I was the Art Director for Sword Coast Legends from initial pitch concept to shipped product.
Production for Sword Coast began in early 2014 as an original fantasy IP, soon into production we partnered Digital Extremes as our Publisher and with Wizards of the Coast to brand the product within the Dungeons & Dragons license.
We built this game from the ground up in Unity 3D. I was very hands-on creating icons, early UI, concept, and cinematics. I also directed all of the marketing art, promotional videos used in advertising, and the collector’s edition statue.
After showing at E3 and PAX, the game was nominated for numerous awards including Best of Show, and Best of E3.
The game was released on October 20, 2015.
Video
I was responsible for capturing all of gameplay footage used in the internally produced Announce Trailer. I supported the marketing campaign with our partners at Digital Extremes to help direct Launch Anthem trailer offering detailed feedback.
Logo Design
This project started out as a pitch without a real identity until we partnered with WOTC. Once our story and location came together the game title was born and I began working on an official logo design. We wanted the product to have a strong nostalgia to classic RPGs. I first worked on getting a strong typeface design and then worked on a very identifiable emblem that could be used for identity when the title was not. Below are the stages of the design, the final rendered skeuomorphic emblem was a collaborative effort between myself and two other artists.
Marketing Art
As Art Director on the project, I worked directly with contract illustrators like Tyler Jacobson, Matt Szydlik, Jason Pichon, and external agencies to produce numerous Key Art pieces and Box Art for the product. I was heavily involved in the creation of our website working directly with the creative team at DE to create marketing assets, and offer feedback & direction. I also captured and produced all of the marketing screenshots for various print publications and websites.
These are character key art pieces that were used for marketing and industry trade shows promotions like PAX and E3. The concepts were used as full sized panel art on the walls of the booth. I assembled our character art into one sheets that follow the D&D Brand aesthetics for use in promotions and print. The art was used in Game Informer and PC Gamer print magazine for featured spreads.
Being a D&D licensed game detail rich environments were a huge part of the product. All of our environments had a unique style and I created a mood boards with visual goals for each. I worked very hard with our environment artists to dig through the stories and lore of the Forgotten Realms to help design out a living world for the characters to explore.
Concept Art
These are small sample of the concept and character development I created for the product. This work contributed to character models and marketing materials, including Key Art produced before release.
Collector Statue
As part of the Collector’s Edition box product, I worked with the Digital Extremes product team, Symbiote Studios, and modeler Adam Schuman to direct the production of a polystone statue. This statue measures 24″W x 12″H and is extremely detailed (and heavy).
