GART 250 : Agent Fitz' Room Part 6: Details decals and Scene breakdown
- emilykenny20
- May 14, 2023
- 6 min read
This is probably going to be the longest post as it delves into the objects the details in their textures and the reasoning and explanation behind a lot of the objects and things in the scene.
Some important context for the scene Varium as a company is very powerful and employs the use of Agents that are genetically/physiologically modified to carry out usually less than legal or pleasant business to maintain their monopolies in a dystopian future. Thus, has to walk a fine line with its Agents between having enough control over them but keeping them happy enough that they don't whistle blow or cause a lot of damage.
This why High class agents Like Agent Fitz and the Unit Vespa have these luxury apartments with personal items and certain liberties, but don't have access to the ability to cook all their own food (their diets would be carefully monitored) or any privacy. And for Fitz who has been there the longest out of all the Vespa members certainly would not be allowed free range to the wider world at large.
Portraits :
I actually did some 2d work for this project it felt weird to still be using the portrait of a the character that I did 3 years ago. So I did a portrait of Fitz that is actually used in the scene on his company ID card. I also did a portrait of his younger sister to also be used in the scene.
The cameras :
A big way that Varium exercises its control over the agents is by its constant monitoring , the agents themselves don't have any form of real privacy and its seen by just how many cameras are scattered across the apartment. Their also not very subtle about it the cameras aren't hidden they want the agents to know and feel like every move they make they'll know about it. There's even cameras where the agents sleep and one pointing directly into the bathroom. Very dystopian and big brother eques.
The CDs :
As mentioned in a previous blog post Fitz doesn't have access to the internet or larger world as a whole and he considers himself quite old fashioned and I think how would that look in the year 2036 ? Well a lot of people collect vinyl records now it'd be interesting to see if people would collect CDs like that in the future.
Some of the albums chosen however are admittedly a bit more of meta references to the characters playlist and the music I was listening too whilst working on this project. Apart from the Taylor Swift album as its a funny character detail that Fitz is canonically a Swiftie.
Some of the more meaningful CDs are the mix tape and the cd simply titled "mum". the mix tape has this old faded photo of his sister and is titled "car ride mixtape" I like to think that Given when his mother was born that her and Fitz made these together and that he's kept them this entire time. I also really love the concept of mixtapes myself and it brings back nostalgia from when I was in high school burning songs onto cd's or transferring things from pen drive to pen drive with my friends.
The Roomba:
When asking for more ideas for clutter assets someone suggested a Roomba and I couldn't help but think of the Meme where people taped knifes onto their Roomba and thought "Yep this Character would definitely do that". and so I modelled and textured a Varium branded Roomba with a plastic knife attached since in all likelihood the Agents wouldn't be trusted with any resembling a weapon outside of combative missions.
The kitchenware :
This is another way I could get across parts of Fitz's personality and background details with the Inclusion of his pink Kitchen ware to show of his favourite colour.
I also wanted to show off his humour with the use of novelty mugs, I added in little details like dirt , tea and coffee stains inside the mug to show their age and the fact that the character isn't exactly the cleanest.In addition chips and cracks from where the character might've dropped the mugs or thrown them.
I'm particularly fond of the " I sell drugs with a valid prescription mug" as it makes reference to Fitz role in the team as the medic and primary person responsible for their health care.
The tea and cigarettes:
I like to think that one of the few luxuries Fitz has is getting their caffeine fix imported from the UK I can't imagine anyone be it from Scotland Ireland or England would ever willingly drink American tea or not have a proper kettle if they could avoid it. The type of herbal tea he drinks as well are ones that are meant to be calming and help a person sleep a small detail in an environment that could tell a player a lot about a character.
The cigarettes however are a popular American brand as I imagine him to be significantly less fussy when it comes to his nicotine addiction. he also doesn't seem to take good care of his things as there's even rips and tears on the boxes.
Fitz also has a tobacco tin everyone I know who smokes has one of these cheap metal tins they roll cigarettes with and store nicotine in. this is probably a keepsake of his and a nice way to include a nod to his nationality in the scene with the Irish flag.
The pill bottles:
If this was an actual video game scene the pill bottles would probably be the biggest indication to a player as to the mental state off the character. There's plenty of empty bottles and half full bottles scattered around. It would be fair to assume through context clues that this character abuses his medication.
I made sure to use the labels for the medication that the character actually take on the bottles.
The files :
These files are great way to show the type of shady way the Company goes about censoring things with the classic "blacked out information" and one could argue that paper could be obsolete in 2036 but I think a paper trail for classified information in the future opposes way less risk than a digital trail would to a company like Varium. It'd be easier to burn paper records than it would be to risk a data leak.
There's also Fitz signature disrespect on display.Showing he doesn't really handle these documents with care cover in mug stains and immature comments and doodles.
The decals :
These where something I knew I wanted in the project from the very start before the big rework. Fitz as a character is really childish and playful and has a strong sense of humour which really contrasts against his situation. I thought a good way to show case of the characters thoughts and feeling would be through his reminders, doodles that would be plastered over his living space.
A lot of them also reference events and other players from the table top game which felt like a nice inclusion.
The enjoy the view post it note is Fitz's cheeky way of coping with the fact that there's a camera pointing directly into his bathroom.
Theses are the post it notes on the digital calendar in his room , it makes reference to the type of global missions he goes on and his less than stellar relationship with another character Doctor Monroe.
The serious notes and reminders on his computer screens.
This doodle of a clear night sky is too show that Fitz misses the peacefulness of his old life in Ireland and a sky full of stars is probably a sight that's rare both in his life and this dystopian future.
Another doodle.
-The Microwave incident
Fitz is also someone that causes a lot of issues as mentioned before Varium has to walk a line with its Agents between having enough control over them to make them carry out their many many crimes and shady operative missions and keeping them happy enough so that said agents don't turn around an stage a coup.
Fitz definitely pushes that line. This was and to his frequent misbehaviour its implied the reason he no longer has cooking appliances , like the microwave is that he blew it up rather recently and the scorch marks are still there to prove it.
And judging by this doodle he doesn't exactly care all too much.
Here are the decals I made for the alternative lighting scene where the apartment is trashed as a result of one of Fitz's breakdowns . Initially I wasn't sure if I would do the alternate scene or if I had the time but I ended up being able to do it. I thought about how unstable someone like Fitz would be in a normal environment and then what would happen if you lock them in a room with 24/7 surveillance. I think anyone would have a breakdown over that.
I also included scorch marks and burnt paper, part of the characters abilities in the original game was pyromancy it made sense he'd use this ability to trash his room.
(For References please look at the end of this blog series )
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