For the Creative Types: Your Gaming Muses

[o.pwuaioc]

This is a three part question, one to show some love to this neglected sub-forum. Who here is a creative type? I.e., do you write, draw, paint, create digitally, compose, weld, or sculpt? First question is, do you draw any influences from video games? Secondly, where else do you draw inspiration?

I'll start: I mostly write. In fact, writing is mandated in my field, and my professors lamented more than once that I often have too much style or "panache" (in one professor's words) in my papers. For pleasure, I also write poetry, essays, drama, and lately fiction. Games have always been a creative influence for me - probably beginning with drawing new and imaginative Mortal Kombat characters when the game first came out, to making my own pen and paper RPG storyline/game after FFII. Lately, I started thinking about the progression of strength in RPGs, and how I can appreciate the ones that have a logical reason for getting stronger. I especially appreciate how Ogre Battle 64 does this, with each new stronger army logically stronger according to the storyline (I won't spoil it, but anyone who's played it knows what I'm talking about).

For the second answer, man, Carl Sagan's Cosmos still really gets me. I mean, who isn't humbled by the Pale Blue Dot speech? I sat there with my pizza and beer last night and I stayed up way later than I should have because good ol' Carl got my brain moving again.

[BoringSupreez]

I draw really short graphic novels (like 2-3 pages), which I only call "graphic novels" because they're too long to call comics (comics are only 3-4 panels long). They aren't serious at all, usually just some superhero type having adventures that I find funny. I also write fiction, once more, just short stupid stuff to make me and maybe my brothers laugh. Usually it's just stand-alone stuff, although recently I've started writing out the stories of my comics before I draw them, I find it really improves the quality. I draw little/no inspiration from videogames, at least not directly. My stuff is far more heavily influenced by comics and cartoons. I don't like to do videogame stuff in my comics, except as an occasional parody. I find that the video-game centric comic has been done too many times already, the field is full except for the very best.

[BRIK]

I'm currently doing a course in Games Development which includes a lot of 3d and Photoshop, all obviously game related. I also love to write (you can see my blogs in my sig) one of which is about gaming. All my other work is either music or sci-fi orientated.

[sevin0seven]

as some people know in this forum, i create custom cover for video games on one of my thread here. i also use to draw comics years ago and i still do art design every now and then when there is a project available. i also wrote a few songs with friends where i included i love to play street fighter (it was rap) back in 2005-06. i have a love for writings but never finish any of my stories. i love arts in many forms.

[NintendoLegend]

Who here is a creative type? I.e., do you write, draw, paint, create digitally, compose, weld, or sculpt?

I write. I do not write nearly as much fiction as I used to, as non-fiction pays much better (or, more accurately, it is easier to keep a foothold in the market), but I suppose I would still consider myself a creative type.

First question is, do you draw any influences from video games?

Absolutely. I played video games so much growing up that their influence on my mind and personality are undeniable and, really, inevitable when I pour into any other medium. As far as a direct influence on plot, characterization, etc., it would be more difficult for me to point to that, though my novella One Day deals largely with immersive virtual reality experiences which could be considered akin to gaming.

Secondly, where else do you draw inspiration?

I am one of those annoying creative types who insists that everything encountered in inspiration whether you want to realize it or not.

... that being said: Movies. I love video games, but I also love movies, and pieces of both are used to craft the fictional worlds in my head.

[Key-Glyph]

I've been putting my creative energies toward musical pursuits lately, and a good portion of them are directly motivated by video games. I'm frequently compelled to figure out my favorite games' tunes by ear and to play them on different instruments, and hope to some day make recordings of my efforts. (Nothing of professional quality, mind you; this is just for fun.) Right now I'm focusing on transcribing one or two NES songs to be playable on a punchcard music box. I also have plans to record myself playing other songs as my own clarinet ensemble, but that's on hold for now -- as is delving further into pure chiptune composition with Nanoloop and my Apple IIe. So many things to do! Never enough time!

I’m inspired by musicians such as lftkryo, inventor of the Chipophone (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W1ljyAsdCg0); CamWilkinson, a cellist (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLzR2RCRs40), DocJazz, an ocarinist (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bm-mPob7E4o), and Daniel Tidwell, an electric guitarist (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8NWDSSpgXs), all of whom play great video game covers; and Bit Shifter, the chiptune artist (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=13C3Ksbfvf0&hd=1), to name a few. Not to mention the entire OCRemix community.

I'm fascinated by shifting things around on the nature-technology spectrum, and by that I mean taking something technological (e.g. a video game sprite) and interpreting it through an organic medium (e.g. cross stitch), and vice-versa (arranging an instrumental score in chiptune). It makes you appreciate both sides in totally new ways. Take rendering pixilated artwork in cross stitch: when each little square has been stitched by hand and you can even run your finger along them, you really slow down and consider each pixel. From admiring the time and effort the stitcher put into reproducing the image, you find yourself admiring the artistry and technology of the original sprite in a way you might not have otherwise. Check out http://www.spritestitch.com and the forums there for amazing nerdy crafts.

Also, I want to be a cyborg. It all fits together somehow.