Importance of designing games around a character or a protagonist

Games have always been a quintessential part of everyone’s life. Seldom, would be there any person who doesn’t enjoy playing games. Be it playing cricket in the open fields, or running to save the princess, in character-based game design on a computer, games have always been the favourite. With the onset of the digital era, the usage and demand of computer games have increased, to a point where it has skyrocketed, empowering gaming as a whole commercial industry in itself. Let alone the expanse and scope for game development companies; there are organisations which focus on just managing game duals for the users, giving it the thrill and adrenaline it needs. 

With users demanding for games that are more engaging, having a storyline in place, has forced the game designers to wear their creative hats, directing their focus around character based game design. The very first game everyone from the early 90s would for sure relate to would be Dave or a little before that would be Mario, striving to save her princess. These games had not only children but also adults glued their computers. Few of the major reasons why a character is important in a game can be listed below:

• Anchor Point: The character in the game acts as an anchor point for the gamer, engrossing them in the game to a deeper level. The bond hence built, gets the user to develop an emotional connection with the game, in turn, ending up spending more time playing the game.
• Strong storyline: Having a character based game design, allows one to build a strong storyline, and at the same time, it enables the user to connect better with the games overall flow and timeline.
• Engagement: With the ever-increasing need for realism and hence increase in complexity in the development process, engagement and appeal of a game have become a direct function of storyline and character’s persona.
• Reflection: The prime reason that characters are such a crucial part of the game development process is that the gamers reflect themselves as the game’s lead character/protagonist. The gamer relates himself to the game’s character and the storyline. They try to find instances that they can reverberate with their life instances.

Game characters are more than just a character for the gamer; they are a symbol, a representation of strength, love, and a plethora of numerous other emotions. They leave a strong impact on the minds of gamers, to an extent where the gamers have started deriving inspiration from the game characters for real-life scenarios. Building a plot, and more importantly, a character that can hold onto the ever declining interest quotients of the gamer has become a tough job, now more than ever.

It is true that the era, of one-dimensional characters or simplistic slot machines, is soon nearing its end. 3D games, with more realism, world-class graphics and more depth, are what’s in vogue today, as the market trend sees a revolutionary shift. With upcoming technologies, like augmented reality, or virtual reality, the need for a better character game design is just waiting to hit the sky.

Career prospects after doing the digital animation course

Today, the consumption of content is more than ever, and the most consumed form of content includes video and animation. The increasing demand for viewers to consume more video content has also shot the demand for animators in the market. With this, the increase has spiked the number of students from the multimedia domain opting for digital animation courses, as a career choice or even out of dire passion. Not only have various institutes started offering courses on animation, but there are also portals and YouTube channels that have come up with similar offerings.

 

Usually, when applying at an institute, the features that a student often looks out for as part of the offerings by an institute include:

Course Curriculum: It’s highly important for a student to get a glance towards the modules being covered as part of the course, to be able to gauge the skills and outcomes.

Faculty: The way a lecture is delivered and the person delivering it, makes a huge difference in the way knowledge is absorbed and understood by the students. Having industry experts as part of your faculty team ensures not the only high quality of lecture delivery, but also helps you to get several applications for the course.

Industry Exposure/Connect: One more crucial and the most important factor for a student when considering a course/institute are the industry connects of the institute. As strong industry connects of the institute ensure better opportunities for the students in future. Also, having industry exposure helps them to get an understanding of the industry requirements and strengthen their resume.

MAGES Institute of Excellence Singapore is amongst the leading institutes globally that offers various courses in the field of digital animation course, along with opportunities for specialisation in the respective niches. The major focus of the animation courses remains on sparking the creativity factor and imbibing the flair of innovativeness in the students. At the same time, a great emphasis is also given to the technology, where it is ensured that students can use the respective software as an enabler to realise their thoughts in the form of an animation or a movie. The major highlights of the animation courses at the MAGES Institute of Excellence include:

• Using filmmaking as an effective tool of communication
• Catering to various stages of an animation project, starting from conceptualisation to final rendering stage
• Enabling students to be able to carve out their thoughts in the software
• Creating graphics that are closer to real-life scenes
• Integrating various elements like 2D/3D images and live action elements

The future aspects for a candidate pursuing digital animation course from the institute could mean going for specialisation at the partnered universities, Abertay University in The UK, and Academy of Art University in The US. For students those who want to kick-start their careers right after the diploma course, they can opt for any of the following options:

• 3D Modeler
• Lighting Artist
• VFX Artist
• Compositor
• Match Move Artist

MAGES Institute of Excellence has hired faculties with extensive industry exposure, ensuring that the quality of knowledge delivered during the lectures is at par amongst the competitors. With budget-friendly fee structure and strict eligibility criteria, MAGES has a lot to offer to the students, apart from the course curriculum.