GAMERS DECIDE - art

Top 25 Best Viking Berserker Art

austincharvey — Thu, 24 Sep 2020 03:13:59 +0000

Ah Vikings, Nordic heroes of legend, pillagers of European nations, subject of the upcoming Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla, and also the subject of some fantastic works of art. I spent some time browsing the web -- mostly DeviantArt and Behance -- to bring you the 25 best pieces of Vikings-related art I could find.

25. Bad Day by Nikolay Popov

Starting off with a light-hearted take on Vikings, Bad Day depicts a Viking having, well, a bad day. The picture is full of fun little details, including a two-headed orc (one of which is blinded), hairy armpits, and a Viking out of his natural element. Not so fun when you’re the one being attacked, is it?

24. Vikings II: Wolf Archer’s Progenies by Alexandre Imbert

This is concept art for a game, but its minimalist style is unique and charming, and each of the characters still manage to feel distinct. Check out Alexandre’s other concept pieces in the link, and if you’re interested, the game is available now!

23. God of War by Catalin Lartist

This one by Catalin Lartist manages to be epic and playful at the same time. The skyline is beautifully done with the Borealis casting an otherworldly light over the image, and our Viking stands strongly in the center. Then you look at the puppy’s face on the left and it just makes you chuckle. It’s so dang cute!

22. Berserkers by Alexander Forssberg

Berserkers is a series of concept art by Alexander Forssberg, and I’m particularly drawn to it because of how fresh the take is. Each of his three characters feel totally separate, but the style is consistent and a nice blend of minimalism and realism.

21. Viking Life by Ben RC and MilkPresso Studio

Viking Life is a series that reminds me of the PlayStation title, Tearaway. It’s light-hearted and feels like it’s been handcrafted out of paper. Each scene in the series depicts a comedic, fun take on a Viking village’s daily routine, and it’s a joy to look for the small moments in each image.

20. Baptize the Elders by Alexander “Ace” Carmen

Going towards something a bit more intense, Baptize the Elders is a wonderfully dark image. The face-shaped fire silhouetting the mysterious figures standing close to the foreground, and the title itself create an eerie sense of mystique. It’s clear that there is a story here, and I’d love to know what it is.

19. Viking | Coffee Addicted by Rodrigo Cordeiro

Rodrigo Cordeiro’s coffee-addicted Viking is charming and quirky and represents a softer side of the medieval warrior. Plus, look how little that cup is in his massive hands. It’s great!

18. Good Day to Die by Max Mitenkov

A picture is worth a thousand words, which is certainly the case in Good Day to Die. One warrior stands strong on the shore as a ship-full of enemies land, and as the title implies, he won’t make it out. But if we can gather anything from his stance, he won’t go down without a fight. This is true Viking legend, and the dark tones of the image capture the grittiness of war perfectly.

17. Late by Ismail Inceoglu

There are a lot of stories about giants in Nordic tales, but what I love about Late is that it chooses to portray the giants as simply massive warriors. They aren't one-eyed cyclops or loin-cloth toting gargantuan imbeciles, they’re towering warriors in full armor, wielding appropriately-sized weapons. It’s fearsome and mythical, and the art style is beautiful to boot.

16. Duel by korpehn

The framing of this image feels like a scene out of a movie. You can practically hear the stream running, a whistle of the wind as it passes through the trees, and the soft clanking of armor as two warriors face off.

15. Beyond the Storm by Max Mitenkov

Vikings are warriors of legend, so of course they would fight horrifying Lovecraftian sea creatures. What else do you do in sea-faring legends? The depiction of the creature is a fascinating and unique touch as well since it could very easily have just been a giant squid. I don’t know, something about ocean creatures with teeth freaks me out.

14. The Beast by CaelGibran

The best part about The Beast is the subtlety. The beast blends in so well with the background that you could almost overlook it, which in a real setting would be terrifying. Imagine trying to fight a super-strong, horrific monster that you can’t even see!

13. The Swarthy One by Rowye

I had to look it up, so to save you the trouble, “swarthy” means dark-skinned, usually in reference to complexion. I’m assuming this image gets its title from the implication that the ferocious giant in the distance is a dirty boy who hasn’t cleaned himself in a while, but when you can harness the power of storms and wield a flaming blade, do you really need to?

12. The Kraken Spite by caiomm

Do I even need to say anything about this one? Look how freaking cool it is. The detail on the dragon’s face is insane. I also just love when these epic fights happen in beautiful, broad daylight. Smoggy, rainy battle scenes are epic and cool, but there’s something inherently scary about being attacked in broad daylight. Like, oh gross, I can see every nasty detail of your lizardy flesh!

11. Vikings in America by Manzanedo

A part of Viking history that often goes overlooked is the fact that they touched land in America long before Columbus. Obviously, the dragon in the background is a fictional aspect, but Native Americans did fight many battles against the Vikings, and it’s interesting to see the historically fierce warriors go head-to-head.

