Category: Art

By Michael.C

Earlier on in development, there were some hiccups in the making, unwrapping and texturing of the models I created. As a result, I have gone back and touched up points of the whale shark boss, the holy mackerel fish, and the bass guitar bass. For each, I wanted each model to have their own individuality. 

To begin, I will demonstrate changes made to the whale shark boss, as in my opinion they are the most significant. 

To start, the whale shark was going to be a biped. While the body doesn’t change too much, the legs were, admittedly, poorly made. As a result, an update was in order. 

Now, between the changes, there was much more attention to the feet of the whale shark, using a triceratops for reference both for animating the legs, and modeling them. 

For the holy mackerel, most changes are applied to the robe. With his frill at the back being a major pain in the beginning. They are also not using the cloth modifier to make the robe flow nicely, and will be animated later on.

The design for the wings on the back come from the idea of manta rays being “Angels of the sea”. A sort of play on the idea of the holy mackerel being a religious figure. 

Finally, the bass guitar bass fish underwent a texture upgrade. There were also a few points on it that needed to be fixed or touched up, little errors that occurred at the beginning of the texture process. 

In the coming weeks, we will be posting about the progress of our animations, and may even have the build downloadable! Look forward to that!

By Raphael Corriveau

Early on in development, the approach to 3D models was more focused on creating some true to nature models, making them more realistic and detailed. This was in part due to some course requirements and uncertainty in the favored aesthetic within the team. We were initially planning to implement a fishing system, which meant we had to make 2 different sets of models, the underwater and surface(fighting) models having their own sets. Furthermore, we worked on some fighting accessories and map elements. In time, with the project being downsized, we opted for a lower poly aesthetic and consequently began modeling with a more cartoonish style in mind.

The first models were produced for underwater fish, with a selection for different environments we thought we would have players fishing in. This included a bass, trout, angler, and schooling fish like mackerel. These were to be used to make the fighting fish models as we felt having fighters looking like their underwater counterparts was logical and would help with immersion.

These evolved to become the surface fighting models which are now the only ones we will be using.

Along with the fish, initial models also included props and items that would be used both for the fishing and fighting such as a fishing rod or a harpoon. With the downsizing, these are now just going to be elements of the décor.

Next, we also worked on some buildings as places of importance in the overworld map we wanted to use. Among these there were some iterations of houses for the character, a lighthouse, a dock, etc. We used basic grey-blocked models as placeholders in Unity until we could import completed assets. The style is somewhat varied as different members worked on each of the buildings.

Last but not least, the model of our main character, Jimothy Jimson. While we had an idea of the silly character fighting the fish, bringing it to life as a model proved challenging and required a couple attempts. The earlier iteration was blockier where it didn’t need to be, and the head was too small. It was a placeholder we used for a while. Here is a picture of our current work in progress model, with a side by side comparison of what we used to have. Jim will be out there fighting abnormal fish in no time. We hope you will be there to do it with him.

By Ben Purdy

With the development of Kick Some Bass Progressing more and more, we have started implementing more and more art assets. Before we could have the art made, however, we had to decide what sort of aesthetic we want for the assets. After talking it over and assessing different styles, we decided to use pixel art

Now you might be asking yourself “Why pixel art?”. Well, I’ll walk you through our thought process. Kick Some Bass is a light-hearted game, and we needed a style that replicated that jovial tone, and for me, that was pixel art.  Pixel art to me at least has a sort of “quaint” quality to it, where while it can certainly be very intricate and detailed, it is mostly used where details are more so implied. This is not to say pixel art is easier to make, but it evokes a certain style and view of a game, that in our opinion suits Kick Some Bass rather well. Pixel art also ties the game to classic fighting games, an homage to some of the games that inspired us. While pixel art may not be for everyone, we think it very much fits the game and its style. The more arcadey feel that pixel art provides meshes very well with Kick Some Bass’s more relaxed fighting game style.

Thanks for reading, and make sure to check back for more updates about the game and its development. Happy Swiming

By Brandon Coates

Our intention for this game has always been to offer an absurd and funny experience while developing our own interpretation on tried and tested game mechanics. There are a lot of things that need to be done for a game to have the right “feeling.” There are games that rely heavily on visual presentation and sound effects to elicit a feeling from the player, like Journey(2012). While mechanically a simple game it is critically acclaimed because it understood what “feeling” it needed. There are other games, like Dwarf Fortress(2006) that do not rely upon art or sound design and fully commit itself to being mechanically complicated but also creatively freeing. However, it still makes the player understand it’s style and theme through it’s gameplay. 

