Very recently a brand new DLC was released for Rainbow Six Siege and brought two new operators, Watson and Nøkk, one attacker and one defender. It brings many new options and changes to the game as well as changing up the current meta in the competitive world of Siege which is fairly important due to how serious the game is taken by many. This season Siege has changed a few elements of their website and have altered and added some things to add detail to the story and characters they have created. Something I really appreciate is them writing quotes from other operators about the new characters. This helps to establish them as a team and lets us know how close they all are to each other. The first thing we see when viewing the website is the clear image of the first new operator Nøkk. she is a very stealthy operator which is why she appears to be shrouded in fog to show us she’s mysterious and creepy. We almost view her as a phantom or ghost due to her appearance such as the flowing chainmail mask covering her face, her thin clawed hands, contorted body. She’s really effective in telling us about herself through just a simple image and it’s really great as without any story or video we already feel we know a lot about her.

The second new operator is also clearly shown on the website with his icon, name and what role he plays to make this clear to the audience. Reflecting on my project this is something I probably should have done earlier on to make everything easier to understand.

As part of the project it was important as usual to create a risk assessment as well as a location recce. This was vital to make sure everything was safe and all issues were brought up and discussed overall. These can be read below:

Due to the nature of Siege it is important to consider any ethical issues that arise when looking into this project. A great way to do this is to look into the ASA guidelines on their websites which is similar to the BBFC and the way they work. These guidelines cover many different categories. The two I am looking into are violence and threat as well as young people and how the content should be constructed when dealing with children. It’s important to ensure that these issues are thought about to avoid offence, any legal issues or bad reviews that may come about because of ethics. An example of this would be a scene in 13 Reasons Why Season 2 where a main character is raped with a broomstick in the school toilets. This caused massive uproar and many people wanted the show to be taken down and some even considered law suits because of the scene which admittedly was very dark and fairly un nessecary. Although my project is a graphic design project I still need to think about these factors. The ASA website provided great information and insight.

Practice, A. (2019). 04 Harm and offence. [online] Asa.org.uk. Available at: https://www.asa.org.uk/type/non_broadcast/code_section/04.html [Accessed 20 Apr. 2019].

There are of course a large variety of rules which need to be followed and although some of these don’t apply to my project some do. An example would be 4.4, I don’t want the project to encourage any violent behaviour whether in the game itself or in person. This is important as I don’t want negative behaviour to be associated with the project. 4.3 may also apply as I don’t want to mock the military or anything along those lines as this could bring negativity to my project. Something else I need to think about is how children may react to the project as well as the game itself. This is what the ASA states.

Again this is very important to consider especially 5.1 as Rainbow Six Siege is bloody and contains small amounts of language. I may place an age rating on the website to try and deter children as this is important to make sure that the children are kept safe and away from inappropriate content.

Overall I feel that this research has been really handy and valuable to my project and I’m glad that Ive carried it out. I want my project to be as clean and as well thought out as possible and thinking about these ethical scenarios is vital.

Below is my treatment for this project which goes over my project and smaller details such as budget and other key points which viewers should be aware of.

In this blog I will be creating a small overview of my Operation Bulwark DLC and what it will include. This is my final idea and will be the one I will be designing and creating for my FMP.

Operation Bulwark introduces the FSK into the chaos of Siege, an elite unit of Norwegian operatives ready for war. Due to it’s name, both operators will be 1 speed, 3 armour to increase their ability to soak up damage and counter aggression. The new map Oil Rig will blend elements of CQB and medium range combat to switch up gameplay and new locations will help to breathe new life into the game.

