New Tomb Raider

I have always wanted to be a part of coming up with concepts concerning the promotion and delivery of video game press-kits and how limited edition games are manufactured and produced.
Its a good exercise in self-promotion and how the consumer receives the end product.
I thought that I should do something in preparation for the release of the game, as well as try to create something that could stand alone in an industry standard context.

So I have collected some primary information in regards to the promotion of Tomb Raider.
According to Games Bandits, there is already a geogaching event linked into the promotion of the release, although in terms of how it relates to this new, fresh faced university graduate Lara, I have no idea how it would fit in with the games setting of a dark, gritty survivalist nature.

It does however, open up a line of possible enquiry to start the individuals adventure of their own, a "photo-based" opportunity that allows people to create their own style quest.
I think that this collaboration with the geocaching company would be a good idea, but could link in with a theatre company that actually specialises in creating real life experiences that give gamers "bumps and bruises" to really give audiences something to shout about.
Just like the ones detailed in the new gaming broadsheet, ACCESS.(LINK)

Possible deliverables include something similar to the iNfamous 2 press kit;

- Lara's University ID card
- Compass
- Combat knife
- Water bottle
- First aid kit
- String
- Waterproof
- Leatherbound journal
- Other such related survival items

Presented in a pack for would be adventurers to find Lara, or start their own adventure.


More info:

- Puzzles, combat and exploration dominate the main gameplay structure

- Set on one of the island's in the Dragon's Triangle in Japan

- Necessary to gather medical supplies, food, drink to survive on the island

- Who are the island's inhabitants? Lost-esque plot, mysterious feel - could do a message in a bottle/item of Lara trying to contact help/someone to pick her up. Flare inclusive

- Buddha statues are save points, fragment of one to send back to island?

- System of 'base camps' serve as HQ for Lara, including an abandoned monastery

All other info on the game including ones posted here can be found on this site.


Some screenshots to get a feel for the all new Lara...

Found some previous games (Tomb Raider) promotional pieces, they were designed by agencies now defunct:

New Scientist Top 10 Stories of 2011

2011 review: The year in life science

• 11:00 26 December 2011 by Michael Marshall

Read more: "Smart Guide 2012: 10 ideas you'll want to understand"

In 2011 New Scientist saw genetic engineering on fast forward, foxes zeroing in on their prey using Earth's magnetic field, and a game of primordial Pac-Man.

We also discovered that the key to humanity may be in our missing DNA, lab yeast can make the evolutionary leap to multicellularity, and one vertebrate can eat with its mouth shut.

Meanwhile, our understanding of human evolution took a sharp left turn. In the wake of the 2010 discovery that humans and Neanderthals interbred, it emerged that our ancestors interbred with several other hominin species – and that the interbreeding may have helped us go global.

Here are our 10 favourite stories from 2011, from the earliest life on Earth to Egyptian archaeology and the latest developments in synthetic biology.

Life began with a planetary mega-organism
The last universal common ancestor may have filled the planet's oceans before giving birth to the ancestors of all living things on Earth today

Oldest reliable fossils show early life was a beach
The oldest compelling fossil evidence for cellular life has been discovered on a 3.43-billion-year-old beach in western Australia

Brainy molluscs evolved nervous systems four times
Slimy and often sluggish they may be, but some molluscs deserve credit for their brains – which, it now appears, they managed to evolve independently, four times

Skeleton of ancient human relative may yield skin
Two fossils of the extinct hominin Australopithecus sediba could rewrite the history of human evolution. They are in astonishingly good condition, and even their skin may have been preserved

Our ancestors speak out after 3 million years
You may think humanity's first words are lost in the noise of ancient history, but an unlikely experiment using plastic tubes and puffs of air is helping to recreate the first sounds uttered by our distant ancestors

The vast Asian realm of the lost humans
The Denisovans, mysterious cousins of the Neanderthals, occupied a vast realm stretching from the chill expanse of Siberia to the steamy tropical forests of Indonesia – suggesting the third human of the Pleistocene displayed a level of adaptability previously thought unique to modern humans

