Developing the Templar armor

I continued to develop the designs i have started last time, and i have played around with the background, solely for practice purposes, and this would not be used for my final presentation, as i want the 3 factions all presented the same. Therefore in the end i would keep the page layout for the factions the same.
I played around with the cape and tried hood option . I am quite happy with layout, as i feel that it is exactly what i was trying to achieve after looking through my visual researches. Although i like the hooded version, i think i would in the end choose the one without good. As it look more heroic, instead of hiding under the hood.

I then started to plan my next step which is to created a male version of this armor. I started by constructing a male model for the base.

Then i started to map out the shapes, in relation to the female version of the armor.

Once the model base is done, i began to piece the armor on. Then i started cleaning up and refine details for both versions to make them work well together. And this is a mock up of what the draft sets look like right now. And this would be eventually how i would the lay the figures out for my final.

Visual Research: Destiny and response drawings.

Destiny by Bungie was a game i have came across before and mentioned briefly in on my previous posts.
As i continue to gather ideas for the Templar costume, i looked closer at the still in development game and the concept art. Destiny is said to be a scifi fantasy game, combining the aesthetic and elements of the mystical magic with hi-tech weapons and armor. Therefore this game would be a great visual reference i can get inspired by for my project.
I was especially intrigued when i saw some of the newly released concept art to promote the game. As i see that they have concepts of knight like mechanical battle armors, similar to what i was imagining. With the elaborately decorated chest plate. Additionally, in many of the concepts i see the use of cape and hoods which i mentioned in the last entry, as something i would like to try.
These concept arts is very useful to give me ideas on how to combine fabric materials with hard armors. To pull my ideas together i did some quick drafts and sketches:

 i started putting shapes together to map out the plating and how i would incorporate the cape in. I did some reading and research into classic armors, and that's where i got the idea of the shoulder piece from. As it was described that gladiators would charge with that shoulder with the guard on.
I also started looking at how to also make the whole set more interesting and more balanced. Therefore i experimented with adding a banner to the belt which would hang at the back, with the Templar logo to portray their arrogance in their faction and what they stand for.

I want the Templar models to appear prideful and heroic, in contrast to the Illuminati models bases. Again the this is not anyone in particular, but i do want to create a detailed illustrated face to work with the whole piece, worthy of final presentation.

At the moment i quite like the progress i am making. I will now work towards on creating a male model as well and also experiment with similar plating for the male version.

Gathering ideas for the Templars

In the Secret World, the Templars are seen as very proud of their traditions and their glory history. They believe they superior, and that they are holy fighters, saving the world. It is mentioned that the faction is no longer about religion but instead the belief that they are in the right, and that they are the good fighting the evil. The rivalry between the Templar and the Illuminati is very obviously and out in the open. As Illuminati is the image of dark and ruthless, and Templar is about being heroic and righteous. Looking at the inagme uniforms, it shows that they are very inspired by the traditional Templar knight attires. The costumes are very military looking and formal, almost arrogant.

From looking at the Templar base it also shows how much pride the Templars have. Great marbled halls, grand classical paintings etc. Very different to Illuminati's base that is hidden underground, the Templar base is out in the open and they are not afraid to show their power. Therefore the player get a sense of magnificence, almost noble. Color scheme of the Templar is mainly red, white and black. This is very traditional and true to the Templar historically. Thus this is the color palette i want to work with.

To get inspired, I started to gather imageries of traditional Templar knights. And i came across a game called Hellgate: London.

This is great inspiration for me, as it also incorporates scifi quality with the use of advanced technology and body armor, but combining the concept of traditional Templar knight armor, old magics and demons. This is very useful as reference for me, as i imagined what i would design would in a way echo this essence. I was to play around with more symbolic decorative garments like capes to push the idea of knights even further. 

Refining drafts for Illuminati

With more experiments and alterations i have developed the Illuminati armor for the male and female to resemble each other.
This is my first faction set, and i am quite happy how it turned out. As i think i balanced the fantasy aspect with the idea of armor. The change i made the most is on the female set, as i felt that it was too much like the mmo example i used before (Tera online), and i did not find that style very interesting, as it's almost alittle too generic. Therefore i created more armor for her, but kept the cutting to hint the flamboyant feel of the Illuminati faction.

I then moved onto laying out background rendering ideas. Referring to my researches. i chose to have the gradient to be darker at the top and light towards the bottom, as it brings out the faces.
I have also added the logo of the Illuminati from the game into the background to represent the faction, also it make the illustration look more finalized for presentation. Over all i am satisfied with how this turned out. I also feel like i am improving, style wise.