Goliath: Alf ‘Goliath’ Olsen spent a part of his life is a Strongman, dedicating his life to building muscle mass and pure bulk. As a part time job Alf would spend his time engineering in a local garage and began to build his own components and experiments. He joined the Norwegian Marines in 2012 and trained for the FSk a few years later, branching off into engineering. It was here he constructed his ‘Kjempe’ suit, a tactical suit of heavy armour built for combat. Due to it’s size, Alf is heavily impaired in his mobility but in the midst of battle this is irrelevant, the suit soaking up grenades, bullets and punches from his enemies. I will be designing concept art for Alf, writing his backstory, creating an operator icon, vectors of his weapons and gadgets as well as placing these vectors and images onto a Wix Website to create a promotional page. Below is some concept art which I have found which Alf will be based upon. I feel this captures the essence of what I want to do and is realistic enough in my opinion for the project.

Canvas.pantone.com. (2019). Sketch/Concept on Pantone Canvas Gallery. [online] Available at: http://canvas.pantone.com/gallery/13532781/SketchConcept [Accessed 26 Mar. 2019].

Thor: Daniel Olsen is the younger brother of Alf. In his youth he spent a large portion of his life learning electronics and studying designs and plans for grenades and weapons of war which fascinated him. He to joined the marines in 2012 along wth his brother who had a rocky relationship with one another. He to went onto join the FSK and went into engineering with Alf, each working on their own contraptions.  It was here Daniel created his thunder grenade, a grenade which would unleash electricity in a small radius, stunning and disorientating enemies. I will be creating art work for Daniel, writing his backstory, creating an operator icon, vectors of his weapons and gadgets as well as placing these vectors onto a Wix Website to create a promotional page. I have managed to find an image of what I believe Daniel’s gadget will look like. The actual character itself won’t look the same in my art but I do like the look of this man.

Pinterest. (2019). GS Evil Scientist Reg | Illustration Art | Concept for Doctor Shorn | Fantasy art, inspiration and coolness in 2019 | Pinterest | Cyberpunk character, Cyberpunk art and Sci fi art. [online] Available at: https://www.pinterest.com/pin/195414071310564071/ [Accessed 26 Mar. 2019].

I am going to start by creating the icons and backstories of the operators and will then create the characters and weapon vectors followed by the website itself. I am happy so far with my research and am confident with this idea and it’ll be my final idea for the entire FMP.

As I am creating my own DLC for Siege I thought it would be important to look into two DLC operators fro the game and their look, uniform, weapons and icons to help me inspire my designs and gather some knowledge of what goes into them. As a new series has just recently started I have decided to look at the brand new operators Mozzie and Gridlock from the SASR and what they look like and how they are presented on their concept art.

The first operator I am looking into is Mozzie, a 1 armour 3 speed operator who uses his PEST launcher to take over attackers drones so he can use them to his advantage. When looking at his character we immediately gain a sense of fun and quirky due to the pose he is striking, using his fingers as guns. This helps us look at Mozzie and know in our heads how he will behave in real life. This excited gesture also helps to show us that he is a fast moving operator who is willing to pull off dangerous tricks and stunts. Due to his helmet we can also imply that he is a sort of adrenaline junkie who enjoys Motorcross and riding bikes and his sunglasses help to do three things, hide his identity, protect his eyes from the sun and show us how cool he is as a character.

Rainbow6.ubisoft.com. (2019). Mozzie Overview | Operators | Rainbow Six Siege | Ubisoft (UK). [online] Available at: https://rainbow6.ubisoft.com/siege/en-gb/game-info/operators/mozzie/index.aspx [Accessed 15 Mar. 2019].

Due to his build we can also see that he is a thin but built man which will help explain his fast movement. The radio on his back also helps to show us how he communicates with his team and views the drones he’s captured which gives us insight into his gadget. Finally, the colour of his uniform helps let us know he is in the Australian special forces as it helps bend in with deserts and sand. I need to make sure that when looking at my characters the colour of their uniform makes sense so a snowy outfit would work well. I also need to make sure that the poses my characters pull reflect their personality and behaviour.

His icon also helps us to understand his speed as we see the helmet and the arrow implying that he enjoys going fast and moving swiftly through his environment. Again when looking at my icons I need to make sure that in some way it reflects them both. The bight colours also help him stand out.

