Behind the Scenes: The Creative Process of Botwars Ascendance's Human Motherships
Dive into the creative forge of Botwars Ascendance with our latest article detailing the intricate process behind the design of our Human motherships. From the initial spark of inspiration to the concept art sketchesl version, we’ll walk you through each stage of development. Expect a behind-the-scenes look at how we gather references, brainstorm with moodboards, and collaborate closely with our art team to bring these titanic vessels to life. You’ll get a firsthand account of the feedback loops that refine these concepts into the imposing ships players will command. Join us as we unveil the meticulous craft that shapes the backbone of humanity’s fleet in Botwars Ascendance.
Gathering References and Creating a Moodboard
When embarking on the creative journey to design the human motherships for Botwars Ascendance, the initial step involved gathering a diverse array of references to fuel our inspiration. This crucial phase set the foundation for the entire design process. Our art team delved into various sources, ranging from classic sci-fi cinema and television series to advanced aerospace technology and military hardware, collecting visuals that resonated with the themes of resilience and mechanical ingenuity central to our game's lore.
With a rich collection of images, diagrams, and thematic elements in hand, we began crafting a comprehensive moodboard. This moodboard served not only as a visual springboard for our designers but also as a reference point to ensure consistency and coherence in the aesthetic of the motherships. It included detailed examples of textures, possible color palettes, structural forms, and even potential lighting effects, all aimed at capturing the rugged, utilitarian essence of human space technology as opposed to the sleek, organic designs of the AI Spectrium adversaries. This visual toolkit was instrumental in steering the art team's creative decisions, ensuring that every sketch and concept remained aligned with the game's narrative and aesthetic goals.
The Initial Brief for Human Mothership Design
In the initial briefing for the Botwars Ascendance human motherships, the focus was firmly placed on conceptualizing vessels that could be incrementally upgraded through a modular system. The task was to create 20 level 1 sketches that showcased a scalable design system across small, medium, and large motherships, incorporating 5 modular upgrades that could attach seamlessly to any mothership model. These modules needed to be versatile and visually enhance the ship, ensuring they could fit logically on designated expansion nodes placed strategically on each vessel to optimize performance as players progressed.
The art direction for the human ships was clearly defined to differentiate from the AI Spectrium enemy ships, emphasizing a mechanical and rugged aesthetic to align with humanity's reliance on older, less advanced technology within the game's lore. Motherships were to feature sharp angles and a robust frame, avoiding overly futuristic designs to maintain thematic consistency. This directive aimed to reflect human ingenuity and resilience, with designs that supported a narrative of battling against a technologically superior AI opponent, ensuring each ship could evolve visually and functionally through a detailed and player-accessible modularity system.
The First Wave of Mothership Sketches
Upon receiving the initial sketches from our art team, we were presented with three distinct options for each of the first five mothership designs. This pivotal moment allowed us to delve into the tangible expressions of our conceptual vision. Each set of designs brought to life the varied possibilities inherent in our design brief, providing a palpable sense of potential and diversity. This stage was crucial in gauging the effectiveness of our initial ideas and understanding the practical implications of each design choice, enabling us to discern which elements resonated best with our objectives and which aspects needed reevaluation or refinement.
Feedback and first iteration
Following the first batch of mothership sketches, the team gathered to evaluate the creative outcomes. The feedback was generally positive, with particular praise for the innovative design approach. However, the Virginia model required further attention; it needed additional structural elements to convey its formidable nature. Suggestions included integrating a bulky side structure to impart a sense of weight and power. This feedback underscored the importance of each mothership's core structure, especially in terms of providing scalability for more advanced models. As the team moved forward, they were tasked with refining the Virginia and anticipating the development of subsequent models—Princeton, Langley, Nakamura, Yamato, and Chengzheng—each with increasing customization slots and capabilities, reflecting their escalating complexity and strategic value in the game.
Here is the updated version of Virginia:
Second Feedback Session with Visual Guidance
During the second round of feedback, the emphasis remained on augmenting the robustness of the designs. Despite improvements, the sketches required further enhancement to achieve the desired bulkiness and weight. A visual reference was provided to guide the artists, illustrating the specific modifications needed to meet the design expectations. This targeted guidance aimed to refine the visual impact of the motherships, ensuring each design resonated with the game's thematic needs for hefty and formidable vessels.
Here is the final delivery for Virginia:
Wrapping Up and Looking Ahead
We hope you enjoyed this inside look at the early conceptualization of our human motherships. The journey from initial sketches to refined designs has been both exhilarating and creatively fulfilling. As we continue to shape the visual identity of these pivotal game elements, stay tuned for next week’s unveiling of the remaining five human motherships.
Your engagement and feedback are invaluable to us as we progress. For more updates and to be part of our growing community, join us on Discord and Telegram—let's keep the conversation going and the excitement building!
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