Case Studies

Our clients bring us some amazing challenges. To learn more about how we can assist with your project, contact us:

 

Client: Robots and Pencils

Syfy Channel’s Primeval New World dFX in Augmented Reality

Syfy engaged Robots and Pencils to build an Augmented Reality application based upon the Syfy Channel’s Primeval TV show.

Challenge: Bring Dinosaurs to Life in Augmented Reality

The application called for the dinosaurs to appear on screen in Augmented Reality, combining user recorded video with an overlay of the dinosaurs so they looked like they were really in the scene. We were tasked with animating and rendering the dinosaurs from the TV show in Maya, create the audio for each dinosaur and finally the User Interface. The User Interface had to be fun, but had to easily show other dinosaurs and animations for sale.

Solution: Use Augmented Reality to Allow Users to Create and Share Dino Movies

We provided User Experience and User Interface (UX/UI) design, 2D and 3D art and animation support for the development of the Augmented Reality application.

We had to create concepts of the animations by delivering animatics and audio proofs. This allowed Robots and Pencils to sign off on the general motion of the animations.

The augmented reality experience came to life when combining the animated dinosaurs, special effects and captured video. Each dinosaur was animated to enter the scene in an interesting way and approach the camera while attacking. This gave the user many choices to make fun and interesting videos to share.

The final images were optimized for mobile play. The dinosaurs were rendered to various sizes for different mobile platforms to match their screen resolution. This allowed for the dinosaurs to be “composited” on top of real-world video to create a final video that could be shared easily.

Benefits: Social Sharing of User-Generated Content Created Explosive Awareness of the Television Program

Our extensive experience in interactive development allowed us to deliver animations on complex rigged characters (dinosaurs!) in the 3D Animation Tool Maya and rendered each dinosaur with the appropriate textures and lighting for the scenes.

Primeval New World dFX (iOS): Augmented Reality App Primeval New World dFX (iOS): Augmented Reality App

Client: Virtuix

Omni Virtual Reality Gaming Platform

Virtuix engaged us to create evocative marketing images for their Omni Virtual Reality Gaming Platform.

Challenge: Convince Players They Are “In” The Game for Kickstarter

Virtuix approached us before their successful Kickstarter campaign because they needed marketing materials that visually explained the Omni Virtual Reality Treadmill experience. The Omni is a physical treadmill for use in virtual reality applications. The user can walk freely and naturally on the Omni in 360 degrees. The immersion of physically walking around in a virtual environment is mind blowing. Your brain believes you are in a different place. How could we present that feeling to a consumer?

Solution: Generate a Virtual World Including a Human In Game Themed Costumes

Working with the Virtuix creative team, we reviewed their ideas about how to demonstrate this. Their ultimate solution was to show a virtual world with a human inside the world. This gives the viewer a mindset that people are “in” the experience. Combining this with an image of the device in use gives a clear understanding of the full 360 degree experience. Virtuix took into consideration what would be the best types of virtual simulations that would resonate with our target audience, settling on “Tomb Raider” and “Mortal Kombat” – style images for release.

The final images were created by compositing the real image of a model on a green screen on top of a virtual world image created in a game engine called Unity. Sounds easy, but it required many careful stages of production to make it convincing. First, we took the photos from the real world photo shoot and selected the best shots for compositing into the virtual world. Those green screen images were then edited so only the model was visible.

We then worked with Virtuix to select an appropriate environment within which to place and composite the model. These environments were built and displayed in 3D within a game engine program called Unity. We loaded the three dimensional virtual scene onto a computer screen, adjusted virtual objects and lights within the game engine (Unity), and ensured the scene was at an appropriate scale and angle to the real world model. Getting the camera angle and lighting to match up was crucial to the image being convincing to a viewer. The model and virtual world also had to be at a similar DPI (dots per inch) to convince viewers they are “in” the scene together.

