George Mason University
College of Visual and Performing Arts
Computer Game Design
V1.1
GAME 399: Game Art Studio
Term: Fall Semester 2015
Section: 002
Prerequisites: Game 398, with a ‘B’ grade or better.
3 Credit Hours
Instructor: Professor Gregory Grimsby
Office: Art and Design Building Rm 2021
Contact:
Office Hours:
Studio/Lecture: TH 7:20PM-10:00PM
Room: Art and Design Building Rm 1018
703-993-5733
M TU 3:00 to 4:30 PM
or by appointment
Website: http://gregorygrimsby.com/
Email: ggrimsby@gmu.edu
Course Description:
This is an advanced level course. Students are required to have strong technical skills—including, the ability to model
from observation, an understanding of efficient and clean modeling, and the ability to integrate art into a game engine.
Students at this level are expected to be self-motivated, with an independent work ethic. Students will learn and practice more advanced game art techniques across a variety of art styles with directed study in various disciplines including
animation, modeling, and concepting. Students will focus on developing specialized skills needed to produce competitive portfolios. Under advisement of the instructor, students will produce a series of works throughout the semester,
culminating in a portfolio review at the end of the semester.
Course Structure
Material in this course is broken up into disciplines, concepts/texturing and animation. There are lectures and assignments for each discipline. All students are required to complete the modeling assignments. The remaining disciplines
(animation and concepts/texturing) are taught concurrently and the student must pick one of these to study. The student
will be responsible for all assignments given for the focus they choose. This structure allows students to strengthen their
skills in an area of interest and/or where their portfolio needs improvement.
Class time will be divided into lecture time and studio time. Students should come prepared to work on assignments in
class on these studio work days.
Objectives:
Students who complete this course will be able to:

Create technically clean, complex 3D models for 3D games.

Create sound, compelling, and believable artworks in either 3D animation or 2D/concepting.

Students focusing in 2D/concepting will:
1. Demonstrate a consistent and effective digital imaging process.
2. Render detailed, hand-painted textures using digital painting techniques
3. Digital paint with convincing with lighting and shadow.
4. Adapt their traditional drawing and painting skills to the digital environment

Students focusing in animation will:
1. Create animations demonstrating effective use of weight and mass.
2. Create animation cycles with effective timing and pacing.
3. Proficiently animate secondary animation.
4. Accurately animate from reference material.

Critique and analyze their own 3D game art and the works of others in an articulate and discerning fashion.
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Assessment and Grading:
Students will produce portfolio-ready artwork in this course. Additionally students are responsible for several assignments related to lecture material.
Assignments
In addition to portfolio pieces, students will be responsible for several assignments. These assignments are designed
to teach and assess improvement in specific areas. There are several assignments for each discipline. It is the students’ responsibility to refer to Blackboard to see the exact date and time assignments are due.
Capstone Assignment
During the last class meeting, students will submit their completed “capstone” project for the discipline of focus they
choose. It is the culmination of their learning in that discipline. Specifications will be given in Blackboard. The capstone project will take more time and effort than a typical assignment. Plan accordingly. This project is part of the final
portfolio critique. Students will be expected to present their capstone on the last day of class.
Grading Criteria
Assignment and projects are graded based on the criteria given below:
 completeness
 ambition/effort
 specification adherence
 technical execution
 aesthetic qualities
These are assessed using a grading rubric.
Grading Scale
Most assignments are graded on a 100 point scale. The exception to this is the capstone assignment, which is worth
200 points.
To receive a grade of "A" a student must earn a minimum of 90% of the maximum coursework point total.
To receive a grade of "B" a student must earn a minimum of 80% of the maximum coursework point total.
To receive a grade of "C" a student must earn a minimum of 70% of the maximum coursework point total.
To receive a grade of "D” a student must earn a minimum of 60% of the maximum coursework point total.
Failure to receive a "D" grade will result in a grade of "F".
Late Work and Make-up Policy
Late work is only accepted at the instructor’s discretion, and a deduction will be applied to the grade in most situations.
Failure to turn in work on time will result in a 0 for the assignment. Meeting deadlines is one of the most important aspects of art production. Please pay careful attention to the DUE DATE & TIME for each assignment. DO NOT PROCRASTINATE!!!
If extenuating circumstances prevent a student from finishing an assignment, the student must contact the instructor
BEFORE the assignment is due.
Attendance
Attendance is mandatory. Unexcused absences reduce a student’s final grade using the chart below. Two tardies equal
one absence. Email the instructor if you know you will be missing class.
Deductions for Absences
1 to 2
3
4
5+
No deduction
-1 letter grade
-2 letter grades
Grade of ‘F’
Each class is a building block for the next. Absent students miss important material and typically do not do well in this
course. The video tutorials do not replace the lectures but supplement them. In the event that you have to miss class,
you are responsible for making up the work and completing the assignments on time.
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Required Class Material:
It is the student’s responsibility to obtain consistent, stable access to 3DS MAX 2014 and other software used
in the class (listed below). Students who can use the lab to complete all assignments are not required to have a
computer to do the coursework.
Software Needed:
The software below is needed in this course. It is installed on all class and game lab computers. Students do not need
to acquire this software IF they are able to use the lab to complete assignments