The second operator I am looking at is Gridlock, Mozzie’s good friend. Her gadget allows her to throw down a cylinder which then throws out spiked plats, blocking off areas to defenders. From Gridlocks face we see that she appears to be confident and smug. She also has her shoulders back as a way to display her power. She is also fairly dirty which may be due to her commitment to operations, not caring about her looks and rather fighting off defenders. This also link to her and Mozzie’s love for vehicles. In a nice way she is also not the most attractive of women but due to her size and bulk she comes across as intimidating and battle hardened whereas Mozzie is much more fun in his appearance. I may try to replicate this in my characters by having one of them being much more fun whilst the other a little more serious. Gridlock is also one of the most muscular women in the game and this is reflected in her high armour of 3 and speed of 1 which I will need to consider when creating my operators.

Rainbow6.ubisoft.com. (2019). Gridlock Overview | Operators | Rainbow Six Siege | Ubisoft (UK). [online] Available at: https://rainbow6.ubisoft.com/siege/en-gb/game-info/operators/gridlock/index.aspx [Accessed 15 Mar. 2019].

She also wears very similar uniform to Mozzie and also has a radio to contact teammates as well as little details such as pliers and screwdrivers which links to her obsession with her truck. I will need to take little details like this into account to give my operators their own stories without needing to communicate. Again I also need to think about uniform.

Her icon is a great little design. Not only does it represent her gadget as it is the same shape it is also designed to look like suspension on a car or jeep. This little detail helps us again to get an idea of her and Mozzie’s need for speed whilst still presenting he role in the game. The icon is also shaped like her Trax Stingers once they’ve been deployed which again is a really great touch.

Having a quick look at some very recent operators has been really useful and I feel that I have taken a lot away from it such as how important posing is, what colours I should use as well as facial expressions and how details can really add to an operators character. For the first time Mozzie and Gridlock received their own little video which helps get their personalities across which I have pasted below as evidence for my analysis of character.

YouTube. (2019). Operator Teaser Trailer – Operation Burnt Horizon – Mozzie & Gridlock – Rainbow Six Siege. [online] Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YswLZhVEZ-E [Accessed 15 Mar. 2019].

 

 

One of the most important elements to Siege is the maps. It is vital to the game to understand these maps and their layouts as well as knowing where the defender cameras are. These cameras are dotted all around the maps and allow the defenders to see attackers on them and then gain intel on their position.  It’s up to the attackers to learn where these cameras are and shoot them to avoid the defenders understanding where they are.

At the start of each round the attackers pick a point at which they’ll attack from and these range from 2 spots to around 4/5. This allows them to make tactical decisions depending on where the objective room is and means that the defenders do not know where the attackers are coming from. This is really important for the attackers and each out of the 5 on your team can choose where they start. An image of this selection screen can be seen below.

Rock Paper Shotgun. (2019). Attacker spawns example.. [online] Available at: https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2018/07/18/rainbow-six-siege-villa-map-how-to-defend-and-how-to-attack/ [Accessed 14 Mar. 2019].

Just like the attackers, defenders also decide where they wish to defend. Every room they can choose is unique in the game, some having more doors and windows, some having more destructible walls, some having hatches in the ceiling which attackers can shoot through, some with multiple rooms an little cupboards and closets and of course all of them have their own designs. Defenders need to consider where they defend and reinforce, where they place traps and special cameras to resist against the attackers.

Rock Paper Shotgun. (2019). Defender Spawn Examples.. [online] Available at: https://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2018/07/18/rainbow-six-siege-villa-map-how-to-defend-and-how-to-attack/ [Accessed 14 Mar. 2019].

As mentioned previously it is vital that I begin to think about my room ideas and what the map could look like. I want to design a sort of Viking Museum map for my project due to my theme and it would suit the map roster really well I feel. I need to begin thinking of room names for the map, it’s actual look and how it could work in game as this is important as well. Although I won’t be creating the map in game I need to make sure that the rooms are well thought out regarding size and their presentation.