Once the model and virtual scene were in place and correct, we performed a similar technique to add in the Omni Virtual Reality Gaming Platform into the scene. For the “ball of lightning” effect in the “Mortal Kombat” – style image, our artists generated the lightning and energy ball in a 2D program called Photoshop and added it to the scene and then adjusted the lighting on the model, the Omni Virtual Reality Gaming Platform, and the virtual game engine scene. This level of detail in production of images of this type is absolutely necessary for a complete suspension of disbelief. For a final touch, color correction was performed on each image to ensure the viewer would see appropriate levels of each color across the image.

Presenting a Virtual Reality image in a way that “puts you in the game” was well-received by the client. The final virtual world and the real model had to match visually, so the lighting and scale of the model was taken into consideration during the compositing. The result is a seamless image that gives the illusion of the person truly being “in the game.” Each scenario was built, lit, and composited separately for client approval. The final images were optimized for print and digital media in high resolution.

Benefits: Kickstarter Successfully Funded in Three and a Half Hours

Meta 3D Studios’ extensive experience in interactive art development allowed us to deliver high quality virtual world backgrounds for the characters, and our compositing experience was brought to bear in the difficult lighting challenges confronted by matching real world with virtual world lighting, scaling, and other issues.

CS Virtuix Omni Combat CS Virtuix Omni RaiderVirtuix OmniVirtuix Omni at Conference

Client: Phunware

Discovery Channel Education: US Geography (iOS)[/caption]Discovery Education – U.S. Geography (iOS)

Discovery Education accelerates school districts’ digital transition through comprehensive standards-based content, professional development, formative assessment, and community engagement proven to positively impact student achievement.

A digital textbook series, built from scratch for today’s learners and current standards, engages students with dynamic, multimodal content and an inquiry approach. Employing the latest techniques in formative learning, data, and motivation, Techbook includes robust professional development to ensure success with digital transition.

Challenge: Teach Learners of All Ages 

Discovery Education wanted to develop an application that would be user friendly to all ages learning geography. This included hundreds of painted images that included regional attributes to each states’ history, geography, wildlife and way of life. The other challenge was to create a UI that complimented the learning and fun of the application.

Solution: Create Easy to Use, Entertaining User Interface

We delivered over 1500 individual graphical elements for inclusion in the product, animated UI elements and an opening 3D Cinematic. We worked very closely with their art director to develop the User Experience (UX) and User Interface (UI).

Benefit: Multiple 5 Star Educational Reviews

Discovery launched the product on time and it has won multiple 5 Star Reviews from Common Sense Media and other educational websites, but the real benefit is that children are learning U.S. Geography!

Discovery Education US Geography Discovery Theater Discovery Education US Geography Southwest


Client: Portalarium

Shroud of the Avatar Human and Creature Animation (PC MMOG)

High-Quality Hand-Animated AAA-Title Animation Assets Created for Richard Garriott’s Shroud of the Avatar.

Backstory: Kickstarter’s Success Leads to Enhanced Expectations

Shroud of the Avatar is the latest game from legendary game designer Richard Garriott. The game received its original funding on the crowdfunding site Kickstarter, and since every penny of the money raised was from fans and players, providing them an amazing experience for a reasonable price was and remains a key aspect of their production.

Problem: Expanded Art Needs for Project Milestones

Working on a tight schedule and budget, the internal team was reliant on bringing in contractors to achieve cost savings, but ensuring a high level of quality from contractors that are outside the studio is difficult and risky.

How could they expand their throughput without negatively affecting deliverable quality levels?

Solution: Create Seamless Pipeline to Deliver On Demand Animations

Portalarium approached Meta 3D Studios for human and creature animations. We put together a bid and presentation that allowed for a clear workflow with approval points for each step of an asset’s life cycle. As communication and constant updates are required to do a good job when creating subjective artwork, we set up a world-class communication suite. In addition to phone calls and in-person meetings, our communication was comprised of an instant messaging app called HipChat, which allows for seamless communication between internal and external teams, and industry standard file sharing programs that allowed for everyone on the teams to view each others’ work 24 hours a day.

Outcome: Milestone Success

Over a period of eight months, we hand-animated around one hundred very game-specific animations assets for Portalarium, allowing Shroud of the Avatar to hit its milestone deadlines and keep to their schedule.

