From the Organizers of Unearthly Challenge
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I would like to give a special thanks to those who entered the first of a new series of annual environment art challenges - the Unearthly Challenge. There were a lot of skeptics that believed an environment competition would never work, but you all proved them wrong. Great art was made, fun was had, and new skills were learned. With over 100 fantastic finalists, your commitment and support have ensured that there will be a bigger and better Unearthly Challenge 2!
In the end, although everyone couldn't be champions, I hope each of you left Unearthly Challenge with a piece of knowledge that will help you with your future endeavors. It was an honor to have witnessed such great art in the making - Congrats to all!
Special note to Polycounters - You beat the good guys yet again!! You should all be tarred, feathered, hanged, and then shot... but I still love you guys=p Well done!
Sincerely,
Fredrik Hultqvist
- Unearthly Challenge Organizer
- Dominance War Organizer
- GameArtisans.org Founder
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Not unlike the very first Dominance War, Polycount & Gameartisans kicked-off another huge annual event that brought together the environment art talent and allowed them to showcase their creativity, drive, and talent on a whole new level. From this, we saw huge collaborative efforts from community members that we've really never seen before. In short, it blew us away.
Some thought it to be a risk, having an environment art competition of this magnitude, but Fred and myself are proud to say the Unearthly Challenge was a huge success thanks to both communities involved and the amazing artwork both communities produced.
It is with great pleasure that I say congratulations to all of you who entered and to especially those who placed as the Top 7 Champions - fantastic work!
Sincerely,
Adam Bromell
-Polycount Administrator
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Unearthly Challenge Special Thanks
We would like to thank the following companies who believed in this event.
Your support meant a lot to us.
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38Studios is thrilled to be a sponsor of the very first annual Unearthly Challenge. Powerful and evocative environment art is a keystone in making memorable games, and we look forward to seeing the industry’s top talent create some real ‘unearthly’ creations. We are confident that the Unearthly Challenge will grow to be as big as Dominance War. Best of luck, everyone! |
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Big Huge Games is excited to sponsor Unearthly Challenge, celebrating the creative talents of 3D and Concept Environment Artists from around the world. Fortunate enough to have a few of our own in-house artists as finalists in Dominance War III, Big Huge appreciates the pride and commitment to ingenuity that is generated from these competitions. The entire Big Huge Games team looks forward to seeing the wealth of talent and artistry that's put forth. |
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Crazy Bump - It is desired that fanciful environments be represented
electronically. It is likewise desired that Earth-primates struggle
amongst themselves. Such things are pleasing to CrazyBump. In
furtherance of these desires, CrazyBump sponsors this "Unearthly
Challenge. |
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Cryptic Studios has always been a fan of supporting all facets of the artists’ community, and there is no better way to offer support than by becoming a sponsor for the “Unearthly Challenge.” Cryptic believes that artists need to be recognized for their bad-assery, and participating in this completion will allow that to happen. We believe so strongly in this competition, we are willing to give interviews and possible employment to the top 6 contestants. |
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Digi-Guys is pleased to be one of the sponsors of the first Unearthly Challenge. It's great that this competition will focus on the creation of Worlds, Levels & Environments - which are, in essence, major characters in all games - and something that is often ignored. As artistic boundaries are always pushed in these challenges, we're really looking forward to seeing the work produced - both from established professionals and undiscovered talents. It'll be a mixture of fun & hard work for everyone involved, from artists to judges - but we know the quality level will be outstanding! Good luck to everyone from the crew at Digi-Guys. |
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Eat 3D is honored to be a part of the new Unearthly Challenge contest. Our goal at Eat 3D are to give artists the highest quality next-gen training imaginable. As fellow game artists we know how much time and effort goes into these contests and we continue to be inspired by your ambition. |
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Liquid Development is thrilled to sponsor the 2008 Unearthy Challenge. As a multi-disciplinary art and design company, we have seen firsthand the results inspired by artists' creativity, dedication, and imaginations. We wish all entrants in the competition the best of luck and cannot wait to see the amazing 3D environments created by the talented teams working in our industry. |
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Pixologic is always honored by the number of artists who win competitions using our software. ZBrush is considered by many game
and special effects studios to be a "must have" tool for its ability to work with multi-million polygon meshes in real-time, paint
and sculpt on models simultaneously, and output normal or displacement maps for extremely realistic and detailed final renders.
It is a pleasure for us to be one of the sponsors for this contest. Good luck to all!!! |
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Realtime Worlds are very pleased to be part of a competition that draws together such a high standard of talented people and provides them with the medium to showcase their work and compete against the industry's tops artist and rising stars. We'd like to wish all competitors the very best of luck. |
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Shadows In Darkness is excited to be a sponsor in this year's Unearthly Challenge. Being so close to the art side of game production, we are always eager to see how some of the top talent in the industry is pushing the envelope and the Unearthly Challenge will do just that. This competition allows both industry vets and talented newcomers a chance to showcase their skills and talent on an even playing field for all to appreciate. There is also a wealth of information available as a result of these competitions that enable artists to enhance there skills and gain valuable knowledge as they advance within the game industry. |
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Streamline Studios is proud to be a sponsor of the very first Unearthly Challenge. We are looking forward to exploring the creative worlds encountered, and the journeys that artists will take us on during the course of this competition. We wish all of the entrants the best of luck. |
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Threewave is excited to be sponsoring the Unearthly Challenge as we share the passion and love for 3D environment art. We're proud to be a part of this contest and cannot wait to support the art work & effort both Polycount & GameArtisans community members will put forth. There has been an increase in energy, effort, and quality of 3D environment art over the last few years and the Unearthly Challenge will only exemplify that. We're looking forward to seeing 3D environment art that rises up to the challenge. Best of luck to all the teams & individuals who enter this truly epic event! |
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Valve is excited to be part of Unearthly Challenge this year. Strong art direction and creation is a touchstone for all of our products at Valve and we’re looking forward to seeing what this year’s competitors produce. We’re honored to be sponsors and wish everyone the best of luck. |
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