3ds max 2016 (student version available at http://students.autodesk.com )

Unity3D (free version available for download from www.unity3d.com )

Zip or Rar archive program

FRAPS

Handbrake

Photoshop (no free version available). View https://creative.adobe.com/plans to see payment options for Photoshop. Adobe offers a $10 month to month “Photography” plan for students.

Online backup, aka Dropbox.
It is suggested that students use on online backup service to prevent their project files from being lost. Every
semester multiple students report lost work due to damaged or misplaced thumbdrives, corrupted files, or dead
hard drives. Dropbox, Google Drive, and Sugarsync are example services that students should explore. Most
services offer free storage that is sufficient in size for this course.
Hardware Needed:

Students will need a USB thumbdrive or USB hard drive formatted as FAT32 (a cross-compatible format for
Mac/PC). This is used to save class work. Suggested minimum free storage space is 4GB.

Wacom tablet or Cintiq. Lab workstations have drawing tablets which make texturing and digital painting easier and better. Students will need a tablet to the best work possible on the texturing assignments. Students
wishing to purchase their own can consider the entry-level Wacom Bamboo priced from $70 and up. The intuos5 small is a significant improvement, but more costly at $200. Having a tablet is a must for any student serious about making game art.
Resources
Required Books: (not at the student bookstore. So try amazon)
For 2D folks:
Khang Le, Mike Yamada, Felix Yoon, “The Skillful Huntsman: Visual Development of a Grimm Tale at
Art Center College of Design” 2005 , ISBN-13: 978-0972667647
For Animators: Williams, Richard, “The Animator's Survival Kit: A Manual of Methods, Principles and Formulas for
Classical, Computer, Games, Stop Motion and Internet Animators” 2012 2nd ed. ISBN-13: 978-0865478978
Students will use online resources at http://gregorygrimsby.com as their study material. The website contains dozens of
video tutorials offered in a progression of chapters that correspond to the lecture. These are meant to augment class
lectures, not replace them and ARE NOT a viable alternative to attending class.
The website is password protected. When prompted, enter this password:
mason
Game Lab
In the Art and Design building, room 2002 is a monitored computer lab available outside of class hours for students to
work on their projects.
Students will need at least 10 hours outside of class each week to complete coursework.
GMU Honor Code:
GMU is an Honor Code university; please see the Office for Academic Integrity for a full description of the code and the
honor committee process. The principle of academic integrity is taken very seriously and violations are treated gravely.
What does academic integrity mean in this course? Essentially this: when you are responsible for a task, you will perform that task. When you rely on someone else’s work in an aspect of the performance of that task, you will give full
credit in the proper, accepted form. Another aspect of academic integrity is the free play of ideas. Vigorous discussion
and debate are encouraged in this course, with the firm expectation that all aspects of the class will be conducted with
civility and respect for differing ideas, perspectives, and traditions. When in doubt (of any kind) please ask for guidance
and clarification.
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The integrity of the University community is affected by the individual choices made by each of us. GMU has an Honor
