6/13/18

Samurais VS Shinobis

FINISHED!

Challenge Description

Our world is the near future in the cyberpunk setting. Artificial intelligence is becoming so developed that it is used in all areas of life. AI becomes the main tool and the main weapon. A neural interface is used as a weapon - a special combat AI that is connected to the human spinal cord and can control each muscle. This makes a man a super warrior with perfect reaction, precision of movement and dexterity. Exact calculation allows even to dodge bullets and catch them on the fly.

The effectiveness of AI consists of computing power, energy, and available information. AI models the situation, all possible outcomes and tries to predict everything. However, when two fighters with a strong AI enter the fray, the computing power from both sides collides and an advantage is created in one direction or another. At the same time, the intuition of a person, the key decisions made by him, or simply luck, play a role.

The main question is either trust the AI completely to use its power to its fullest potential, or use the freedom of will and make their own decisions, while greatly reducing the effectiveness of AI. The problem is that the effectiveness and assessment of damage from the perspective of AI often diverges from the concepts of morality of a particular person. For example, sometimes it is necessary to sacrifice some people in order to save more.

But there is a golden mean that only a few people manage to reach - Symbiosis. In this case, the person and his AI complement each other and act as a whole. Then the "coolness" grows significantly. This gives hope that in the future AI will not replace humanity, but will become a part of it. There are two main opposing forces. They are called Samurai and Shinobi.

We have prepared two tasks for you, the first one is character design, the second – environmental design. You can use any tool and techniques: 3d for blocking, photobash, matt-paint, regardless of the task. There are two categories for that Challenge with separate prize fund, you can choose one or participate in both, applying for prizes for both of them.

Prizes

Category: Character Design

1 place

$1,500 from NEKKI
One of the RENDERU.COM online courses for free

2 place

$750 from NEKKI
50% discount on one or the online courses on RENDERU.COM

3 place

$375 from NEKKI
25% discount on one or the online courses on RENDERU.COM

Category: Environmental Design

1 place

$1,500 from NEKKI
One of the RENDERU.COM online courses for free

2 place

$750 from NEKKI
50% discount on one or the online courses on RENDERU.COM

3 place

$375 from NEKKI
25% discount on one or the online courses on RENDERU.COM

Deliverables

Category: Character Design

Participations have to prepare 3 drawings of character concepts for the two fractions. One concept is two samurais, another one is two shinobis. It is also required to merge all the resulting characters in one image. Try to diversify your characters, height, weight, physiological features, play interesting neurointerface, it does not have to be the same for both fighters. First of all, we will evaluate the design, and secondly, the drawing techniques.

Samurais
Samurais are law defenders in service for the Central Artificial Intelligence. They carry out various missions, fight shinobis, like terrorists, and search for secret laboratories. The task is to come up with a design of samurais who works as a team. The elements of the costume should contain neurointerface, carry cold weapons (such as katana). The design should include distinctive samurai elements.

Shinobis
Shinobis are the shadow side of the world. Hackers and scientists, in secret laboratories developing alternative technologies based on stolen ones. Oppose the system. Shinobi hide behind spacious clothes with hoods and wear masks.

Category: Environmental Design

The task is to create a detailed panoramic shot of the city. The view is from the edge of a roof on a huge skyscraper, on the one side of the abyss, on the other the wall of the building with scaffolding and incomprehensible cables and transformer booths. There must be spotlights from searchlights and a flying drone. The design of the drone should be presented on a separate sheet. The atmosphere of the world should be reflected in this concept. In the final work, you should have one image of the city and one image of a helicopter/drone.

Important!

Submitted work must be in high-rez .jpg format (not less than 2000px on smaller side). The weight mustn’t exceed 3 MB.
Participants are required to create high-quality works; in terms of their style and level of performance, one can orient oneself to the cyberpunk classics, such as Blade Runner, Ghost in the Shell.
It is allowed to use any convenient toolkit to achieve the highest quality result.
The description of the work is desirable, but optional. Do not forget to attach a link to the competitive wip in the description.

Challenge Dates

The duration of the Challenge is 2 months. Works submission is carried out from June 13 to August 15 (inclusive). Please note that the works may take several weeks to be checked. But by the end of the submission all works will be moderated. Winners will be announced and posted on Renderu.com on August 22, 2018.