Character Artist Max Ouaddane’s creations are enjoyed by millions of fans of the smash-hit Xbox game Sea of Thieves. He spent three years working on the pirate fantasy series, making figures such as a giant megalodon shark with a fiery bite.
“We produced monsters and living skeletons that run around,” he said. “We also did all the art for series 15 – boars, jellyfish, big sharks and other fish. They were really cool designs.
“When you see the art style, it’s like a Disney film. It’s very artistic and everything is hand-painted. In games, 3D is the fusion of traditional art and computer science.”
Max has been working for Flix Interactive since graduating from University of Staffordshire in 2022 with a BA (Hons) Games Art degree. He soon found himself immersed in the Sea of Thieves project, which Flix was co-developing with another studio, Rare.
“When I first started, I was more of a general artist, doing 3D modelling and environment art. Character art is a lot more technical because you have moving parts and joints.”
He learnt the core skills back at university, where he got hands-on with ZBrush, the software that enables artists to sculpt in 3D. “It’s like digital clay,” said Max. “With ZBrush, the licence for it is around £800 – we got it for free at uni.”
He initially joined Staffordshire to study Computer Games Design, but switched to Games Art after being introduced to the specialism by one of his lecturers.
“When I started experimenting, I got hooked on it. With 3D, you draw it, sculpt it and then paint it. You can spend months learning these techniques. Every single part of it is crucial.”
Looking back on his university experience, Max credits the academics with sparking his enthusiasm. “They were very approachable and made the course really enjoyable,” he added.
“Staffs also had a MoCap Studio and lots of Wacom tablets. It was coming up consistently as the best place to do games design. It was definitely the right choice.
“We also did collaborative projects, where you became an artist with a team of students. They were designed to be like a real job.”
But the biggest advantage was the University’s industry contacts. One of his lecturers even sent off Max’s portfolio to Flix, which led to an interview and his job offer weeks before graduating.
He said: “You get that much industry exposure. It’s having access to guest speakers, industry insights, and getting your work seen by people who can offer you a job.”
He exhibited his final-year project at the University’s GradEX show, where his work was judged by industry professionals. Max was recently invited back to Staffordshire as a GradEX judge himself.
“I’ve also mentored students who have gone on to be hired. It’s a great feeling to give something back. Staffs is where I found what I wanted to do with my life. It’s where I got to work on so many things. It was a unique experience.”
Max is now working on unannounced projects for Flix, so can’t reveal the details. But he said: “I’m really enjoying my job. I get to work on really exciting stuff. I’m still learning different things about 3D every day.”
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