What have I made this day for our game Depth? The answer is; a sprite sheet for one of our enemies, more specifically the vampire squid. This sprite sheet will when implemented in Unity become an animation showing the moving pattern of the squid.
How did I do this, one might wonder? The solution is near: I started the day by drawing different sketches of octopuses and squids, trying out their lines of action and conceptualizing their final design in game. After some intense google reserching I found the marvelous vampire squid, which lives at depth up to 600 meters below the surface. They feed on particles in the water, but their name and looks tells a different story. I immediately watched some documentaries on youtube to form a stronger opinion on wether it would fit the aesthetics or not, and then consulted with my fellow teammates. They agreed that the squid would suit perfectly and I could continue with my concepts. I imported different pictures from the internet of the squid to try out the anatomy and made some colour sketches before I settled on a design I thought looked good. From there I applied the principles of animation- more specifically squash and stretch, to give my drawings life and movement. During the process I continously worked with my programmer to ensure that the animations looked good when applied in Unity. When the basic spritesheet were accepted by the whole group during the daily stand up I proceeded to add a final layer of texture to the drawings, just to bring them to life.
But why did I do all this for a simple sprite-sheet? I did it because research and training is fundamental for an animation to work both in the game, and for the consumer playing the game. I did the animation simply because we need to animate the enemies moving, to bring the game to life. But my extended studying of the creature, the animation principles and the approval of my teammembers is what gives the animation quality and satisfaction.
The result, which I became quite pleased with, became this textured sprite sheet, with the movement pattern of the vampire squid:
Elisabeth´s portfolio 
It’s always interesting to have a peek at the research and inspiration process in art production and see how everything comes together with all the work put into it. I personally love the theme chosen for the squid, as much as the reasoning behind it. It definitely is an element that gives more depth to the game (no pun intended) and make it more intriguing. Motivation and process seem well described, although it would be nice to see more steps, maybe some documentation; the image that inspired you the most, the step from sketches to sprite production, etc.
It’s clear how you work closely to your team mates and how things are discussed and approved throughout your process. The post is well structured, although separating the process in several stages might be a good idea for the future (idea, concept, tests, production, etc).
Overall I think you did a splendid task taking the concept beyond a basic element and conveyed how useful research is if you want to add more to…basically anything you do. Good job!
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Thank you!
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