>:|Bennosuke|:< - portfolioLifestyle -

Mechamagizmo

2011-09-26T15:40:00.000-07:00

Please check out my extracurricular design group Mechamagizmo - We're not a company, but we'd be an incredible one, or at least that's the exercise. Mechamagizmo is the opportunity for us to work hard, create and manage a company that falls closer in line with our objectives and sensibilities. It's a design group. Please join us in our experiment, grow with us, and help us become the type of people we want to be.

FIRST LEGO League

2010-11-25T16:55:00.000-08:00

In November of 2010, I had the pleasure of judging the FIRST LEGO League competition here in downtown San Francisco. The competition pits teams of children against each other in competitions revolving around Robotics using the LEGO NXT as a platform.

The competitions revolve around designing and programming Robots, acting as a good team player, and presenting projects where the teams think about practical applications for modern and future technologies.

The league was created by visionary Roboticist and Inventor Dean Kamen.

Here is a video of Dean Kamen from their official YouTube page:

CurrentTV and the Stupid Fun Club present Bar Karma

2010-05-01T16:30:00.000-07:00

Ever wished you could make a TV show? I mean, not you and your buddies with a camcorder, I'm talking have a show you (and perhaps your buddies) wrote get filmed by a professional crew, acted by real actors, and you sit down on your couch, go through the channels and find it right there on the tube? Well, now you can.

Now you can make TV.
http://current.com/studios/

What the club and I have been working on is a revolutionary new concept where you can actually dictate the occurrences that happen on a show you watch on TV. Hate a character so much you'd wish he'd get hit by a bus? Done. Think the female lead is cute and want to see her kiss into the camera? Make it happen!!! I don't know about you, but...

ISN'T THAT FREAKIN' SWEET?!

And it's all up for grabs. Don't like the music? Do better! http://current.com/studios/music Don't like the decor of the set? Suggest something else! http://current.com/studios/production-design/ Don't think your hard work is being marketed well enough? Well, do you have any suggestions? http://current.com/studios/marketing/

Constantly, I hear people, including myself, complaining about the state of television. "Why did LOST end that way?!" "Why did Heroes have to go down the toilet after the first season?!" Well here it is people; we're giving you what you want. My question is...

Can you handle the freedom? Can you REALLY step up? Stop talking about it and do it. Bar Karma and Creation Studios is a golden opportunity, and I want to see what leaders emerge.

Game Developers Conference

2010-03-21T09:45:00.000-07:00

Last week I had the pleasure of speaking at the 2010 Game Developers Conference. I spoke about my experience working in Osaka, Japan and between international borders. The talk was in the format of Pecha Kucha, 20 slides with 20 seconds to speak per slide. It was certainly an interesting experience and despite my speaking very quickly, it seemed to be well received. Two nice gentlemen from Capcom Japan congratulated me afterward, which really meant a lot to me as they are also from Osaka and understood first hand what I had spoke about.

I'm not going to post my slides or anything here, but I'd be happy to talk about it with anyone one on one. I may be giving a similar talk at several other places later this year. I'll be sure to post the details if I do.

Here is my profile page as a GDC Speaker faculty:

So Happy Together: Tips and Tricks for Global Collaboration Between Universities and the Industry Speaker:
Session Description:
Who wants to learn and work alone if you can do it together? In a globally distributed and multidisciplinary industry this is not a question: we have to do it together. Even if working alone we need to be part of a living network. How to make that work? How to set up projects between universities and industry? How to get different disciplines in a university to collaborate? And how about creating a lasting love affair between universities and companies from different continents and cultures? Collaboration-veterans from US, European and Asian universities and industry present 101 tips and tricks in getting and staying together to create better games. Learn what others are doing and implement these ideas in your own classroom or company. Get happy together!

Thank you to those who attended!

Shame of the Skunk Monk

2010-02-21T09:12:00.000-08:00

Check out this game from the 2010 Global Game Jam:

Shame of the Skunk Monk

Brief Play Description:

With the aid of mystical, scent-masking candles, meditate deeply (by clicking the Skunk Monk) to mask your scent and not disturb the other monks!

CLICK ABOVE TO PLAY! - Requires Flash player 7 or higher

...Or feel free to visit the GGJ site: http://www.globalgamejam.org/2010/shame-skunk-monk

This game was made in 48 hours during the 2010 Global Game Jam with a team and jam site consisting of only TWO people. The theme of the year's jam was "Deception" and the constraints at the local level was that the game was to contain in some way one or more of these three words: Skunk, Monk or Punk. There were also several extra achievements that this game fulfilled, such as:
Instant Online Gratification Game
The game does not require a download and/or can be played online instantly
Take Five Game
The game is intended to be played in the span of five minutes or less
Lo-text Game
The game contains no text instructions
Universal Language Game
The game doesn't require a grasp of any one language

Shame of the Skunk Monk can be played on a wide range of platforms, including: Droid, Wii PS3 Xbox 360, etc.

Post-Mortem: Project SOUDA

2010-02-04T00:59:00.000-08:00

Featured on Carnegie Mellon University's Front Page:
http://www.cmu.edu/homepage/creativity/2009/spring/souda.shtml

30 Second Promo Video:

3 Minute Overview Video: (Voice-over by yours truly)

Benefits:
I'm happy and hopeful to learn that some of the team, and their technologies, that were on project SOUDA with me have gone on to create an exciting new application using some of the tools we created. SurfaceScapes, or Dungeons and Dragons on the Microsoft Surface table, is an exciting Dungeon-based RPG experience fully utilizing the Surface's capabilities. Please take a moment to look at some of their progress:

SurfaceScapes

One of the greatest take-aways for me was getting to work with some of the most inspiring people I've ever met. Despite the huge eleven-man team, we somehow miraculously got along very well. People on the team, such as Michael Cole or Whitney Babcock-McConnell, would probably say we bound together against a greater adversity and know what each other is referring to, and no, it wasn't the client, which was another surprising occurrence. We had a great client too! Lockheed Martin was very good to work with. Namely the cheerful and down-to-earth people at the ISGS branch on the East Coast. All-in-all, it was a very productive and fulfilling experience.

Lessons Learned:
Early on in this project, I had concerns, which manifested themselves in a very real way half way through the semester. I voiced my concerns from day one, not only with the team, but with the advisers. In the future, when I recognize the same sort of hard-headness, I won't let my personal investment in the project drive me insane, instead I'll talk with the client directly and voice my concerns. Or do what I finally did sooner, and put an example in place that will show how the group was misguided. I think good leadership involves be more proactive and less passive and easygoing. No team benefits from vague instructions and laissez-faire production. This isn't to say that you have to crack the whip or not be positive with your team, but you have to set some sort of road-map and YOU HAVE TO CONSIDER WHAT YOUR END GOAL IS. If you want to let the path lead you, that is perfectly fine, deviate and build on tools you built along the way using agile development, but have that goal you were initially going for. The outcomes from this project were frankly miraculous and are a testament to the abilities of the people that were on the team.

There will come times when you're not the one responsible for "leading" but that doesn't mean you can't be, or shouldn't be, a leader. Also, blindly "doing your best" is not always the right option either. Have you ever heard that it's harder to unlearn something than learn it? The same goes for this. The longer you work on something, or worse, the longer your large team works on something, the harder it'll be to deviate from that path and momentum you've forged when a clear path DOES arise. Clear goals are pivotal to a successful project and a successful life.

Here are some pictures from the final presentation:

PLAY MY GAMES!

2009-10-05T13:36:00.000-07:00

Some of my games are available here online! Click below to download and play:

HornyBuns is a small puzzle/action game that puts the player in the role of both rabbit keeper and rabbit reaper. (Windows zip Download, 15 MB)

Screenshots:

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A game where you gather fruit and avoid hungry primates. (Windows exe Download, 4 MB) ( XO Activity Bundle Download 2 MB)

Screenshot:

Alchemy - A Game of Equivalent Exchange

2009-05-24T15:57:00.000-07:00

“MAIStryefull merveylous and Archimastrye

Is the tincture of holi Alchimy.

A wonderfull Science, secrete Philosophie,

A singular grace & gifte of th’almightie.”

In Spring of 2009, I designed "Alchemy, the Art of Equivalent Exchange", a board game for 2 to 5 players.

Life at the Stupid Fun Club

2009-05-24T10:42:00.000-07:00

Currently, I'm working at the Stupid Fun Club. SFC is the new think tank of famed Sims/Spore designer Will Wright. My role is concept artist, but I do a lot of creative design work on our various project. Though I can't go into a lot of details, I can say that I'm having a blast so far and I get to work with some extremely inspiring people. I'll upload more photos when I can.

What I'm Currently Working On - Winter/Spring 2009 Edition

2009-02-23T11:32:00.000-08:00

I find myself in the chilly East Coast of the US working in Pittsburgh on my final Entertainment Technology Center project. Here are the details:

Name: SOUDA - Microsoft Surface Table Application and Toolkit Development
Client: Lockheed Martin Corporation, Pennsylvania, United States of America
Description: With a team of 10 other developers, I will be development exciting applications and innovative toolkits for use on the Microsoft Surface table. Lockheed Martin has partnered with Carnegie Mellon's Entertainment Technology Center to develop these new tools.