Code with clear guidelines regarding academic integrity. Three fundamental and rather simple principles to follow at all
times are that: (1) all work submitted be your own; (2) when using the work or ideas of others, including fellow students,
give full credit through accurate citations; and (3) if you are uncertain about the ground rules on a particular assignment,
ask for clarification. No grade is important enough to justify academic misconduct. Plagiarism means using the exact
words, opinions, or factual information from another person without giving the person credit. Writers give credit through
accepted documentation styles, such as parenthetical citation, footnotes, or endnotes. Paraphrased material must also
be cited, using MLA or APA format. A simple listing of books or articles is not sufficient. Plagiarism is the equivalent of
intellectual robbery and cannot be tolerated in the academic setting. If you have any doubts about what constitutes plagiarism, please see me.
Disability Accommodations
If you are a student with a disability and you need academic accommodations, please see me and contact the Office of
Disability Services (ODS) at 993-2474, http://ods.gmu.edu. All academic accommodations must be arranged through
the ODS.
Privacy
Students must use their MasonLive email account to receive important University information, including
messages related to this class. See http://masonlive.gmu.edu for more information.
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BCourse
Schedule-Animation
Course
Schedule-2D
!!The
Syllabus and Assignment Schedule may be revised, based on
the instructor’s
discretion, to meet the
Week
needs of the class!!
Week
I
Intro
I
Intro; Painting basics
TH 9/3
intro, syllabus review;
TH 9/3
intro, syllabus review;
II
Animation Rotoscoping from video source
II
Painting Basics (continued)
TH 9/10
Animation Due: Rotoscoping;
TH 9/10
2D Due: Digital Drawing 1: Bust
III
Animating for Weight
III
Digital Painting Light and Form
TH 9/17
--
TH 9/17
--
IV
Animating with TCB, Curves, and the Workbench
IV
Digital Painting Materials
TH 9/24
Animation Due: Mr Heavy
TH 9/24
2D Due: digital still life
V
Professor Grimsby speaking at 7:30PM Harris Theatre
V
Professor Grimsby speaking at 7:30PM Harris Theatre
TH 10/1
TH 10/1
VI
Non-Standard Rigs
VI
Digital Concepts
TH 10/8
Animation Due: Mech death and run
TH 10/8
2D Due: digital Self-Portrait
VII
Critiquing Animations
VII
Concepting Characters
TH 10/15
TH 10/15
VIII
Emotes
VIII
Texturing Characters
TH 10/22
Animation Due: Non-Bipedal
TH 10/22
2D Due: Alien Concept
IX
Emotes Continued
IX
Texturing Characters (continued)
TH 10/29
TH 10/29
X
TBD
X
TBD
TH 11/5
Animation Due: 4 emote animations
Animation Due: reference for character model
TH 11/5
2d Due: Concept “Dark Fairy Tale Character”
XI
Attack Animations –Emphasis on Timing
XI
TBD
TH 11/12
TH 11/12
XII
TBD
XII
TBD
TH 11/19
Checkpoint Due: Character Model
TH 11/19
Checkpoint Due: Character Model
XIII
Thanksgiving Break
XIII
Thanksgiving Break
TH 11/26
--
TH 11/26
--
XIV
TBD
XIV
TBD
TH 12/3
Assignment Due: Skinned and Rigged Character
TH 12/3
Assignment Due: Final Textured Character
XV
Work Day
XV
Work Day
TH 12/10
--
TH 12/10
XVI
Capstone Presentation
XVI
Capstone Presentation
Sect 002:
7:20PM to 9:00PM
TH 12/17
Capstone Assignment Due
Sect 002:
TH 12/17
7:20PM to 9:00PM
Capstone Assignment Due
--
!!The Syllabus and Assignment Schedule may be revised, based on the instructor’s discretion, to meet the needs
of the class!!
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