Week 5 - Final Fantasy 7

Final Fantasy 7 is a PlayStation one game released in 1997. It follows the main character Cloud as he tries to save the world.
The first picture shows the city of Midgar, a city that uses up a lot of the resources of the earth, and is separated between the rich and the poor. Looking at all the grey smoke and metal, the player will instantly assume that this is a city of factories. There are next to no bright colours,everything is quite dark and dull. The area used to be green but since all the city has been using the environment resources, the health of the area has died.
The second picture shows a section of the inside of Midgar. It contains a lot of green but not in the good healthy sort of way. The town looks polluted and the bits f grey scrap metal make it look like a rubbish tip. The viewer will probably feel this place is an area of poverty and full of dirt, making them quite curious.
In the third picture, we see an average forest with a glowing light at the end of the trees. The area is a healthy green, which will make the player feel this is a calm place with no threats. The light source at the end of the forest may also be leading to the exit or the goal.
The forth picture shows my favourite scene of the game. The town of Nibelheim has been burned along with its inhabitants. The mood as you enter this area is a very scared confused one, since there is bright yellows and reds flames coming from every angle of the screen, which is quite a shock when only moments ago the area was full of colours and life. The fact that there isn't a single area of the town that isn't in yellow engulfing flames makes the player feel like there's no way of saving this place, there is no hope left, the town is done for.
The last picture shows the chamber that leads to the evil character of the game. the player gets this vibe that this is a dangerous place instantly by the highly saturated reds. There are actually people being kept in the steel cocoons on either side of the stairs, and the viewer knows this by the glowing tinted blue light that's being admitted from there, suggesting there is a life form sleeping within it. I think this scene was well done, because of the amount of redness and the strength of it, I was instantly terrified when I entered this room. I knew something big was going to happen and it made me prepare myself for what was to come.

Week 5 - Finding Nemo

Finding Nemo is about a father fish who's son get taken away by a human. He embarks on a quest to rescue his son.
At the start of the film, a predator fish invades marlins home and eats his wife and kids, except 1 little fish egg. The first picture shows the father finding the little egg.
The environment is a very depressing pale blue with a hint of purple. Also the normally brightly orange coloured clown fish is very desaturated and  tinted slightly blue from the environment. The only thing in the scene that is saturated is the little egg.
The blues of the scene make it feel very sad and depressing, yet the little egg, even though its slightly dark, makes the event also a relief that at least one of the little fishes survived.
The next scene shows Nemo going to school. The environment is full of bright saturated colour which make the viewer feel happy and excited. Most of the film is portrait in these bright colours which is what I think makes it such a pleasing film to watch.
The final image shows a bunch of under water bombs exploding in a chain, set off by a shark. When the view sees these bright yellow bursts in, what was a deep dark blue sea only a few seconds before, they become worried and surprised at the sudden change. The viewer should feel a sense of danger and shock from the bright light.

Week 5 - Spirit Stallion Of The Cimarron

Spirit Stallion of the Cimarron is an animated film about a horse that gets taken away from its herd. Many humans try to break him but no matter what happens Spirit stays strong until he can be reunited with his family.
The film uses a lot of yellows and greens since most the time he's either in grasslands or desert.
The first picture shows the beginning of the film. The bright colours make the scene feel very happy, and the blues and greens show that the area is rich and healthy. Spirit is a tanned horse, showing off yellow fur and darker mane and legs. He is much brighter then the rest of the pack to show that he is the dominant strong leader.
The second picture shows a darker moment in the film, the scene when spirit gets captured. All the colours in the scene are very shaded, bringing the general mood of the film down. There is also a lot more darker colours then lighter, maybe indicating that spirit might loose the fight. Although, in this picture, spirit is above the enemy showing that he's still fighting for his freedom.
The third image shows a love scene between spirit and rain. The bright yellow sunlight in the background gives a sort of heavenly mood to the scene. The very light blue lake also makes the scene feel quite pleasant  especially with the water lilies too. I like how the whole scene is done in tinted pastel type colours, making it look every calming.
In this last picture, it shows spirit running away from a forest fire. The scene shows a bit of dark forest but mainly highly saturated reds and yellow from the flames. This makes the scene feel very dangerous and worrying. The flames also highlight half of spirit, making him seem like he's being over come by this force of nature. The scene makes the viewer feel nervous and edgy, worrying about what's going to happen next.

