Toon Style Web Site For Computer Game

We need someone to create a website to help us advertise an MMO computer game that is being built. I've attached a document to this bid request with all of the details about what we want the site to include. It will require that the designer be skilled with Toon Style graphics. You must also be able to work with FLASH and be skilled with HTML. Ultimately, the MOST important skill you should bring to the job is your graphics skill with Toon style artwork and textures. If you are good at that, we can always find someone else to help with the technical issues. I've also attached some of the artwork that has already been created for the game (mostly character art). In the attached document, I have included several URLs to the work in progress. The site has already been started, but we have decided that it is not the direction we want to take so we stopped work on it and are looking for a new designer. See the document for more details. The other thing that is very important to us for the person we award this job to is communication skills. You must have a very solid grasp of English and you must be able to understand the subtlies of the language of design. We also ask that you work with us through this project to help us achieve the look and feel that we want for this web site. We don't want someone who is going to go off on their own for two weeks and create the site without our input. We want someone who will communicate with us on a regular basis. We want someone who can show us some elements of what they have in mind - some sketches, some textures, some flash effects, some basic border designs. Then, allow us to pick and choose what we like the best. We are not a high budget game - so cost is going to be a factor as well. No one is working for free on this project, but nobody is getting rich either. We would also ask that the first task be that you create a list of Milestones for the building of the site. This way we can know what order you are planning on doing each task and so we can make sure you understand what we want. There is a lot of work here and if you could break up your bid price and put a price on each milestone, then we can pay you as you go rather than making you wait till the site is complete. You don't need to do this until the bid is accepted. ## Deliverables First of all, here is the URL for the current (unfinished) web site. [[login to view URL]][1] Here is the URL for the web site forum. [[login to view URL]][2] We want to keep a lot of the layout of this web site, but we need to change the graphic look. There isn't much done on these yet, but here they are: <[login to view URL]> <[login to view URL]> <[login to view URL]> <[login to view URL]> See the notes from our concept artist below: ************* I've finished the stuff for the site, I've updated the overview (below) I sent you before and enclosed sketches to explain.? I'll also be sending along some bits and pieces to help the site along, (the simplified team logos etc) but I wanted to suggest that if whoever you have doing the site has some formidable photo-shopping chops, you get them to maybe take a run at improving some of the textures on the logo. Anyway, on to the website stuff: OVERALL LOOK The sketches are pretty self-explanatory for the most part, the black/grey marbled background and the weathered looking, ornate gold frames should be the motif for most of the site but obviously if it starts looking tacky or crowded in practise, maybe the marbled look could be substituted for a flat black. We want it to be a brighter look than what it is now, but which will still bring out the colorful characters. I have enclosed some sketches to be used for tabs and frames but I understand that when it gets put together it can sometimes come out differently so whoever you hire should feel free to ditch whatever isn't working. The effects on the metal should be realistic, but painted looking, chunky and tarnished. We don't want the "steam punk" look that the site has now. It's too dark for the style of the game. We want the frames to be a drawn look rather than a realistic look. Use the character models and the building models we have included to give you an idea of what we are looking for. MENU Animated Flash menu along the top (sketch enclosed). The glowing stars are good, but we don't like how the sky changes colors and flashes. It would be nice to see the banner waving in the wind. TEAM COMMUNITY-Fan Art - Competitions - Forum (pulldown options) NEWS FAQ GAME- Characters - Stages & Levels - Overview (pulldown options) MEDIA- Screenshots - Concept Art - Downloads (pulldown options) SHOP PROFILE TEAM Simple HTML Page with links to text pages on each team member with a short description of what we do and later, interviews, plus whatever contact details you want on there. COMMUNITY Forum - Link to the forum, not sure how much account stuff you want going through here, have a think and we can tackle that when the time comes. Fan Art - Simple thumbnail gallery, small thumbnails with the ornate frames leading to the enlarged version of each, I have enclosed a sketch for how this format will work. Note, while the characters on the sides of the screen are in colour (albeit with low opacity) for the other pages of the site, for the gallery pages their saturation is removed so they don't distract from the central image. Competitions - Simple HTML, text with the odd screenshot to illustrate. I might do some cartoons/icons for some of these