NoGD Winners
NoGD Award winners are announced on Notes on Game Development, Notes on Design, announced in the newsletters sent to both NoGD and NoD’s over 35,000 global subscribers, and included in press releases sent to all major design and media publications. Also, NoGD Awards are judged by panels of notable industry experts.
2D/3D Character and Environment Art Competition 2008
Aspiring Women Game Artists Competition 2008
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2008 NoGD 2D/3D Environment and Character Art Competition
Winners Announced
Notes on Game Dev is proud to announce the winners of the 2008 2D/3D Environment and Character Art Competition. There were a number of great submissions, but choices had to be made!
Entries were judged by Damian Pannell (Artist, Relic, Vancouver, British Columbia), Doug Oglesby (Concept Artist, Red Storm Entertainment), Jesse Brophy (3D Artist, Blizzard), and Nate Purkeypile (World Artist, Bethesda). Prizes are provided by Sessions Online School of Game Art, International Game Developers Association, and Game Developer Magazine.
Grand Prize Winner: Burton Parker
Burton Parker nabbed up the Grand Prize Winner award with “Thorny-Headed Scavenger,” which piqued the interest of all the judges. Burton will receive a fully paid grant for the Accredited Game Art Certificate Program at Sessions Online School of Game Art ($5355 value), the right to use the NoGD Grand Prize Award Winner digital seal in his portfolio / reel, a one year membership to the International Game Developers Association, and a one year subscription to Game Developer Magazine.
Selected Judge’s Comments for Grand Prize Winner “Thorny-Headed Scavenger” by Burton Parker:
Damian Pannell - “Everything about this piece feels good. Creature concept, yep you nailed it.”
Jesse Brophy - “My favorite of the group… a totally new creature that is still believable. The colors are great and he looks like he belongs in the world he is placed in. The anatomy all looks plausible as well. The whole image almost has a watercolors feel to it. I would love to model creatures like this all day long.”
Doug Oglesby - “Good character concept and sharp drawing skills.”
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Category Winners:
2D Character Art: Lammont Russ
3D Character Art: William Pointer
2D Environment Art: Lincoln Renal
3D Environment Art: Ryland L. M. Loncharich
The Category Winners receive the right to use the NoGD Category Winner digital seal in their portfolio / reel and a one year subscription to Game Developer Magazine.
2D Character Art – “God Of Rain” by Lammont Russ
Damian Pannell - “Texture = Goodness!”
Doug Oglesby - “Good lighting, that leads your eye around the image. I feel that I know this guy, where he lives, and what he’s about. I like that we seem to be spying on him from behind a tuft of grass. Nice touch.”
Jesse Brophy - “The whole treatment is much different than the others. Some areas are a little dark but overall it is very interesting everywhere. I like the exaggerated shell…”
Nate Purkeypile - “This one is pretty cool. It could be refined a bit so it’s easier to see what is going on, but at the same time, as just a piece of art, that’s part of why I like it.”
3D Character Art – “The Pillager” by William Pointer
Damian Pannell - “I think you can go a long ways as a character artist. Proportions feel right, and you took advantage with normal maps. Great work, keep it up!”
Jesse Brophy - “This is a pretty cool character. There is good use of normal maps but also some lower frequency areas that allow your eye to rest.”
2D Environment Art – “Rendez Vous” by Lincoln Renal
Nate Purkeypile - “Pretty awesome”
Damian Pannell - “Nice-looking realistic scene. More emissive lights on the pod would have put more icing on the already sweet cake ;)”
Jesse Brophy - “All in all great entry.”
3D Environment Art – “Forlorn War Asset” by Ryland L. M. Loncharich
Jesse Brophy - “This room has a great FPS look to it. I could easily see some heavily armored characters blasting each other to bits in here. There is a nice muted color tone and a good use of high and low frequency texturing.”
Damian Pannell - “Great job, you put a lot of effort and work into this environment. The mood lighting matches to the type of setting!”
