Computer and video games are the entertainment media of the 21st century, and game characters such as Lara Croft and Mario are now as famous as Mickey Mouse or Homer Simpson.

The Art of Game Characters is not only a showcase of the amazing creations being imagined by today's top game artists and designers, but also an examination of the appeal of these iconic characters from the early days of gaming to the present,and a study of the techniques involved in their origination.

WHETHER YOU ARE A DESIGNER LOOKING FOR TIPS, AN ARTIST SEEKING INSPIRATION,OR A PASSIONATE GAMES ENTHUSIAST, YOU WILL FIND EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW IN THIS ESSENTIAL,ILLUSTRATED GUIDE TO THE CREATIVITY ON DISPLAY IN GAMES TODAY. CHARACTERS FEATURED HATIL FROM EVERY GAME GENRE, INCLUDING CUTE AND CUDDLY CREATIONS SUCH AS PAC-MAN AND MARIO,THROUGH SEXY,SASSY HEROINES SUCH AS LARA CROFT AND DARK LINEAGE'S KYA, TO BROODING ENIGMAS SUCH AS JERICHO CROSS.

INTERVIEWS WITH THE GAME DESIGNERS REVEAL THEIR SOURCES OF INSPIRATION,ALONG WITH FASCINATING EAR LY DESIGNS THAT SHOW EXACTLY HOW THEY WENTABOUT TURNING A BRIGHT IDEA INTO A CLASSIC CHARACTER.TIPS AND TECHNIQUES EXPLAIN WHAT MAKES A CHARACTER GRAB THE PUBLIC'S IMAGINATION, AND PROVIDE PRACTICAL IDEAS FOR THE WOULD-BE GAME ARTIST.

INTRODUCTION

1

GAME CUTIES

Cute, but Not Necessarily Cuddly

Insider Secrets: Fur Fightin'

2

BIG BICEPS

Muscular Heroes

Hands On: Sources of Inspiration

3

SEXY AND SASSY

Women in a Boy's World

Insider Secrets: The Feminine Kick

Game Character Creation by Sandy Spangler

4

MAD, BAD, AND DANGEROUS TO KNOW

Byronic Heroes

Insider Secrets: Shootout in Ghost Town

5

FEMME FATALE Bad Girls

Hands On: Concept Arl

6

THE RELUCTANT HERO

It's a Bum Rap

Arabian Arts:The Prince of Persia

7

FASCINATING FLAWS

The Anti-hero

Insider Secrets: World Dominat on

8

MAINLY BY CUNNING

The Trickster

insider Secrets:Night Raiders

9

IT COULD BE YOU

The Modern Everyman

Hands On: The Art of Modelling

10

BABY FACE

Manga

Hands On: The Gift of Life - Animation

11

BEHIND THE MASK

Personae in First-person Games

Insider Secrets: Ship Shape

12

DO YOU SPEAK ELVISH?

Fantastic Creatures and Faerie Folk

Hands On: Game Costume

13

MONSTER MASH

Robots, Dinosaurs, and Aliens

Insider Secrets: Odd Glob

14

ODDBALLS

The Wackiest Characters of All

Insider Secrets: Into the Machine

15

BOSSES FROM HELL

Obeying Orders

A Great Lineage: Square Enix

Insider Secrets: Widescreen

Index

Glossary

Acknowledgments