10. Viking by MattDonnici

There’s not a lot happening in this one, which is precisely why I love it so much. The focus is entirely on the skeletal Viking in the foreground. I almost wish the picture had a title like “Reaper” or something because the idea of the Grim Reaper as a Viking is awesome.

9. Poison by ChunLo

This art style is so damn cool. Like, so cool. It has an Eastern feel to it, especially in the way the Viking’s face is drawn, with his helmet almost taking a samurai-like look where it connects to his face. Also, giant snakes. Freaky and dope!

8. Viking by Valerie Abatzgolu

I know it’s not as epic as some of the others, but hot DAMN I love this art style. Anything that can capture that “Wind Waker” vibe always gets bonus points in my book.

7. Midday Thief by Ismail Inceoglu

Another giants-in-armor style piece, except this time he’s just holding a cow real chill under his arm. I enjoy that the scene is more pulled-in this time so that we can see the reactions of some of the smaller men. There’s a lot to take in, and the art style is fantastic.

6. Viking Thanos by Rodrigo Lorenzo

This isn’t a crossover I ever thought I needed, and now all I want is a Thor comic featuring this version of Thanos, because CAN YOU IMAGINE?

5. Vikings March by derekzabrocki

The way this image conveys depth is really interesting to me, as each of the faces contains less and less detail the further out it is. It sort of gives the picture a hazy, dreamlike feeling to it. It’s like that scene on the beach in Saving Private Ryan, where the sound is muffled and everything is out of focus. It’s adrenaline in a picture, with a melancholy edge to it.

4. Viking Up North by Camille Kuo

I like mountains, okay? And wolves. He looks like a good boy! Also that HAMMER. Overall, the armor design in the picture is sweet, and you can see a step-by-step of how the picture was done on Camille’s Behance.

3. See You in Valhalla by Narholt

This is another one of those images that tells a story, as three warriors look at a burning fire on top of a mountain. Even just the words “burning fire on top of a mountain” are epic.

2. Odin’s Tree by Narholt

This picture is dark. Something about it being called “Odin’s Tree” is really off-putting when you take into consideration that there are people hanging from the tree. The painting style shows so much detail despite having a watery, minimalist style and uses shadows masterfully to convey its tone.

And if all that sounds pretentious, then I don’t know, it’s creepy and I dig that.

1.Viking Repose by SebMcKinnon

Me as a Viking.

In all honesty, I put this as number one because I like how the painting explores the aftermath of a battle. It’s not glamorous, beer-chugging, and feasting. It’s rainy and bleak, and bloody, and dismal. It’s a lonely, contemplative piece that presents a different narrative to the classic Viking tale.

Also Be Sure To Read:

Main Image caption:

From the Viking Life series.

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Top 10 Best Game Art Books Every Game Designer Must Have

Eve_Dark — Fri, 28 Sep 2018 16:14:38 +0000

10. Shovel Knight: Official Design Works

Shovel Knight: Official Design is a fun and different type of game art book. While most game art books offer an insight into the game developer's mind, this book will give you a fun experience looking through some of the pages, that are clearly not concept images. Do not be mistaken though, the book does open the door into the development of Shovel Knight, however, it also has a few fun artworks to show the reader a bit more into the world of shovel knight. I recommend this book solely because it’s a different approach to the usual game art book and can offer a new take on things. The reader does not only see the physical development process but also has a window into the imaginative process. This is something that can often be hard to find in any media, making this a unique and important read.

9. Art & Design of Final Fantasy XV

Art & Design of Final Fantasy XV is one of the most visually appealing books I have ever had the pleasure of looking over. Ever page has stunning artwork, unique designs, and amazing visuals. A game artist should all look this book over at least once, in order to see how diverse a game can really be. It offers little in the development process but makes up for it in the pure art that is to be found on every page. A game artist should take note of the use of colors, and how the developers use them in order to create stunning details.

8. Bloodborne Official Artworks

This game art book comes from one of my favorite franchise’s. Bloodborne Official Artworks offers a dark and gritty tone, along with highly detailed characters and environments. It is important to see how far modern games can push realism, and this book is a perfect example of that. It is a great look for anyone, like myself, who loves high detailed models and concept art. It doesn't have much of a variety as the whole book give off a darker theme, but the level detail is too important not to note. A game artist should look it over carefully to get a full grasp on what developers will looking for as far as quality goes.

7. The Art of Assassin's Creed Origins

The Art of Assassin’s Creed Origins has a lot to offer, in both artwork and education. The book is full of highly detailed character designs, and more important outstanding architecture. I highly recommend this one to anyone looking into become an environmental artist, there really is a lot that they can take from this book. The book has some really great examples of environmental art and small segments on their process, giving the reader a lot of valuable knowledge. There's so much to learn from this one book, it really is a must-have.

6.The Legend of Zelda: Art & Artifacts

Now, this is a really interesting book. The Legend of Zelda: Art & Artifacts is a game art book that does not come around often. The book goes over every Zelda game to ever come out, even going over that Zelda cartoon that no knows about. It’s a really fun look, but more importantly, it gives the evolutionary steps, that have been made in the gaming industry. A game artist can really get an idea of game trends over the last 30 years, because Zelda has been around since the beginning of the game industry, and is still around and strong today. There are many franchise books like this one, but none of them go this far back, making the knowledge it contains very rare.

