Devlog: Animating VFX

After a little exposition to game design, let’s take a look at VFX together!

VFX stands for Visual Effects, and in our case that means Effects, such as Lighting. With the purpose of providing gameplay feedback and establishing the right atmosphere. Our process begins with gathering references to solidify a general idea and resolve any doubts about the visual directions, especially for specific characters, such as Meho.

You already know Meho, our main character from our first Devlog and we wanted to convey a lot of the sentiments of that character into VFX, which is why the effects are light-based to convey a “main character” feeling that complements her staff weapon. The color section is driven by the character design, so that we avoid a clash of colors that don’t go well. Meho’s effects use blue to match the crystal on her weapon , with hints of yellow representing light.

For Thistle the VFX are flowy and floral, since the name and character are based on a flower. Thistle has a magenta and pink VFX color to match her design and the flower she is based on.

It is very important to ensure visibility of VFX. We use a grayscale layer to check values of the VFX and ensure that the effects remain distinct and clear visually on various backgrounds, preventing them from blending in or becoming hard to look at.

The Animation for the VFX starts with rough shapes to test how the effect fits the character’s attack. VFX is primarily about impact, which requires significant time and iterations until it feels just right. Only then, do we polish the shapes and colors.

To achieve a professional finish, we apply post processing effects, such as Gaussian Blur and a Glow effect to make the blur bleed over the edges to mimic real light behaviour and give the VFX a convincing glow!

Steam post image Now look at this convincing, menacing glow here from a robot attack. Impressive isn’t it? And that concludes our Devlog for this week, we hope you enjoyed our little VFX explanation! Stay tuned for more!!