Animations in a Massively Multiplayer Online Game (MMOG) must be created for every character you see in the game, from blacksmiths hitting swords on anvils to a roomful of people dancing. Each creature you encounter must have specific animations for standing still and grazing to attacking and running. We created animations for men and women (Crafting, Emotes, Fidgets, Walking, Attacking, Dancing, etc.) and for bears, cats, stags, wolves and dogs (Attack, Dazed, Death, Get Hit, Get Up, Idle, Knockback, Run, Stunned, Flinch, Walks, etc.) to fill the world with life.

Reflection: Long-Term Relationship With Portalarium Begun

Our successful animation contract led to a long term relationship with Portalarium, strengthened further when they came to us asking to create a video for their World Premiere Launch at Penny Arcade Expo.

Shroud of the Avatar Starr and RichardShroud of the Avatar Characters Animated

Client: Portalarium

Shroud of the Avatar Worldwide Premiere Announcement Video (PC MMOG)

Penny Arcade Expo Attendees Get First Look at Richard Garriott’s Shroud of the Avatar.

Backstory: Legendary Game Designer to Premiere Latest Game

Legendary game designer Richard Garriott’s newest game, Shroud of the Avatar, was making its first public appearance. The game was funded through Kickstarter and expectations were high because Richard was going back to his roots of Role Playing Games. On top of that, this public appearance was for the public and, since the public paid to have the game developed, expectations were extremely high.

Problem: Internal Team Overwhelmed

The team at Portalarium was swamped as they approached the conference and needed a team that could start and complete the project with minimal direction to their development team, and in particular, their art group.

Solution: Provide External Assistance with Minimal Team Intervention

After spending a few hours with their creative group, we came back with a presentation they greenlit immediately and work began that day. Our plan was to take some of the assets they had created and put them together to form a story that teased players with only enough details to whet their appetite until Richard spoke to the fans and shared a little more about production of the game. The plan was for there to be live video interspersed with video of gameplay as well as behind the scenes footage, showing the making of the game.

Outcome: Successful Premiere Earning Worldwide Press

The video was released to widespread enthusiasm at Penny Arcade Expo in August 2014 and has been used as marketing at tradeshows across the world.

Reflection: Long-Term Client Relationship Leads to More Projects

After the video was released, the team at Portalarium was so happy with the results, they hired us again to create the introduction video for the game. But… that’s another story.

SOTA at ConferenceShroud of the Avatar ScreenshotShoud of the Avatar Day Scene Screenshot

Client: Sneaky Games

Syfy Channel’s Monster Island (Browser-based Facebook)

Meta 3D Studios Unleashes Favorite Syfy Creatures for Players to Collect.

Backstory: Syfy Channel to Expand Awareness of Original Monster Movies

With movies like Sharknado and Dinocroc, Syfy Channel has brought unique and unforgettable monsters to the public’s attention. Sneaky Games, creators of the award-winning Fantasy Kingdoms Facebook game, inked a deal with Syfy Channel to create an experience where players can collect their favorite monsters within a Facebook game.

Problem: Developer’s Team Requires Immediate Augmentation

The Monster Island team needed to meet an aggressive deadline with enough content to keep hundreds of thousands of players entertained when the game launched. They approached Meta 3D Studios based upon their relationship forged through previous contracts with their studio.

To meet the exacting demands of Syfy’s art and aesthetic across multiple movie concepts, the art for the project had to meet a very specific style, set by the art director of Sneaky Games. The game called for 2D monsters to be created based upon Syfy Channel’s very broad monster library, 3D world elements had to be designed and positioned correctly to create perfectly isometric art assets for buildings and the like, and also needed a number of User Interface (UI) elements to allow players to interact with the game, while still providing the look and feel of a science fiction monster movie in Syfy Channel’s Monster Universe.

Meta 3D Studios needed to ensure the art was created on schedule, it matched the demanding art style standards, and was delivered with little oversight from the already overworked team at Sneaky Games.

