Planning and Pre-Production

There is an art to creating a fantastic character. There are so many different ways to designing a character, you must find the way that is best for you, and however there are several guidelines that have spawned the creation of some of the most popular characters in existence.

Characters are there for many reasons. They stick in the mind of the audience which adds a high degree of marketability. They allow players to emotionally engage in a game. Players see themselves within the games and they emote with a character. Most importantly however, Characters are part of the virtual world within the game. They physically fit there and make the experience a lot more realistic which is the aim of the video game!

There are several varieties of character in video games. The most obvious being the antagonist and protagonist. Other characters include Gateway characters (little individuality and constant) Sidekicks and NPC Characters (Non Playable Characters). NPC characters come in a variety of different kinds such as allies, enemies, bosses, neutral. Identifying where your character would slot in within the game is the first step of creation.

Once you have a rough idea of your character, you should begin expanding his persona into greater detail. The more information that you have on the character the easier he will be able to create.

·         Name

·         Race

·         Appearance

·         Outlook

·         Social Attitude

·         Profession

·         Reason for being in the game

be there. His environment is also very important. Time period and Technology should be considered within this. Much like the history of the character, the environment will also determine part of the characters appearance. For example a very cold climate would mean that the clothing would be thick and warm on the character. Reference is also a vital tool to your character generation. Researches into themes which run alongside your character help the design process. If your character where to live in a tree house then research different styles of tree house to get an understanding of what their home would look like. The more information you create, the easier it will be to create.