Tuesday, October 30, 2012
Sunday, October 21, 2012
PK HALLOWEEN 2012
Our company was founded in October, so we take Halloween quite seriously. This year we had plenty of new items, monsters and challenges released over two updates. I love Halloween and the horror genre so it's always fun to draw spooky things; and since I also love mythology, I was extra excited that the programmers decided to focus on an ancient Egyptian theme this year.
Friday, October 19, 2012
PK ADVISOR PORTRAITS
I was asked to design the look of three of our recurring characters, who had been described in journal entries but not visually depicted yet; based on rough outlines of their personalities and abilities. Our talented UI designer Joe Horan created the frames and icons for the in-game portraits.
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
PM: MAFIA HQ
We wanted to provide our Parallel Mafia players with some feminine swag options, so I made them a flapper dress and headdress. A feature added for this update was HQ destruction; players can now destroy floating cities known as HQ's. My co-worker Justin, our resident 3D expert, had created the original model. I got to take the model and (utilizing my working knowledge of Autodesk Maya), rearrange his buildings, and then add smoke and debris effects later in Photoshop. I think I enjoyed wrecking his city just a little too much.
Monday, October 8, 2012
PK: AMETHYST DECORATIONS
Our Parallel Kingdom players have been able to decorate the interiors and exteriors of their cabins with furniture and objects themed to each of the gem types available in the game. We recently added a new gem, amethyst, which meant I had to create a new unique furniture and decorations set to go along with it.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
Monday, October 1, 2012
SKEPTIC INK NETWORK LOGO
I had the pleasure of designing a banner logo and promotional images for the new Skeptic Ink blog network.
The figure represents Hypatia, a Greek philosopher and the first historically noted woman in mathematics. Hypatia taught mathematics, astronomy and philosophy in Alexandria during a time of social and political unrest, and was murdered by a Christian mob after tensions between various religious groups and political leaders boiled over. In a modern context she has come to represent the conflicts between science/reason, and religious fanaticism. A movie starring Rachel Weisz called Agora dramatizes the events leading up to her murder (although it contains a fair bit of artistic license, it is still a good watch and available for streaming on Netflix). The lighthouse in the logo is, of course, the Lighthouse at Alexandria, one of the great wonders of the world and an obvious symbol for guidance and enlightenment.
I was drawn to this project partly because there has been a lot of nasty Internet drama going on for quite a while in some on-line skeptic circles, and this new blog network presents an opportunity for fresh perspectives. I don't expect to agree with every author or article at Skeptic Ink, and as some might have noticed, I have been working on art projects with progressive people of faith to oppose anti-LGBT discrimination. As a result of continuously positive interactions with religious people (as well as negative ones with atheists), I've been much more interested in building bridges between religious and non-religious people who share humanistic ideals such as equality for all people and concern for the environment.
But that's the point of an endeavor such as this blog network: to challenge and debate orthodox ideas. Skeptic Ink Network (also known by its cleverly irreverent acronym, SIN) has a clear discussion policy that prohibits discrimination, personal attacks and insults. Conversations surrounding religious and paranormal beliefs in our society are important, and robust debate is healthy. I look forward to reading, and wish them all the best!
The figure represents Hypatia, a Greek philosopher and the first historically noted woman in mathematics. Hypatia taught mathematics, astronomy and philosophy in Alexandria during a time of social and political unrest, and was murdered by a Christian mob after tensions between various religious groups and political leaders boiled over. In a modern context she has come to represent the conflicts between science/reason, and religious fanaticism. A movie starring Rachel Weisz called Agora dramatizes the events leading up to her murder (although it contains a fair bit of artistic license, it is still a good watch and available for streaming on Netflix). The lighthouse in the logo is, of course, the Lighthouse at Alexandria, one of the great wonders of the world and an obvious symbol for guidance and enlightenment.
I was drawn to this project partly because there has been a lot of nasty Internet drama going on for quite a while in some on-line skeptic circles, and this new blog network presents an opportunity for fresh perspectives. I don't expect to agree with every author or article at Skeptic Ink, and as some might have noticed, I have been working on art projects with progressive people of faith to oppose anti-LGBT discrimination. As a result of continuously positive interactions with religious people (as well as negative ones with atheists), I've been much more interested in building bridges between religious and non-religious people who share humanistic ideals such as equality for all people and concern for the environment.
But that's the point of an endeavor such as this blog network: to challenge and debate orthodox ideas. Skeptic Ink Network (also known by its cleverly irreverent acronym, SIN) has a clear discussion policy that prohibits discrimination, personal attacks and insults. Conversations surrounding religious and paranormal beliefs in our society are important, and robust debate is healthy. I look forward to reading, and wish them all the best!
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