Solution: Continued Relationship With Sneaky Games to Generate Assets

Creative mindmeld: Working directly with their art director, our creative group created a technical and artistic style guide, ensuring we understood how art was being put into the game itself. Creating a look and feel from scratch for the Syfy Channel’s Monster Island Universe was no easy task. Concepts were passed back and forth to a point where the general look (rugged, industrial, and “futuristically sensible” to modern people) was solidified and then expanded upon by our artists.

Our art team was able to begin making assets almost immediately to these exacting standards. The game needed not only animated monsters but everything you would expect on an island that was inhabited by monsters. Cages, trees, rocks, paths, and the like were all part of the challenge to give players the illusion they were exploring a mysterious island and building a habitat for their collected creatures.

2D Production Pipeline: Art was created so that it was easily delivered to the game team for easy importation. The first stage of an art asset began as an idea on a list. Then the team had to create a concept and have that approved by Sneaky Games’ Art Director. Once the concept (let’s say it was a monster) was solidified, work began on the monster’s shape and silhouette in a 2D program called Photoshop. This was then colored through a series of steps in Photoshop, and files, with color and scale included were sent to the art director. Matching the color palette and scale for all of the monsters and the art in the game was a big challenge, and as the game was originally taking shape, this was very important as it would affect production later. Once scale and color were approved, work began on the final 2D art for each file. Shading was added, and all required frames of the monster were drawn. For instance, if a monster was able to be “hit” or damaged, it required an additional frame to be created to make it appear as if it had been hit by a player. Creating each required frame was a time-intensive process that had to be done by hand.

3D Production Pipeline: Some art assets had to be created in 3D, so they could be easily rotated, requiring less adjustments throughout the production process, and so they would meet exacting standards. A building, for instance, would go through a similar process as above (concept, scale, color), but when it was built inside the 3D program, 3DS Max, it would have to be rotated and placed in a way that, when a virtual picture was taken of it, it appeared at the correct angle and dimension for the game. Once this was ready, the artists added shading so it matched the light source in the game. Finally, the art was saved in a 2D format for use in the game engine. By adding this level of detail, down to the angle of the sun, the objects in a game screen appear to inhabit the same virtual world, with all objects being illuminated by the same sun, at the correct angle.

User Interface: Our team was additionally tasked with creating many of the User Interface objects for the game. Buttons, panels, and other “popups” that matched the expected look were quickly created for use within the game, giving players the ability to play easily, while constantly reminding them that this is a world that lives and breathes.

Our relationship with Sneaky Games allowed us the ability to add and test our work within the game engine, so as one of the final parts of the process, we put the art in the game engine and cleaned up everything required to get the art to its final state and it was submitted to the client.

Outcome: Successful Delivery of Assets for Launch Date

The required artwork for Syfy Channel’s Monster Island was created on time and on budget by our team of talented artists. Two dimensional and three dimensional work was delivered in the two dimensional format that matched the game engine’s requirements. The team was able to launch the game to a level of quality that made Syfy Channel very happy and the game made a big splash with their fans.

Reflection: Relationship with Developer Led to Another Successful Project

We are happy we could enhance our relationship with Sneaky Games. Syfy Channel Monster Island was a great project, and having the ability to create two dimensional representations of their monsters was a huge challenge as well as very satisfying. Expanding their canon by adding new monsters and minions was a once in a lifetime challenge and  seeing the game made was an awesome experience.

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Client: Sneaky Games

Fantasy Kingdoms (Browser-based Facebook)

Fantasy Kingdoms Brings Magic to Life on Facebook.

Backstory: New Client, New Project, New Platform

In December of 2009, Sneaky Games approached Meta 3D Studios as they were planning a new game based upon a fantasy world where players could build the Fantasy Kingdom of their dreams and it was poised to be launched in three months. In order to generate enough content to ensure a successful launch, they needed to augment their art team with experienced talent in a big hurry. Since their founders had relied on Meta 3D Studios previously, they gave us a call.