5. The Art of Overwatch

The Art of Overwatch does something that I wish more game art books did, and that is it shows a little bit of personality. Each character is often accompanied by an illustrates that has a little more of the character’s inner workings. This is always a good thing because the reader can see a little more on the thought process behind the character, this makes the design choices that were made easier to see and understand. Another really good thing about this book is that it perfectly demonstrates that you can have a stylized character without sacrificing detail. All the characters, all though maybe cartoonish, have a lot of detail, and Game artist should really take note.

4. The World of the Witcher

The World of The Witcher has one of the most varieties of characters and environments out there. The book is written more for lore and the fan base than actual development, however, the diversity in this book is too good to pass up. If you want to see want to should strive for, as a game artist, look no further. All the works in this book are highly detailed, and each page is different from the last. Any game artist will agree with me, professional or not, that you can’t be a one trick pony in the game industry. This book easily demonstrated that developers will demand all sort of different things, that you as a game artist will need to fulfill.

3. The Art of Naughty Dog

There are many game art books that go over a franchise, but as far as I know, there are no game art books that go over a studio’s history. The Art of Naughty Dog goes over the whole history of the studio, even having statements from the founders of Naughty Dog. I can’t express how valuable a book like this is, having insight from one of the world's top studios is something that almost never comes around. Being able to see where the company started with, to what they have known, is knowledge I think anyone wanting to get into the industry would find valuable. Seeing Naughty Dog’s evolution can really be an eye opener, I would recommend this book to all game artist.

2. The Art of God of War

The Art of God of War has great highly detailed characters and environments. The book also does something every game artist will love, it section the book based on stages of the development of God of War. Having the game almost unfold right in front you, as though it were being made right before your very eyes. Seeing this process is an amazing experience, that not many other books can offer. The book offers you the mind of the developers, you can see the decisions that were made, and even see things that got cut out from the game. It’s a worth wild experience to look over this a few times, and I recommend this to a future game artist.

1. The Art of Horizon Zero Dawn

This is easily my favorite game art book of all time. The Art of Horizon Zero Dawn is visually stunning, highly detailed, and extremely unique. The character design in this book is some of the best I have ever seen. I can’t get enough of this book, from how the unique the characters are to how visually appealing it all is. The characters in this book are so beautiful, and original, it makes me fall in love with it every time I look at. If you love game art or want to see good game art, this is best.

You may also be interested in:

Main Image caption:

The cursed city of Yharnam in Bloodborne provides us not only with a fascinating story, but also with numerous outstanding concept arts.

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William Chyr's Artistic Background Aided in Creation of Exploration Game Manifold Garden

KurtissL — Thu, 10 Aug 2017 23:11:43 +0000

William Chyr is a Chicago based artist with a degree in Physics and Economics from the University of Chicago.

Chyr worked for several years as an installation artist, exhibiting his work in China, Canada and several states within the USA. His work has received multiple awards over the years for the way it experiments and interacts with space. Manifold Garden, Chyr’s first attempt at game design is no exception to this rule.

Originally known as Relativity, the game was inspired by Escher’s print by the same title, but later the name change was due to the fact that as Chyr worked on the game the focus changed and so Manifold Garden became the new title. You can read more on the name here.

M.C. Escher's famous print relativity.

Manifold Garden (MG) combines physics and artistic space to create a first person puzzle exploration game. Not only does it give the player an opportunity to experiment with gravity but also, according to an interview with We Got This Covered, Chyr said the game focuses on architecture and “impossible geometry.”

MG was made with Unity, at first as a way for Chyr to learn the program. After several years of creating installation pieces from balloons Chyr began to feel limited in his work and decided to turn to new forms of creation. The artist stated that he attempted to learn glass blowing and metalworking, but that these didn’t feel right to him. Eventually a friend suggested that he try game dev and so Manifold Garden was born. It was meant to only be a three month project, but after nearly four years, MG has become much more than just a self made tutorial.

In another interview with Video Game Tourism, Chyr states his attraction to game development as having the ability to create completely new worlds, writing the rules of physics as well as the actual development of the game, “which requires a solid understanding of design, art an technology.” When asked how his previous work has influenced his work with Manifest Garden Chyr offered that his installation work focused on space and that space - how we use it, how we fill it, etc, is a major aspect of the game also.

“The amazing thing about games is that you’re experiencing them exactly as the artist intended…” said Chyr. “If you want to do installation art these days, video games seem like the perfect evolution. It’s virtual space where you control everything.” Chyr’s previous experience as an artist is present not only in how he talks about the game but also in the game itself. Even if it weren’t playable, the design is still an aesthetic worth scrolling through in a photo gallery and Chyr has even used some of the screenshots of his game in his artistic portfolio.

Screenshot from Manifold Garden

Main Image caption:

Chyr working with one of his installation pieces "Moment of Transition"