The best way to become a great player in Siege is to learn all the maps in and out as this allows roamers (defending operators who hunt down attackers) to easily outplay and outmanoeuvre their opponents. This is why map design is so vital in Siege as all 22 maps (aside a few I dislike a lot) all are unique, balanced and fun to play on. I need to make sure that the layout and aesthetic is exciting and need to ensure to ask the community how they’d feel regarding it. I will create a mind map for potential map ideas soon.

I recently pitched my idea to my mentor and I feel it went well. At first my original idea was to create the two operators and then finish with that however I was told (and agree) that there is not enough content there and I would most likely have to much time left over. The addition of a map design would be really useful for making sure my design is as detailed as possible. This would also allow me to practise more techniques with photoshop and Affinity.

When it comes to research I need to go to Reddit and ask Siege players various questions about the game, it’s content and what they think of my ideas. I could also use it for secondary research to find out what people post about the game and what their thoughts on updates are. I need to research how to create shadow and details on Affinity as well as Photoshop as part of my secondary research. I also need to analyse previous Siege DLC’s as this is important to make sure I can make it as similar as possible.

A large issue I need to work on is avoiding copyright laws or infringement as I am creating something that belongs to another company.  To avoid this I need to make sure that what I’m making is very original and new to make sure I am not copying something that already exists in the game. As a presentation method I intend on using Wix to create a website to promote the DLC and will evaluate the whole thing based upon what the Reddit community think about it, the techniques I used and how believable the DLC is.

As part of my project it was important that I had a look into operator icons and their look and feel. These are simply little image which are associated with the operator and their gadget/theme and are usually coloured to represent their special branch. Although they don’t appear to be to important I think they are a great little detail which will help bring my characters to life. A few great examples of operator icons are Sledge’s, Pulse’s, Lesions and Smokes.

Sledge is an attacking operator. The role of sledge in the game is his sledgehammer which is can use to break through walls, doors, windows and also destroy gadgets, barbed wire and cameras. He can also (if extremely lucky) kill opponents by hitting them with the hammer but this does not occur to often. He is one of the many operators who came out with the game and is still very popular. He is a part of the SAS. Due to his gadget his icon represents that as it is clearly a hammer head coming into contact with an unknown object. Although not very large or important, it instantly gives you an idea of what he does in game and what his role is.

Another popular operator is Pulse, who is a defence operator. He is part of the SWAT. His role in game is to roam around the building and catch enemies off guard, picking them off slowly one by one. His gadget is a cardiac sensor which allows him to see enemy heartbeats through walls, windows and doors. He is vulnerable whilst using his gadget but in the right hands he is very powerful. His icon helps to present this as it shows a radar with blip of enemies on it with a background of an eye, as Pulse sees all. This icon is much more artistic, whilst still making sense.

Lesion is also a defence operator part of the S.D.U. His gadgets are called Gu mines and are invisible poisonous mines that Lesion can throw around the map. When stepped on these begin to poison the target until the needle is pulled out, which temporarily prevents them from doing anything. he is very useful for controlling an area. His icon simply depicts an image of one of his mines and again you instantly have an idea of what he could do.

The final operator icon I am looking at is Smoke, who again is a defence operator. Smoke is part of the SAS and his job is to throw out canisters of compound Z8 gas which he can manually activate using a detonator. He is used often in the game and is popular in ranked and Pro-league due to his range of weapons, speed and ability to shut down areas across the map. His icon obviously displays a gas mask with toxic fumes in the background. the mask is made to look like a skull to present how deadly his gas is. I believe that this icon is great and as both Sledge and Smoke are in the SAS their icons are the same colour.

Overall these icons and looking into what they mean has been vital for me and has proved invaluable for my project. When creating my icons for the operators I need to take into account what I am creating and why. Due to the minimal space I have on the icon I need to make sure that a lot of thought goes into the design and it’s connotations such as Pulse’s eye and Smoke’s skull and gas mask. I will consider these when building upon the final design and will be drawing sketches soon.