ABOUT THE JUDGES:
 Jesse Brophy Blizzard, California - Jesse Brophy is a 3d artist who has worked at a range of game design companies, including THQ, Atari, Breakaway Games, and Sony. Throughout his career he has worked on numerous titles in various capacities including character, environmental, and technical art positions. Jesse currently works at his dream job as an artist for Blizzard Entertainment. Jesse has a BFA in drawing and visual communication from the University of Arizona. |
 Damian Pannell Artist, Relic, Vancouver, British Columbia - Relic artist Damian Pannell worked on modeling, textures, and gameplay aspects of the vehicles and tanks for Company of Heroes. Well-established in the Real Time Strategy genre, Company of heroes continues to develop its visual quality and coding ease with the Essence Engine. And of course, it also recently won the “Best PC Game” and “Outstanding Innovation in Gaming” awards at the Elans. |
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 Doug Oglesby Concept Artist, Red Storm Entertainment - Doug Oglesby is a founding member of Red Storm Entertainment, and has worked on eleven game titles in some capacity, nine of them at Red Storm and four as Lead Artist. He received his degree in Communication Arts, with a focus in graphics and illustration, and worked for five years in television, during which he received an Emmy and five Emmy nominations, as well as three international awards from the Broadcast Designers Association. Mr. Oglesby has also worked as a freelance illustrator, a potter, and a children’s book illustrator, and is currently in pre-production for an unannounced tactical action console game. |
 Nate Purkeypile World Artist, Bethesda - Nathan Purkeypile is a World Artist at Bethesda Softworks who graduated from DigiPen in 2004 as Valedictorian. He got his start in game development in the Half-Life 1 mod scene, working on mods such as Action Half-Life and Desert Crisis. Since then, he has worked on a number of commercial titles such as Metroid Prime 3, Aeon Flux, and Bloodrayne 2. He is currently working on creating a number of environments for the upcoming Fallout 3. |
ABOUT THE SPONSORS:
Sessions Online School of Game Art
http://gameart.sessions.edu/
The Sessions Online School of Game Art is dedicated to giving you the skills and portfolio you need to break into a game industry career. Classes in Maya, 3D modeling, texturing, lighting, color, game development, and animation as well as elective in fine arts, digital imaging, digital photography, and design, help you develop your artistic talent and build a killer reel. Get your skills working with a Faculty of top industry talent and complete your program in 12-18 months. The full Certificate Program being awarded for winning the 2008 NoGD 2D/3D competition is viewable here: http://gameart.sessions.edu/programs/the_program.asp
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International Game Developers Association
http://www.igda.org/
The mission of the IGDA is to advance the careers and enhance the lives of game developers by connecting members with their peers, promoting professional development, and advocating on issues that affect the developer community. As an IGDA member, you are part of the worldwide community of game developers who share their knowledge, insight, and connections that help to develop your career and personal status within the community. From local chapter meetings, to online discussions, to committee and SIG output, the IGDA provides invaluable information and resources to learn from and contribute to.
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Game Developer Magazine
http://www.gdmag.com/
Game Developer, the print publication written specifically for creators of entertainment software, provides technical and industry information to over 35,000 professional game developers. Each month, industry leaders and game development experts share technical solutions, review new products, and discuss strategies for creating innovative, successful games. Professional game developers count on Game Developer magazine for the most relevant and respected content in the game industry.
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Aspiring Women Game Artists Competition
Winners Announced
In an attempt to remedy the fact that only 9% of game artists are women and they make on average over $10,000 less per year than their male counterparts (Source: Game Career Guide, 2007), Notes on Game Dev launched the Aspiring Women Game Artists Contest with a fully paid scholarship to the Sessions Online School of Game Art as the grand prize. Entries were judged by female leaders in game art and education including Heather Kelley, Sheri Graner Ray, and Cristin McKee. Prizes are provided by Sessions Online School of Game Art, IGDA, and Game Developer Magazine. Sponsors include Women in Games International, IGDA Women in Game Development Group, and WomenGamers.com.