pages later (dwarf with oversized pneumatic paintbrush for Fan Art etc) to give the site some more character, but I want to see how it looks without them first so I can gauge what parts really need it. NEWS NEWS will be the home page with the animatic at the top. When you scroll down, the articles are in kind of a blog format like WoW's site with a thumbnail pic on the left and a paragraph of text for each. To the right (or left or underneath, I'm easy ^_^) of the animatic there should be two more elaborate tabs (like interchangeable banner ads almost) that we can change whenever we want that provide easy access and draw attention to whatever the most important features are at the time. I've seen this work very well on a lot of game sites. (Sketch enclosed) FAQ Simple HTML, text deal. List of questions at the top each linking to the answers farther down the page. GAME The game tab on the top menu should have three pulldown options to Characters, Stages and Overview. Characters On the left there will be a Flash slideshow of the character art, flipping through the different skins for them and on the right, a description of who they are and how they work. When we have the animations done, I'd like to add small animated gifs of their attacks (using low-res screenshots) by the descriptions of the attacks. (Sketch enclosed) Stages and levels Similar to characters (Sketch enclosed) Overview Eventually we can go into more detail when we have stuff like the HUD up and running, but for now a small paragraph at the top summing up the game, followed by a History of the Shadow Wars etc, something to put the game into context. MEDIA Screenshots Simple thumbnail gallery like most sites, if you click on one it takes you through to a larger picture with nav arrows under it to go onto the previous or next image in hi-res. Same as Fan Art. Concept art Much the same as screenshots, but obviously we'll be able to have content in there from the start. I've already prepared some sketchy concept stuff and put it on that parchment stuff that'll look good on the site. Downloads Links to downloadable goodies, wallpapers, icons, screensavers, whatever we feel like putting on there. I wouldn't mind whipping up some nice looking wallpapers real quick so we can have something cool on the site at launch. SHOP This would be a place-holder for now but eventually a portal to the WTK Zazzle store or links for direct download (if you're doing that). Let me know when you want this done. PROFILE This would be where existing users login and eventually where all of the account stuff will be. Maybe we'll just do it all through the forums page for now though, up to you. Obviously, stuff will come up that I haven't accounted for so please pass on my details to whoever you have doing it in case they need me to clear any of it up.? Anyway, that's it for now *************** More Notes: Forum: We used Simple Machine Forum for this page. Modify the look so that it fits with the rest of the site. <[login to view URL]> ********* Character Pages: We are still writing this material. Some of it is on our Staff forum which we will get you access to when you sign on for the job. We also have models of all the characters almost complete and would like to have a flash animation of the model rotating. Maybe it would be good to put it at the top of the character page for that specific character. Let us know what you need to do that. ******** Stages and Levels: We've got most of this written for the first 6 levels, but need to modify it all for the web site. Right now it's in "design document" format rather than "web page" format. ******** A Brief History of the World: This section should look like an ancient encyclpedia with illustrations. We have about 5 pages of this written and have another 15 or 20 pages still to go. Next to the text, we are going to place pencil drawings that are just like the pencil drawing you used on the index page of the General. ******* Game Designer Profiles: There are seven designers right now besides you. We don't have anything written on them yet, but we plan to have a paragraph about each one and a headshot of each one. Eventually we are going to give everyone a link if they want it so others can reach you if they have business to send your way. ************** The FLASH animatic for the index page - notes: The size of the animation is 600x255 pixels, so it is much wider than the space on the current page and we want to keep the video large. We were thinking that you could create an interesting way for the video to open up on the page... here's an example of a page that has a video opening on it. <[login to view URL]> If you click on "Watch The Video Trailer" a window opens up on the page. We could do something like that where the video opens up over the space you have for the trailer and partially covers the Dawnwalker and the Juggernaut. If you have an alternate idea for this, let us know. At the end of the video, we would like it to freeze on the black background War Torn Kingdom logo at the end of the video, but we aren't sure how that would happen if we open a new video window instead of using the space that you created on the site. Let us know what you think. This video is completed and on the staff forum. It just needs to be put on the page. ************ I know there is a lot of info here. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask. The first job we will ask you to do is give us a list of Milestones and an approximate time frame for completing each one.