The game fantasy of dressing and costuming

As i continue to research game costume designs and looking through many concepts arts i begin to ask myself what is the role of costuming in the game industry. As a gamer myself i note myself attracted to the aesthetic designs of games, which present the essence of a game and ofcause visually artistic and satisfying to look at during gameplay. As a huge part of gaming is about fulfilling an unrealistic fantasy of being in another world, to immerse yourself into the world mentally and visually. This is why stereotypically games are believed to be made by men for men. By making women dress less in battle, and men in full body armor to express masculinity.

The above is an example of how differently male and female are presented in the majority of popular massive multiplayer online games these days. Visually stunning graphics and very intricate armor details. However the differences in the amount of armor and the way genders are portrayed is interestingly very subjective. Along with the unrealistic armor, the style of the figures were also made to look like something straight out of fantasy. The unnatural curve of the spine, unreal proportions, are just some of the characteristics of the fantasy game world. To study images like this it is clear the most designs actually serve no real practical or protection purposes. Instead most of it are there just to look good for the viewers.
Which again ties in with the unreal aspect of gaming and its society. While a player can achieve and do anything in a game they choose, they can also choose to dress their avatars just the way they like. This enables a player to take on a whole different identity that is an extension of their real life identity. Players would judge eachother depending the portion of personality they get to see in the game world as well as the way they stylise their characters. Interestingly very similar to how the real world functions.
As a gamer myself i have personally witnessed complete strangers, countries apart, upsetting eachother or pursue one another for a relationship, from the attraction they feel for the other's avatar in this cybernetic social space.
Therefore in a way, i feel that the visual deigns of a game, mainly the costumes, serves a large purpose in self expression online. Which is exactly as how fahsion functions in the real world.

One interestin article i found: Gender Comparisons within Reenactment costume describes:

" Fantasy is a topic of interest not only to scholars in the clothing field but also to professionals interested in the role that fantasy plays in individuals' lives. Fantasy and daydreams are believed to play important functions by reflecting current concerns, regulating moods, organizing experiences, providing self-relevant information, facilitating learning, and stimulating decision making (Klinger, 1990; Singer, 1983). Klinger (1971) defined fantasy as all-mental activity, as we come to know it through participants' verbal reports, except for instrumental problem solving and the processes involved in the scanning of external stimuli. The element that distinguishes problem solving from fantasy is that during problem solving, participants experience a sense of effort, whereas fantasy feels spontaneous. A person's level of fantasyproneness has been studied by researchers interested in predicting the occurrence of imagery, imagination, hypnosis, and creativity (Lynn & Rhue, 1986; Wilson & Barber, 1983). Fantasy-proneness is defined as participants' ability to "set the theme, and then an imaginative scenario unfolds that has some of the characteristics of a dream and some of a motion picture" (Wilson & Barber, 1983, p. 342). Perhaps those who are involved in reenactments look forward to weekends when they can shed their workday dress and indulge in serious play acting. Currently, research in clothing and textiles cannot help scholars explain the role that dress plays in allowing people to escape their everyday lives and explore less serious parts of the self"

 http://wesclark.com/jw/costume.html

This reinforces on what i mentioned about the detachment from the real world and practicality. Therefore for my own project, my designs and ideas are not restricted to reality.

Another function is the pleasure of customizing and being different. There are many games that do not stick to the less armor is more mold. Such as my favourite game Mass effect.

Women can be just as well protected just as men are in Mass effect. And its the sleek, science fictionly rich designs that is the allure for many fans of Mass effect. As it visually seduces players.
However even with full body armor, players take in great pleasure of changing their armor colors, patterns, helmet or no helm. Therefore the costomization options are still there to satisfy the want to be an indivual and different.What is different of games like Mass effect and the ones such as Tera Online, is the fact that Mass effect is story driven and it is single console. Meaning that the player go through the story by themselves. Tera Online or any other massive online multiplayer games are player community driven. The story side of the games gets toned down, with very shallow back stories. Players play for the community and with eachother to make the game fun. Therefore visually, games like these need to be part of the main focus for attracting players wanting to continue playing and spend money on buying the latest fashion from store. Which is part of the main income source for the developers.

Which led me to come back to my own project on The Secret World. The Secret World is also an massive multiplayer online title. Very different style to games such as Tera Online, but concept wise similar. Players are still attracted to what is avaliable to wear in the game, and how they can dress themsevles. Many ingame prizes or achievements for defeating certain bosses are clothing items. Which would drive players to play just to get a certain outfit.
For me to make works to fit the game i need to consider what are the aspects of The Secret World that is visually unique, that make people want to be part of this virtual world. Such as the feel of the game, the concept of old magic and technology coming together in a modern setting is mentally and visually interesting. And this is the idea i want to explore with my works, creating designs that is a combination of the old, the modern and the futuristic which would reflect the essence and style of the game.