Kick Some Bass is like most games where it imparts it’s theme through a combination of art and gameplay. The simple description of our game, where our hero Jim Jimson catches a fish then has to fist fight it into submission is self-evidently funny. However, if it was presented with the latest 4K graphics and going for an ultra-realistic aesthetic then it would tread in the uncanny valley and create feelings in the players our team does not want. Therefore, we are going for an exaggerated art style with lots of color and exaggerated proportions. With this combination of humorous gameplay and cartoonish visual presentation we hope to deliver a fun and memorable experience.

By Ben Purdy

In Kick Some Bass, when the player is not fishing or fighting, they will be exploring the Island on which the game takes place via the Interactive Map. In this blog post, I will go over the Interactive Map(IM for short) and explain its purpose and why we chose to go with one.

The Map as a Whole

Every good game needs a setting, right? Hyrule, Lordran, Dust2, all good settings and our game is no different.  Now, like all people, we had plenty of ambition for the map. We were planning on having multiple different biomes that the map would be divided into, but with our limited development time, we are limiting the scope to one biome, the starting area where the protagonist Jim Jimson lives.

Why a Map Anyway?

You might be wondering, why use a map in the first place, why not just use a basic level selector? While it would be much easier to have a simple 2D map, the team thought that it wouldn’t serve the type of game we are aiming for. Having a 3D map that the player can freely move around in serves multiple purposes. 

The primary reason is that it just felt right to have a map that you could walk around in, without one it would be fairly bland in between fish fights. Having the player be able to explore the map also allows for more interactivity outside of the fishing and fighting, with things such as signs and minigames scattered around to give the player some more things to do if they want a brief break from the standard gameplay loop. 

How Does the Map Work?

The map is a dedicated scene in unity that the player will load into by default. Currently, it is just a way to get to the fishing and fighting with only the starting fishing area. To enter into the fishing areas, a basic script is attached to a game object. The script detects if the player is close enough and if they press E, and fulfilling both of these criteria will send the player to the fishing area. There are also simple interactable objects like signs that will simply display a text message above it if the player gets close enough.
So that’s the map! Currently, the map is still in development but should be coming along swimmingly (haha).  Make sure to check back on here to see more of what we have coming up!

By Michael Collins

Welcome to the Kick some Bass log, where this week I will post our concept images for Kick some Bass! They are the result of our early brainstorming sessions for enemies, locations, user interface, and map.

To start, we have a page of enemy concepts based on the blob fish, goblin shark and angler fish. As well as a late game fishing rod upgrade. For starters, I’d like to talk about design choices behind the appearance of these enemies. Going with the abyssal theme, I figured it would be a good idea to give these already nightmarish creatures, more nightmarish. For the blob fish however, it seemed funny to give this fish a more buff and outlandish appearance. The idea was to add a more intimidating foe than would be initially presented. As for the fishing rod, we have plans to make the hook fall faster underwater. As a result, a heavy set hook shaped like an anchor seemed like the perfect upgrade.

These enemies were our earliest concept ideas for NPCs, along with a basic fishing rod for reference. The sunfish enemy was initially planned to be super buff, with a little arch over its fins to give it a solar powered attack. The spike crab is a reference to the spider crab. Seeing as spider crabs are more gangly, with longer limbs, making the fighting version more combat heavy with bigger claws, same range and being protected by massive spikes; it would make for a more intimidating enemy for the player to face. For the final enemy, it’s a pun on the name. It’s a pistol shrimp, holding pistols with a cowboy hat. It is a rough concept and despite the genius behind the idea, may not end up being used.

This final page of NPC concepts features two saltwater reef fish. For the clownfish, it made sense to make it very exaggerated in style and appearance, as well as showcasing the symbiotic relationship between the clownfish and their anemone. As for the other once, a more abstract appearance seemed to fit with its aesthetic. As the creature is very colourful, it made sense to give the fighting form some bioluminescent aspects across its patterning. As for the horns, it made sense to make the prominent features of the creature be used in a more offensive stance.

The next series of concepts concern the overall map idea, and UI elements.

The overall map concept was designed to be circular and easy to use with clear areas pertaining to difficulty. The idea is for the player to walk around this map as a little character, and will unlock other areas as bosses are defeated.

The UI for the map overworld is meant to display the amount of currency the player has. This, as all these concepts are, are subject to change.

We though that this would be an effective use of fighting UI, as it is simple and effective at giving the players the information they of their health bar, as well as the enemies health bar.

The final concept is for the fishing UI. Once again, easy to read and effective at giving the player the information they need to find the fish or use powerups.