Grand Prize Winners: Amy McDonough Jones and Erin Robinson
Notes on Game Dev is proud to announce the winners. Amy McDonough Jones and Erin Robinson will receive a fully paid grant for the Accredited Game Art Certificate Program at Sessions Online School of Game Art ($5355 value), the right to use the NoGD Grand Place Award Winner digital seal in their future portfolio / reel, a one year membership to the International Game Developers Association, and a one year subscription to Game Developer Magazine.
“I was a little pig-tailed girl growing up in the suffocating heat, canals, and blacktop of South Florida when my father brought home a semi-functional Pac-Man tabletop machine. Between the juicy 80’s color appliqués and the hum of the giant tube lighting the bright graphics, I fell in love with the dusty arcade reject and a newly born art form.” - Amy McDonough Jones
“I want to challenge the notion of ‘games for women.’ Thus far, attempts to court women gamers have focused on games with domestic, consumerist, and cutesy themes: the gaming equivalent of cotton candy. I feel that this is far too narrow a scope. My goal is to create games that are smart, funny, and memorable, and enjoyable to anyone who likes a challenge.” – Erin Robinson
Runners Up: Elise Motzny and Lesa Wilcox
Runners up Elise Motzny and Lesa Wilcox will receive the right to use the NoGD Runner Up Award Winner digital seal in their future portfolio / reel and a one year subscription to Game Developer magazine.
“I have been an aspiring artist ever since I could pick up crayons.” - Elise Motzny
“I received a Super Nintendo at the age of three and ever since then my passion has been for gaming. Vast new worlds, creative characters, and immersive environments—everything about video games inspired me and captured my imagination.” - Lesa Wilcox
ABOUT THE JUDGES:
ABOUT THE SPONSORS:
Sessions Online School of Game Art
http://gameart.sessions.edu/
The Sessions Online School of Game Art is dedicated to giving you the skills and portfolio you need to break into a game industry career. Classes in Maya, 3D modeling, texturing, lighting, color, game development, and animation as well as elective in fine arts, digital imaging, digital photography, and design, help you develop your artistic talent and build a killer reel. Get your skills working with a Faculty of top industry talent and complete your program in 12-18 months. The full Certificate Program being awarded for winning the 2008 NoGD 2D/3D competition is viewable here: http://gameart.sessions.edu/programs/the_program.asp
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WIGI
http://www.womeningamesinternational.org/
Women in Games International works to promote the inclusion and advancement of women in the global games industry. We believe diversifying the game development, media, academic and publishing workplace results in not only a more equitable space, but better products. Women in Games International advocates for issues important to both women and men in the game development industry, including a better work/life balance and healthy working conditions.
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Women in Game Development
http://www.igda.org/women/about.html
The Women in Game Development Special Interest Group (SIG) was formed to create a positive impact on the game development industry with respect to gender balance and equity. We feel it is important to have specific, measurable goals so that the work of the SIG remains focused. Our goals
are to assess the numbers of women working in the games industry in a variety of roles, track changes over time using a combination of available data and primary research, and work to increase the number of women employed in the industry with a variety of recruiting programs.
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Womengamers.com
http://womengamers.com/
Incorporated in 1999, the mission of WomenGamers.com is fourfold: first, to provide a fun, dynamic online gaming site that caters to the interests and needs of different types of women gamers. To achieve the widest possible appeal, all game genres are reviewed and discussed. Second, the site serves as a platform or the dissemination of information about games from an informed, socially-conscious, female-centered perspective. Third, WomenGamers.com gathers information from visitors about their gaming preferences, opinions, concerns, and ideas for the future of gaming, and the industry. Fourth, WomenGamers.Com offers a suite of services that includes customized consulting services, market research, and support services to game companies and universities. Its revenues stem mainly from advertising.
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