Problem: Match Technical and Aesthetic Requirements of New Intellectual Property

Building a game is a challenging task. Getting the basics in place to begin production of final art requires a lot of effort and once this has happened, oftentimes the art team is not able to grow quickly enough to fill the immediate needs of full production speed. Fantasy Kingdoms was no exception. They needed art and they needed it fast. The plan was to launch in March of 2010, and that date was approaching quickly.

Sneaky Games approached us in December of 2009 with the goal of creating hundreds of art assets by March, for their launch at South by SouthWest Interactive 2010. The art style was in its infancy and the technical plan was still being formulated. Once the game was launched, they were expecting millions of players, so everything had to not only “work,” but look like it was produced by the same art team. And don’t forget, it had to be on time and on budget.

Solution: Build Asset Delivery Pipelines to Remove Friction

Creative mindmeld: Working directly with their art director, our creative group created a technical and artistic style guide, ensuring we understood how art was being put into the game itself. Creating a look and feel from scratch was no easy task. Concepts were passed back and forth to a point where the general look was solidified and then expanded upon by our artists.

Our art team was able to begin making assets almost immediately to these exacting standards. The game needed not only animated creatures but everything you would expect in a Fantasy Kingdom that was inhabited by wizards and witches.

2D Production Pipeline: Art was created so that it was easily delivered to the game team for easy importation. The first stage of an art asset began as an idea on a list. Then the team had to create a concept and have that approved by Sneaky Games’ Art Director. Once the concept (let’s say it was a creature) was solidified, work began on the creatures’s shape and silhouette in a 2D program called Photoshop. This was then colored through a series of steps in Photoshop, and files, with color and scale included were sent to the art director. Matching the color palette and scale for all of the creatures and the art in the game was a big challenge, and as the game was originally taking shape, this was very important as it would affect production later. Once scale and color were approved, work began on the final 2D art for each file. Shading was added, and all required frames of the creature were drawn. For instance, if a creature was able to move, it required additional frames to be created to make it appear as if it was walking or flying. Creating each required frame was a time-intensive process that had to be done by hand.

3D Production Pipeline: Some art assets had to be created in 3D, so they could be easily rotated, requiring less adjustments throughout the production process, and so they would meet exacting standards. A building, for instance, would go through a similar process as above (concept, scale, color), but when it was built inside the 3D program, 3DS Max, it would have to be rotated and placed in a way that, when a virtual picture was taken of it, it appeared at the correct angle and dimension for the game. Once this was ready, the artists added shading so it matched the light source in the game. Finally, the art was saved in a 2D format for use in the game engine. By adding this level of detail, down to the angle of the sun, the objects in a game screen appear to inhabit the same virtual world, with all objects being illuminated by the same sun, at the correct angle.

User Interface: Our team was additionally tasked with creating many of the User Interface objects for the game. Buttons, panels, and other “popups” that matched the expected look were quickly created for use within the game, giving players the ability to play easily, while constantly reminding them that this is a world that lives and breathes.

Our relationship with Sneaky Games allowed us the ability to add and test our work within the game engine, so as one of the final parts of the process, we put the art in the game engine and cleaned up everything required to get the art to its final state before it was submitted to the client.

Outcome: Visual Look and Feel and Technical Requirements Met and Exceeded

The required artwork for Fantasy Kingdoms was created on time and on budget by our team of talented artists. Two dimensional and three dimensional work was delivered in the two dimensional format that matched the game engine’s requirements. The team was able to launch the game to a level of quality that made Sneaky Games very happy and the game made a big splash with their fans.

“Randy and his team were the only ones that demonstrated the wide range of art skills we needed along with the ability to fulfill our aggressive art production schedule. Their artists were incredibly creative and flexible, able to produce high quality art from concept to finish. They incorporated feedback well and quickly, worked within technical specifications producing the high quality of finish needed for our art style. Additionally, they have adapted easily to pipeline changes, provided artists that had a wide range of skill and knowledge in 2D, 3D, Flash and animation as we’ve needed it.” – Kristen Scallion, Lead Artist, Sneaky Games

Reflection: Relationship Solidified Leading to Long Term Support and Additional Projects

We are happy we could enhance our relationship with Sneaky Games. Fantasy Kingdoms was a great project, and having the ability to create two dimensional representations of their creatures was very satisfying. We worked together on Fantasy Kingdoms for years after the launch, generating thousands of art assets for this beautiful game!

