(back cover) What better way to turn a creative hobby into a career than to get a job in video game designA--as an artist! In this practical compendium of techniques for drawing, painting, and computer graphics, the emphasis is on the art skills used throughout the games industry. Learn the essential steps for building a complete scenic environment from thumbnail sketches to finished color illustrations Discover how to conceive, sketch out, and bring to life your own dynamic cast of charactersA--from a band of heroes on a mission, to the flesh-eating monsters out to stop them Get an inside track on how the game design business worksA--and understand the pivotal role of the thousands of artists being hired each year This book is designed to inspire a new generation of artistsA--explaining the art essentials such as composition, perspective, linework, and rendering for real-life results, and advising on the pure creative process of coming up with ideas and getting them down on paper. Bill Stoneham has been a professional fine artist for 30 years. He has worked in both feature film and effects studios and for the last 20 years has been creating art for computer game companies such as Lucas Arts and Eidos, among others.