Buggin’ Out!

This piece was something I’ve been wanting to try out. The idea is personal. I worked on my Jeep all weekend…it’s something I’ve had for years. I got it at the same time as I got my dog who passed on last spring. Lately I’ve had the most vivid dreams of him. After tearing my knuckles apart under the hood of my beater all weekend, my dreams were filled with nostalgic rides with my boy through the old trails in Southern CA we used to bump around on. He was a great sport!

The other side of this piece was to try to integrate my 3D models with an illustration. I’ve been modeling in 3D apps for over a dozen years now. So I took a piece I did a while ago of one of my Story Tellers and tried to work the two disciplines together. I’m not sure how I feel about it yet. I think we all understand the crutch and integrity issues involved, but I’d love to hear what you all think about it…

Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One

Well folks, the cat (and his motley crew of friends) have been let out of the bag! At Gamescon in Germany last week, Insomniac Games announced two new projects: Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One and Resistance 3. It was great to finally get the news out there.

Greg and I have been extremely fortunate to be working along side an awesome team for the new Ratchet title. It was a big move for many of us leaving Los Angeles but the highly neurotic family we’ve formed has been well worth it. If you’re looking for more info about the games, check out the links below!

Ratchet & Clank: All 4 One Trailer
A41 Press Conference Playthrough
IGN’s A41 First Look
Resistance 3 Trailer

In other news, Greg and I have been crawling through some pretty deep trenches. Hopefully we’ll see some daylight one of these days! Thanks for hanging with us – we look forward to showing a few things we’ve been up to in the coming weeks. Ok, enough yapping, back to the Cintiq!

Sketchbook Diving

Spending years staring at computer screens for 10+ hours a day can do all sorts of things to you. Aside from gently frying your eyeballs, you may also develop a hankering to get back to the traditional side of drawing. Digital can be great for all sorts of stuff, but lately I’ve really missed pens and pencils. As a result I’ve been trying to make a point to stay active with the sketchbook and tend to bring it around with me. It can be a bit awkward at times, especially during those romantic times with my wife, but I’m gradually learning to adapt.

For sketching I tend to go for the tools that feel right at the time: Ballpoint, Pitt pens, brush pens, col-erase pencils, etc. I’m going to try and put a post together that covers some of the madness pretty soon. I’m always up for new tools, so if you guys are using anything fun, hit me up!

Ratchet and Clank: Cover 2

Greg and I are still cranking away on the Ratchet and Clank covers – which puts us in a comic state of mind – which makes us miss the San Diego Comic-Con even more! We’re having a great time with the images and the creative team putting together the interiors are doing a wonderful job. If you’re curious, you can check out some samples over at IGN and the Playstation Blog. The whole shooting match starts up in September! Tell your comic shops folks!

Turf War

I’ve never seen time go by this fast…it seems between blinks (or random bouts of unconsciousness) entire weeks are trotting by. Greg and I have been buried in all sorts of things but we talk about the site every day. We’re working hard to get back on our posting schedule as we limp through a few more commitments.

We wanted to send out a huge thanks to everyone who has picked up the sketchbook over the last several weeks. The support is greatly appreciated and we’re blown away to see so many of you returning from last year, and the year before. We’ve started to brainstorm a few ideas for the next book, but more on that in the coming year.

For those going to Comic-Con, we’re jealous! Unfortunately we won’t be able to make it to the show this year which is a huge bummer for us. If you’re looking for the best assortment of international graphic novels and sketchbooks, be sure to stop by our pal Stuart Ng at booth 5012. He’ll be the only reseller at the show with our sketchbook for sale. Tell em’ CreatureBox sent you!

Rock onward!