Our next collaboration with Sneaky Games was Syfy’s Monster Island.

CS Fantasy Kingdoms LogoFantasy Kingdoms (Facebook) - Asset Creation: Dragon Fantasy Kingdoms (Facebook) - Asset Creation (Winter Assets ) Fantasy Kingdoms (Facebook) - Asset Creation Fantasy Kingdoms (Facebook): Art Assets Fantasy Kingdoms (Facebook) - Asset Creation: Lava Set Fantasy Kingdoms (Facebook) Fairy Bloom Artifact Art Assets

Client: EnsenaSoft Games

Multiple iOS / Android Games (Video Demos, Systems Design, Level Design and Building In Unity 3D)

Meta 3D Studios Takes EnsenaSoft Into the Third Dimension on Mobile Devices.

Backstory: New Client, New Project, New Platform

EnsenaSoft came to Meta 3D Studios looking to expand into deeper and more unique experiences and into the realm of 3D app based gaming and more traditional video gaming styles.

Problem: An Extra Dimension to Play With

EnsenaSoft required experience in 3D game creation and needed solutions that could augment their team in the creation of a cohesive style for this new generation of their games.

Solution: Plan, Design, Build, Animate, Repeat

Working closely with the client’s programmers, we created design documents as needed to help steer them in the right direction. Characters were developed, modeled, and animated to fit this new style (see below Case Study). We worked on multiple concurrent projects for this new style many of which influenced each other as EnsenaSoft honed their vision. Feedback and testing were done for systems, user interface, control schemes, and debugging.

Multiple video game levels were designed and tested for the different projects in the Unity game engine, keeping in mind the limitations of the minimum system requirements of their target platforms. Adjustments to design both character and game were done on the fly as the client’s style found its home.

Benefits: Practical Experience Plus Collaboration Pays Off

Meta 3D Studios’ experience in game engines (Unity 3D in particular), video game technology, design patterns and systems as well as 3D character design and animation gave our client a head start on the development of a new 3D gaming style for a company that was traditionally 2D.

“Meta 3d Studios is a great partner to help us get there and I am always awaiting to be amazed when I get new work from them.” – Samuel DenHartog, Chief Creative Officer, EnsenaSoft

CS Bayla Bunny Screenshot MenuCS Bayla Bunny Screenshot OutsideCS Bayla Bunny Screenshot Jet SkiPepe Porcupine MenuPepe Porcupine Level

Client: EnsenaSoft Games

Multiple iOS / Android Games (Low Polygon Character Design and Animation)

Meta 3D Studios Creates Original Characters for Multiple EnsenaSoft Mobile Games.

Backstory: Long Term Relationship Expands

After our successful collaboration on multiple projects, EnsenaSoft entrusted the design, creation, and animation of their new characters to our team from start to final delivery.

Problem: Different Game Styles, Same Character Look and Feel

EnsenaSoft needed a series of original characters created for multiple games. They wished to see a unique set of cartoonish characters that could all fit into the same game universe so they could all be used anywhere in any of their games. These characters had to be designed with a limited number of polygons to ensure the games are not affected in a negative manner. Too many polygons on screen means that games run slowly, and no one likes that.

Solution: Sketch, Model, Texture, UV, Rig, Animate, Repeat

Taking high-level feedback and direction from EnsenaSoft’s creative lead, we generated fast sketches for approval, adjusted them based upon feedback, and began modeling each character in 3D Max. Once a model’s silhouette was approved, we created a final texture for the model in Photoshop and applied it using UVs so the client could approve it or ask for further modifications. When the model and texture were approved and looked correct in the Unity game engine, they were moved to the animation team. The animators rigged and animated the characters in Maya based upon the animation list we helped generate based upon our game development experience.

As the games’ productions moved forward, we added or modified animations to match the expected behavior of the characters.