Week 4 - The Princess And The Frog

The Princess and the frog is a Disney film released in 2009. The story is about a girl in new Orleans that kisses a frog in hopes she will turn it into a prince. Instead she herself turns into a frog, so they both embark on a quest to restore themselves to what they were.
The first piece on concept shows the inside of a very warm and inviting looking interior.The colours surrounding the picture are quite saturated pinks, reds and yellows, making the place feel quite girlie. Since these colour take up about 70% of the picture, it makes me feel like this scene has no threats going on in it.
The lady at the other end of the scene is being shown in white but with a light blue moon light shining from above her. since the light takes up a good third of the picture, I can assume the character must be of some importance. I also think since all the colours around her are light and airy that she must be a good person, maybe even a very cheerful person. Also the fact that all the other animals in the scene are looking upwards at her suggests she is maybe admired or powerful.
In the second picture the environment is very damp, dark a gloomy. The blues show that its night but the darker colours make me feel like the swamp looking place isn't safe. Since the blues take up most of this picture, I'm guessing the environment is much bigger then what id seems, it also looks quite cold and unwelcoming.
The thing that changes the mood of the picture is the small boat in the middle. The boat is giving out a little red and yellow light. compared to the rest of the picture, that is smothered in blue, the red light looks very small, but since its above the darker blues, it seems a little more safe then the outside environment. The warm colours show there there is life living within that boat where as the swamp looks deserted.
The final picture shows 3 people in a green and pink lit environment. There is a lot more pink towards the start of the room where the 2 men stand, and their clothes also reflect the pinky colour. The pinkness of this area makes it seem like they are safe at that distance but not to get any closer, as it seems the pink lights fade down the hallway. I also think that this may not be the case, maybe the pink light it a hint of playfulness, maybe the man at the other side of the room has identified his targets and the people highlighted in pink, are it, and perhaps he used these lights to draw them in on his trick.
One thing is for certain, the man at the other end of the room, that is completely highlighted in a light green, isn't giving off a nice vibe. The tiny yellow table makes the place look a little inviting, but the green light looks like the man is evil and actually planning something nasty. Even though the colours in this picture are quite balanced, it seems the scene is warmer rather then colder, but the complimentary colours clashing together gives it a rather twisted feel.
The other man, shown in yellow, looks a bit out of his comfort zone, being bombarded by the bright colours, but the primary colours he's wearing show strength, maybe pride, and from the way his hands are placed I'm guessing he's looking down on the man towards the end of the hall.

Week 4 - Borderlands 2

Borderlands 2 is a first person shooter game with a very stylized comic book look to it.
The aim of the game is to stop handsome jack from opening the vault and controlling the creature inside.
The first picture shows the character Zero fighting a lot of bug looking enemies  The creatures colour pallets consist of a harmonious yellows and reds. The scene is also mainly covered in shades of yellow from the light source above the scene and from the yellowy smoke on the floor. The redness of the enemy may also show how hostile or strong it is compared to the smaller yellowish ones in the background.
Zero is shown in black but his sword is a very bright glowing blue. Since the red and yellow tones seem to be covering most of the scene we can guess that either these enemies are very powerful or there are a large number of them. Zeros blue sword being small compared to the other bright colours shows he's going to have a hard time, but his stance shows that he's ready for what ever is to come.
The yellow light being ahead of zero may also suggest that he's on the path to justice, as also the fact his sword is blue, telling the players he's a hero not a villain.
The next image shows the female character Maya using her attack, a big round purple energy orb. The orb is tinting everything in the scene purple or blue colours meaning that this attack has great power and also means that Maya has control of the situation.
The last 20% of the colours in the scene are the small yellow robot that isn't tinted by the purple. Judging from the amount of his colour that is in the scene and from the way he looks like he's backing off, it seems he is loosing the battle. His yellow colour is also more shaded compared to the explosion of yellow coming from the other players gun, maybe meaning that the robot is much weaker to the weapon and is definitely going to lose.
The last image shows the little robot (Claptrap) being held up by the enemy. Once again the weaker one is being depicted in a light yellow colour where as the Huge monster and the rest of the environment is in whites and blues.
The claptraps colours being so small in the image shows he is probably going to get crushed by this monster but also that fact that the monsters colours and design matches the environment must mean this is where he usually lives and so is used to fighting in these cold condition, where as the claptrap looks out of place entirely.

Week 4 - Infamous

Infamous is a game mainly based around a karma system.
The game begins with Cole, a delivery driver, who is delivering a package from an unknown costumer. His curiosity gets the better of him and he opens the package.
The special item causes an explosion that wipes out half the city. For some reason Cole doesn't die, but instead obtains the power to control electricity.
Through the game Cole has to make Decisions that will effect people around him, he can either choose the good path, or the path of evil.
The first piece of picture shows Cole with his new powers. The city is in ruin, most of it being incredibly dark and smokey, with bright red fires down the road. The darkness in the picture shows that city is in a really bad way, where as Cole its wearing bright yellow and its glowing a light colour.
Since 80% of the picture is darkness and Cole, even thought small in proportion to everything else, is the only one lit up, I assume that the picture is telling us, the city is destroyed,  but there is still a little ray of hope, someone with power who can change the fate of the city. I think it also means, because there is so much darkness, that Cole has a very hard and tedious journey ahead of him.
The stance Cole is portraying in the picture makes me feel like he might only be observing the ruins, but as he's looking down and has a sort of powerful pose, it also feels like he has control of the situation and is willing to do something about it.
In the next picture, Cole has 2 different types of electricity power. Through the game, depending on the choices you make (good or evil) your electricity starts to change colour, evil being red and good being blue. In the picture both the blues and reds weigh out 50% of the area each. From this I can tell that Cole has a choice, both paths hard but equal and just as powerful as the other. I also can see that the glow from each of the lights effects the colour of the buildings behind Cole which might be describing the effects his choices will have on the environment.
One other thing I noticed about the game is, if you start going towards the evil path, the sky slowly starts to go red. In the third picture, it depicts a typical environment most likely towards the start of the game. It has a blue sky and everything has a slightly light blue tint, weighing out the red fiery chaos of the petrol station. The blue tints make the scene feel calm and as if these minor problems can be solved.
However, in the in the forth picture, the scene differs largely from the previous. Cole has made bad evil decisions through the game and turns the whole city into a disaster zone. The red sky forces a red tint on all the buildings in the area and matches the appearance of Cole as well. Id say about 90% of this scene is soaked in dark and light reds, with a few broken colours hear and there. Just observing the picture you can tell instantly that the evil side of Cole has won, and he's brought the city down with him. Cole has a brighter red on his hands and arms, maybe meaning that he is the god of all this chaos that has been caused.