Meet The Artist Monday - Concept Art for Dino Park NPCs

Dinosaur Park: Primeval Zoo is mainly about the cute dinosaurs, but also about an amusement park. Therefore, funny NPCs can’t be missing in the game. And who is behind all the funny characters? At upjers these are of course created by some graphic artists.
We picked Björn for Meet The Artist Monday. He created the concepts for the NPCs at the very beginning of the development phase. And these were his “example characters”:

How did you come up with these characters? Were there any specifications from the game design team?

Björn: “The game design specifications were actually quite simple: cartoon characters that fit into an amusement park. I then simply imagined a family that you would find at classic holiday destinations: a cuddly dad in a Hawaiian shirt, a lively mom with organizational talent, the selfie-making teenage daughter, the dinosaur fan brother, the cute little sister, and the single uncle who accompanies the family. “

Are these characters represented like that exactly in the game?

Björn: “No, this first concept is only used for finding a style. These drafts were further processed by my colleagues. We need a style guide that specifies the look of the NPCs, dinosaurs and the other assets, so that the graphic style of the game is uniform – despite the different graphic artists working on it. Therefore, such images are created in the early development phase of a game.

Were there any special challenges when creating the NPCs for Dinosaur Park: Primeval Zoo?

Björn: “Absolutely, because the dinosaurs are of course the stars of the game. The NPCs should therefore take a step back, but still be likable. In addition, the representation of the NPCs in the game is rather small – therefore their design has to be created in a way which makes them recognizable at first glance. This can be achieved by using a silhouette that is slightly over the top. For example, I created a granny in the game as a small round figure, which can be easily recognized from every perspective now. However, assets such as a colorful Hawaiian shirt or a balloon held in a hand also help to set striking accents.”

Have you ever included an Easter egg into a character design?

Björn: “You could say that. Coincidentally, on Pride Day, I had the task of designing a new Dino Park visitor. I put her into a sweater with a rainbow pattern.”

More articles on the game development of Dinosaur Park: Primeval Zoo

Developer Diary Editorial

How the 3D dinos were created

How the dinos learned to walk

3 pro tips for a dinotastic UI