Honkai: Star Rail (HSR) VFX Style Study

There was a VFX prompt generally stating to create a blue directional impact in a chosen style. I brainstormed different ways blue is used in HSR (ice, cosmic energy, technology, etc). 

I decided I wanted to create an energy/shard-related effect with a kaleidoscope follow-through that might relate to the ice element. I also wanted to implement motifs similar to the current HSR story quest which include shattering glass, fantastical elements, and stars.

Since I was already familiar with HSR, I opened the game and collected screenshots and recordings of both player and enemy effects.

I compiled a slideshow with screenshots and notes of patterns I noticed within the effects. I mainly looked at character effects, more specifically their world exploration attack abilities for reference.

During this phase, I sketched out different shapes and ways to incorporate stars into a kaleidoscope motion using Procreate. After a few ideas, I created the sketches seen above. 

I noticed in HSR that decals are rarely used for these types of attacks, so I thought to myself that I'd focus primarily on the core effect burst first. 

I created a block out in Unity to focus on the shape language and technically test how I wanted the star segments to split and rotate outwards. 

I had never created an effect like this before, so this experimental time was crucial to ensure I knew what was technically possible within the timeframe. I found indexing the particles to rotate them in particular offsets was the best course of action.

During this time, custom textures were created, pacing was adjusted, and shaders were implemented, and most of the effect was put together. 

I would often take a step back to take breaks and critique my work with fresh eyes to see where elements could be improved or iterated.

I took videos of my effect to analyze it for areas that can be polished especially since the effect can be fairly quick. 

I was able to fix some sorting layers and adjust colors for readability. I also staged the area to be able to collect the recordings of the finalized version of the effect.