Team 5 Project Report

Gilberto Contreras, Cammron Keehley, Heather O’Connell, and Julianna Woldstad

California State University, Monterey Bay

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TEAM 5 PROJECT REPORT

Project Summary

The Team 5 project compared and contrasted how the fields of gaming and animation

differ from one another. The topics covered in this module include industry forecasts as well

as employment details, such as pay rate, competition, job retention, and expected growth. The

reports from this component research was very straightforward and easy to find. Mostly

google had a lot of information on both industries with very comprehensive information

about pay rates, retention, etc.

Another topic covered in this project is the necessary skill and experience an

individual needs to get hired in either field. The research for this component primarily relies

upon reports of animators and game designers made from compiled job listings, occupational

experts’ assessments, and analysts’ conclusions. The skills displayed in the component were

selected because they were of a 50% or higher importance to the job according to the report.

The skills in this component are divided into four categories: Knowledge, Abilities,

Technology Skills, and Non-Technology Skills. A total of 35 skills were identified for this

component. Of the 35 skills, 27 are shared between animators and game designers. From this

research, it is apparent that both game designers and animators share the majority of most

needed skills.

This project also included a comprehensive analysis on the work processes of gaming

and animation projects. Research revealed that the gaming and animation industries utilize

many of the same steps and types of positions, such as composers, artists, and marketers.

Although both industries cater to different audiences, they are more similar than the public is

generally aware. For example, both industries have their own regulations, product limitations,

and specifications for how content is produced. One of the main differences between the two

industries is that the game design industry must create their own gaming engine, which is an
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expensive process that can take as long as creating the game itself. Overall, the processes of

game design and animation project can be simplified into seven easy to understand steps.

Learning Objectives

After the completion of this module, students should be able to describe the future of

animation and game design, such as the rate of industry growth and prospective jobs.

Students should also be able to identify what skills and experiences are required in a gaming

or animation career as well as be able to describe the work processes of gaming and

animation projects. These outcomes are relevant to digital artists because they can gain a

better understanding of both the gaming and animation fields in order to pick the career path

best suited to the artist’s goals and aspirations. Furthermore, this topic informs potential

gaming and animation designers on how to be successful in either field of work.

Project Components

Component 1

The first component is an informative video describing the key major differences

between gaming and animation as a profession for future digital artists looking to enter either

field. This video informs students of the both the gaming and animation industries as well as

individual job details, such as benefits, pay rate, competition, and employee retention. Charts

and other helpful infographics will be included in the video to assist in the understanding of

the raw facts.

Component 2

The second component is a compilation of skills and experiences needed in gaming

and animation careers. This information is expressed visually in a Venn diagram of

overlapping skills and experiences between the animation and gaming professions. The

animation portion of the diagram is in solid blue, while the game design portion is in orange.
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The shared part of the diagram fades from blue to orange, showing the connection between

both animation and game design. Each of the skills included in the diagram have a more

detailed description below the diagram to explain the skill. The user is instructed to use their

brower’s find function to quickly find an item in the diagram; otherwise, users can leisurely

scroll through all 35 skills.

The skill descriptions are tagged with icons indicating whether they apply to

animators, game designers, or both. Animators are indicated with a blue triangle (like the A

in Animation), and game designers are indicated with an orange circle (like G in Game). If

the skill applies to both animators and game designers, both icons are used. If applicable, the

descriptions also link to other related skills. In the Technology Skills section, the term “Hot

Technology” is defined using the abbreviation HTML tag and any accompanying external

resources are linked for the user’s convenience.

Component 3

The third component is an interactive timeline of the work processes used in a gaming

and animation project. Students will be able to select each stage of the process to access a

description and additional details. The timeline itself will visually represent the similarities

and differences between gaming and animation by deviating and rejoining where the stages

overlap or differ. This component addresses the third learning objective: Students should be

able to describe the work processes of gaming and animation. In this component, students

will see the process order and read details about each stage in the process, thus acquiring the

knowledge to describe both the gaming and animation work processes.

Development Process

At the start of the project, the group made a Team Drive to share all materials

throughout the development process. The four group members divided up the module topics
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based on the three components: Cammron focused on the industry, Heather focused on

needed skills, Gil focused on the project work process for game design, and Anna focused on

the project work process for animation. For each stage of the project, each member was

responsible for the materials needed for that area of the module.

This project was broken into six phases: research, copy finalization, sketching,

mockup creation, construction, and testing. The research milestone was concluded on March

16 using the CSUMB Library’s OneSearch and supplemented by Google Search. The team

gathered a variety of research materials for the module and shared all sources via a document

in the Team Drive, so sources that contained information on more than one component could

be used by other members.

On March 27, a report of the project progress, current status, and updated timeline

was submitted and presented to the class. The checkpoint materials were created in Google

Slides and Google Docs. Following the checkpoint presentation, two weeks were allocated

for sketches and mockups of the module’s visual design and layout, which were completed

by April 6. Using the sketches as a guide, Heather setup the Wordpress site and theme.

The longest phase of the project, the construction, was planned to conclude on May 4,

but additional time was needed to complete edits for the components.

Cammron used iMovie to create a video demonstration for Component 1. The video

needed to be published on youtube then embed into the wordpress site to avoid upgrading our

wordpress site to a paid subscription. To fit all the necessary information in the video it was

done in sections, job outlook. pay rate, and needed/experience. The audio was done first then

everything else to fit.

Heather used Adobe Illustrator to make the graphics for Component 2. The size of the

Venn diagram was set according to the Wordpress theme guidelines. To fit all of the terms
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inside the appropriate areas within the diagram, the text was written at an angle. The interior

of the diagram (the skills shared between animators and game designers) uses the same

graphic style as the module title. The triangle and circle icons were created with the same

height and diameter for uniformity. Because Wordpress does not provide the abbreviation tag

in the visual editor, the definition for “Hot Technology” was added in the HTML editor. The

HTML editor was also used to add anchor points for description links that linked to other

skills within the same page.

Anna and Gil created a powerpoint presentation using Google Slides to demonstrate

the seven step processes for game design and animation. They decided to limit the number of

steps in the process in order to provide a better, clearer understanding of how the gaming and

animation processes differentiate from each other. To showcase the research on the website

module, Gil transformed the presentation into an interactive slideshow carousel so the

viewers can be engaged in each step of the process.

The quiz was created using Google Forms. Each component has four questions using

either radio buttons (single answer choice) or checkboxes (multiple answer choices). The user

cannot submit the quiz without answering every question. All questions have an equal value

of one point, except for the final subjective question that is ungraded. After the quiz is

submitted, the user can access their score. If a question is incorrect, the correct answer is

shown and feedback is given. The feedback directs the user to the component that answers

the question.

Testing, the last milestone, was completed on May 9. Internal testing included

opening the module in different browsers and adjusting the viewport dimensions to check for

responsiveness issues. To verify the functionality of the quiz, the team answered the

questions as if they were a guest to the site (i.e. not logged in). For external testing, group
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members showed the module to other students and asked questions to gauge the functionality

and satisfaction of the site. Questions included general awareness of the site layout (e.g. How

would you get to the ​Industry Information​page?), satisfaction with the information

presentation (e.g. How easy was it to digest this information?), and ability to use the quiz.

Testing participants were also asked to share any feedback that could be used to improve the

site and future sites created by the group members.

The completed project was submitted on May 10 and the module will be presented at

the showcase on May 15.