- Project Poster -

- Project Halfsheet Back -

- Project Halfsheet Front -

What I'm Currently Working On - Fall 2008 Edition

2008-09-10T13:32:00.000-07:00

Currently I'm working on two projects for Carnegie Mellon's Entertainment Technology Center from Osaka, Japan. Here is the run down of both projects (I created all of these promotional materials myself):

Name: The Tea and Sugar Train project
Client: National Railways Museum, Port Adelaide, Australia
Description: Working with professionals from the University of South Australia in Adelaide, Australia and the Silicon Valley branch of the Entertainment Technology Center in California, I'm creating a new centerpiece exhibit for the National Railway Museum of Port Adelaide, Australia showcasing the famous Tea and Sugar Train. I'm working remotely from Osaka, Japan while making regular visits to Australia.
Promotional Materials:

- Project Logo -

- Project Poster -

Name: The Mobius Strip
Client: Sharp Electronics, Osaka, Japan
Description: Currently, I'm working on my third project for Sharp Corporation in Osaka, Japan. I still work in a position of art direction and production, but more involved with the technical pipeline this time. Again, these innovations are not public.
Promotional Materials:

- Project Poster -

- English Half-sheet -

- Japanese Half-sheet -

Character Design 101

2008-08-28T01:19:00.000-07:00

Most of this might be stuff you already know or think about, but if you find any of it useful, I'm glad! I've learned a lot through tutorials and tips I've found online, but some of them can be highly technical and it can be hard to find things that talk about the fundamentals. So, this is my contribution for now. Enjoy!

I think I'm turning Japanese...

2008-08-26T01:24:00.000-07:00

...or perhaps I have Stockholm Syndrome, but I'm back at ETC-Japan. Let's face it, I'm kinki for kansai! XD

LowPoly Character Modeling Reel

2008-08-07T12:15:00.000-07:00

High Quality YouTube Version

(One Laptop Per Child) XO Game Jam - FRUITIX wins 2nd place

2008-07-01T14:23:00.000-07:00

On Friday, November 16th 2007, Myself, Ari Rubenstein, Luther Patenge and Elizabeth Barndollar were tasked with making a full, working game in 40 hours for the XO Laptop on the operating system Sugar. We did it, and we won 2nd place. Our reward was knowing that more than a dozen kids thought our game was one of the most fun! (And some rockin' X-Arcade arcade controllers) I'd say that's worth missing a little sleep. To play our game, right click and download the executable below:

A game where you gather fruit and avoid hungry primates. (Windows exe Download, 4 MB) ( XO Activity Bundle Download 2 MB)

The game was made for the XO Laptop which, for one reason or another (namely the screen type ;p), means the resolution for the game is large, so you may have to go to your highest screen resolution to fit it all. Luther and Ari are my fraternity brothers that I talked into helping me for the project. Elizabeth Barndoller is an incredibly nice girl who was put on our team by the XO Game Jam staff and was a huge help to us. Her website is www.elizabethbarndollar.com. Here are some pictures from the Game Jam:

We're in the center!

Me - Luther - Ari - Elizabeth

I love this game! I even had fun playing it during the presentation!

Ari and I didn't go home and barely got any sleep the whole weekend. Zonks!

I'd like to thank Yoshi and the whole XO Games team for having us! Their website can be found here: http://www.olpcgames.org/

What I'm Currently Working On - Spring 2008 Edition

2008-05-19T14:06:00.000-07:00

I'm currently one of four students pioneering a new ETC global campus in Osaka, Japan. I'm working on two joint projects with Sharp Electronics. The details of these projects are under a strict NDA, however, I have produced promotional materials for these projects that have been approved by Sharp legal. Enjoy!

Name: Toybox and Usagimaru
Client: Sharp Electronics, Osaka, Japan
Description: In addition to being the art production lead, I organize and delegate all artistic assets to a team that stretches from Pittsburgh, USA to Osaka, Japan. Project consists of two parts both of which were under NDA.
Promotional Materials:

From etcOsaka - Osaka pictures

- Project Poster -

From etcOsaka - Osaka pictures

- Project Halfsheet (Front and Back) -

Bardeese

2008-05-17T07:07:00.000-07:00

Bardeese from "Dominion: Total War III"

- Bardeese Concept Sketch -

- Bardeese Character Sheet for 3D Reference -

Blossoming Friendship Process

2008-04-03T06:19:00.000-07:00

Flora and Mori from "Blossoming Friendship"

- Flora and Mori Development -
Blossoming Friendship was a game made for a device called the Jam-O-Drum, which is a round, flat table with 4 drums at each cardinal direction, that is why the title logo above is double-sided; So it can be viewed from both "sides" of the game.