First images from Great Pyramid's chamber of secrets
They might be ancient graffiti tags left by a worker or symbols of religious significance. A robot has sent back the first images of markings on the wall of a tiny chamber in the Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt, that have not been seen for 4500 years

Eating your greens alters your genes
The Brussels sprout is no mere side dish. A landmark study suggests that this dinky member of the cabbage family – along with rice, broccoli and possibly all the plants you eat – changes the behaviour of your genes in ways that are new to science

Chicken revisits its dinosaur past
Evolution has been rewound to create a "snouted" chicken. That means we might also be able to fast-forward it to create the animals of the future

E. coli's genetic code has been hacked
The genetic code common to all life is not set in stone – we can change it at its most fundamental level for our own purposes. Genetic engineers have invented a new way to quickly, precisely and thoroughly rewrite the genome of living bacteria

OWT creative from Salford Zine Library

Issue 9 - Chance

Issue 7 - Science

This 56 page zine comes with one of three different A3 posters designed by Lord Whitney wrapped around the cover. There are several screen prints and a full cover center spread as well.

Issue 6 - Differences

http://owtcreative.blogspot.com

JAMBONBON

Mister Shrew

http://www.mistershrew.blogspot.com/

Daddison

Initially, this was going to be a post for the Fishtank brief that Chris and myself will be taking on for the agency Music in Manchester. But I started traversing all over his blog, and he is a great hand typographer who has all of his work in clothing outlets, retail fronts, trainers and does some cool flyers.

Its his style that draws me in, I still do and used to draw quite a bit like his style, but without the eloquent colour choices to back it up. His colour palette is fantastic as are his projects.

Homestudios

.com

MCBESS

http://inspiringmatter.org/

How do I make infographics?

Since I have no idea how to visualise data, I looked up a few tutorials to get me started. Thinking that maybe choosing an easy subject matter from my research and try to visualise it and see how it turns out.

This post is mainly a point of reference for myself so sorry for the amount of links....

http://vector.tutsplus.com/tutorials/designing/how-to-create-outstanding-modern-infographics/

http://www.makeuseof.com/tag/awesome-free-tools-infographics/

Designing An Infographic

Some great tips for designing infographics:

• Keep it simple! Don’t try to do too much in one picture.
• Decide on a colour scheme.
• Research some great facts and statistics.
• Think of it as a visual essay: ensure your arguments hold and are relevant.
• Remember that it’s all about quickly conveying the meaning behind complex data.
• Draw conclusions.
• Reference your facts in the infographic.
• Include your URL so people can be sure who made it.

Ideas for infographic formats include:

• Timelines;
• Flow charts;
• Annotated maps;
• Graphs;
• Venn diagrams;
• Size comparisons;
• Showing familiar objects or similar size or value.

http://visual.ly/

Vintage 1950s Adverts

Thought that since my dissertation revolves around the period of the pre and post Cold War era, it would only make sense to look at how they visualised data and used a combination of functionality and aesthetic to create high impact advertising.
I love the use of a desaturated palette, simple icons and symbols without loss of communication in regards to the function of ideology behind the image.

I found these on brainpickings. The full set can be found on flickr.

http://www.visualcomplexity.com

Not just the overall impact of the adverts appeal to me, but the stock they were printed on adds to the impact. The days when science adverts explained their purpose, unlike today where associative and lifestyle marketing follow the trend of technological gadget commodity culture.

Dan Hipp

HIPP

The man I worship with every fibre of my being. If I could be anyone, it would be Hipp. I love his simple drawings and his cult status amongst the art, design and comic sphere. Producing a shedload of fantastic work freelance whilst teaching water polo. Weirdest yet coolest combination of living for anyone I believe! Think the most relevant thing I can gain from his work would be for the bottom of the bottle brief, concerning the illustrative type which he has made his own sort of signature amongst using vibrant colours. 

Science Illustrations