JEJ
The Jej project involved designing a top down tablet game with a steampunk aesthetic, the player controls a Mech while battling Mechanical 'Butlers' and the new threat of the alien looking Jej. The Creation of these Jej was my responsibility.
I was tasked in the beginning to create a series of alien creatures that were to have invaded the earth. The invasion would take place during a new Ice Age and that they would need to contrast with the robotic Butlers who were the antagonists in the early game.
Working closely with our writer, the story of the Jej changed from external alien invasive species to an interterrestrial one that evolved long before the carbon based life that exists today.
By having an organism that went through multiple stages I was able to create the four different Jej organisms needed by the team. An important part of this later design was an idea of mine to incorporate the Energy Crystals that were of primary importance to the plot and were linked closely with the
Through a great deal experimentation we finalised on the Golem as starting point for the Jej, a biomechnical Mech that would be pioleted by the aliens in response to the mechanical Mech used by the player.
Early Design & Clay model
Golem stage character sheet
Working with the 3D team I created Character Sheets for the various stages of the Jej which were then modeled by Micheal Bird. This was my also my first opportunity to try texturing something that I had worked on as well as being able to see it animated.
Due to the large size of the DERP team the Games Design Document was incredibly important. I was responsible for maintaining the Jej. In addition to the formal writing, I created a visual expression of the appearance and mechanics of the Jej stages includ
The final stage of the Jej, the adult form that has been growing inside the mobile chrysalis of the previous three forms of Jej, needed to stand out from the others to make it's nature clear. Rather than than the 'boss' being the largest I decided to shif