Since Bubble witch 3 is such a big game with different areas of focus, game teams are siloed into different areas of focus known as “pods” This means that on its own, members of each pod can become isolated to what is going on in other parts of the game.
This can cause issues for the artists when it comes to finding consistency in style, as well as getting a broader understanding of the entire game at large.
This can cause issues for the artists when it comes to finding consistency in style, as well as getting a broader understanding of the entire game at large.
In order to get alignment between not just artists but the different designers working on each team, I organised and facilitated a meeting each week in the Bubble Witch 3 team between artists and designers with the intention that each share what they are working on and to get feedback from the team at large.
This meeting served as a space for all artists and designers to explain design issues and general knowledge sharing, while occasionally sharing inspiration and ideas.
This meeting served as a space for all artists and designers to explain design issues and general knowledge sharing, while occasionally sharing inspiration and ideas.
“People really appreciate the Art and Design meetings, they help the whole team see what everyone is working on and they are something I look forward to every week.”
-Artist on Bubble 3
-Artist on Bubble 3
"The Art and Design meetings are great. They are vital to the team, and I think you manage them well. It's always a very welcoming and open space, and I think that a lot of that is because of the vibe and attitude you bring."
-Artist on Bubble 3
-Artist on Bubble 3
Positive results: This created a nice foundational relationship between art and design. As both disciplines are interconnected, it was important to build the routine at the start of the project where we could share and get feedback from each other. This also allowed members who would normally not interact with each other to get context from projects outside their pod.
In addition, these meetings had the added bonus of getting those in the group who did not normally present a chance to have a “weekly warmup” of sorts. Also for those who had their personal goals set to present more: this meeting gave them a perfect chance to do just that.
Outcomes/Learnings: Many ideas and topics were discussed in these meetings which lead to improvements both in art presentation as well helped designers flesh out ideas or change areas to help understanding.
Overall, an important takeaway is that routines are hard to build especially for teams, so it was important that these meetings happened consistency every week, actively engaged to those involved, and was a fun change of pace from the day to day tasks.
Overall, an important takeaway is that routines are hard to build especially for teams, so it was important that these meetings happened consistency every week, actively engaged to those involved, and was a fun change of pace from the day to day tasks.
