crate that will really bring it all together. First you will add some nail heads and then some gashes to make it look worn and beat. Remember that when you are creating an asset you want to use the same few colors. This will help bring the asset together visually.

In this lecture you are going to draw out the basic sketch for your potion bottle. The potion bottle we will be building in this section will be replicated after a potion bottle form the hit game Ray man. Once you have finished the sketch you are going to build the base shape for the project.

In this lecture we are going to be painting the reflection and highlights on you bottle shape. Some real magic happens in this lecture when your gray bottle shape is transformed into a clear glass bottle by only using the color white. Glass reflections can be very confusing but in this lecture I will explain it all to you so you can understand it.

In this lecture you are going to learn how to add a liquid to your potion bottle. In this example we will be filling your potion bottle with a golden liquid. You can fill your bottle with what ever color of liquid you like. Game design usually calls for different assets so you might try creating multiple potions with different contents.

In this lecture we are going to add a blue light refraction that will really make your pop. Light refraction can be pretty complicated but in this lecture I will explain it to you. By the end of this lecture the glass part of your bottle will be completely finished.

Your potion bottle is almost complete. The last thing you are going to create is the cork. In this lecture you will learn how you can build shapes quickly using your brush tool and the marquee tool. Then you will learn how to create cork texture. Your assignment for this lecture will be to recreate this project. Then apply your bottle to a game background and post it to the Q&A section of the course or the Facebook group. 

In this lecture you are going to jump right into creating your second asset for Rayman. The second asset will be a wooden sign that would display scores or menus. By the end of this lecture you will have build the wooden board and the wood grain texture for it.

In this lecture you are going to create a pattern design for your sign. Creating patterns in Photoshop that can be used by your paint bucket tool can make the game design process much faster. By the end of this lecture you will now how to utilize Photoshop's pattern tool. 

Now that your sign is complete you are going to go ahead and add text to your sign. For the most part you will not find good fonts in Photoshop's pre-loaded fonts. Son in this lecture I am going to show you where you can find free fonts that have interesting design.

The game Crossy Road is created in an isometric perspective. In this lecture we will go over what isometric perspective is and how it works. By the end of this lecture you will have built a white cube in isometric perspective.

Download the isometric grid form this pages resources. 

In this lecture you are going to build your first Crossy Road asset, a tree. You will learn how you can use your prefabricated cube to build objects in Photoshop. By this end of this lecture you will have built the basic form of your tree and added a drop shadow to it.

Now that you have built your tree it is time to add some color to it. In this lecture you will learn how you can quickly and easily add colors to these graphics by using clipping layer masks and blend modes. By the end of this lecture you will have completed your first Crossy Road project. Congratulations!

In this lecture you are going to build an isometric semi truck completely out of cubes. Once you have built the truck you will add cast shadows. By the end of this lecture you will have built the entire truck and have it ready for coloring. 

Now that you have built you truck it's time to add color. You will be adding color by utilizing Photoshop's blend modes and clipping layers mask. By the end of this lecture you will have finished two different Crossy Road Graphics. Once you have completed the projects I would like you to post them to the Q&A section of the course or the Facebook group.

In this lecture you will be designing your sword asset by doing a simple sketch. Once you have your sketch you will lay your shapes and colors out over your sword. If you would like to do a different sword design than the on I'm doing in this section feel free too. 

Now that your shapes and colors are laid out it's time to start painting. The first thing you will paint will be the handle of the sword. In this lecture you will learn how to paint reflective metal and leather.

In this lecture you will be painting the hand guard of your sword. You will be using the same techniques you used to paint the metal part of your sword handle. 

You're almost done creating your sword game art. In this lecture you are going to paint the blade of your sword. 

In this lecture you are going to get started with creating a jewel button game art. First you are going to layout the shapes and colors for your asset. Once you have done that you will add in some shadows using Photoshop's layer styles. 

Now that you have laid out for you jewel button game art asset it's time to start painting. In this lecture you are going to be painting the golden ring around your gem. By the end of this lecture you will have finished creating a realistic gold texture for your ring.

In this lecture you are going to paint the highlights and reflections on your gem. This is actually very easy and quick to do though it creates an amazing and realistic effect on your shinny game art.

In this lecture of the course you are going to add objects into your jewel. You will be creating 3 jewels that are different colors and that have different game objects in them. You will also learn how to adjust the color of your gem using the hue and saturation panel in Photoshop. 

In this lecture you are going to create the shapes and the texture for your potion book. This game asset could be used as an item to collect in your game or just as a background prop. 

Now that you have the basic shape for your book cover it's time to add in the pages between the covers. In this lecture I will show you a quick and easy way to create a stack of pages that can quickly be inserted into any book asset. Once the pages have been created you are going to create some realistic shadowing to finish it off.

In this lecture you are going to create some ornate metal work for your book. This metal work might have been made by a blacksmith so it's ok if your design looks a little imperfect. You will also be creating a gem for the center of your book cover. 

Your potion book is nearly complete! In this lecture you are going to add in a few details to finish the asset off. First you will add an edge to your book cover so it looks 3 dimensional. Then you are going to add in some texture and shadows to make it look more realistic. 

Congratulations! You made it to the end of the course. In this lecture we will do a quick recap of what you learned in this course. Remember that if you have any questions to please ask them in the Q&A section of the course or direct message me through Udemy. Also don't forget to check out the bonus animation section! You are now on your way to making amazing game art!