Benefits: Practical Experience Plus Collaboration Pays Off

Meta 3D Studios’ experience in 3D character design, creation, and animation in multiple toolsets (PhotoShop, 3D Max, Maya, and others), game engines (Unity 3D in particular, as it was the final target for asset use) and video game design provided our client with a series of successful characters and animations that have found life in their current and future games.

“Meta 3D Studios has consistently delivered high quality videos and wonderful 3D characters with great animations. The characters they have helped us create will hopefully be the foundation of new directions for many years to come. The new characters have inspired us to try new things and reach for new heights.” – Samuel DenHartog, Chief Creative Officer, EnsenaSoft

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Game Trailer created for PC Gamer to demonstrate their proposal to work directly with Steam. Motion Graphic Awesomeness!


Game Trailer created for EnsenaSoft’s game Catchy Tunes.


Client: Heroes Lodge

Online / Television Video Advertisements

Non-profit organization Heroes Lodge engaged Meta 3D Studios to create videos to drive donations for their facilities and support services.

Challenge: Create Two 30 Second Spots that Explain Heroes Lodge and Drive Donations

When Heroes Lodge came to us, the public had never heard of the project. Our goal was to give viewers a focused overview of the project and to pique their interest enough to drive potential donors to the Heroes Lodge website.

Solution: Find the Heart and Soul of the Lodge, Write Focused Copy, and End With a Call to Action

First, we worked with the representative of Heroes Lodge to ensure we understood the impact of the project. We found out that the goal is to provide lodging and nearby services for veterans that are houseless. Our next challenge was taking the overall story and shortening the message to fit within a 30 second format.

We then pulled together footage that would resonate with potential donors, presented it to the client, and narrowed the clips to those that were the most impactful. We took those into Adobe Premiere and then added the text to get the timing correct. After multiple edits, we presented it to the client.

Since the main goal is to drive users to the project’s website, we worked to get the messaging at the end to be clear and succinct. After some sessions with the client, we decided upon what is in the final pieces.

Benefits: 

The project was completed in time for Memorial Day, 2016, so we were able to create special versions with a respectful tribute to our fallen servicepersons. Other projects with Heroes Lodge are in the works due to successful delivery of these videos. Additionally, they are able to use these videos for online advertisements, TV ads, and in-person patron meetings and discussions.

Video Advertisement created for Heroes Lodge to drive donations.


Client: Gamieon

Hyperspace Pinball on Steam (PC, Mac, Steam, Linux)

Gamieon Unleashes Action Pinball / Shooter Mashup on Steam with Upgraded Graphics from Meta 3D Studios.

Backstory: Gamieon Partners with Meta 3D Studios for Graphical Upgrades

Hyperspace Pinball was Greenlit in February 2015. Realizing it needed a massive facelift to meet the high graphical standards of a Steam game, Gamieon sought out Meta 3D Studios to conceptualize and model a sleek, futuristic looking pinball table that fit the genre.

Problem: Finding the Right Partner That Could Understand Technical Challenges During Production

Christopher Haag, President of Gamieon, approached Meta 3D Studios with a challenge to take Hyperspace Pinball to a new level with its graphics. Chris was busy designing and coding the project and needed a team that could learn the needs as well as work with his current technology without having to stop forward progress on other areas of the game.

Solution: Learn Technical Requirements and Desired Look and Feel

The team at Meta 3D Studios spent time with Gamieon to gain an understanding of the look they wanted. The technical requirements for the art creation were documented and given to the art team as well.

Gamieon shared of sample art with Meta 3D Studios until we honed in on a few pieces that together made up the table. After some back and forth between Gamieon and Meta 3D Studios, the final table model was implemented. Gamieon then acquired third-party shaders to give the table its optimal appearance.

Outcome: Successful Steam Release on Windows, Mac, and Linux Platforms

Hyperspace Pinball was released to widespread enthusiasm on Steam for multiple platforms, including Windows, Mac, and Linux and has earned great reviews!

Hyperspace Pinball


Hyperspace Pinball gameplay!


Hyperspace Gif