An environment artist is a professional artist who works in the
video game industry
The video game industry encompasses the development, marketing, and monetization of video games. The industry encompasses dozens of job disciplines and thousands of jobs worldwide.
The video game industry has grown from niches to mainstream. , ...
or
film industry
The film industry or motion picture industry comprises the technological and commercial institutions of filmmaking, i.e., film production companies, film studios, cinematography, animation, film production, screenwriting, pre-production, post ...
as a
3D modeler
In 3D computer graphics, 3D modeling is the process of developing a mathematical coordinate-based representation of any surface of an object (inanimate or living) in three dimensions via specialized software by manipulating edges, vertices, an ...
, specializing in outdoor and indoor locations for a
game's setting.
They are responsible for creating the majority of the overall asset and visuals the player will encounter on the screen, modelling, texturing and placing assets, buildings, streets, foliage, furniture and all other elements into a scene using a method called set dressing. They
also approximate collision so that the player isn't running through walls or other objects that block, optimize
topology
In mathematics, topology (from the Greek language, Greek words , and ) is concerned with the properties of a mathematical object, geometric object that are preserved under Continuous function, continuous Deformation theory, deformations, such ...
so that the level runs at a manageable
framerate
Frame rate (expressed in or FPS) is the frequency (rate) at which consecutive images (frames) are captured or displayed. The term applies equally to film and video cameras, computer graphics, and motion capture systems. Frame rate may also be ca ...
, and help bring life to the game world. Environment art has become an increasingly desired field of work since the rise of console gaming. With more technology comes better environments. There is usually direct correlation between time and quality of environment art.
References
{{videogame-culture-stub
Video game design