Mobile Game Art 1: Buildings and Props [CGMA, Isaak Lien]
- Publisher
- CGMA
- Product Type
- Video Course
- Author
- Isaak Lien
- Language
- English
- Duration
- 30:16
- Release date
- Jul 13, 2025
- Skill level
- Project Files
- Yes
- Product Price
- $699
Mobile Game Art 1: Buildings and Props
Mobile Game Art 1: Buildings and Props is an 8-week live course focused on the art side of the mobile game industry. Students will learn how to design, research, sketch, refine, colour, and render tileable isometric buildings and props for mobile games.
The course takes students through the full creative process, from early thumbnail sketches to polished final renderings. By the end of the course, students will understand how to design buildings and props with mobile platform limitations in mind, while still creating assets that are visually appealing, functional, and production-ready.
Students will explore how to research a game’s style and theme, identify a target demographic, create meaningful thumbnails, refine sketches, develop strong colour schemes, and build modular isometric assets that can be used in 2D production art or as concept art for 3D mobile games.
Course Details
Registration Period: 2023Skill Level: Intermediate to Advanced
Prerequisites
Students should have completed Dynamic Sketching 1, Perspective, Digital Painting, or have equivalent knowledge.Required Materials
Students will need:- Adobe Photoshop
- A digital pen display tablet or a regular pen tablet
The more experience you already have with drawing, perspective, and digital painting, the more you will be able to get out of the course.
What You’ll Learn
In this course, students will learn how to:- Understand the role of art in the mobile game industry
- Design tileable isometric buildings and props
- Research game styles, themes, and target audiences
- Create thumbnails and silhouette sketches
- Develop modular building stages and levels
- Design buildings with gameplay function in mind
- Create props that support the world and gameplay
- Build effective colour schemes for mobile games
- Render final concepts with lighting, materials, and texture
- Present mobile game assets in a polished layout
- Create mock game screenshots using tile-based assets
Weekly Course Breakdown
Week 1 - Introduction to Mobile Game Art and Grid-Based Drawing
The course begins with an introduction to the mobile game industry and the types of artwork commonly created for mobile games. Students will review popular game genres, learn about the instructor’s background, and explore different mobile game building formats.Topics include modularity, isometric grids, top-down grids, fusion formats, and how to draw buildings and props within the limitations of a grid system.
Week 2 - Audience, Theme, Genre, and Stylisation
Students will learn how demographics and target audiences influence the visual direction of a game. The class will explore how theme, story, and genre affect the design of buildings and props.This week also covers how to analyse different building styles, break down visual elements, and bend the rules of isometric or top-down design when needed for stronger stylisation.
Week 3 - Designing for Mobile Games
This week focuses on the difference between designing for mobile games and designing for PC or console games. Students will study the visual limitations of mobile platforms and learn how to create clear, iconic, and readable designs.The class will cover first, second, and third reads, helping students understand how to make buildings and props instantly recognisable on small screens.
Week 4 - Building Functionality, Stages, Research, and Thumbnails
Students will explore how gameplay affects building design. The lecture will cover different types of buildings, such as training camps, defence towers, inns, and other functional structures.Students will learn how to create building stages and visual progressions, design buildings that allow for animation, use clear visual markers, manage scale, and begin creating thumbnails and silhouette sketches.
Week 5 - Prop Functionality
This week introduces different types of building props and their functions within a game world. Students will learn how to design props that support gameplay, storytelling, and visual clarity.The class will include examples of prop stages, ways to draw props effectively, and methods for making them visually appealing and readable.
Week 6 - Sketch Refinement and Colour Variations
Students will select the strongest ideas from their thumbnail explorations and begin refining them into clearer designs. This week focuses on improving sketches, testing colour variations, and making sure each asset fits the overall colour style of the game.The lecture will also include examples of colour storytelling and how colour can support theme, function, and mood.
Week 7 - Final Concept and Production Rendering
This week focuses on turning refined designs into final rendered concepts. Students will learn rendering techniques based on different art styles, including direct lighting, ambient lighting, material definition, and texture.Students will also learn how to create an appealing mock game screenshot using their modular game tiles.
Week 8 - Presentation Layout and Course Preview
The final week focuses on presentation. Students will learn how to arrange their work professionally using strong layout principles and clear visual organisation.The class will also include a preview of Mobile Game Art 2, showing how students can continue developing their mobile game art skills after completing this course.
Instructor
Isaak Lien
Art Director and Concept ArtistIsaak Lien is an Art Director and Concept Artist currently working at Jam City. He has over 9 years of experience in the mobile game industry, with a background in 2D concept art, production art, visual development, UI design, and art leadership.
Throughout his career, Isaak has worked with companies and studios such as Jam City, Kiwi, Ogmento, Kung Fu Factory, Mega Rock, and Rising High Studio. His credits include mobile game titles such as Cookie Jam, A Bike Race of Ninja Temple, SpongeBob Moves In, and Slot Revolution.
Beyond his work in mobile games, Isaak has also worked as a storybook illustrator, founder and creative director of the plush toy brand Panda Yeah, creative director and artist for his own mobile game project Orange Fun Games, and a visual arts teacher and tutor.
Although he currently works as an art lead, Isaak continues to be passionate about creating and teaching visual art.
Last edited:
