DAVID SMIT
All work

Creative direction · Strategy

Civ Royale

Historical strategy in short mobile battles.

Creative direction · Game design
Civ Royale key art with stylized historical warriors, a village and flying machines beneath a pastel sky.
Civ Royale key art.

From a paper prototype.

I developed the initial paper prototype and game design for Civ Royale, then shaped the art direction and brought the team together.

The characters use recognisable historical references and simplified proportions. I chose concept and 3D artists whose work suited that style.

Artwork & process

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A Civ Royale concept sheet showing front, side and rear views of historical infantry and their weapons.
Infantry concepts, with views and equipment details for the 3D artists.
Front and side concept views of a Civ Royale cavalry unit on horseback, with a tall winged backpiece and lance.
Winged cavalry: character and mount concepts.
Side and front concepts of a Civ Royale knight in armour on a horse, including separate views of the saddle and mount.
Mounted knight: shapes, equipment and proportions.
A rendered Civ Royale rider with a green scarf, surrounded by other mounted warriors in a grassy field.
Mounted characters in a shared scene.
A tightly grouped cast of Civ Royale characters in stylised helmets, hoods and historical clothing.
Faces and silhouettes across the cast.
A Civ Royale concept sheet with historical soldiers, an airship, a flying machine and wheeled siege weapons.
The cast, flying machines and siege equipment.
An illustrated Civ Royale island map with castles, villages, forests, mountains, paths and small lakes.
The world map.
A stylised Civ Royale windmill with a rounded stone base, brown roof and wooden sails on a small grassy platform.
A building from the world: the windmill.
A rendered Civ Royale scout in a green hood and cloak looks through a telescope while standing on a rock.
The scout.
A portrait Civ Royale game screen showing colourful hexagonal terrain, units, castles and cards along the bottom.
The battlefield and card interface.
Civ Royale promotional artwork showing a group of historical warriors in a snowy landscape with a red-and-white sail behind them.
The cast in a winter setting.
Two people sit at a table covered with paper hexagons and tokens while testing a board-game prototype.
The early paper prototype.
A Civ Royale ensemble with foot soldiers, a mounted rider, an eagle and flying characters on a white background.
The wider character ensemble.