- LadyBug Design -
The point of this game is to help break the ice between two characters that are awkward towards each other by having them join forces towards a common dilemma: Save the garden from aphids! You do this by having Mori, a bug lover, gather Ladybugs while Flora, a horticulturist, takes them in a basket to the garden.

Warhawk Plane Designs

2008-04-02T15:48:00.000-07:00

A while back the PlayStation G.A.P. has a contest for designing body art for the planes in Warhawk for the PS3. I had a little free time and came up with these:

A Dive bomber design

This design is inspired by one of my favorite books: Go Rin no Sho (Book of Five Rings) by Miyamoto Musashi

Dog Doggerson the Dog or Lucifur Process

2008-04-02T05:28:00.000-07:00

Lucifur (previously Dog Doggerson the Dog) from "Lucifur's Dilemma"

- Lucifur Development -

- Dog Doggerson the Dog Character Sheet -
The original concept for the game was the story of a dog who's fire breathing problem was really not as much of an issue as his negative personality. We wanted to make a dog with a chip on his shoulder, but was still cute.

- Fire Bark! -
Dog Doggerson the Dog Barking Fire. To make the story more interesting instead of relying on Seinfield-like gags, we turned Doggerson into Satan's pet dog Lucifur. The point was still there: A crowd with dozens of remotes would have to make value calls about whether to do what is right or what is cruel.

- Animated Comic Book pages -
We added Cat Demons and Rabbit Angels to flesh out the divine forces. Here is what Lucifur's Dilemma ended up looking like. A moving comic book with Flash animated word bubbles. Don't worry, both the "just" outcomes and the "cruel" outcomes were interesting.

Dog Doggerson the Dog Turn Around

Robohood Process

2008-04-02T04:38:00.000-07:00

Robohood mecha design for "The Ballad of Robohood"

- Robohood Development -
If you haven't gotten it yet, Robohood is a Japanese Mecha Anime rendition of the classic Robin Hood balled from Ivanhoe. Robohood is the mobile fighting robot piloted by the notorious space pirate Locksley. As Robohood you must combat General Sheriff and an audience armed with missile-guiding laser pointers and take down the Battle Cruiser Nottingham which threatens to destroy the Planet Sherwood. Progress far enough and Lieutenant Marian will convince the audience to turn their missiles on Sheriff!

- Robohood Character Sheet -
I wanted to give him a thief look while maintaining a mecha build, bulky and sturdy yet mobile and stealthy.

- Robohood Early Concept -
(I had a lot of problems with this design, so many changes were made)

- Robohood Front and Back Toon Render -
I was going for a Gundam/Macross feel. I think I got it with this shader.

Robohood Model Turn Around with Toon Shader

Wheel Deliver Cover Art & Scion T-Shirt Design

2008-03-29T15:50:00.000-07:00

There were two Pittsburgh contests I participated in during the Building Virtual Worlds bootcamp of my graduate program. I usually am doing a contest or a freelance job during major project work unless directly told not to or am under contract not to. There are a lot of reasons I do this. For one, it helps me learn how to multitask, but most importantly it gives me a feel for the art scene in the area and allows me to meet new people.

I happened to win both of these contests. The first was for a magazine cover design for a city-wide publication called "Wheel Deliver". The service is a directory of restaurants across the city that don't have their own delivery service. Instead, they have Wheel Deliver index their food, handle the ordering and deliver with their drivers around the city. Lots of businesses use the service. Here's my cover:

The second contest was for a mono-chromatic T-Shirt design for Scion. I heard about this one late from Fred Gallart, a friend from the ETC and CEO of Electric Owl Studios in Pittsburgh, so I had to whip this out in a little less than 48 hours. I did the original sketch on the back of the flier. Here's the back of that flier:

Pittsburgh is big on Pirates, and I wanted to have a high energy illustration that made the Scion look fun. ARRRRRRRRR! Here's my design:

Tiv the Thaumaturge Process

2008-03-28T05:03:00.000-07:00

Tiffany "Tiv" Althea from "Tiv the Thaumaturge"

- Tiv the Thaumaturge Development -

- Tiffany "Tiv" Althea Character Sheet -

- Sprite Matrix -

Game Demo

Flee Flea Process

2008-03-27T13:29:00.000-07:00

Kyou Kensuke the Flea from "Flee Flea"

- Kyou the Flea Development -

- Character Sheet -

- Front View Guide Card for Maya Building -

- 3D Model -

Character Turn Around

Game Demo